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Pretty Hate
Librarian's note: This is an alternate cover edition for ASIN: B00HHOS6A8.
Beth Munroe's life devolves from a series of blunders that began before her birth when her father Mickey Sexual, lead singer of the band Chili Cheese Dog, dumps Beth's mother for his wife. With school long over, Beth refuses to live with her mother and her insane aunt Merry-Bell, a beetle taxidermist with a raging case of Pica and moves in with her oldest sister Rebel Love and Rebel's boyfriend Ivory-Lou Franklin, a pimp and owner of the West Virginia strip club Knockers. Once Beth's boyfriend leaves her, she falls in love with handsome, Camus-quoting writer and world traveler Nicolas Miles after falling into a garbage can in front of him. When Beth meets hot rock star Declan White after accidentally "hearting" his former stepdaughter India's picture on Instagram, things really get bat-shit crazy in Beth Munroe's life.
As Beth sinks into the pretty hate and begins the rumination and speculation fueled by Facebook, will she find love amid illusion or will her worst fear of ending up like her pining mother come true?
Best-selling author Ava Ayers presents Pretty Hate, a new adult, coming of age novel about discovering true identity and true love in a world of over-sharing and deception. As profile pictures egg on insecurity and social media desperation evolves into reinvention, Beth Munroe swims through the humiliation of the pretty hate with humor, hysterics, some crazy friends and an even crazier family.
Beth Munroe's life devolves from a series of blunders that began before her birth when her father Mickey Sexual, lead singer of the band Chili Cheese Dog, dumps Beth's mother for his wife. With school long over, Beth refuses to live with her mother and her insane aunt Merry-Bell, a beetle taxidermist with a raging case of Pica and moves in with her oldest sister Rebel Love and Rebel's boyfriend Ivory-Lou Franklin, a pimp and owner of the West Virginia strip club Knockers. Once Beth's boyfriend leaves her, she falls in love with handsome, Camus-quoting writer and world traveler Nicolas Miles after falling into a garbage can in front of him. When Beth meets hot rock star Declan White after accidentally "hearting" his former stepdaughter India's picture on Instagram, things really get bat-shit crazy in Beth Munroe's life.
As Beth sinks into the pretty hate and begins the rumination and speculation fueled by Facebook, will she find love amid illusion or will her worst fear of ending up like her pining mother come true?
Best-selling author Ava Ayers presents Pretty Hate, a new adult, coming of age novel about discovering true identity and true love in a world of over-sharing and deception. As profile pictures egg on insecurity and social media desperation evolves into reinvention, Beth Munroe swims through the humiliation of the pretty hate with humor, hysterics, some crazy friends and an even crazier family.
- GenresNew Adult
244 pages, ebook
First published December 24, 2013
1 person is currently reading
65 people want to read
About the author
Ava Ayers
7 books2 followersAva Ayers is the author of psychological thriller, Once Were Family, new adult novel, Pretty Hate and fantasy novels, Immoral Beloved and The Inquisitor's Song.
She spends her days sunning on the shore of Sanremo and her nights fighting crime and changing the footwear choices of those with a propensity for pairing socks and Birkenstocks. Or nothing like that. Mostly she likes entertaining her readers with epic tales of lust, love and intrigue involving strong men and even stronger women--something very near and dear to her wild heart.
Ava Ayers' books are available digitally and in print at Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble and other retailers world wide.
She spends her days sunning on the shore of Sanremo and her nights fighting crime and changing the footwear choices of those with a propensity for pairing socks and Birkenstocks. Or nothing like that. Mostly she likes entertaining her readers with epic tales of lust, love and intrigue involving strong men and even stronger women--something very near and dear to her wild heart.
