Review: Enjoyable read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 17, 2013
Emerald grew up with her escort mother who taught her a whole many things. Em has led her life by the rules her mother instilled in her to keep her heart safe, but so far it has not worked. Trying to overcome obstacles in her path, she has turned to alcohol to find the peace she needs. It’s been years since she has felt any  kind of emotion and when those come rushing at her from every direction she must find a way to straighten her life before she faces her mother’s fate.Mariah Cole did an amazing job in drawing me into the story and she also kept me engaged throughout. I found Em to be hard-edged, sarcastic and completely real. I admired her tenacity, her honesty and her independence. Her story was not an easy one to get through and most times I had to curb the urge to throttle her, but mostly I just wanted to assure her that most things work out in the end.I loved Carter too. With his easy smile and slow-and-steady approach he won both my heart and Em’s. I think the author did a wonderful job of bringing Em’s struggles to the page, especially in regards to her feelings for Carter. I found him to be the perfect mix of unyielding and understanding, which was what Em needed from a man. I appreciated the way the author went about bringing Carter and Em together. She didn’t rush it nor did she wrap it up in a pretty bow. Their conversations were both amusing and entertaining, but it was the emotional depth underneath that got to me. I wanted them to work out and I looked forward to the moment Em let go of herself enough to open up to him.The secondary characters that were introduced added to the story nicely. Each of Em’s interactions with them brought another side to Em that I had not seen. Be it her vulnerability at making friends, her realization of her problems or her feelings of gratitude towards her family, Em’s character grew throughout the story but it was mostly seen when she interacted with those secondary characters that touched her life.Needless to say that Em and Carter’s chemistry jumped off the page. From the moment they met and through each stolen look, shared conversation or quick touch their connection grew deeper. I have to hand it to Mariah Cole, she kept me guessing when these two would finally have their first kiss. When it happened, it was unexpected and left me with a huge grin on my face.All in all, Beautiful Failure was an emotional story of letting go of the past to be able to embrace new beginnings with a complex and interesting set of characters, sizzling chemistry and emotions galore. I can’t wait for the other installment!