Can i just say that i was super honored to have received an arc of this book. I will buy my own personal copy as soon as it released today, but i was one of the lucky ones to have read it before that.

Two characters/strangers plagued by guilt find each other in unsuspecting but desperate circumstances.. From sharing a studio apartment these two grow from strangers to friends and eventually lovers. It really was SUCH a beautiful thing to read and i am so happy i got to grow with these characters.

I am one of those people not gifted in the art of writing detailed, heartfelt, expressive reviews.

BUT All i can say is:

Emma Scott is one of my favorite authors..she rarely disappoints..

An emotional love story about guilt and forgiveness.

First things first: this is a fantastic book. I laughed, I cried, I thoroughly enjoyed the journey.

The main characters, Beckett and Zelda (think Fitzgerald, not Nintendo) are two of the lost souls of New York. Each are nearing the ends of their respective ropes, each weighed down by a past they can’t let go. The book doesn’t waste time in introducing us to them or them to each other, but there’s no insta-lust, just two people who need each other’s help. I loved how they grew from strangers to friends to lovers and how they each helped the other grow and heal. There was no stupid miscommunication or pointless fight, which was a refreshing change.

That’s not to say there was no conflict, or that everything is sunshine and roses. Zelda has panic attacks after witnessing her sister’s abduction. Beckett made a stupid decision several years ago which ended with someone’s death. Both of them want nothing more than to rewind their lives and change the past. Instead, they have to live with a heavy burden of guilt and ‘if only’. There’s one chapter where Zelda visits her family and I cried through the entire thing.

They find a chance at healing and forgiveness together. Not only through meeting, but through Mother, May I, the graphic novel that Zelda writes as a form of catharsis. It’s used in-story to bring them together and as a metaphor for Zelda’s emotional journey. Discussing it allows her to express emotions that otherwise send her into a panic attack. The inclusion of actual panels is a nice touch, as well.

The New York City that Emma Scott writes is not pretty or easy, but it has its moments and has real people who are trying their best. I liked Roy and rooted for Darlene. The ending left me satisfied that things are on the up and up for two people who deserve it. I will have to check out more stories from Emma Scott in the future.

Wow! I absolutely love Emma's writing style! Her characters are beautifully written and always a bit of tragedy, but I find this ok. I always like when a book can pull on my emotions. And let me tell you, she has done it again!!

Anytime Emma has a new book, I am definitely one clicking!

Enjoyable story and likable characters.. to me she is one of those authors who's stories you read in one sitting all the time

I did not want this book to end! I need more Zelda and Beckett and Kira and Ryder! As usual, Emma Scott's words just suck you in, and you're flipping pages, not even looking at the percentage you have left, feeling like you know them, and never wanting to leave their world! And then it's the end......NO! I want more so bad!

This was a beautiful story and I really loved Zelda and Beckett and their pure honesty with each other. Zelda is down on her luck in NY, trying to sell her graphic novel, and feels she can't go home. The heartbreak and guilt she carried just killed me. A chance meeting with Beckett turns her world upside down! He basically was her white Knight, but carrying his own guilt around. They were so alike in so many ways. As they struggle to survive, and become closer and closer, Beckett helping with the novel, and revealing more and more to each other, they both fall hard. Their love was something so beautiful and that's Emma Scott's writing right there! Amazing!

Of course, I have to mention Kira and Ryder, Zelda's graphic novel characters. They were a huge part of this book and I loved this aspect of it!

I have to say, many of the tears I cried were happy tears.... That first kiss, her drawings for Darlene and her Mom, Beckett.....sigh, what a great story!

YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED!

That feeling you get when you a finish an epic love story, you know the one - where your reading heart and soul are filled with inspiration, joy, and a satisfaction that runs so deep you feel the story in your bones. Where a dopey smile plasters itself on your tear-streaked face and your partner says "uh oh, that must of been a good one". Yeah, that feeling. It's woven through every single page of The Butterfly Project. The feeling of hope in the midst of desperation. The feeling of calm in the eye of a storm. The feeling that everything will be right in the world even when it is so very not right. Emma Scott delivers an EPIC romance and she does so with brilliance and an understanding of the good in people that's inspiring.

Emma Scott elevates romance to another level. She does it with the utmost honesty and vulnerability. She does it so well her stories are effortless. She does it by exploiting mistakes then turning them into the greatest strengths. She does it by slowly and precisely ingratiating you to the beautiful friendship her characters form. She does it by building implicit trust and sharing. This book reflects the raw nerves of human's souls aching to let go of their guilt, of their past and be recognized as the counterpoint in another as pure and forgivable as WORTHY.

This gifted author makes you FEEL every word and every emotion. She makes you addicted to her characters. She makes you feel everything they feel. I read this book in one afternoon from start to finish. I didn't want to put it down. Not because it was so angsty I couldn't. Not because there's some big mystery in the plot. I couldn't and didn't want to put it down because the writing was so flawless and the story so real and romantic for me I just simply didn't want to stop. I've highlighted half of this book because everything FEELS so important and so crucial to the development of the story. And the worthiness I mentioned above that eventually blooms - my god, it's breathtaking.

Emma Scott feeds your romance reading soul not only with her glorious, evocative writing but these complexly unique characters too. Beckett Copeland shines as the one of the most unique NA heroes ever. Thoughtful, kind, and passionate yet trapped in a self-sabotaging train of misguided thoughts not allowing him to heal. He's a product of his bad decision. That's what I love about him. He holds blame like it's the weight of the world on his shoulders. He doesn't make excuses. His blunt honesty and openness despite his attempt at being concealed proves one of greatest character strengths - his willingness to share, his need for it. His deep level of passion for Zelda and how she makes him feel is hands down one the best feeling you get from the book. He supports her, cherishes her, and respects her as his very best friend. Beckett contests that this is Zelda's story because he doesn't feel he deserves any kind of happiness or hold interest in saving himself but for her, well, he'd do anything. He's an open book and he's a protector. I fell so deeply for Beckett even when he wasn't feeling for himself.

When Beckett meets the girl - Zelda Rossi has a dream she's willing to fight for despite being trapped in her own loneliness and guilt. With a tragic circumstance shaping her whole life she's on a plan to avenge her own young self. I loved her willingness to understand Beckett. She's fierce this girl although she doesn't realize it. She's unique. A wallflower type girl with the biggest heart that feels everything from her past weighing down on her life but despite it making it a priority to live and feel even when she doesn't realize she's doing it. She craves safety and love. Zelda is my favorite kind of heroine. She doesn't make excuses, she carries a weight too she wants to keep concealed. But she never backs down and the good she sees and willing to accept from people is startling. I loved her so much, her attitude, her vulnerability, and her heart.

Meeting Beckett starts a trajectory of change in her life she never saw coming. The two of them together battle demons in a way that's so fulfilling and so romantic. Through friendship and trust they build the dream. The way Emma Scott weaves their gifts for art into the story resonates so much. Through the depictions of graphic novels and the construction of the craft we learn so much more and get a deeper look into their hearts. Scott unravels this story within a story in the most unique way. I loved the artistry and the interesting world she creates because of it.

The Butterfly Project proved to be an EPIC read for me. I couldn't stop thinking about it when I finished. I read the last 25% over again immediately. The beautiful prose and brilliant structure of the story, the unique character development and histories all perfectly executed to create a truly romantic, addicting story. It's vengeance of your own past self. It's reflection and understanding one's own strengths and weaknesses. It's friendship and kindness. It's an exploration of the human condition after tragedy, whether that tragedy was choice or not, to heal, reflect, and strive for innate goodness. It's love and redemption. It's divine forgiveness and inner turmoil. The Butterfly Project embodies HEART and so much SOUL highlighting the best of all of us; it's a heady feeling when you finish this book. I highly recommend this story to everyone. It's a beautiful, unforgettable reading experience I'll cherish forever.

I feel truly honoured that I got to read this book as an ARC. Ah Ms. Scott where have you and your enchanting story telling been all my life? I fully hang my head in shame and say that this is my first book by this author but it most certainly will not be my last. I am fascinated by the ripples of the butterfly effect. We should all apply more kindness and compassion in life.

There are complex layers upon layers of emotions. A spectrum of emotions that bashes down any chance you have of keeping your emotions in check it doesn’t matter how hard you try it just won’t work. I squeezed out a tear here and there and that was justified.

Split into three parts and told in a dual POV you truly get to feel the emotions of the characters in the book. Ms. Scott wrote:

I wanted to believe words had power. The power to change the past. To fix what was broken. To heal. By writing them down on paper, they could work some kind of magic on the reader.