Ava Ayers' books are available digitally and in print at Amazon, Apple, Barnes and Noble and other retailers world wide.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
January 27, 2014
This was a fun read. Beth is a fun, attractive young woman who desperately wants to get away from her past and her crazy family, but is looking for love in all the wrong places and just keeps getting screwed. The story encompasses her misadventures with a lot of crazy characters, a lot of quirkiness and fun. Between her crazy aunt, her living with her sister who is an ex hooker living with her pimp and a bunch of hookers, and then getting in with a group of rich hippies, you never know where this story is going to go. Add to that Beth's addiction of stalking her love interests on Facebook, instagram, and any other social forum, it also mocks our current obsession with technology and how easily you can get yourself in trouble. My favorite character was Ivory-Lou, the wise pimp. He is just an all around great guy who puts up with all the craziness around him, especially Beth and her sister, Rebel Love (yes, that's her name) and their crazy relatives, and all his hookers. But he still manages to take care of everyone, give good advice and "take care" of things when necessary.
If you want a quick entertaining book with some unusual characters mixed in, check this one out.
If you want a quick entertaining book with some unusual characters mixed in, check this one out.
February 20, 2014
I loved this book. It was so funny, I was literally laughing out loud. With that title, you do not think it is going to be funny. It had a good message behind it. It is basically about a girl who finds herself. She has the funniest supporting cast to get her through her trials and tribulations. This book touched on so many things, sex, drugs, violence, racism, depression, suicide, romance, and love between family. She had to face the fact, that the grass is not always greener on the other side. I really wanted to slap her sometimes. But I guess she had to do these things to learn and grow. I loved her relationship with Ivory Lou. Her family had some major issues, but they got through it. I would have given it five stars, but I wished she could have elaborated a little more with the epilogue. This is my first read by Ms. Ayers, but not the last. You have got to read this my GR friends.
March 19, 2017
First, let me say that it was so nice to read a book that was actually edited. I spotted a couple of very minor errors, I think there were two misplaced words, in the entire story. Nowadays, that's a rarity, and very much appreciated. That said, oh my God! This book was a crazy mess of emotion. I laughed, out loud, so many times, I was glad I wasn't reading in public. I either would've been locked away, or been barraged with people asking me what I was reading.
The best part of this book, besides some of the characters' names, is Ivory-Lou. Ivory-Lou Franklin, has to be one of the best characters, ever. His patience, alone, will get him to Heaven. Since he's a pimp who owns a strip club called, Knockers, and has people's 'problems' 'taken care of', that's saying something. His dialog is hilarious and his concern for the main character, Beth, is endearing. He unconditionally loves his girlfriend, Rebel Love, Beth's older sister, and treats everyone around him with a gruff affection. He's like a young, cool Papa pimp.
Beth, the main character, is a dork. She's really pretty, so guys are attracted to her but, once they ask her out, she doesn't know how to act. She's also self-absorbed and very needy, so she becomes the clingy girl who says 'I love you' right away. Needless to say, she's had her heart broken a few times and, with mommy issues, daddy issues, and a low self-esteem, she's a hot mess. She feels that her family doesn't understand her and is always looking for something better.
Making friends with, India, another 'lost' soul in a mixed-up family, Beth thinks her life sucks even more than she did before. She goes to visit her new friend, and feels as though India has it made. Hanging out with rock stars and extremely rich people, India lives in a huge mansion with her mom, stepdad, and baby sister. Beth is envious of India's life and family, and wants her life to be more like her friend's. Eventually she learns that things are not always as they seem, and maybe her family isn't as bad as she thought.
Entertaining book about a crazy, mixed-up family, unconditional love, and appreciating what you have, Pretty Hate, is sometimes deeply dark, and often laugh-out-loud funny. It's a roller coaster ride but one you'll be glad you got on.
The best part of this book, besides some of the characters' names, is Ivory-Lou. Ivory-Lou Franklin, has to be one of the best characters, ever. His patience, alone, will get him to Heaven. Since he's a pimp who owns a strip club called, Knockers, and has people's 'problems' 'taken care of', that's saying something. His dialog is hilarious and his concern for the main character, Beth, is endearing. He unconditionally loves his girlfriend, Rebel Love, Beth's older sister, and treats everyone around him with a gruff affection. He's like a young, cool Papa pimp.
Beth, the main character, is a dork. She's really pretty, so guys are attracted to her but, once they ask her out, she doesn't know how to act. She's also self-absorbed and very needy, so she becomes the clingy girl who says 'I love you' right away. Needless to say, she's had her heart broken a few times and, with mommy issues, daddy issues, and a low self-esteem, she's a hot mess. She feels that her family doesn't understand her and is always looking for something better.
