Much like there are two sides to every story, there are two sides to every person.
We have our public side. The one we bring out on holidays. That encourages us to smile when we see a newborn baby, or congratulate a rival on their win over us.
And we have the private side.
The one that feels slightly less confident than we allow ourselves to appear. The one that shudders when no one is looking, or holds internal grudges either with someone else, or ourself.
Neither side is perfect. And neither side is wrong. They are two halves of a greater whole. They are the foundation of what makes us human.
In 2011 I read a book called Beautiful Disaster by the very talented Jamie McGuire, and I loved it. As a matter of fact, that particular review won me an IBBA. (So you can see why it would hold a special place in my heart.) But what I remember about that review the most is NOT my rant about how wonderfully damaged the book was, but my rather wordy admission of aggressive codependency in its first few paragraphs.
And while there will be no retraction of those deep dark secrets I laid bare for all to read, I will say that after reading Walking Disaster (Beautiful Disaster’s companion novel) I understand my own words just a little bit better. That what people see, is not always what people are. That sometimes we hurt, so that others can smile. That rage is not always built from anger, but is sometimes a product of promise. And more importantly…that love can’t change you, but it might…at it’s very core…HELP you.
Travis Maddox learned two things from his mother before she died: Love hard. Fight harder.
In Walking Disaster, the life of Travis is full of fast women, underground gambling, and violence. But just when he thinks he is invincible, Abby Abernathy brings him to his knees.
Every story has two sides. In Beautiful Disaster, Abby had her say. Now it’s time to see the story through Travis’s eyes.
It would be a bold-faced lie if I told you I liked Walking Disaster as much as I did Beautiful Disaster, but at the same time…I would be neglectful if I didn’t say it changed my opinion of a few of the people who lived amongst its pages.
Walking Disaster, for all intents and purposes, IS Beautiful Disaster. The same major elements happen (the fights, the fire, the trip to Vegas) there are pages of duplicate conversations (“If this was poker night at Sig Tau, I would have kept it. I can’t rob your brothers the first time I meet them.”) and all of the same characters make all of the same appearances (Abby, Travis, America, Shepley…) BUT while it IS the same story, it is also NOT. (How’s that for disorienting.)
The NOT is what changed my mind. (I guess this is the part where I should explain huh?)
In BD Travis was the A-typical Alpha male. He slept around. He solved problems with his fist. And he pretty much defined the word overprotective. But in WD, the “obvious” found in BD wasn’t so obvious anymore. The actions I first saw as arrogant, or selfish quickly became understandable or at the very least reeked of vulnerability.
An example:
He seemed impervious to the hordes of girls that approached him after news of our breakup, but he was also content with our relationship returning to its platonic state, however strained. We had spent almost a moth apart, leaving me nervous and unsure about how to act around him. Once he finished his lunch, my heart fluttered when he walked behind me and rested his hands on my shoulders.
“How’s your classes, Shep?” he asked.
Walking Disaster (Travis’s POV)
At lunch, my heart nearly exploded out of my chest when I saw her. She looked different, but the same. The difference was that she seemed like a stranger. I couldn’t just walk up to her and kiss her or touch her like before. Abby’s big eyes blinked once when she saw me, and I smiled and winked back, sitting at the end of our usual table. The football players were busy bitching about their loss to State,so I tried to relieve their angst by telling them some of my more colorful experiences over break, like watching Trenton salivate over Cami, and the time that his Intrepid broke down and we were almost arrested for public intoxication while walking home. From the corner of my eye, I saw Finch hub Abby to his side, and for a moment I wondered if she wished I would go away, or if she might be upset. Either way, I hated not knowing. Throwing the last bite of something deep fried and disgusting into my mouth I tossed my tray and walked up behind Abby, resting my hands on her shoulders.
“How’s your classes, Shep?” I asked, willing my voice not to sound anything but casual.
Hearing (and ultimately understanding) the world in which Travis resided (both physically and mentally) became something much more… endearing (I guess you could say.)
I always loved Travis. I won’t pretend not to, but there were several times during Abby’s pontificating that I worried about Travis’s self-destructive nature. Where it came from, why it was always aimed at those he loved the most. WD answered all of those questions for me. Even more…it made me kinda/sorta dislike Abby.
Why? Because torture is sometimes blind to those doing the torturing. (You will understand that statement more if you decide to read the book.)
Now…I could keep going, but I have a feeling I’d end up sounding more like a fortune cookie than a book reviewer, so I’ll end my rant with a few very blatant thoughts about Travis’s side of life.
1. While it was not the best thing I’ve ever read (and Travis’s constant use of the word bagged left a bad taste in my mouth) I thoroughly enjoyed the option of reading two different halves of a whole.
2. The writing was a little stumbly in the beginning (like McGuire was having are hard time finding her footing) but pushing through paid off, and I found myself a little teary all over again.
3. Your perceptions will change. Be prepared for it. Especially when it comes to the jaw dropping epilogue that was NOT a part of BD.
And last but not least…kudos to McGuire for accepting the challenge so many of her readers threw at her. Much like Beautiful Disaster it will be a love/hate relationship, but you took your characters by the horns and morphed them into lessons of mass destruction. Well done.
Sometimes it’s nice to take a peek inside the mind of a complicated man. This is one of those times.
Happy Reading my fellow Kindle-ites and remember: “Every truth has two sides; it is as well to look at both, before we commit ourselves to either.” -Aesop
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| Overall: | 4 |
Haven’t read it. But really want to get into these books.. when I finally get out of my writing cave!
I have not read Opal. I still need to get to Obsidian. Too many books (not really)…not enough time. 🙂
I just bought Beautiful Disaster this last week when it was on sale but haven’t had a chance to read it.
I have and it was one of my very favorites of last year! Thanks for the giveaway! I’ve been DYING to read the sequel.
mestith at gmail dot com
I read Beautiful Disaster last year, and loved it. It was so intense, I caught myself cringing & holding my breath constantly… Couldn’t put it down. I’m interested to see how reading it all from Travis’ perspective might change my views on parts of the book! 🙂
Haven’t read it yet.
I can’t wait to read it!
Yes I have and I loved it every part of it !!!!!! 🙂
I have read Beautiful Disaster and couldn’t put it down. Stayed up way to late reading and trying to sneak in times at work to read it.
Yes I have, and I loved it 😀
I love how intense it is written – the first chapter with the fight in the basement is so amazing!
And I adore how Abby is Travis´s pigeon