BOOK REVIEW: Sugar Baby Beautiful by J.J. McAvoy

Title: Sugar Baby Beautiful
Series: (No; it's a standalone)
Author: J.J. McAvoy
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Rating: 4-Stars
Cliffhanger: No
HEA: Yes 

Review on Goodreads: HERE

     When twenty-four-year-old Felicity Harper is dragged to a sugar party, an event where wealthy men and women seek “companionship,” she never expects this one simple decision to drastically change her whole life.

    Her past is nothing but broken dreams and heartache. Her present is detached and dull. And her future? Well, before meeting Theodore Darcy, the famed film director, writer, producer and CEO of Darcy Entertainment, she would have expected more of the same. Love is just a fantasy and she wants no part of it—even if she can’t deny the undeniable attraction between the two of them.

    So their arrangement is simple: sex with no strings attached.
    But as their intimacy becomes more powerful, so do Felicity’s demons. Can Theo really shoulder her past and his own? And could Felicity even let him?

 

Sugar Baby Beautiful is a standalone book about a young, sugar-baby-beautiful woman called Felicity Harper and her insane journey through life, love, and all the beauty and madness between.

    "It was like waking up from a beautiful dream and having to watch your worst nightmare."

Working as a waitress, call-center operator, janitor extraordinaire, Felicity is used to being self-sufficient—which is why it takes a bit of coercing from her best friends (cousins Cleo and Marc) for her to agree to attend a Sugar Baby Party.

There, with nothing more than her fingers pressing down on the piano's keys and her musical genius, Felicity attracts the attention of a famed film director, writer, producer and the CEO of Darcy Entertainment—a Mr. Theodore Darcy.

    “When I said you’re mine, I meant it. Remember? I say what I mean. I chose scars and all. If it were me, if I were the one who had to be here, would you walk away?”

Within moments, Theo knows she's his and he's hers. Stealing her Sugar Baby number was just the beginning, and after countless rejections on her part, Felicity finally agrees to be friends with benefits with the inciting, devastatingly handsome Theodore Darcy—for a limited amount of time, that is...

...because Felicity knows entanglements are tough to keep, and—for her—always end in heartbreak. But Theo's determined to love her, to be there for her—no matter what.

    Maybe something in me saw something in her. Maybe I was looking for things that weren’t there. Either way, I wanted her just like this.

Reading this book, witnessing Theo and Felicity fall into the deep depths of love—until they're drowning in each other—kept my breath bated and jaw dropped. I laughed. I smiled. I giggled. I gasped. I cooed in absolute awwweeeehhhh.

    When I closed my eyes, it was his face I saw. His green eyes, his unruly black hair, and that wicked smirk on his face. Wherever I touched myself, I remembered his hands and how they’d gripped me so tightly I was sure you could lift his fingerprints right off my skin.

As for the characters themselves:

I respected Felicity for her honest, blunt nature. She believed what she said with a thorough conviction that most people don't have—and in the end, she was true to herself, and right to be so.

    I’m a thousand and one things, but okay isn’t one of them.

 And Theo...my goodness! I adored his cocky, charming nature. It was refreshing to have him as a Hero—such a breath of fresh air from the usual stereotypical alphas—and from page one, he caught me hook, line, and sinker.

    Then suddenly you appeared in my life, and you were like the sun. You made everything brighter. Everything seems at little darker when you’re gone.

But my all-time favorite aspect of Sugar Baby Beautiful is the stories complex layers; different scenes from manuscripts, pretty ballets, references to movies and their famous quotes, the saddened melodies of music, etc. All of these components (and more) came together to create fun, sometimes unexpected elements to this story.

Overall, I couldn't have been more surprised at how much I enjoyed Felicity and Theo's story. Please believe me when I say Sugar Baby Beautiful is so much more than just your average romance... 

*PS: I was given an ARC of this book. But I do solemnly swear that I am up to...good. ;) This is a fair and honest review of this book. Pinky promise.*

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