A Beautiful Funeral by Jamie McGuire | Book Review

A Beautiful Funeral by Jamie McGuire

Reading Group: Anyone whose read the rest of the series

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Losing has never been easy for a Maddox, but death always wins.

Eleven years to the day after eloping in Vegas with Abby, Special Agent Travis Maddox delivers his own brand of vigilante justice to mob boss Benny Carlisi. Vegas's oldest and most violent crime family is now preparing for vengeance, and the entire Maddox family is a target.

The secret Thomas and Travis have kept for a decade will be revealed to the rest of the family, and for the first time the Maddoxes will be at odds. While none of them are strangers to loss, the family has grown, and the risk is higher than ever. With brothers against brothers and wives taking sides, each member will make a choice—let the fear tear them apart, or make them stronger.

Cover: The cover of this book has a tree on it with bare branches and falling leaves.  That means that it must be towards the end of fall, which in a literary sense means the end of a life.  Also, Jim gives a speech to his sons about how life goes on the way branches grow off of other branches.  

My Review:  (Just a reminder now that I tend to ramble and give away spoilers)  Oh my gosh you guys this book did me in!  I read it all in one go and didn't go to bed until 4 in the morning last week.  My Predictions from last week was right, but wrong in some ways.  I was right that Jim was the one who died, but he didn't die in a way I imagined.  I also didn't originally think they were going to fake a death, but within about 10 pages of the book I was able to see that that's where it was headed.  Also, I am so upset that Olive died.  I wasn't even thinking of her as an option!  And she was only 18 and about to start college.  Plus, she had already held her brother while he died and now her parents had no kids, and Fayln lost her too.  I wish that she was seriously hurt and maybe it didn't look good, but she pulled through.  Her death hurt so bad.  her death also just seemed so unnecessary to me.  Everyone else I could understand for the most part, I did understand and wrote a blog post about it, but Olive was never on my radar.  She was a Maddox, because she was Falyn's biological daughter, but she was the one no one would know about, so I guess that added an element to the story.
Also, so much has changed!  Fayln and Taylor being in a weird place was a curveball I was not expecting.  And I know they decided to live together again, but I need to know how they work things out.  I also need to know how they handle the fact that the Mayor's son keeps texting her or how he even got her number.  Trenton and Cami not being able to get pregnant was also a surprise, but not as shocking as Falyn and Taylor.  However, I do need to know is Cami ever does get pregnant.  I felt bad to Trenton in this book too because even though he did have lied, his didn't seem as big as his family's and it was clear that he was hurt the most by finding out all of the different truths.  I think this is also what made Olive's death so hard, other than the fact that readers knew her as a little girl and then as an 18-year-old.  Olive was Trent's best friend so for him to be hurting so bad throughout the book and then have to go through that when it looked like it was over was hard.
That Jamie McGuire really knows how to simultaneously ruin and make my day.  Her books are some of my favorites, but then she does stuff like this and it makes me so sad.  However, I think that fact that this book made me feel so much proves how good it is.  If you were to read a book like this and just like "Eh, well it's over now," than the book didn't didn't do a very good job.  A novel should cause a reaction and this one definitely does. 
*Note: Did anyone else notice that at the beginning of the book (Chapter 5) Abby and Travis are at their house talking about baby names before Travis leaves to go t the airport for Liis, but when she does actually land (Chapter 18) Abby is at the hospital having just given birth to Carter?  And there's no way these things happened on the same day because Abby was at Jim's house with Travis when her water broke.  

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Beautiful Funeral by Jamie McGuire Predictions

For those who don't know, I love Jamie McGuire's books.  My favorites of her's are definitely the ones in the Beautiful Series and the Maddox Brothers Series, and she has a new one coming out tomorrow called Beautiful Funeral.

I am really excited about this book because I know it's going to be amazing, but I'm also nervous because I don't know who's going to die.  I know whoever it is I'm going to be upset, and I've been trying to figure it out.  I decided to jot down my thought process to who I think it's going to be.

Travis & Abby ~ Neither of these two can die.  Plain and simple.  They started the whole series and people (Me) would have a field day if either of them died.  However, it would definitely have the biggest reaction from the readers.  They also have three kids at this point and it would just be mean to kill one of them off, Jamie.

Trenton & Cami ~  I will be so sad if either of these two die because I loved them so much.  They were so cute and my favorite out of the Brothers Series.  However, they didn't have an epilogue in Beautiful Oblivion so that makes me nervous.  But I do know that there is going to be a sequel to this book which makes me think that it won't be one of them.  Of course, that book could start before one of them dies and end after, but I just don't think it's going to.

Thomas & Liis ~  Honestly, I wouldn't be completely brokenhearted if one of these two died.  It would be sad because they do have a kid, but neither of these two were my favorite.

Taylor & Falyn ~ Tyler and Fayln were adorable and they have two kids and I just don't want either of them to be killed.