Making friends with, India, another 'lost' soul in a mixed-up family, Beth thinks her life sucks even more than she did before. She goes to visit her new friend, and feels as though India has it made. Hanging out with rock stars and extremely rich people, India lives in a huge mansion with her mom, stepdad, and baby sister. Beth is envious of India's life and family, and wants her life to be more like her friend's. Eventually she learns that things are not always as they seem, and maybe her family isn't as bad as she thought.
Entertaining book about a crazy, mixed-up family, unconditional love, and appreciating what you have, Pretty Hate, is sometimes deeply dark, and often laugh-out-loud funny. It's a roller coaster ride but one you'll be glad you got on.
October 10, 2014
Very, very well written and edited.
First of all, to reiterate what other reviewers have said, the inside of the book is not reflected by either the cover or the title. It may be intentionally symbolic of one of the themes of the book about the mismatch of how people feel on the inside versus what they portray to the world, or it could be an accident -- which is also a theme in the book.
As to the inside of the book, I have a conundrum. It is very well written, with complex characterizations and deeply portrayed emotional challenges, as well as juxtapositions of class and racial stereo-types. Really, some pretty sophisticated stuff. But, none of those attributes overcame the irritation I felt at the vacuous behavior by the main character, who floats through her life being beautiful, but contributing nothing but anger and insecurity, while holding everyone else responsible for the fact that magic doesn't lift her out of her misery. Ugh. Combined with the over-the-top family melodramas, I had to force myself to finish the story.
That said, I'm glad I finished, because I definitely liked what started to happen at the end of the book, but for me, it took too long to get there and we were forced to endure narcissism of a ridiculous magnitude by a host of characters before we got to that point. Literally, no one except the pimp, and possibly his girlfriend, has any sense of decorum, morality or emotional self-preservation. The bad behavior -- in terms of how they all treat one and other -- is astounding, no matter the social class. It was just too exhausting and frustrating for me. But then, I also don't watch a lot of reality TV and am not a fan of Jerry Springer.
But, for those of you who are fans of Jerry Springer, this is a seriously well written book that will take you on a journey.
First of all, to reiterate what other reviewers have said, the inside of the book is not reflected by either the cover or the title. It may be intentionally symbolic of one of the themes of the book about the mismatch of how people feel on the inside versus what they portray to the world, or it could be an accident -- which is also a theme in the book.
As to the inside of the book, I have a conundrum. It is very well written, with complex characterizations and deeply portrayed emotional challenges, as well as juxtapositions of class and racial stereo-types. Really, some pretty sophisticated stuff. But, none of those attributes overcame the irritation I felt at the vacuous behavior by the main character, who floats through her life being beautiful, but contributing nothing but anger and insecurity, while holding everyone else responsible for the fact that magic doesn't lift her out of her misery. Ugh. Combined with the over-the-top family melodramas, I had to force myself to finish the story.
That said, I'm glad I finished, because I definitely liked what started to happen at the end of the book, but for me, it took too long to get there and we were forced to endure narcissism of a ridiculous magnitude by a host of characters before we got to that point. Literally, no one except the pimp, and possibly his girlfriend, has any sense of decorum, morality or emotional self-preservation. The bad behavior -- in terms of how they all treat one and other -- is astounding, no matter the social class. It was just too exhausting and frustrating for me. But then, I also don't watch a lot of reality TV and am not a fan of Jerry Springer.
But, for those of you who are fans of Jerry Springer, this is a seriously well written book that will take you on a journey.
January 8, 2014
This is the second book I've read by Ava Ayers. Her first, Immoral Beloved, I reviewed and I loved it...it was sort of an alternative history/fantasy with lots of sexy stuff.
