Lee Dawna's Something So Beautiful delves into the intricate and suspenseful world of Mary Williams, a woman grappling with the challenges of her own reality and the complexities of a budding romance with the enigmatic John Beller. As the narrative unfolds, the author skillfully weaves a story that delves into the fragile boundaries between love, trust, and the looming shadows of paranoia and danger.

The exploration of Mary's internal struggles and her desperate attempts to maintain a semblance of normalcy amidst her deteriorating mental state is both poignant and gripping. Dawna adeptly captures the nuances of Mary's turmoil, creating a compelling portrayal of a woman determined to hold onto her grasp of reality despite the encroaching darkness.

While the intense and emotional narrative draws readers into the complexities of Mary and John's relationship, the pacing of the plot at times felt uneven, impacting the overall suspense and flow of the story. Additionally, certain aspects of the characters' dynamics could have been further developed to enhance the depth of the narrative.

Despite these minor drawbacks, Something So Beautiful remains a compelling read that delves into themes of psychological suspense and the intricacies of human relationships. Dawna's evocative prose and her ability to navigate the complexities of mental health and romance contribute to a thought-provoking narrative that resonates long after the final page.

In conclusion, Something So Beautiful is a testament to the author's skill in crafting emotionally charged storytelling, offering readers a glimpse into the fragile balance between love and danger in the face of psychological turmoil. With its engaging premise and complex character dynamics, the novel serves as a captivating exploration of the human psyche and the enduring power of love amidst chaos and uncertainty.

Mary Williams constantly feels that she is being watched. Her friends all think that she is suffering some sort of break down after her husband's death. At every turn Mary doubts herself. Then she goes on a blind double date and meets John Beller. In one, two, and three they are in a serious relationship.

Mary then suffers an accident and John takes over her life.

I have serious issues with this relationship between Mary and John. He is a possessive bully. He just takes over her life and refuses to allow her to make any decisions. Her friends are also terrible. All these people doubted her and Mary just defers to their opinions. These are not healthy relationships at all.

The psychological thriller part of the book was much more interesting but not enough to outshine the unhealthy relationship Mary throws herself into.

i enjoyed reading this book, it was a great mystery novel. The characters were great and I enjoyed the storyline. It was really interesting and I enjoyed this journey.

Thirty-two-year-old widow Mary Williams has had a hard life. Having lost her mother when she was just nine, she was abandoned by her father a mere six months later. Since then, Mary has made her own way in life.
After the death of her husband, Mary withdraws into herself. That is when her childhood best friend Kim and her husband, Kevin, convince her to go on a double date (a blind date) with one of Kevin’s friends, John Beller.
Meanwhile, Mary is suffering delusions and acute paranoia. She hears footsteps when there’s no one at home, and receives calls with no one on the other ends of the line. She wonders if she is losing her mind, and worries that her intuition is malfunctioning. It is not the right mindset with which to begin a new relationship. But John, completely besotted by her, is a man driven in his desire to woo and win her. Slowly Mary gives in to John’s persistence.
Returning from a date at John’s house, Mary’s car is driven off the road by an insane driver. John finds her and takes her home after she is discharged from the hospital. But will she be safe in John’s house, or will danger find her anyway?

The story is written mostly in the first person present tense PoV of Mary and briefly in the present tense PoV of John. Each chapter ends not exactly on a cliffhanger, but certainly prodding you to read the next one. The chapters are short, even so at 136, there are far too many. I thought the book would have done better if it had been slashed around the middle.
The parts that show Mary’s weakening grasp on reality were well written. There was more than a hint of Gothic suspense about them, and I wish there had been more of that. Instead, what we got was the insipid romance between John and Mary. A woman who finds herself falling for a man she knows nothing about, even as he proceeds to dig into her past and ferret out all the secrets she holds.

I didn’t like Kim very much. She doesn’t offer Mary the support she needs and is dismissive of her fears. It is better to not have a friend than to have one like her.
I found John extremely overbearing. He was very possessive and seemed to think his wealth and other talents were more than enough for the two of them. It was almost as if he felt he owned her. He presumed to speak on behalf of Mary, never letting her make up her mind. Whether his intentions are honourable or not, I didn’t appreciate his efforts to bulldoze his way into her life. Definitely a red flag there.
I was grateful to his mother, Katherine, and sister, Sheila, for objecting to his behaviour. I agreed with them, the relationship was smothering. Mary certainly seemed to be utterly charmed by him.
Chapter 101 had some typos.
This book could have benefited from less of John and more of Mary’s delusions.