Tyler & Ellie ~ Taylor makes me nervous because there isn't an epilogue at the end of Beautiful Burn and this happened:

"Wow.  That was intense.  I don't know what I would have done if something happened to Taylor.  That makes us three-and-oh the past couple of years."
"What do you mean?"
"Taylor, Trent, and Travis have all and close calls."
[Ellie] buried [her] face into Tyler's neck.  "It's not your turn."
"Well it damn sure ain't Tommy's turn..."

Is that some type of foreshadowing????  Also, he's wrong.  Thomas and Liis got shot and both of them ended up in the hospital.  And Shepley and America got caught in a tornado.  Everyone but Tyler has had close calls.

Shepley & America ~ Although they are part of the Maddox family, Shepley is the cousin so I don't think it's going to be either of them.

I have a gut feeling that it's one of the boys and not one of the girls.  And if it is one of the girls, it's going to be Abby, but I just don't think McGuire is going to kill her off.

Also, the whole reason this is happening is because Travis killed Benny.  So for the mob to get back at the family they plan on killing one of them.  It doesn't really make sense for the mob to target Taylor, Tyler, Trenton, or Shepley because they have nothing to do with it.  It makes sense for Travis or Thomas to be killed because they're the reason that Benny is dead and because they're federal agents.  If you want to send a message, you kill a fed.

However, I think they're going to kill Jim Maddox.  He's the patriarch of the entire family and his death would hurt the entire family.  Also, everyone would be said to read that Jim dies, but it wouldn't be the same as if one of the boys were killed.  No one is emotionally attached to Jim the way they are to the other's because he didn't have a story about him and his wife.

I think that in this story all of the secrets come out and maybe Tyler gets hurt, but ultimately Jim is the one who ends up dead.  Or McGuire could totally throw us for a loop and maybe the death is faked or it's someone I didn't want it to be.

Beautiful Funeral comes out tomorrow and I've had mine on preorder since the beginning of June so hopefully it comes tomorrow, but it's saying the 18th.  My review will be up next Tuesday most likely so we can all cry together and figure out if I was right or wrong.

Who do you think it will be?  Are you as excited/nervous as I am to find out?

You can click below to read the reviews I wrote for some of the Maddox Brother's Series.  Beautiful Disaster, Walking Disaster, Beautiful Wedding, and Beautiful Oblivion I read before I started blogging, but they're amazing as well and if you haven't read them you definitely should!

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Beautiful Burn by Jamie McGuire | Book Review

Beautiful Burn by Jamie McGuire

Reading Group: M for Mature

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Fresh out of college, Ellison Edson has fallen through the cracks of rock bottom. While staying in her family’s vacation home in Colorado, her behavior has finally gained the attention of her parents—but not in the way she hoped. Cut off from the millions she’s always taken for granted, and left alone to fend for herself, Ellie spirals further out of control, making a mistake she can’t take back.

Like his twin brother Taylor, Tyler Maddox is a member of the Alpine Hotshots, fighting wildland fires on the frontline. As arrogant as he is charming, Tyler’s nomadic lifestyle makes it easy to contain his relationships to one night. When he meets Ellie at a local party during off-season, her extreme personality and dismissive attitude fascinates him at first, but as his feelings deepen, Tyler realizes that the crippling inner demons of the woman he loves might be the strongest enemy any Maddox has ever faced.

Cover: The cover of this novel shows a forest with a flame front and center.  In the flame are the feathers that are on the other Maddox Brothers Series books.  I like how they were all incorporated in this cover. 

My Review: Another Maddox boy to fall in love with!  It's so sad that they're all over!  This story followed Ellie and Tyler as they fell in love.  Ellie is an alcoholic who refuses to admit that she needs outside help to to stop drinking.  Tyler is willing to do whatever it takes to get Ellie to admit she loves him.  Their story is a lot different from the rest of the Maddox brothers because theirs took a lot longer to get to the happily ever after.  It was kind of nice that it took a while to get the two of them together because I think it's a little bit more realistic.  In all of Jamie McGuire's books she is able to add some element to her characters that remind us that everyone has something going on.  Abby spent her childhood with mobsters, Cami dated two Maddox boys, Liis had to pretend to be dating a Maddox when she actually loved him, and Fayln gave up her child.  I think Ellie's drinking problem is something that more people can relate to that maybe the problems the other girls had to deal with.  She was trying to love someone when she didn't love herself and I don't know if saying it's impossible is the right word, but it's definitely hard.  She didn't feel like she deserved Tyler's love and it hurt him more and more every time she rejected him.  It wasn't until she came to the conclusion that she need help that she was able to get it and then live the life she wanted to live.  I love Jamie McGuire's books and I can't wait to see where the Maddox family is headed to next. 

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Something Beautiful by Jamie McGuire | Book Review

Something Beautiful by Jamie McGuire

Reading Group:  Anyone who has read all of the other Beautiful and Maddox Brothers series.

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: America Mason, a sassy undergrad at Eastern State University, is in love with a Maddox--Shepley Maddox. Unlike his cousins, Shepley is more lover than fighter, but a road trip to her parents' home in Wichita, Kansas could mean the next step, or the end of everything.

Cover: The cover shows what looks to be a windshield, cracked and being rained on.  This could resemble the storm they drove through in Kansas.  It could also symbolize their relationship.  It wasn't the best at times.  They didn't know where they stood with each other or what the future looked like, but they weren't shattered.  They were just cracked.  And cracks can be fixed.  It costs money to get a windshield fixed, but it gets fixed.  It costs time and energy to fix a relationship, but if you want it bad enough you will fix it.

My Review: I was expecting this story to be about how Shepley and America met.  I figured the road trip they went on was the one they were on when the fire took place.  I did not expect this novella to jump around and fast forward in time as much as it did, but I loved it!  I loved the little stories that led up to the trip to Wichita.  I loved that Shepley and America's relationship wasn't always perfect, but they didn't have giant fights and break up.  It felt very real.  The Maddox boys are a force to be reckon with and even though Shepley is as much of a physical fighter he will do whatever it takes to keep America and form a life with her.  The two of them together are such a power couple and the way they looked for each other proved that no matter what, they are forever.  Both of them were told to stay back in the hospital and wait in a safe place, but neither could.  Neither could just sit there and wait around they had to be moving had to be searching for each other.  This novella was short, sweet, and simply beautiful.
  

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Beautiful Sacrifice by Jamie McGuire | Book Review

Beautiful Sacrifice by Jamie McGuire

Reading Group Rating: Slightly Mature, it's under New Adult.  However, this is the third novel in this Maddox Brother's Series and the 6th book of the beautiful books so you've probably already read those and now what to expect here.

Personal Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Given Summary: Falyn Fairchild can walk away from anything. Already leaving behind her car, her education, and even her parents, the daughter of the next governor of Colorado is back in her hometown, broke and waiting tables for the Bucksaw Café. After every shift, Falyn adds to her shoebox of cash, hoping to one day save enough to buy her a plane ticket to the only place she can find forgiveness: Eakins, Illinois. 

The moment Taylor Maddox is seated in Falyn’s section at the Bucksaw, she knows he’s trouble. Taylor is charming, breaks promises, and gorgeous even when covered in filth—making him everything Falyn believes a hotshot firefighter to be. Falyn isn’t interested in becoming another statistic, and for a Maddox boy, a disinterested girl is the ultimate challenge. 

Once Falyn learns where Taylor calls home, everything changes. In the end, Maddox persistence is met with Falyn’s talent for leaving, and for the first time, Taylor may be the one to get burned.

Cover: This cover certainly matches all of McGuire's other covers because it has the feather theme going through it.  However this one is different because it's burning.  I think the flames have something to do with the fact that the book talks about the sacrifices people make in the book, especially Falyn.  However I think it could also be because Taylor fights wildfires so that's just part of who he is.  It will be interesting to see what Tyler's book cover is as he and Taylor are twins and work together.

My Review: I loved this novel.  I loved getting to know another brother and seeing how he messes up with the girl.  I loved the plot twists and how so much of this book is dependent on fate.  I love that!  And how everything works out in the end.  I'm such a sucker for those types of books because I believe that their is some truth to it.  Where you end up is where you're supposed to be.  I also loved that even though Olive's biological father is never mentioned in great detail, he is in the book.  He comes into the restaurant with his family and as he leaves he says to Falyn that he's sorry for everything.

The only thing that I wish McGuire elaborated on was the fact that at the beginning of the novel Falyn uses her cell phone to listen to music as she cleans, but then she says later that she doesn't have one.  Does she have a physical phone but only uses it for music?  My guess is that that part was written and then somewhat forgotten about as McGuire continued so she didn't think to explain it.  

My favorite thing of all of the Beautiful Books is how they intersect.  There was a comment in Thomas' book about how excited Taylor was when Falyn got to the hotel on St. Thomas, but as a reader you weren't 100% sure why he was so excited.  I just assumed he was excited to see her.  I would of never guessed he was afraid she wasn't coming.  And there is so much romantic irony when it comes to what the brother's know about each other versus what the reader knows.  The only brother who hasn't broken his promise to stay out of a dangerous line of work is Trenton.  However, none of them know that yet.  It's also interesting that it's Trent because he was the one who lived with his dad the longest and seemed to have the closest relationship.   There are secrets within all of the books.  Who would have thought Olive would be such an important character?  

My dream for these books is that all of them (Beautiful Disaster, walking Disaster, Beautiful wedding, Beautiful Oblivion, Beautiful Redemption, Beautiful Sacrifice and the rest to come if they apply) are turned into movies and filmed simultaneously.  That would be awesome wouldn't it?  Because they all overlap so it would be dumb to film one at a time.  Just film them all at once and release them one at a time!  How do we make that happen?

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