Ms. Scott this is exactly what you did for me. You created a special kind of magic for the reader, a magic of words which will be hard to forget.

I really do not know how Ms. Scott did it with the right balance of banter and then with the heart wrenching, soul ripping revelations that both our main characters come to.

Zelda Rossi has suffered rejection on a project that is her heart and soul. It’s just missing something. But with changes to make it could be something brilliant. If life beats you down then you get up and keep swinging. For some home comfort she goes to an Italian restaurant but her emotions get the best of her.

“Now what the fuck do I do?” I whispered. “I don’t know,” a low, gravelly voice said behind. “Maybe not freeze to death in the stinking alley?”

And so Zelda met Beckett.

Beckett Copeland has also suffered but in different ways. Forced to bear witness to what he had done. A felon one mistake that will lead him to life time of paying.

They come to arrangement. They share a flat. To try again. To gain something so beautiful in the darkness, to find that light, that glimpse that will shoot colour through a black and white world. He doesn’t want to sell blood and Zelda doesn’t want to go back to Vegas.

They are such complex characters that don’t want to ruin a good thing when they know it. A friendship that will change and bloom to something special. They can’t stop it even if they want to. But they are friends and they truly get to know one another.

“Beckett?” He was lying with his head on the pillow beside me. “Shh.” He traced the curve of my cheek and over my temple. “If you don’t go to sleep, you might remember I said that. We’re supposed to be friends.”

Day two, Rossi, and you’re already having impure thoughts about your roommate. But they are electric. They have a connection that neither one expected to have or to even deserve. We all deserve happiness. About forgiveness not from others but forgiving yourself more than anything else.
There were promises in our kiss. Unspoken vows to take care of what we had, of what we were creating in that moment, because after tonight, there was no going back.

And then when it came to Phantasus I was balling my fucking eyes out at 59 %. With the ballons with the emotions with everything. I still find it hard to put into words what I feel. I’m no Beckett.
There are so many powerful words her. So many words with so much meaning. Peace or at least reckoning, love, forgiveness. Forgiving yourself more than anything else. Beckett’s words to Mrs. J got me every single time.

The Butterfly Project is a beautiful, poignant with multiple layers. A book that you will have to read more than once to really let every facet of the book sink in. To feel the true beauty, the chance for me, the chance to deserve something you never think you should. I am blown away with this book and it IMO is a must read for 2017.

I was super excited to read this book. I adored the Full Tilt duet by this author. And while I did enjoy this book, I didn't love it like I did her previous books. I'm not even sure what it was , but I just didn't connect the same way. Sure I cried, and smiled and hoped. And yes, I liked the characters and the story itself. But it felt bleak. And I know that was intentional, but I think it made it harder for me to really immerse myself in their world. I held myself back a little. I guess that's the difference for me between really good and great. I know I sound negative, but really this was a really good book and I gobbled,it up in one night. I,would definitely recommend it, and can't wait for the next book by this author.

Zelda Rossi moved to New York City to forget her past and start anew. As a graphic novel artist, she used her art as therapy. But a rejection pushed her to the edge and desperation led her to ask from the kindness of a stranger.

Beckett Copeland made a mistake and still paying for it not only with his future but also his conscience. His guilt was choking his freedom until she breathed a new life into him. Both of them carried burdens of their past and must learn to unload them before they could move on.

There are an abundance of romance books out there and over time, they all started to blend together. But when I pick up an Emma Scott's book, I knew there'd be something extra that set it apart and that's what this one has.

I fell in love with Beckett pretty much immediately. His heart made up for any flaws he had. He was the epitome of how a good human being could also made mistakes, but one mistake should not define their whole life.

Behind Zelda's spunky hard shell, there's a myriad of regret and insecurities bubbling inside her and threatening to cave in. With all that she was still capable of putting others first.

I like the book premise of chaos theory - something small and insignificant could make a huge impact. A small act of kindness could change someone's course in life. And in this book, it didn't just affect the main characters but also the people around them.

I absolutely love the incorporation of comic page at the start if each parts. I also like how the story in the comic played a part in the characters' decision making.

The Butterfly Project is a story revolved around the theme of forgiveness and how one can find peace in learning to give and accept. It would appeal to readers who like stories that touch the goodness in human beings.

This book grabs you by the heart and doesn't let go. I felt warm reading it. Just happy feeling what the characters felt.