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Saturday, May 3, 2014

ARC Review: Finding My Way by Heidi McLaughlin


Finding My Way is the fourth book in the Beaumont Series by Heidi McLaughlin. This can be read as a standalone though because it is a prequel to the series and is about how Liam Westbury became Liam Page. I have been hearing a lot of great things about this series, and they have been on my TBR list for awhile now. When I got the chance to review Finding My Way, I decided that I wanted to wait to read the rest of the books after I read this one. I like to get the beginning of the story and see how the characters got to where they are, so this was the perfect way for me to begin this series. After reading Finding My Way, I am even more intrigued by this series and can't wait to see what happens.

Liam Westbury is his town's golden boy. Captain and quarterback of the football team, his life has been planned by his parents since he was a kid. The plan is to attend a college in the SEC (his dad wants Auburn) and then enter the NFL. He has been pushed into camps all his life and is repeatedly told that he is a Westbury and that he is required to be better than others. Liam's girlfriend is the captain of the cheerleading squad and is a part of his plan for the future. His dad doesn't approve of Josie though and keeps trying to separate them. It seems like Liam has the perfect life, except he isn't happy except with Josie and he is starting to dislike football. He has been getting more interested in music, and that is the only other time he is happy. When Liam gets the chance to leave football behind and pursue his music, he jumps at the chance and ends up breaking not only Josie's heart but his own. Years go by and he makes the transition from quarterback to rockstar. He has moved on, but never forgot Josie and knows that there will never be anyone else like her. What happens when he finally heads back home to Beaumont and comes face to face with his past?

I really liked Liam. I was really glad that I hadn't read anything about him before, because it really allowed me to see the changes and progression of his character. I thought that he was a really great guy that was in a bad situation with his family. He was never encouraged or given the support that he should have been from his parents. They had a one track mind and even then they only tore him down. I liked his relationship with Josie, and he was really sweet and committed to her. He was honest and didn't have a problem laying all his feelings out when it came to her. He was just an easy character to relate to and root for. I was really glad when he finally decided to start living his life for him rather than what others expected, and it was nice to see him really take a chance for once. Josie was likable and I thought that she was really devoted to Liam as well. I did however have a few problems with her, and the biggest was that she seemed to be all about the plan for Liam rather than about what he wanted. He opened up to her about his music and even played a song he wrote for her, and her response was so sad. She didn't even really tell Liam anything about it or encourage him, but just started talking about football again. That frustrated me, and honestly I felt like Liam deserved so much more right then. I did feel like Liam and Josie had a really great connection though and they had not only the chemistry and physical attraction but the emotional bond as well. I just think that Josie was used to him being the football star and was a little short sighted when it came to him being anything else.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book and I loved seeing the journey of Liam Westbury to Liam Page. I liked the secondary characters, and seeing how Liam's band was formed. I am really looking forward to seeing more of all these characters and how their stories play out, especially Liam and Harrison's. I felt like the first half of this book was a little repetitive, and seemed to be all about Liam and Josie loving each other and having sex. But after that things started to pick up and we started to get more of Liam's transition. If you are a fan of the Beaumont series, you are definitely going to want to read this and see where everything started. If you haven't read any of the Beaumont series yet, I think that this is a great place to start. I really feel like I already know a lot about the characters and their history, and I think that I am going to really enjoy going into Forever My Girl having already met the characters. I highly recommend this story. I can't wait to dive into the rest of this series and see what else Heidi McLaughlin does in the future.

**ARC provided by Inkslinger PR**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | The Book Depository |



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