Thank you Netgalley for the copy. Mary is a widow suffering from sleepless nights due to strange noises and silent phone calls. She is on the verge of falling apart when her best friend Kim sets her up with a blind date. Mary falls for John and their relationship quickly becomes intense. When Mary has a lucky escape after a car crash John becomes possessive and controlling.

I tried several times to read this book but just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the dial;ogue in places. Others may like it but it wasn't for me.

Well, this was over the top. Mary is a widow and believes she is going crazy. Her friends Kim and Kevin think she is overreacting and want her to go talk to someone. So she pretends that everything is fine and hides the fact that she still thinks she is hearing things. She is practically forced to go on a blind date with John. John is kind of creepy in his instant attraction and feelings for Mary. While trying to keep her distance from John, she can't seem to say no to him. Everyone in this story seems to have very intense feelings which make it hard to believe.

Quite a predictable story. Rather unbelievable that any many would shower such affection on one person. The sweetheart and beautiful got a little hard to take. Was glad when it was over

I want to thank Netgally for providing me this book.
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This book had such a great potential but still it lacked at some places.
The character of Mary was well described and her paranoia and anxiety was captured beautifully. At times it had me biting my nails too.
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I loved the plot the story, but the story just went on and on. I didn't like John's character much and to be honest I felt that the book would have been better if some scenes were deleted as they made the book look longer.
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The climax of the book was well written, definitely not what I was expecting.
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This book did have great potential.

Really enjoyed this book. Simple story but very well written and draws you in to find out what is really happening in Mary's complicated life until she meets John Beller - a very rich and handsome man who falls head over heels in love with Mary at first sight. Looking forward to reading more by Lee Dawna.
Thankyou to Net Galley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately this one disappointed me. At times it felt overdone, crass, dark just to be dark. The premise has promise, the story itself felt forced. I don’t know if the author had a deadline or just wanted to finish this one but it didn’t feel authentic.

𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙛 𝙎𝙮𝙣𝙤𝙥𝙨𝙞𝙨: Mary Williams is a young widow and constantly feels like someone is watching her. To justify this feeling, she keeps receiving anonymous notes, gifts, and strange events are happening at her home. Is Mary having a psychotic break or is her life in danger? In the midst of this chaos, Mary agrees to go on a blind, double date with her close friends. This is where she meets billionaire, John Beller. An instant connection occurs between the two, and Mary finds comfort in John.

𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨: The book had great premise, but something didn’t quite flow for me. John comes across as creepy, dominant, possessive person who is full of sexual innuendos. These qualities work in the dark romance, male dominant novels. But that’s not what this book panned out to be. Couple that with Mary’s rude and somewhat abrasiveness demeanor with John, and it creates a dialogue that doesn’t flow well. This occurred throughout a majority of the book. I do feel like this back and forth banter could have been condensed without affecting the vibe I feel the author was striving to go for.

That said, the book finished strong. Around the 85% mark through the end of the book the story really came together, and the suspense/thrill was felt.

Thank you to the Lee Dawna, BooksGoSocial, and NetGalley for a copy of this novel.

This book had to much potential, but I felt like something was missing.

Lee Dawna did a great job detailing Mary's paranoia, It almost felt dark and gothic. But the rest just seemed to miss the mark.

WHY did Mary like John so much? Instead of being the guy that sweeps you off your feet, he felt like a pushy creep to me. I never liked him, so I had a hard time buying into the romance of this.

I do want to thank the author, the publisher and #netgalley for the ARC. This did not impact my review (obviously).

Thanks NetGalley Publisher and author for this ebook copy!

I real!y thought this was going to be an awesome read! Don't know what I was expecting.
Honestly this book just didn't do it for me. And I love a good thriller.
The writing was good. Maybe it was the characters? I don't know but I honestly did not finish. Wasn't for me!

Rating: 2.5/5

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to get my hands on Something So Beautiful By: Lee Dawna.

Mary is a 32 year old woman who is getting back into the dating game after being set up on a blind date with John by her two friends Kim and Kevin. Mary does not expect to actually like this guy, but after their eventful first date Mary is hooked. As the story continues, we watch Mary and John’s relationship grow into something more than just strangers. One night an insane driver forces Mary off the road which causes her to be hospitalized for some serious injuries. Mary is forced into confinement at John’s house to recover. He refuses to let her out of his sight until he finds out who did this to her.

Lee Dawna did a wonderful job of capturing Mary’s paranoia, at one point I was checking the locks on my door to ensure no one could get in. I love when books play with your head and make you look over your shoulder. This book gave me the suspense and mystery I was looking for, but it lacked the romance. John gave me major red flag vibes and I did not trust him the entire time I was reading. He was creepy, manipulative and controlling over Mary, which played into his character but it was not what I was expecting. He constantly talked about how much he loved her, but he never listened to her. He was always making the decisions for her and not listening to her needs or wants. She always came back to forgive him, which was somewhat frustrating. I so badly wanted her to stand up for herself and not put up with his egotistical self.

Overall, I think Lee Dawna shines with writing thrillers and leaving her reader wanting to solve the mystery. The thriller bits were what kept me interested in the story. I think if the “romance” was written differently or was non-existent the story would have been amazing.

This book will be published on March 1st, 2021.

This book fell very flat for me.
I can definitely see why it started the way it did but this just abruptly began with no introduction to the characters or place their surroundings.

Relationships in this book were very weird. & I can say that if you’re into dark twisted romance this might be for you. But the friendships and relationship was definitely weird.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy! The potential was there for this book, but it didn't do it for me. Mary and John's relationship gave me bad vibes right from the beginning. It was over the top in an incredibly creepy way. I think Mary's relationship with Kim is also a little troublesome. Like I said, the potential was there but it just wasn't for me

Twisted, psychological killer meets handsome charmer John Beller. Mary is a beleaguered heroine, who is fortunate enough to finally meet someone who believes in her. This one will keep you up at night.

I enjoyed this book. The relationship between the two main characters was at times a little odd, he has a creepy/possessive vibe. But as the storyline unfolded, it was something that played out and became more natural and understanding. The end result of who the villain was blindsided me, which was a good thing! It wasn't a predictable storyline. Some events seemed a little out there, but was overall a good storyline. I would like to read more from this author.

2 1/2 stars

I tried to like this book, and while the action and suspense were good, the “romance” was disturbing.

When it comes to writing a creepy, yet somewhat perfect psychotic killer, Ms. Dawna did a fabulous job. The times Mary’s stalker tries to scare her, you can feel her genuine terror and uncertainty. The thriller aspect is where this author shines.

That being said, the relationship not only between John and Mary, but also the friendship between Mary and Kim send up red flags. Neither are healthy relationships, and Mary should have run like hell from both of them.

John, the billionaire who always gets what he wants, is constantly talking over Mary and ignoring what she says she wants or needs. But a flash of a smile and Mary forgives him, even goes so far as to think she doesn’t deserve so wonderful a man. He’s emotionally abusive and extremely controlling. After three dates, where he keeps bull dozing right over her, she’s in love and wants to marry him. As for John, he thinks non-stop about Mary, constantly wants to contact her, ignores everything she says she needs or wants, yet claims to love her. That isn’t remotely what love looks like. His behavior is so disturbing the romance alone kept me horrified throughout the book.

Her relationship with her best friend is exceedingly unhealthy. Supposedly this woman’s family helped her when she was a child, yet when Mary confides in Kim about her fear of being watched and the strange things happening at home, her friend twists it into a way to gain sympathy from others because she has to deal with this poor, obviously delusional, woman. She doesn’t believe Mary, and goes so far as to make Mary feel like she’s losing her mind. With friends like this one, who needs enemies? Let’s not discount how much Kim pushes for Mary and John to date, because he’s just so gorgeous. Kim comes across as a self-centered teenager, and I honestly couldn’t find one likable thing about her.

I think there’s potential to redeem Mary’s character, but this poor woman is so firmly under everybody’s thumb, little more than a doormat, that it would take a lot of effort to make her a strong character. At thirty-two, she’s been windowed, doesn’t want to date, yet let’s her friend bully her into a blind date. Abandoned as a child and left to fend for herself, I’d have expected a strong, independent woman. Someone who could stand up for themselves. But that’s not how she comes across, not in the scenes with Kim and John. The few times she feels a spark of anger or annoyance, almost immediately she’s all smiles and forgiveness, and feels bad for getting upset and trying to take charge of her own life. She’d steadfast in her belief of no sex before marriage, but it’s about the only time she takes a stand. She’s an odd mix of child and someone born in a bygone era.

The thriller bits of the story kept me interested, but I badly wanted to send Mary to counseling. She’s psychologically damaged, emotionally abused, and has been targeted by a stalker. If the romance was toned down to almost non-existent, this would be an amazing story. I can’t express enough how horrifying and disturbing the romance is.