Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward has many twists, turns, and surprises. Ms Ward tells the story by going back in forth in time and some occasional change of the point of view. Because of so much jumping around it took me awhile to become invested in the story, that's the only reason for 4, rather than 5 stars. I was given an early copy to review.

There have been very few books that have floored me with their ending, and this just so happens to be one of them.
The story starts out with you meeting several characters but there are three main characters that the book follows. There is Maddie, the one that the story revolves around. Then there is Ian, her one true love, or so it appears. Last but not least is her best friend Joanna A.K.A Jo. The book starts out with a murder, but you don't know any details about who was murdered, or even who was involved. I won't give any more details for fear of ruining the story, but this book is 100% worth reading.

Definitely made me keep turning the pages and halfway through I couldn't put it down. What you see is not always what you think you see, or know. That goes for people as well, perhaps even more so. 3.75 stars.

was unable to get into the storyline in order to read the book, the jumping around in the beginning confused me.

Debut psychological triller. Story is told in 3 timelines....countdown to the killing, the killing itself, and Maddie/Ian/Jo relationship. Maddie is teaching English in Bulgaria and goes to visit her bff, Jo, in Macedonia. They are young, single and fearless. They meet Ian, soldier/bodyguard. Both are attracted to Ian. Relationship between the three is messy and complicated, and ultimately leads to death. This book will keep you guessing as all characters are flawed, twisted. Book delves into TBI, PTSD. Ending left me feeling uneasy and concerned! Thoroughly enjoyed this thriller....hard to read at times, but harder to put down!

Told in three different times 10 weeks ago and 20 years ago and is told from multiple points of view....this thriller builds slowly. But at the same time sucks you in from the beginning . This book opens with a 911 call featuring a frantic woman begging for help and a terrified child shrieking in the background. The house goes is in a high scale neighborhood . What a great book for a book club!

This book was very interesting to me. So many twists and turns. It shows you the background of humanitarian work overseas in combat zones, as well as what body guards and contractors do overseas. After you feel for these characters, the real work begins. They have to come home and live in the US with their pasts in the back of their minds. They have PTSD and other mental issues going on. You get to take a ride with these characters that has the biggest twist of them all in the end. This is a great read!

I highly recommend this thriller, make you think book!

This book is told from several points of view, and times I found it complicated . That being said I still found it intriguing. I give this book 3.5 stars , thanks to NetGalley .

I struggled with this book, honestly. It contains a lot of flashbacks and different viewpoints, which kind of took away from the majority of the book. I did not like this format until pretty close to the end when I wanted as much information as possible. With that said, I did end up getting sucked into the book, but it took me quite awhile to reach that point. The ending was almost worth it, though.

This is a hard book to review. I had a love/hate relationship with this book from the beginning. I loved it when I first started reading it but then it went downhill from there for me. There were too many POVs and too much switching back and forth in time and place. I would love it in parts and then parts of it did not hold my interest at all. The characters were all pretty much unlikable and most of them were weird except for Detective Diane Varga. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

WOW! This was one heck of a jaw dropper!

An intense, complex and twisted story with a cast of characters that are equally complex and filled with flaws.

The story takes place in 3 main time frames, the past, present and 10 days before the killing, 9 days, etc. With that being said, and not wanting to give away even the slightest spoiler, I kept turning the pages since I wanted to know who the victim was and the possible suspect. However, there was even more that was chilling, and that was the motive.

A story that will have your heart pounding and shaking your head! It will grab you from the first page and suspenseful to the last word!

If you enjoy psychological thrillers, then this one is for you.

(11/29/18 posted to GR https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2518887087 )
(12/04/18 posted to my blog https://wp.me/p370vC-4ZC )

Could not stop reading!! This sucks when you work til Midnight and have to be back at 6...... but that's what happened. I would put it down and pick it right back up! I loved all of the different POV's, but really enjoyed Maddies' the most. Very dark and twisty but came together very well! Look forward to more from Annie Ward! Thank you, #NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Annie Ward did a wonderful job creating these characters! I had a difficult time putting Beautiful Bad down. It was twisted and dark with great detail! I gave it 4 stars and will read again one day.

Dark gripping page turner with a twisty turning plot and excellent pacing. Strong prose--the novel builds tension and will keep you up at night!

What seems to start out as romance, quickly turns into a thrilling ride. Thrillers like this make use realize why a spouse or someone close to us is a prime suspect in a murder - love is emotionally deep, and love and hate are closer than we realize.

Crazy love. Obsessive love. Warped love. Angry love. Broken love. It’s the love story of Maddie and Ian. Both of them are damaged goods.

The story takes place mostly in Europe and the US, and the author does a great job of making all the places seem real with accurate descriptions. I did have a little trouble once in a while keeping up with the timeline as it jumped around, but, overall, it was very effective. The characters are flawed but believable.

There are abundant twists and turns, but, thankfully, no eye rolling from me. The opening captured me and the ending was great, but the middle got a little long. Just when I wondered how this story would/could end, the author answered my question and brought it together superbly.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

The opening of this book drew me in right away so I was really excited to dive into this book. As the story started to unfold I ended up getting distracted by the different viewpoints and a lot of the flashbacks that filled up a significant portion of the story. I enjoyed reading Maddie's viewpoint though and the ending was fun to read because I had not put a lot of it together at that point so I was surprised by the way it ended. Overall this was a good read and I look forward to more from her. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this in exchange for a honest review!

There’s been a 911 call, screaming, and an officer arrives at a house to find blood everywhere. Welcome to Meadowlark, Kansas and “The Day of the Killing”.
Beautiful Bad is told from multiple POV’s and throughout different points in history. Maddie and Ian meet overseas and fall in love. They are married and have a son. After a camping accident that leaves Maddie with no memory of the events, she begins journaling as therapy.
So many things come to light as we jump between time periods and POVs: Maddie’s ambitions, Ian’s PTSD and drinking, and Maddie’s broken friendship with Jo. Twenty years is a lot of time for people to build up fears and resentments, it’s a lot of time for things to simmer, and when they boil over (and you find out the how and the who), you’re left with nothing to say but, “DAMN!”
Maddie’s writing was my favorite, her voice chilled me and made me sad and scared all at once. But, as I finished, I found myself appreciating every POV for what it contributed to the final outcome.
I’m really afraid to say more because I could go on-and-on, which will inevitably lead to spoilers (and I hate spoilers!). Annie Ward has crafted a magnificently plotted psychological thriller and Beautiful Bad is a book I’ll be thinking about for a long time to come.

*I received an ARC of Beautiful Bad from Harlequin and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I can't believe I've had this book for over three months and just reading it now. I finished this in one day. If I had any idea how amazing it would be I would have read it sooner!

Beautifully written story that will keep you up at night. Annie Ward did an amazing job in drawing the reader in and her descriptions throughout the book. I did not find the story or alternating narrators/timelines confusing whatsoever. I liked how the narrator added in real life events into the book, so I felt as if I was reading a memoir. I also liked the big contrast in her relationship with Ian where at times I felt as if I were reading a love story and other times reading a thriller.

This was definitely one of the best books I've read this year, and I hope this gets made into a movie in the future. I predict this to be one of the most popular thrillers for 2019.

Annie Ward's Beautiful Bad, opens with a bang and the tension just keeps building, from the 911 call in the opening scene. Beautifully, and very creatively, written from several points of views, it continues to hold the reader's attention, trying to put the pieces together amidst flashbacks and a very twisted tale of suspense. Will post more, at a time closer to publication date - this one is sure to be a hit. Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin Books, and of course, Annie Ward, for the ARC, in exchange for my honest review.