5 Star Review--- Damaged Goods by Nicole Williams

The Outsider Chronicles, #2

(stand-alone)

New Adult/Adult Contemporary

Release: September 9, 2014

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When Liv Bennett said good-bye to her sinkhole of a hometown, she planned to leave that chapter of her life behind forever. But forever turned out to only be three years.

After her addict of a mother up and disappears, Liv returns to what she considers her own personal hell smack in the middle of nowhere Nevada to take care of her two younger sisters, and she promptly reinstitutes the golden rule that got her through her first nineteen years of life without getting knocked up, roughed up, or messed up: don’t date the local boys and, god forbid, don’t fall in love with one of them.

It isn’t long before that golden rule is put to the test.

Will Goods grew up in the next trailer over, but the wild, careless boy who used to tear up the town with his three brothers has morphed into someone else so completely, he’s almost unrecognizable. The quiet, contemplative man who works on cars every night and takes care of his mentally ill mother every day is nothing like the local boys Liv grew up avoiding.

But when Liv considers suspending her golden rule just this once, she finds out something about Will that will change everything.

Will Goods isn’t who he used to be—he’s not even the man Liv thinks she’s gotten to know over the summer. He’s become someone else entirely.

He’s become . . .

Damaged Goods.

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---Review---

Oh my goodness. Nicole Williams has done it again. As much as I loved Hard Knox (book 1 in the Outsider Chronicles), I was entranced with Damaged Goods. It was SO good. I liked that the characters in this one were a bit older too. It's nice to see characters my age, and I'm only 26, get awesome books too.

Damaged Goods follows Liv Bennett, a girl brought up in the White Trash America, raised in a trailer, by her drug addict mother. Liv wasn't the only one who had to endure their mother's turbulent ways, Liv had two little sisters who suffered from the same fate as her. Until one day Liv decides to change it all for herself, leaving Death Valley and the world she was raised into behind, including her little sisters.

When their erratic mother up and disappears on her underage sisters, it is up to Liv to pick up the pieces but that means heading back into the hell she thought she had escaped so long ago. Thus begins Liv's decent into raising two teenaged girls. Liv, the ever pessimist, knows she wants nothing and no one from the torture that is her old life, she wants to get in and get out but that may not be as easy as Liv was hoping.

Complications arise and the easy exit Liv was hoping to make just isn't possible anymore. The biggest complication being that of the mysterious Will Goods.

This book held me, I couldn't get enough of Will and Liv. She was the negative while he was the positive. Liv did what was necessary to help her sisters and Will was the listening ear. He never judged her, helped her where he could, made her believe that not all people were evil. Will was the quintessential good guy for Liv.. He didn't only care for her, he cared for her sisters.

With Will, Liv was breaking the one rule she had about her past, NEVER get tied down to anything or anyone in her old life. She wanted more for herself and her sisters. I just loved Will. Like no joke, the man made my heart beat in a thousand different ways. His personality, his whole demeanor and I loved that you knew deep down there was a bad boy just waiting to break out. I think he let that side show with Liv every once in a while and it just made him that much more appealing.

THEN CAME THE MAJOR BOMB.

Boom, didn't see that coming. And no, I will not be revealing what it was. But prepare your tissues because I was left in a state of shock and left very emotional. I will tell you that this awesome book does have a happily ever after. It makes you believe in love and finding your own way. It was just plain old awesome. I can not wait for the 3rd book in this series because if it's anything like the first two, I know Nicole Williams will just hit it out of the park!!!

5 incredible stars!

About the Author

I’m the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of the CRASH series (HarperTeen, S&S UK), LOST & FOUND series, UP IN FLAMES (S&S UK), The EDEN TRILOGY, and a handful of others. I write stories about everyday kinds of people who find themselves in extraordinary kinds of situations. I tell love stories with happy endings because I believe in making the world a better place, and that’s one tiny way I can make it so. I’m one of those people who still believe in true love and soul mates, and would rather keep my head in the clouds any day over having my feet firmly on the ground.

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