So Bookalicious!: Review: Searching for Beautiful by Nyrae Dawn

Saturday 1 March 2014

Review: Searching for Beautiful by Nyrae Dawn

Synopsis
Before, Brynn had a group of best friends, a loving boyfriend, a growing talent for pottery. She had a life. And after... she had none.

When Brynn lost the boyfriend who never loved her, the friends who feel she betrayed their trust, and the new life just beginning to grow inside her, she believes her future is as empty as her body. But then Christian, the boy next door, starts coming around. Playing his guitar and pushing her to create art once more. She meets some new friends at the local communicty center, plus even gets her dad to look her in the eye again... sort of.

But can Brynn open up her heart to truly find her life's own beauty, when living for the after means letting go of the before?

- Goodreads -

Opinion

This is the second book I’ve read by Nyrae Dawn, but it was the first YA book I’ve read by her. I enjoyed this book, especially the second half of the book.

Brynn was a lovely character and very realistic. After her mother’s death she was lost for a while and she sought consolation from the wrong person. And when all comes tumbling down she’s left alone and she has to find her way back to the person she was before everything went wrong. She learned how to move on with ups and downs. There were times she was a bit naïve certainly at the beginning of the book and a bit shrewish to but I understand why she was.
Christian was a lovely guy, someone I could easily befriend myself. Just like Brynn he knows what it is to see everything around you falling down. He tries to push Brynn to be herself again but he doesn’t force his presence on someone when it clear that he isn’t wanted at the moment. He was sweet and understanding and he let Brynn tell him everything when she was ready to tell. He felt so realistic and I really liked him.

The romance between them progressed slowly, there was no rush. Christian understood why she was hesitant to be more than friends and he gave her the time and space she needed.

I liked the plot but at first the book didn’t draw me in and it took me several chapters to get used to the writing style of the author. And the transitions between past and present were a bit shaky at first. But after that I was hooked. Searching for Beautiful was a lovely YA contemporary read. Definitely a book for anyone who’s looking for a sweet, emotional and enjoyable read.