Review: Unbeautifully (Undeniable #2) by Madeline Sheehan

Book Description: 

Warning: This is not a story about fate or destiny. This is a story about pain, sorrow, and suffering. This is an impulsive whirlwind romance between two lovers that are not meant to be together. Theirs is not a world with sunshine and roses. Instead, their love blossoms in a secret world full of crime, violence, and death. Their story is about what can be born from nightmares.

Danielle “Danny” West is the daughter of Deuce West, President of the Hell’s Horsemen Motorcycle Club. A sweet and beautiful girl, she loses her way, searching for things that are always out of her reach. Erik “Ripper” Jacobs is the Sergeant of Arms in the Hell’s Horsemen. Once a man who always had a smile on his face, his life takes a turn for the worst when a tragedy befalls him, leaving him scarred and broken. During a midsummer night, Danny and Ripper’s paths cross, forever changing their lives. Hastily, their lust turns to love until another tragedy forces them apart. On a journey that is marred with ugliness and chaos, Danny and Ripper must discover if their unforeseen connection can find the beauty in their world.

This is Danny and Ripper’s story.

Everything has beauty. Even the ugly. Especially the ugly.
Because without ugly, there would be no beauty.

It seems like it’s been forever since I read Undeniable reality is only 6 months…but 6 months is a long tome…er…time (an eternity) in book time. I’ve read a hundred of book since then. Most good, some bad…some not worth mentioning. But Undeniable was made up of characters that aren’t easily forgotten. The characters stuck with me. And I’ll admit…Deuce has become the benchmark I’ve held other biker heroes to. I’m not saying he was all good…he wasn’t. But he had his moments. The only one to live up to him was Zeke from Club Justice. But…Ripper came really close.

In some ways he was better. The cheating that was prevalent in Undeniable wasn’t there with Ripper…and I liked that. But Ripper still took us on a rollercoaster ride (which is what I’ve come to expect from Ms. Sheehan…she’s good at it).

I wasn’t sure how I would feel about Ripper. He played such a small role in Undeniable that I didn’t have any real attachment to him. I felt bad for what he went through at the hands of Frankie but that’s about it. And I certainly couldn’t see him with Danny. I liked Danny. She was sweet and sassy. Plus, I knew Danny was with ZZ. That was said at the end of Undeniable. So my brain just couldn’t connect the dots on Danny and Ripper.

But from page one, I was hooked on the Ripper drama. I was intrigued by his feelings for Danny. They seemed to blindside him and he wasn’t sure which way was up after that. Danny saw beneath Ripper’s scars. She saw the good and beauty in him when other’s couldn’t or wouldn’t. I loved the time they spent together. And Danny had Ripper tied in knots. He was so conflicted about being with her but he couldn’t stay away.

Then came the inevitable drama. I didn’t agree with Ripper’s decision to leave. It seemed unnecessary to me. This and the fact that he refused to talk to Deuce about being with Danny annoyed me. I felt like he was chicken. He didn’t have the courage to fight for what he wanted. It wasn’t until he thought he was going to lose her to another guy that he worked up the balls to actually fight for what he wanted.

Danny wasn’t exempt from her own bad decisions. Some of her’s were heartbreaking. After Ripper left, she made one that I was surprised by. Not so much the action itself but the decision. I thought for sure she would have done it differently since she was so in love with Ripper. But, I understand her reasoning.

And speaking of Danny’s bad decisions…her friends. Anabeth was horrible. She was not a real friend. She was no better than Nikki or Miranda. She only wanted the club lifestyle and to sleep with as many guys as possible. And she used Danny to do it. As soon as she started asking for details about Ripper in bed, I would have cut her loose. And when I say details, I mean length, width, and stamina. And her reasoning was:

“Because,” she said pointedly. “If you ever get sick of big, scarred, and sexy, I want to know if he’s worth my time.”

Now, I’ve never been interested in a friend’s ex, or even the same guy as a friend (fictional heroes notwithstanding) but isn’t that part of the friend code…you don’t go after your bff’s ex? Anabeth was trashy and I was really hoping that she would go up the mountain and fall off…preferably onto jagged rocks below.

There were definitely twists and turns to this book. I’m even more intrigued with the characters now than I was before. I can’t wait for the other 3 books in the series. This series is a definite must read.



To see my Ripper, click here.

My reviews can also be found on Goodreads.