Beautiful Ugly
Author: Alice Feeney
Narrators:
Richard Armitage
Tuppence Middleton
To Be Published: January 14, 2025
Audiobook: 9 hours 19 minutes

Reviewed By: Jessica
Dates Read: December 26, 2024- January 3, 2025
Jessica’s Rating: 4.5 stars

Book Description:

Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life.

Grady calls his wife to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes, get out of the car, then nothing. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge the headlights are on, the driver door is open, her phone is still there… but his wife has disappeared.

A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can’t sleep, and he can’t write, so he travels to a tiny Scottish island to try to get his life back on track. Then he sees the impossible – a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife.

Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t.
Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do.

Jessica’s Review:

I have only read a couple of Alice Feeney’s books, but she is all over my TBR, and with listening to Beautiful Ugly, I really need to try and get her books moved up higher on my list. I was granted an ALC (advanced listening copy) from the publisher and also had an opportunity to read Beautiful Ugly with a physical book via my Book of the Month subscription.

I was glad I had access to a physical copy:  There is a map included of the Isle of Amberly which is where Grady goes. I did reference the map as I listened to the audio.  Another reason I was delighted to have a physical copy was towards the end of the book something is mentioned. I can’t say what as it could be a spoiler, but I did what was mentioned and I squealed as my reaction!  Being able to do this added so much more to the book for me and added a half star to my rating!

Beautiful Ugly has two things to it that I really enjoy and one that can be hit or miss: dual narrators, dual timelines, and the unreliable narrator. With unlikeable characters (other than the dog), a missing wife, and the dual narrators being both Grady and Abby, at about 24% of the way in I texted some friends and said “I’m listening to a book and if it goes Gone Girl, I’m going to be pissed!” I am sure I am not the only reader to think this.  We have a dog in this book and I was worried that something would happen to Columbo, as he was a main character along with Grady.  Reader and animal lover, fear not: Columbo is fine!

The audiobook has two narrators and they both did a fabulous job. They performed really well with these unlikeable characters.  There are also sound effects throughout the narration which enhanced the audiobook. The sounds effects consist of static of the handheld radios, the ocean, and some light music throughout the novel.

I did start this book at the end of 2024 and ended it in 2025, and I hope this is a great sign of the books I will be reading/ listening to this year!

I wasn’t entirely happy with ultimate motives that are uncovered, but dang the final twists were something! I really hope this becomes a mini-series for tv and it sticks with the book, that would be quite a thriller to watch!   I won’t say if Beautiful Ugly went the Gone Girl route or not as it would be a spoiler alert.  Just read or listen to this book yourself to find out!  Many thanks to the publisher for granting me an alc to listen to and review.

Pre-Order Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK