Just the Way You Are

by Beverly Barton

The South sizzles in New York Times bestselling author Beverly Barton's sultry tale of a woman torn between two brothers...

Mary Beth Caine has always been the good girl in her small Mississippi town. But when a big, protective, shamelessly sexy stranger offers to console her on the night of her disastrous engagement party, Mary Beth lets him—only to discover that Parr Weston also happens to be the older brother of her fiancé, Bobby Joe.

Parr left Mississippi after years spent holding his family together. Now that he's back, he can't steal Bobby Joe's woman, and he sure can't offer Mary Beth the tidy happily-ever-after she deserves. But everything about the petite beauty—from her flame-gold hair to her artless sensuality—makes him crave her more. Love or lust, right or wrong, all he knows is that nothing has ever felt like this before, and walking away will be the hardest thing he's ever had to do.

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 27, 2015

About the author

Beverly Marie Inman was born on 23 December 1946 in Tuscumbia, Alabama, USA. Daughter of Doris Marie and Walter D. Inman Jr. A born romantic, she fell in love with The Beauty and the Beast epic at an early age, when her grandfather bought her an illustrated copy of the famous fairy tale. Even before she learned to read and write, her vivid imagination created magical words and fabulous characters inside her mind. Movies fascinated her, and by the time she was seven she was rewriting the movies she saw on television and at the local theater to give them all happy endings. By the age of nine she'd penned her first novel. She wrote short stories, TV scripts, poetry, and novels throughout high school and into college.

After her marriage to Billy Ray Beaver, the "love of her life", and the births of her two children, Beverly continued to be a voracious reader and a devoted moviegoer, but she put her writing aspirations on hold until her children were teenagers. At every age of their lives, from infancy to adulthood, the children had been a true joy to her. She devoted herself to her husband and children and considered herself one of the many selfless "supermoms" who put their family's needs first. She believed she had had it all, just not all at the same time.

In her mid-30s, Beverly returned to her former passion — writing — as a hobby, but before 40, she decided that she wanted to make writing a full-time career. And when she rediscovered an old dream — of becoming a published writer — no one was more supportive of her aspirations than her family. Her children were her greatest cheerleaders and her husband was her biggest supporter. After writing over 40 books and receiving numerous awards and nominations, as well as having books on the USA Today list and consistently on the Waldenbooks bestseller list, her career was indeed a dream come true. Having a fantastic family and fabulous friends, as well as making a living doing the one thing she had loved doing since childhood, she considered herself truly blessed. Beverly died suddenly of heart failure on 21 April 2011.

Reviews

[Ami]

DNF at 15%

While the late Beverly Barton (1946 – 2011) had a long career in the romance genre, I have never read anything from her. I guess I missed her books when I was still reading MF romance back in my teenager years. Duly noted, I am an Indonesian, so getting English books was quite difficult during the time before e-books. So when I saw this latest release by her estate, I was quite intrigued to give it a try.

Unfortunately, my first experience with her with this book came as a total failure.

Here’s the thing … Mary Beth Caine catches her fiancé, Bobby Joe Weston, at their engagement party cheating on her. However, at the same time, she finds solace in a stranger’s arms (who turns out to be Bobby Joe’s older brother, Parr Weston). She is immediately attracted to him, she even kisses this stranger, all the while claiming to be broken hearted by her fiancé. Yep, instant attraction, right there. Then, the worthless fiancé begs Mary Beth to give him a second chance, supported by the Weston matriarch, Alma. Alma also asks Parr to help reassuring Mary Beth and Parr agrees albeit reluctantly.

The whole thing is a horrible kind of set-up! I just couldn’t find any goodness from these characters. I mean, let me quote some of the conversations. I can’t BELIEVE I’m reading this!

First meeting between Parr and Mary Beth – please remember that she is supposedly broken hearted after catching her cheating fiancé.

“Anything you wanted,” he said bluntly. “I’d make it unforgettable. You’d never have to tell anyone. Just one night. You and me.”

“I probably shouldn’t say this, but the idea is tempting.”

And they kissed – uhm, how is this making Mary Beth better than Bobby Joe?!? And what’s with the endearment “Strawberry,” that Parr uses on her BEFORE he even knows her name nor her identity as his brother’s fiancée. It’s a silly endearment for me.

Then we have Bobby Joe telling Parr why he wants to be with Mary Beth even if he cheated on her.

“Ah—that’s part of the problem.” Bobby Joe rubbed the sparse, light-colored stubble on his chin, his milk chocolate eyes thoughtful. “Mary Beth doesn’t satisfy me ... I mean, sexually. She’s a different sort of woman entirely from Lue. But in every other way, she’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

...

“Tell me something,” Parr asked. “Why do you want to marry her then?”

“Like I said, I love her. She’ll be a perfect wife, a perfect mother.”

I am sorry, WHAT?!? This character is just DESPICABLE!! At that very moment, I wanted to just kick his cheating ass to the end of the earth.

Then Alma requesting Parr to help convince Mary Beth to reconsider getting back together with Bobby Joe:

“Talk to Mary Beth,” Alma implored, her dark eyes searching his. “Ask her to give Bobby Joe another chance. She seems to be … well, hesitating about forgiving him.”

“Can you blame her?”

“No, of course not. It’s just that I think she ought to be concerned about more than Bobby Joe’s little sin.”

“Meaning?”

…

“Mary Beth lacks experience.” Alma rinsed her hands and briskly dried them with a dish towel. “Your brother is her first serious relationship.”

What the HECK is that supposed to mean?!?

I simply cannot continue after that. Duly noted that I have not gotten that far along in the story, however, the whole idea is enough to make my blood boil. Maybe the characters are going to redeem themselves. MAYBE. But I cannot, for the life of me, force myself to continue with this. Heck, if you believe in Publishers Weekly review on this, they also think of this as “weak” and “tedious”.

I just can’t recommend this to anyone who hasn’t read Beverly Barton. And for those of you who are familiar with her work, I suggest maybe do a re-read from her earlier and more beloved books.




A Guest Review for The Blogger Girls



The ARC is provided by the publisher via Netgalley for an exchange of fair and honest review. No high rating is required for any ARC received.

[Carole (Carole's Random Life)]

DNF 13%

After reading several chapters of this book, I have realized that this is not the right book for me. I really don't like any of the characters and the insta-love between the couple is just ridiculous. The twist that she was engaged to his brother was just cheesy.

I have read and enjoyed some of Beverly Barton's other books but the set up of this book was just too far fetched for me.

I received an advanced reader edition of this book from Kensington Books via NetGalley for the purpose of providing an honest review.

[Terri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review also found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher Zebra via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The expected publication date is February 3rd 2015.



This story was just ok for me. It failed to seem realistic to me and there was no real substance until the halfway point of the story.



It was a story of instant attraction and love at first site. Simple enough in concept. Then you add the piece that Mary Beth is engaged to the brother of the person she falls for. To me this story was a little too close to the line of cheating to be comfortable. It seemed Parr had no disregard for his brother Bobby Joe and kept getting himself in situations where he and Mary Beth could (almost) succumb tot heir attraction. Don't get me wrong, Bobby Joe did not deserve any allegiance however he was family.



The chemistry really wasn't there for me and I had a hard time cheering for Mary Beth and Parr. For those that like their stories hot and steamy this story will also fall short. It starts to go there but doesn't follow through. If I had felt the chemistry a little more than this strategy may have worked.



At the end of the day this story was a distraction from my everyday routine however will not go down in my lasting memory of a standout. Odds are I will forget it by the time I am done my next read.

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can’t help but feel I missed something near the end. It made sense after a fashion but I somehow felt like I was missing something... like a real motive for what happened the way it did? Then again there were other parts I kinda scratched my head at, but though it might just be me. There were parts here and there I liked and clearly some I questioned.

Somewhere in my head I keep thinking I could rewrite this book way better even though I have precious little experience doing anything of the sort.

[Ella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Promising, that's what I thought as I started reading. The book started out well but then lost its touch as it went along. Plot got nowhere..I was waiting for climax to happen between Mary Beth and Parr, unfortunately nil except for the last page..I cant connect with the rest of the characters at all.

[Gokce G · Rating 1 out of 5]

I honestly, honestly don’t know where to start with this book. I think the saying, ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover’ was meant for this one. You guys know I can be shallow at times when it comes to covers, and I admit I was first attracted to this book because of it. Reading its plot-and even though yours truly isn’t much of a fan of love triangles- I wanted to give it a chance. Unfortunately though, it wasn’t a very pleasant experience.

I love small town romances. The southern charm. It usually feels like home to me, these people connecting with each other and being a big family. Sadly for me, the characters in this book lacked that southern charm that I was looking forward to. The hero and the heroine were not likable people at all. They meet while the heroine, Mary Beth, is engaged to the hero’s younger brother, and though I could understand an undeniable spark that they had to fight-and eventually lose- against, but they made things out in such a way that not only I couldn’t feel sorry for their predicament, but also I secretly wished some sense would be knocked into them.

Mary Beth, for starters, wasn’t a woman I’d call a good heroine. In romance, strong and independent women are important, but Mary Beth was neither strong, nor independent. In fact, her existence in the short while we get to know her, seemed to revolve around the two brothers. But mostly on Parr, really. She’s back and forth between both emotionally-and at times physically- cheating on her fiancé, and her unjustified and meaningless sense of duty to the same fiancé who she suspects is cheating on her. And half the time I didn’t know what she was doing and why. Not for one moment I felt sorry for her, being in between two brothers. She was clueless not in a naive way, and the few times she seemed standing up for herself, I didn’t know what she was fighting for. That’s a big problem if I can’t connect with the female lead. When reading these books, like we all do, I look for a woman I can relate to and root for, not just to get the guy in the end, but also to find her strength and her own voice throughout the story. I’d like to see a change for the better for these people, for them to heal if they have wounds and problems, for them to be the better versions of how they started out. Mary Beth and Parr? They were exactly the same in the end as they were in the beginning. I don’t want to have that.

As for Parr individually, he was supposed to be the responsible older brother, the one who took care of everything, the one, probably, to make a sacrifice in falling for and letting go of his brother’s fiancé-albeit unsuccessfully- but he came off as a selfish, one dimensional character. His brother was no saint mind you, but still, with his self centered personality and cheating ways, he was the better of the three if you can believe that. But he didn’t have much page time anyway.

Apart from my disappointment with the two leads, I wish I could say that I still got that homey feeling of being in a small town, of everyone knowing everyone else’s business and that nosy neighbor thing, but alas, that didn’t happen either.
The plot went nowhere, again, half the time I didn’t know what was happening. We spent a little too much time being dictated the characters’ movements rather than delving into their psyche. This way, I felt like they only moved around until it was the end and time to say goodbye.

I’m sorry to say, I couldn’t enjoy my time with Mary Beth and Parr, and couldn’t feel for their romance. Just the one star from me.

[Meagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel started out fantastic. After catching her fiancé in a compromising position, Mary Beth finds herself crying in the arms of a stranger. The heat between her and this mysterious man is hotter than anything she’d ever had with her cheating fiancé. Even though there wasn’t a lot of action in the first few scenes the foreplay was fierce and made me anxious for the story to continue.

Parr (love that name) was one of my favorite characters. When he comforts a strange woman outside his brothers engagement party he starts out as a gentleman. The longer he holds Mary Beth in his arms the more he feels something for her. If you’re not a fan of insta love this may not be the book for you. Although I’d have to argue emotions run so high in the beginning scene it’s not hard to imagine falling for the first kind man who isn’t your cheating ex.

“And if we ran away, which is the last thing I would do, because I’m not that crazy, what would happen?”

“Anything you wanted,” he said bluntly. “I’d make it unforgettable. You’d never have to tell anyone. Just one night. You and Me.”

I loved the premise of the book and as I already stated the beginning scene was fantastic. With the undeniable attraction between Mary Beth and Parr I was hoping we would see more passion as the book continued. There were a few scenes that packed some heat, but I was disappointed that we were never given anything more than a few kisses. I’m not saying I wanted anything overly erotic, but after all the emotion and close calls I would have loved to see Mary Beth and Parr finally find themselves in each other.

“I’ve never reacted to a man like this before”

“You’ve never been with me before.”

Two characters I found troubling were Bobby Joe and Alma, Parr and Bobby Joe’s mother. Of course it’s easy to hate Bobby Joe. He was a cheating fiancé who was constantly competing with his older brother. What troubled me was that I never truly understood his character. A lot of his faults or problems were alluded to, but I never got the answers I was looking for. Alma was also interesting. She wasn’t necessarily a fan of Mary Beth taking Bobby Joe back after he cheated on her, but she asked Parr to talk to Mary Beth on his brother’s behalf. Why would a woman (Alma) want another woman (Mary Beth) to marry a man who cheats after Alma had been in a similar situation?

Even though I had a few difficulties with the book I still found the overall story enjoyable. There was a great twist I didn’t see coming and the ending was sweet. It was a pleasant novel from a best-selling author we sadly lost in 2011..

She was a woman. He was a man. It was as simple and complicated as that.

Review to be posted at Romance at Random

[Misty · Rating 3 out of 5]

How to write a review on a beloved author, whose final book was bad, just awful; I felt no connection to this book what’s so ever and I was hard pressed to even hear the author’s voice in this books. I have long been a fan of Beverly Barton’s…there are few of her books that I wouldn’t suggest to someone but this book lacked in so many ways. It felt like it had been finished just to be finished.
What I did like was the overall idea of the tale…..I also liked Mary Beth and Parr, I liked the sudden spark in the early pages of the book and I liked that each had stories to be told but I feel those stories were not told or not completely fleshed out so to speak. They met at Mary Beth’s engagement party to of all people Parr’s younger brother. Mary Beth had just discovered Bobby Joe’s indiscretion with a former flame and is heart broken when she meets Parr. Parr is the kind of guy who does right by his family no matter the costs to him. When the two meet it is a case of instant attraction for both. Yet when push comes to shove she forgives Bobby Joe.
Bobby Joe throughout the book continues to walk a thin line of almost cheating, and Mary Beth continues to forgive him. There is however several times when Parr and Mary Beth almost give into their attractions yet something keeps stopping them; namely Bobby Joe. The entire book becomes a do they or do they not push pull thing between Parr and Mary Beth. When Mary Beth finally realizes she is with the wrong brother the fizzle in my opinion has left building. That instant spark that drew me into the book was long gone and it simply fizzled out.
The book had potential, but the problem stems in that it lacked in story, it lacked in character connections, and it just did not feel like a romance. The heat that was there in the early stages of the book simply disappeared and the ending felt rushed. Nor did it feel like a Beverly Barton book......I know she passed a couple of years ago (on my birthday at that) and I have to assume someone else finished this book because it's simply not her voice. If you want a quick tame read then this might be the book for you, but if you’re looking for more…….I would actually skip over it.
3 ½ Stars.

[Char (1RadReader59) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a love triangle to beat all love triangles. You have your virgin bride to be Mary Beth Caine and her single widow dad, Howard. Who by the way is sweet on the groom’s to be mom, Alma Weston. She is the mother of the groom to be Bobby Joe and his older brother Parr.
Bobby Joe gets caught by Mary Beth at their engagement party. Only 45 minutes after announcing the marriage to be, he’s in the storage closet with his ex-girlfriend Luellen, half undressed with her making out. Slamming the door and running out of the hotel to the gardens she runs into a man who finds her crying no sobbing her eyes out.
You see Bobby Joe’s brother Parr and Mary Beth have never met living in two different states. Even though Parr is footing the whole bill for the evening just like everything else that happens in his family. You see his father passed when he was 12 so he took on caring for his mom, spoiled brother, cousin and her family.
When Parr, the self-proclaimed bachelor’s eyes fall on the most beautiful woman ever, he is sunk his bachelor days are numbered. He knows he wants more with her and from her. Then she tells her story never mentioning names. She knows it’s time to face her cheater and Parr wants to go to protect her and his interest in her of course. Saying they should find her dad first when they do…reality becomes very clear, very fast.
I give this book 4 stars. I did have a problem at about the 70%-90% mark for it was dragging for me a lot. Plus I was getting tired of Mary Beth’s Character. Then finally the other’s took over and brought the story along to a fairly good ending. Provided by Net Galley.
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[Lisa F]

at their engagement party mary Beth catches Bobby jo in the closet with his ex girlfriend having sex, she of course is upset and when a "stranger" finds her and offers her a shoulder to cry on, she's instantly attracted to him. the stranger turns out to be Bobby Jo's older brother who is a workaholic and doesn't live near the family so she hadn't met him.When Parr Bobby Jo's brother makes it clear he's not into long term he just wanted sex mary Beth is gutted yet as revenge she agrees to give Bobby jo another chance despite still having a very strong attraction to Parr. At first she is so adamant that its over with Bobby jo she can't take back a cheater yet we see her at first thinking about it before Parr even hurts her feelings, this annoyed me because all I kept thinking is kick Bobby jo to the curb this is unacceptable. I hate cheaters and people who forgive so easily really annoy me. it wasn't a random person IT WAS AT YOUR ENGAGEMENT PARTY WITH HIS EX!!!!!
for me this put a downer on the book and I could see where it was leading with Bobby jo always working late.

I found myself not liking mary Beth as I thought she was quiet petty and instead of just ending it with Bobby jo she was kissing his brother, that's makes her as bad as Bobby jo!!!
Parr I liked him and his family loyalty to a point. the way he looked after his mother and brother growing up.

unfortunately this book wasn't for me

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been reading books by the late Beverly Barton since she first started her writing a long time ago with sweet category romances, then she started her more suspenseful category romances which included the popular THE PROTECTORS series and finally her full size romantic suspense novels which included the exciting Griffin/Powell series.
JUST THE WAY YOU ARE is a story that goes back to Ms Barton's beginnings. It is a sweet formulaic romance. The chemistry is between the good girl Mary Beth and Parr, who is not her new fiance but his brother. Her fiance is a spoiled man who wants his cake and eat it too. Mary Beth has to make a tough decision: stay with the wrong man, or throw caution to the wind and follow her heart to find happiness with a man who came to town for his brother's wedding but can actually find the happiness he didn't plan on.
This story is a little dated, but it still has a lot of southern charm. It does lack the polish and complexity of Ms Barton's later works. I am still glad to have read it because she was one of my favorite authors and the story gave me a nostalgic trip to the past. After reading this, I recommend checking out her Cherokee Point trilogy or some of her other suspense novels to see how a good author's works changes and evolves over their career.


I was given an ARC by NetGalley for an honest review

[Beanse · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh.... what a truly ghastly unbelievable Bad Bad BAD BAD BOOK!! And this one totally false into the My fault category for choosing. I saw the reviews, decided to make my own decision about it and brother AM I SORRY FOR IT NOW!!!! Zoiks! how did this thing get published????

GHASTLY!!!

God, there is not even those fake 5 stars reviews from friends, family, publishers or what ever In the review section.

Good reads, you should let us do negative ratings!!!!

[Aisha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Long story short, main character cheats on her fiancé with his brother throughout the entire book (I honestly don’t even think she realized she was cheating and definitely did nothing to stop it due to guilt or morality — the few times she lied to herself about needing to distance herself from the brother was when he wasn’t giving her the attention she wanted.)

[Reggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story of one woman and two brothers...who will she choose? The fiance' who has cheated on her but swears that he loves her...or the broody older brother?

[Kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

The character development was alright. But I didn’t like the premise nor the story. I generally finish books and I do so with this one, but it didnt get more to my taste.

Just not my style

[Meredith · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book started out good, but it quickly went downhill. There's a lot of repetition and you begin to dislike Mary Beth very quickly and the plot was just not believable.

[Priyankaraa · Rating 4 out of 5]

bro's a walking thirst trap

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the Way You Are by Beverly Barton was good! This was really a good story with a Southern setting in a small town in Mississippi and surrounding towns and Southern states. Mary Beth Caine was definitely a good girl that always tried to do the right thing that held her bound to her fiancé Bobby Joe. While on the other hand Bobby Joe had good intentions but always seemed to fall short, especially when it came to being honest and faithful. I mean, he stayed ready to chase a dress tail when he thought no one was looking even at his very own engagement party.

But don’t you cry for Little Miss Sunshine, Mary Beth just yet, because, after she caught Bobby Joe with an ex in a closet, getting it in at their engagement party; she found her refuge and an instant spark in the arms of a handsome stranger who turns out to be her future brother-in-law. That’s right Booby Joe’s big, bad, and oh-so-good-looking, brother Parr is the one that Mary Beth unknowingly runs to for comfort. However, after the instant spark with Parr, Mary Beth feels conflicted by what’s right and how he makes her feels.

No worries though, their mother enters, who loves her boys Parr & Bobby Joe, maybe one more than the other, recognizes that something is a brewing between Parr and Mary Beth. She then asks Parr to get Mary Beth back with Bobby Joe and because he is the dutiful son, Parr does just that and spends most of the novel with an ‘achy-breaky’ heart. Conversely, Mary Beth continues to try to carry-on business as usual as her heart sings for Parr. But one night when random ole Bobby Joe is having a random mood swing and causes a tragic accident the novel turns full circle as family secrets are revealed and the undeniable attraction between Parr and Mary Beth can no longer be ignored by them or anyone else and for once Bobby Joe is truly acts even more like the sleaze-ball he already showed us he was.

I really enjoyed this novel. It is a contemporary romance that is well written and well paced. I would have loved to keep reading about what happened after that one thing happened, but like all good things, it came to an end. Just the Way You Are by Beverly Barton is a very sweet story about love, loyalty, and family, and how Mary Beth and Parr finally manages to put all those precious things in their proper places and find their true happiness.

My recommendation for you would be to skip on over and read Just the Way You Are by Beverly Barton. Its definitely worth a read.

A complimentary copy was provided via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

For this review and others, please visit www.runandreadthat.com

[Elizabeth Horbaczek · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was given this book for an honest review.

2 stars

Before I start this review, I want yo say authors have a very hard job. They need to figure out what a person wants to read and the author has to be true to themselves when writing this book. Being the first time I read this author I have to say I wished I had read a different book from her. I love finding an author that I don't know and getting lost in the book hoping to read another one as soon as possible. With all of that being said, I'm not one to beat an author down, but will, tell you how I felt about this particular book.

I think the book had a great story to I. I loved how it opened in the first chapter. Parr, I think, could have been an extraordinary character. He strong, family oriented man that needed to find someone as strong. As he walked into a room he was the center of either good or bad attention. I truly loved parr. I liked how every character seemed important in the story and was needed. From the mother, to parr's assistant. It all seemed very real at times. But with al, honesty that is where my likes ended.

The main woman, marybeth, I felt was too whiney and not strong enough lead for this book. She didn't seem bring enough to the table and it was very frustrating. Bobby jo, don't even get me started, a manipulating and calculating guy that doesn't work for anything for himself. The synopsis of this story was good and really wanted to read it but after starting this book I had a hard time finishing it. It didn't make sense have the time and I was so frustrated have the time that I skipped over pages just to get through it. She added too much that wasn't needed and not enough to the love story in the book. The epilogue was short and was honesty a waste of time for it to be there.

I hope for the best for this author, but I really don't see myself reading anything else from her. Would I recommend this book...no Would I recommend the author...hard to say Would I read the book again...no

Sent from my NOOK

[ysar · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've never read anything by Barton before, but I figured that between the success of her writing and the intriguing synopsis, this one would be an easy winner. Not so at all.

The general plot sounded great. Woman is cheated on by her fiance, finds herself attracted to another man, and that other man turns out to be her fiance's brother. There's so much potential for drama and emotion, and I really wanted to see it all play out. Unfortunately, it started off very shaky, and when the two-dimensional characters all came into play, it just got worse.

Mary Beth is your typical good girl, and she's engaged to a selfish jerk. He cheats on her at their engagement party, and she finds a sympathetic stranger to talk to, someone she's instantly attracted to despite her broken heart and confusion about her future. Said stranger is Parr, brother to her awful fiance, but he's not bright enough to realize that the crying fiancee he's talking to at an engagement party is his brother's woman. And when he does? Doesn't matter. He's angry at his brother and wants to win the girl. Worse than those three are the parents, all of whom seem more interested in marrying off their mismatched, unhappy children than supporting them. Parr's mother actually asks him to intercede and help the broken couple patch things up, and Mary Beth is just enough of a doormat to try to look past her fiance's cheating.

I had high hopes for this one, but I realized rather quickly that I wasn't going to enjoy reading it. I'm used to some contrived drama and even a few cardboard cut-out characters in romances, but this was just too much. When the set-up is so thin, the characters so oblivious, and I end up not liking any of them enough to care what happens next, it's time to bail and find something else to read.

***FicCentral received this book from Kensington Books (via NetGalley) for free in exchange for an honest review.

[tyrianpurple · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beverly Barton - Just The Way You Are

Enjoyment quality :: 2 stars
Literature quality :: 3 stars

Parr Weston. 32 y.o. Construction business owner. Brown eyes. Coal black hair.
Mary Beth Caine. 24 y.o. Strawberry blond hair. Green eyes.

Blurbs. No Contents of The Book. His brother's woman. Cheating fiance. Payback, revenge. Betrayal.

The font was hard for eyes. It was not clear, my eyes get fuzy after a little while. Would be nice fo change the font into something narrower and less curves.

Lets see. I dont like the writing style, feels like an article on newspaper for me. Or like a script which anchor read for morning news. Like stating a fact. Then it got a strange opening where it is a little concerning to how they could interact like that at first time they met. Slim chance people in the real world do that.

" Women wanted their freedom, their careers, their hard-won rights, and at the same time, they wanted a man’s love, his money, his body, and his total acceptance of them just as they were. "

Too many naration, and with that weird font, the combination successfully took me a lot effort to concentrate reading it. I dont feel the characters contribute to the story. And the story clearly aiming to be a emotional one, but again for me its like stating a fact, flat emotion like a news, not a romance story. Feels so much like historical romance.

3rd POV, alternating between main character with no partition between POV. Could be dampening reading experience, better to give a space or symbol in between.

ARC is kindly provided by Author/Publisher via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. Thank you for the chance to review the book.

[Gaele · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m honestly torn with this story from Beverly Barton. I hadn’t read any of her earlier titles, so I’m coming at this as a total newcomer to her work. What I discovered was a promising (if for me, slightly squidgy) start that quickly devolved into lost threads, character misses and dialogue that bordered on incomprehensible, if not stereotypical for poking fun at the south. I do have to say that my DH is Mississippi born and bred, and is nothing like the misguided and ill-spoken characters that we encounter in this story, and my engagement and enjoyment of this story suffered greatly from that.

And then there is Mary Beth. OK – so your fiancé is cheating – but you run off to another man right away? Tit for tat much? That’s a childish reaction and her first instinct is to lash out – perhaps remotely acceptable. But then Parr, her fiancé’s brother has NO CLUE who she is? And can’t see his brother for the piece of work he is? Yeah, still didn’t fit.

The connections to me were more hormones than emotional, and the back and forth that Mary Beth was experiencing only showed how unprepared for marriage or a steady relationship she really was. Sad, but you can’t test the waters with serial ‘love’ like you can test drive a car.

There were so many misses in this story after the midpoint that it felt like a rough first draft from a novice author. If you enjoy a convoluted plotline that will just allow you to go along for the ride, this is the perfect lightweight entrant into that pile.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

[Jessica Alcazar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I give my review, I'm gonna be honest and tell you that I read just about every review on Goodreads, and I was stunned. WAY too many people DNF as far as I am concerned. Did I read a different book? LOL
I had a really fun and easy time reading this story. And I found everything that was happening quite true to life. Or at least in my experience.
1) Mary Beth running to another man to be consoled after finding her fiance making out with his ex-girlfriend is SPOT ON. Obviously, when something like this happens to you, 9 out of 10 times your ego is shattered and how better to boost one's ego that have the attention of another. WHY so many people found fault in that is beyond me. I thought it was perfectly natural.
2) Bobby Joe wanting to marry Mary Beth even though he admits to his brother he is not sexually attracted to her is again, NOT UNCOMMON or FARFETCHED. Now do I think he's an ass for doing it, OF COURSE. But he is not an anomaly people!
3) Mom asking big brother to talk Mary Beth into marrying Bobby Joe was again, NOT UNCOMMON. You see, Parr has been the head of the family for a loooooong time. He's taken care of his family both financially and any other way since like forever, so who else is mom going to turn to? AGAIN, not far-fetched or uncommon! lol

I could go on but what is the point. No two people ever read the same story and everyone is entitled to their thoughts. SO, here are mine: Like I said before, the story was light and easy. Low on the angst and pretty predictable. It was a fun Sunday afternoon read :)

ARC provided by Kensington Books via NetGalley for an honest review.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

By reading the reviews on this book, I seem to be the only one with the opinion that this book was FREAKING GREAT. Did we read the same book???
IMO This Book Was Addictive, I carried it around with me and every time I had a spare minute my nose was buried in it. Took about 10 hours to read it....
I Loved The Small Town Setting And Most Of All The Southern Charm. The book is well written with great characters and a smoking hot plot that includes a love triangle. Just The Way You Are IMO is a 5 star book and goes in my first read category.

Mary Beth Caine has always been a good girl and snags the good-looking younger Weston Brother, Bobby Joe. At their engagement party she finds him in a storage closet making "nice" with his ex-girlfriend. Mary Beth runs off and into the arms of a big, muscular stranger. He makes her feel passion for the first time in her life and she wants more.
Parr Weston is in town for his brothers' engagement party, he strays outside to avoid the family he has been taking care of since he was 12 years old. He hears a woman crying, takes her into his arms and decides he wants to make her "his"!
Mary Beth And Parr soon realize who the other is and know that the passion they felt earlier can go nowhere. But they can't stay away from each other and the lust and attraction is hard to fight.
Will the cheating Bobby Joe change his ways? Will Mary Beth And Parr find that whether it's right or wrong they shouldn't fight the falling in love vibe happening between them???

[Paula · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought when I began reading Just the Way You Are by Beverly Barton that I would really enjoy this story. Strangers meeting at a party with instant attraction sounds good, right. Well I thought so until I find out big brother’s attraction is with his cheating brother’s heartbroken fiancé. Something seemed off by then. They share a kiss, which made me wonder just how heartbroken is she? She is now tempted to spend the night with him?

The rest of the story is about family trying to get the engaged couple back together. I then had several questions about the Weston family. Parr, the older brother agrees to help, why is this if he is attracted to her? Yes, I understand he didn't want a serious relationship but why would he want a woman he likes to end up with a cheater? Then there is the mother’s attitude. Why their mother thinks Bobby Joe should marry Mary Beth, is beyond me. I have a son. I would be appalled if he had cheated on his fiancé. I would not consider this a small sin but a serious character flaw.

All in all, the story did not have characters I identified with or even liked very much. Do people behave like this, I am sure they do. In fact, this has a Dallas (80’s TV program) feel to it, so maybe the storyline is just too dated for this 21st century reader.
Copy provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

[Ruby Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a story of a love triangle. Mary Beth the heroine discovers on the night of her engagement party that her fiance is cheating on her with another woman. When a big, protective, shamelessly sexy stranger consoles her, she lets him—only to discover later that Parr also happens to be the older brother of her fiance, Bobby Joe.
Parr left Mississippi after years of supporting his family and he’s back to give Bobby Joe an engagement party. He’s shocked that Mary Beth is his brother’s fiancee and he certainly isn’t going to try to steal her away even though he knows he’s never been more attracted to a woman.

I just didn’t like a love triangle involving two brothers and a woman, although there wasn’t an affair happening between the woman and her fiance’s brother just the possibility.

Mary Beth keeps going back to Bobby Joe and he just keeps on cheating. Because of this Mary Beth came away looking weak. Bobby Joe looked immature, irresponsible, and unlikeable. Parr was the only character that was attractive even if he was in love with Mary Beth and even he blew hot and cold.

The opening scene of the book was very good, but it went downhill from there. I never could connect with the characters and the story just seemed to fizzle out. Worst of all, by the time the hero and heroine got together, I just didn’t care.

[Viccait · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is my first review for a book and my first book of Beverly Barton. I've heard her older ones are better but this was very...disgusting? Yeah disgusting. The men at least. The older brother pulled the ole "oh I like you too much but your not 'my woman' so now I have to be a dick wad to you blah blah blah". Over done. No one would actually do that so automatically strike one. Strike two is when the little bro who is marrying the protagonist and is a grade-A douchebag is only a little apologetic about cheating at their engagement party...but not for cheating. OH NO. But because his fiancee isn't very sexual in nature and he, well, he needs some satisfaction. Righto sir, please continue! And then Strike 3: when both momma of the lil bro and the lady who claims to never plan on marrying him both say or think at different times "he's not the first man to stray close to the wedding...and he strayed only enough to look foolish" (paraphrasing)....HUH, because it as raised that straying is straying and I have waaay more self respect than to deal with that shit. And I want the people I read about to have more self respect. I'm all about different views and traits and I get that this is just a romance novel on the spectrum of books, but c'mon. Prrrretty gross view of cheating all around for 2015. Pass.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was received from NetGalley for an honest review.

I had a hard time getting through this book. I found it to be very slow and boring, and the characters were annoying. First of all, right from the start Mary Beth finds her fiancee cheating on her at their engagement party, but decides to give him another chance. Really? She even admits to herself that she doesn't love him nor does she feel physically attracted to him and he feels the same way, so why waste everyone's time? What makes things worse is the fact that their families encourage her to not end the engagement.

Overall this book was lacking. Bobby Joe, the fiancee, is nothing but a whinny, immature, spoiled brat. Every time he had any type of dialog it actually hurt to read it. And Mary Beth was weak and uninteresting. The only character who wasn't annoying was Parr, Bobby Joe's brother and the man that Mary Beth actually falls for.

To sum it up, I felt that this book should have been a short story...Mary Beth dumps her cheating fiancee and runs off with his attractive brother. It could have been summed up in one chapter.

[bookaholic ge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just the Way You Are was a really great book.

Instantly I felt bad for Mary Beth Caine and I had to find out exactly who broke her heart and why. Beverly Barton did such a great job describing the scenes and the characters that I grew attached. After the first chapter Barton made me want to just console Mary Beth with a good bowl of ice cream and a hug.

Par is tired of being the man that always helps the damsel in distress. But something about Mary Beth made him want to climb back out on the limb and protect her from the everyone including his selfish brother.

I received this book as an ARC from Net Galley for my honest review. Honestly I feel that Beverly Barton did a great job. This book made me want to hug some characters, kiss others and slap a couple of them a time or two. If you want a well written story with romance and a little suspense then this book is for you.

I don't want to spoil it for anyone but there are 2 characters that I think deserve each other and I hope they are in the next book of the series. Because the perfect punishment for them both would be learning to grow up and fall in love together!

[Jeannie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have loved almost all of Beverly Barton's books but unfortunately, this one just didn't do it for me. Would really have loved to give her the due credit.

I did think the story started off pretty well but towards the middle, Beth just struck me as weak even though she seemed otherwise. She knew Bobby Joe was cheating on her but she stuck on to him just because Parr wasn't gonna make himself available to her. I wish she would have just moved on even if it's not with Parr rather than be in an out of pity relationship.

I understand the conflicting moments with Parr since Beth is the fiancé of his brother. Just because Bobby is the brother doesn't mean that he has to be blind to his faults. I just felt that he has every right to his own happiness. The ending also didn't do the story justice. It felt abrupt, rushed and without a right feel to the end of the story.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.