Pretty Hate is new adult/contemporary/sexy/FUNNY and I seriously haven't stopped laughing. We all know the social media stalkers, certainly not me by-the-by ;-), and this book not only explores, but shines a big, bright spotlight on the behavior. Come on, we never admit it, but who has not stalked the Facebook profile of some chick who "liked" your guy's photos a little too much for comfort? The main character in Pretty Hate, Beth Munroe,deals with a lot of loser boyfriends and is looking for "the one." She's also wildly insecure, because of her upbringing, and the Facebook/Instagram/Pinterest stalking does not help. Her family is nuts and she tries her hardest to escape them.
But the book isn't whiny and deals with stuff that "my friends" deal with all the time with a lot of humor. The characters, and there are a lot of them, are well-developed and felt very real. Ava Ayers does an awesome job with dialog and dialect (the majority of her characters are from West Virginia) and the characters' personalities really came through in Ayers' writing. I came to really like all of the characters and cared about them. The book deals with rumination and speculation and assumptions during relationships and our fears surrounding being straight-up and asking for what we want. It also covers heartbreak, loneliness, acceptance and fear. There was some "whirlwind" romance, but it was real.
Pretty Hate was really creative and it left me with a smile. I very much enjoyed this book.
Pretty Hate is new adult/contemporary/sexy/FUNNY and I seriously haven't stopped laughing. We all know the social media stalkers, certainly not me by-the-by ;-), and this book not only explores, but shines a big, bright spotlight on the behavior. Come on, we never admit it, but who has not stalked the Facebook profile of some chick who "liked" your guy's photos a little too much for comfort? The main character in Pretty Hate, Beth Munroe,deals with a lot of loser boyfriends and is looking for "the one." She's also wildly insecure, because of her upbringing, and the Facebook/Instagram/Pinterest stalking does not help. Her family is nuts and she tries her hardest to escape them.
But the book isn't whiny and deals with stuff that "my friends" deal with all the time with a lot of humor. The characters, and there are a lot of them, are well-developed and felt very real. Ava Ayers does an awesome job with dialog and dialect (the majority of her characters are from West Virginia) and the characters' personalities really came through in Ayers' writing. I came to really like all of the characters and cared about them. The book deals with rumination and speculation and assumptions during relationships and our fears surrounding being straight-up and asking for what we want. It also covers heartbreak, loneliness, acceptance and fear. There was some "whirlwind" romance, but it was real.
Pretty Hate was really creative and it left me with a smile. I very much enjoyed this book.
October 18, 2017
*gifted a copy from author to read and give honest review*
This book was just okay in my opinion, it made me laugh a TON which was great and helped me get through the whole thing, but was also very frustrating because Beth is so up and down and neurotic that I just couldn't stand her.
Beth has waaaaaay too many crazy insecurities and obsessively bazaar quirks, but given her crazy mom I get why! That being said her sisters and Ivory-Lou made this book work from start to finish! The relationship and banter between Ivory-Lou and Beth is perfect, I was constantly on pins and needles until their next exchange!
I was not a huge fan of Declan, although he seemed like the stereo type of a typical rock star. India on the other hand I was rocky with, I really loved her at times and at others she too made me want to wring her neck! But she seemed to really care about Beth so I overlooked her bad habits. I could have lived without the crazy drug parts but get how it ties in with the rich and privileged people in the book.
What I did wish I could have gotten a look at is what Nicholas's responds was to everything, he seemed like a great guy and Beth kind of went weird on it all, although most women tend to freak out over long silences from men, especially after they have had sex.
I feel like Ava Ayers did a great job with the story line and the characters with the exception of Beth being a bit too strangle worthy. I was glad I got a chance to read this and even though I was slightly annoyed with Beth at times, she was still written as a VERY believable young woman in the cyber and dating world that we live in today.
This book was just okay in my opinion, it made me laugh a TON which was great and helped me get through the whole thing, but was also very frustrating because Beth is so up and down and neurotic that I just couldn't stand her.
Beth has waaaaaay too many crazy insecurities and obsessively bazaar quirks, but given her crazy mom I get why! That being said her sisters and Ivory-Lou made this book work from start to finish! The relationship and banter between Ivory-Lou and Beth is perfect, I was constantly on pins and needles until their next exchange!
I was not a huge fan of Declan, although he seemed like the stereo type of a typical rock star. India on the other hand I was rocky with, I really loved her at times and at others she too made me want to wring her neck! But she seemed to really care about Beth so I overlooked her bad habits. I could have lived without the crazy drug parts but get how it ties in with the rich and privileged people in the book.
What I did wish I could have gotten a look at is what Nicholas's responds was to everything, he seemed like a great guy and Beth kind of went weird on it all, although most women tend to freak out over long silences from men, especially after they have had sex.
I feel like Ava Ayers did a great job with the story line and the characters with the exception of Beth being a bit too strangle worthy. I was glad I got a chance to read this and even though I was slightly annoyed with Beth at times, she was still written as a VERY believable young woman in the cyber and dating world that we live in today.
August 4, 2014
I received this book in return for an honest review. The book was ok maybe better than okay to be honest but I'm not quite sure how to express the mixed emotions it evokes from me. So let me start with what I liked about the book - It was well written, comical at times and entertaining characters throughout. Characters you loved, some you just couldn't help but laugh at and cry for, and characters you wanted to hate... Lots of those. It was just a melting pot of every type of person you can imagine and some I didn't think to imagine. Beth... the main character... what a hot mess in EVERY sense of the word. I really didn't like her at first, I couldn't help but feel sorry
for her and yet think no way , is this really a person? OMG are there really people out there with such low self esteem and pathetic lives?? But yeah it's possible I guess. She was apparently born on a weird solar eclipse type night where all the bad crap just falls upon her life apparently... no not really but her luck is just .. well suckish. Ivory - one of my favorite characters along with Aunt Crazy-pants. Everything kind of rolled into an entertaining read but for me its because what I took away from it .. being that people steam roll through your life - good and bad but what you'll always be left with is your family - no matter how crazy they are and no matter how much you want to escape from the crazy.. they are yours, they help shape you into who you are and they are who will always be there for you.
for her and yet think no way , is this really a person? OMG are there really people out there with such low self esteem and pathetic lives?? But yeah it's possible I guess. She was apparently born on a weird solar eclipse type night where all the bad crap just falls upon her life apparently... no not really but her luck is just .. well suckish. Ivory - one of my favorite characters along with Aunt Crazy-pants. Everything kind of rolled into an entertaining read but for me its because what I took away from it .. being that people steam roll through your life - good and bad but what you'll always be left with is your family - no matter how crazy they are and no matter how much you want to escape from the crazy.. they are yours, they help shape you into who you are and they are who will always be there for you.
August 20, 2014
I was given a copy of this book in return for an honest review. I thought it was an okay book. It had it's ups and downs. I loved ivory lou and rebel love. Beth drove me insane at most times, she was quite desperate and insecure. I usually don't mind the lead being a little insecure since most people are but she was crazy insecure. I enjoyed Nicholas' character and wished he was in the book more but I despised Declan. I knew right away that nothing good would come from him appearing. I did laugh a lot while reading but I also wanted to strangle a majority of the characters. I would love to read a sequel with Nicholas' point of view during the book to see how he actually reacted to everything. Overall it was okay, nothing too special but definitely not terrible.
August 22, 2014
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review
This was a fun book to read, it had me laughing many times! Beth is a slightly crazy, mildly compulsive, a lot obsessive, overly social media stalker-ish small town girl. She is very good hearted causing her to make bad boyfriend decisions. She accidentally befriends a rich girl during one of her online stalking episodes. On her visit to meet the girl, Beth sees their bizarre lifestyle (as well as a couple other adventures) through rose colored glasses. Only months later does she realize that things aren't always as pretty as the picture projects.
This was a fun book to read, it had me laughing many times! Beth is a slightly crazy, mildly compulsive, a lot obsessive, overly social media stalker-ish small town girl. She is very good hearted causing her to make bad boyfriend decisions. She accidentally befriends a rich girl during one of her online stalking episodes. On her visit to meet the girl, Beth sees their bizarre lifestyle (as well as a couple other adventures) through rose colored glasses. Only months later does she realize that things aren't always as pretty as the picture projects.
August 10, 2016
This book takes you on a roller coaster ride! This girl goes through a lot in a short amount of time. Sad to think a lot of females feel this way and never figure it out!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews