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Perfect (Second Opportunities #2)

4.26 of 5 stars 4.26 · rating details · 9,737 ratings · 355 reviews

A rootless foster child, Julie Mathison had blossomed under the love showered upon her by her adoptive family. Now a lovely and vivacious young woman, she was a respected teacher in her small Texas town, and she passionately lived her ideals. Julie was determined to give back all the kindness she'd received; nothing and no one would ever shatter the perfect life she had fa

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Mass Market Paperback, 704 pages

Published December 1st 2002 by Pocket Books (first published January 1st 1993)

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Mar 11, 2009 Miss Kim rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Miss Kim by: BarbaraM - (thank you!!)

Shelves: 2009, romantic-suspense, keeper

Well what can I say? The title says most of it. I found this book Perfect!! I loved it, and couldn’t put it down for the first 450 pages. Then I had to work and was so ticked that I couldn’t get right back to it. It was written in the early nineties, and does have a little bit of a dated feel, but that didn’t bother me at all.

In the late 70’s, Zack was brought up in an extremely wealthy, yet cold family environment. At 18 he is heartlessly thrown out. He ends up in Hollywood working a job that h...more Well what can I say? The title says most of it. I found this book Perfect!! I loved it, and couldn’t put it down for the first 450 pages. Then I had to work and was so ticked that I couldn’t get right back to it. It was written in the early nineties, and does have a little bit of a dated feel, but that didn’t bother me at all.

In the late 70’s, Zack was brought up in an extremely wealthy, yet cold family environment. At 18 he is heartlessly thrown out. He ends up in Hollywood working a job that happens to land him on a movie set. The director ‘discovers’ him, and he becomes the biggest movie star in the country overnight. In 1988 he is convicted of murdering his wife, a famous actress. He’s sitting in jail in Texas five years later ready to execute his escape plan.

Julie was born on the streets of Chicago and abandoned. She fell into the system, moving from home to home. Because of her life as a small child, she had a lot of health problems that kept her out of school. Yet, her teachers promoted her to the next grade anyway, because she was ‘a good girl’. By age 12, she was basically illiterate and starting to hang out with the rougher kids. She is given a break by a psychologist that places her in a wonderful family in Texas. She grasps at this new chance for life with both hands and never looks back. Over the years, she lives her life ‘perfect’. She becomes a school teacher for at risk and handicapped children, she’s active in her small town community, and she’s ‘kind of’ engaged to a man who is soon to be a minister.

After part of Zack’s original escape plan gets botched, he ends up carjacking Julie and making her drive him to a secluded cabin in Colorado. You can really feel the torment with Zack not really wanting to involve her, but he is in survival mode. He can’t let her go; because he knows she’ll go directly to the police. Or will she? After a few days, she begins to see what a complicated, yet caring man he is. She starts to doubt that this man is capable of murdering his wife. They spend a week together in total seclusion. She falls in love with him, and he will not admit it to her or himself that he loves her too. Once he feels it’s safe for him to leave the cabin and send her on her way home, he coldly severs ties with her and she is crushed. He intends to hideaway from the world and live as someone else, and she wants him to try to prove he is innocent of murdering his wife; let alone guilty of kidnapping.

This story is so emotional. I teared up a lot. I was rooting for both of them the entire time. Zach has never felt love from anyone before, and he has such a hard time accepting it; especially from someone as pure as Julie. When he finally admits he loves her in a letter, it is SO good! There is good suspense plot, action, tears, joy, passion… I just loved it.
(less)

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Nov 03, 2010 TJ rated it 4 of 5 stars

No one writes relationships better than McNaught! She is one of - if not the- best in the genre. With each new book, she takes situations, responses and the emotions behind them and makes them absolutely real and intrinsic to the reader. Her gift is in understanding exactly how a person would respond to a given circumstance, then drawing out the perfect emotion one would feel in that situation. Amazing!

"Perfect", however unrealistic the plot line may be, had me so involved with the characters th...more

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Apr 19, 2011 Karla rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I really enjoyed this book. It is a rather lengthy read at 674 pages, but I was never bored, and the story was just riveting. The author draws you in with the compelling history about the main characters childhoods, and the circumstances that bring them together. This has you understanding Zach’s hard exterior and why Julie is so eager to please. It just made them so much more relatable. What really sealed it for me was that the last 60 or so pages that gave the reader wonderful bonus material....more

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Aug 29, 2008 Shana rated it 5 of 5 stars

So this was my first Judith McNaught novel and I loved every page of it....it was like indulging my sweet tooth with the very best chocolate souffle I've ever eaten - LOL. The storyline is completely unreal and over the top and it's certainly not the best book I've ever read, but I willingly admit it tops my list of self indulgent romance/drama/mystery novels. Judith is a pro at character development; she writes in such a way that you find yourself becoming deeply rooted and believing in each of...more

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Oct 27, 2009 Barbara M. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: all-time-favorites

It's "Prison Break" meets "Pretty Women" (minus one fabulous hooker) meets "Cinderella"...THE BEST book I've read since "When He Was Wicked" (by Julia Quinn). And I just loved how McNaught wove a piece of "Paradise" in with it. It was nice to catch up with Matt and Meredith (and their little girl)! So ladies this is a MUST read...I've never steered you wrong before, and I'm not gonna start now!

10 likes · like · see review

Oct 05, 2011 Lady Raven RAVE! rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance-romance, contemporary-romance, favorites

www.romancenoveljunkies.com

PERFECT was perfect with every written chapter. Before I start writing about my thoughts on the book, I love that the author touches on the foster system and literacy in children and adults..

My thoughts on this book was, WOW, and this is my 3rd book from this author. Her writing style was excellent in the way she includes all her characters in the book with everyone having an important role and also getting to know each character personally not just Zack and Julie. Ev...more

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Jan 07, 2008 maricar rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, romance, judith-mcnaught, contemporary

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I dunno about you guys, but Perfect made me cry...

i just absolutely love this story. it was one of the first books that ive read from ms. mcnaught---one of those that contributed to this enthusiasm over romance.

zachary or zack (oh gosh...is his name hot or what??) is so perfect for julie. as julie is perfect for him. you cannot help but fall in love with these two. the halcyon days they spent all cooped up away from the outside world made me wonder if i'll let myself one day be "kidnapped" by a...more

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Feb 17, 2012 Jana rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance

I would honestly like to outgrow this phase so I can start reading William Trevor or any other fiction author. But I can't. Reading newspapers is hard enough. This is what contemporary/historical romances do. They trick you into their floating and flowing life and you willingly start drooling. Because they feel so good. And you just want to find a soft corner to sit and preferably have a lamp somewhere behind you and start appreciating George Michael again. Because it all smells like 80s. I have...more

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Sep 21, 2011 Cindi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, judith-mcnaught

Definitely my all-time favorite book and I have literally read hundreds. I was pushed into reading it many years ago by my sister. I didn't want to read another "cheesy love story". But once I started reading I could not put it down. Zachary is the perfect leading man. Julie's innocence, and the way it is explained in the book, makes her the perfect leading lady. There are a few scenes in the book that come across as being silly, but the rest of the story more than makes up for it. I have never...more

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Mar 04, 2009 Cynthia rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was just ok for me. I liked Judith McNaught's Paradise better though the characters from that book, Matt and Meredith are in Perfect as Zachary's long-time, loyal friends.

It's a fast book but I think the love story was just a little too unbelievable for me. The main character is Zachary Benedict, who was disowned from his family at 18, he somehow makes it to LA and becomes the biggest movie star/director. But then he's wrongly convicted of murdering his cheating movie star wife and he'...more

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Jun 15, 2013 Timendu rated it 2 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 30, 2013 Kim rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: made-me-sad, no-politer-word-for-porn, whiny-women-brainless-bimbos

I have read 3 of McNaught's books and I think it is time for me to move on to a new author.
Don't get me wrong - I liked Paradise, but I think Perfect and Kingdom of Dreams were just so flat. And full of empty drama.
I vowed to stop reading anything McNaught after reading Kingdom of Dreams because I had a problem with the plot/character development: in my opinion, I think the hero was really unjustly mistreated by said author and the ~~heroine~~ bimbo was seriously favoured, despite her annoying tantr...more I have read 3 of McNaught's books and I think it is time for me to move on to a new author.
Don't get me wrong - I liked Paradise, but I think Perfect and Kingdom of Dreams were just so flat. And full of empty drama.
I vowed to stop reading anything McNaught after reading Kingdom of Dreams because I had a problem with the plot/character development: in my opinion, I think the hero was really unjustly mistreated by said author and the ~~heroine~~ bimbo was seriously favoured, despite her annoying tantrum and ridiculous decisions. For what the hero was worth, he surely should have/could have done better, but for some brain-glitch.
For Paradise, this was not the case. To a certain extent, yes, Meredith got onto my nerves at the second half of the book (for every reason Matt listed) but she kinda redeemed herself a little bit. I'm a nice person (feel free to disagree), I have forgiven her.
What I meant to say was, second opportunity was provided for McNaught; she redeemed herself with Paradise, but in Perfect, the same problem I had with KOD resurfaces (in my opinion). Julie falls in love with Zack, and *gasp!* Zack falls in love back, gracious and suave as he is. No spoilers here, but after that Julie makes terrible and cringe-worthy mistakes, making Zack suffer the consequences. THe mistake is worse than infidelity (maybe, maybe not), (view spoiler), it is mistrust. Right when Zack's balance and love for her lies in this sole quality. (view spoiler)
While I deem myself as a feminist and hate it when the guy mistreats the supposedly love-of-his-life, I can't stand it when the opposite holds true, feminism and all. (view spoiler)
I think McNaught didn't delve into the issue of guilt and mistrust as deeply as I would have liked, as if Julie's sins were part of the everyday of couples (God I hope not, or else I'd rather stay single forever). In the end, this book seemed like another goddamned chick-flick novel, catered to women as a mode of escapism where in that unrealistic world, men should and are expected to bend and contort their principles, dignity and self-worth for their very, very fortunate other half, no matter how embarrassing and whiny these females are.(less)

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Jan 29, 2013 Atalyonet rated it 4 of 5 stars

Not a quality book in any way, but a very enjoyable read.

*** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***

I liked the way the history of the two main characters is portraid. I REALLY enjoyed the kidnapping part + the week Juile and Zach spend in collerado - in contrast to what other readers thought, I found their process pretty believeable. while I agree their passion was a little too intense for "I just met you, and you held a gun at me, but boy - aren't you swell, so call me mabe" kind of situation, I did totally und...more Not a quality book in any way, but a very enjoyable read.

*** CONTAINS SPOILERS ***

I liked the way the history of the two main characters is portraid. I REALLY enjoyed the kidnapping part + the week Juile and Zach spend in collerado - in contrast to what other readers thought, I found their process pretty believeable. while I agree their passion was a little too intense for "I just met you, and you held a gun at me, but boy - aren't you swell, so call me mabe" kind of situation, I did totally understand why they fell in love with eachother, and really routed for them to have an happy ending.

the book's problems were everything that happens until they reached their happy ending:

1. the book really should have ended about 200 pages earlier

2. Julie goes from being a witty, non-passive, cute, bright hostge / lover to being an emmotional ragged dall right after. didn't like it at all how she became so weak (both in her reaction to her surroundings AND to Zach's letters AND in Mexico).

3. the author implies that Julie betrayed Zach by helping authorities catch him in Mexico. a lot of the readers seem to agree and appriciate Zach for being "such a good sport and forgiving her". HELLO!! first of all, she did so because she though it was for his own good, and she had a point. Maybe she was mistaking, but from that to betrayl - hardly! second of all - not to sound too feminist, but she owed him absolutely NOTHING. putting asaide the fact that he kidnapped her - he was a total jerk to her many times during that "magical" week in the mountains and she still stood by him. cooperating with him during the ordeal, and publicly supporting him afterwards is much more than enough from her. Anthing else she should have done and/or did should be regarded as a bonus. The only problem I had with the Mexico City incident was the way she histerically faints during Zach's capture, which downgraded her as a character for me.

4. The constant name dropping of Hollywood stars is laguhable. especially while at the same time, really essential charachter seem to disolve into thin air. specifically - Dom and Paul are preety much throw to the dogs after contributing their parts.

5. The murder mystery seems to solve itself out of the blue. I would have liked it much better if Julie exonerated Zach. Or even Zach himself. they are farily passive through out that process for such main characters

6. I understand the christian aspect of the story, but her family fully forgives Zach WAY too quickly than I would have if someone kidnapped my daugther. charming and innocentsaid kidnapper may be.

All of the above being said - again, I enjoyed the read, and would deffinately read it again on a moody day. Juile reminds me of myself at times (again - the first-part-of-the-book Juile, not the emmotional reck - goody two shoes part afterwards). Zach is awsome, other than, again, being a little too intense at times. (less)

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Oct 23, 2012 Europa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Perfect is almost Paradise. (At least in my opinion)

I had numerous times contemplating whether how am I going to begin writing justifiable review about this novel because of having mixed emotions I felt towards it, plus the fact that Jonah had rekindled my affectionate feelings over Paradise which she had flooded with maximum praises. (And her excitement was very contagious) what the heck..Contagion got the better of me so; let me try to lure you over Perfect, the sequel of Judith McNaught’s ama...more

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Aug 19, 2012 HÜLYA rated it 5 of 5 stars

Kaç kere okuduğumu anımsamıyorum bu hikayeyi..Baştan sona kadar elimden bırakmadan adeta nefes almadan okuduğumu hatırlıyorum...Film yıldızı Zachary Benedict ile Öğretmen Julie Matthison'un karlı Colorada yollarında apansız kesişir...
Zach'ın karısı bir film çekiminde esrarengiz bir cinayete kurban gider ve cinayet zanlısı olarak Zach hapse girer..Aradan beş yıl geçer ama bir türlü suçsuzluğunu ispat edip çıkamaz..Son çare olarak hapisten kaçmayı başarır..Güzel öğretmenimiz Julie'yi rehine alır.....more

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Jan 19, 2012 Nazia rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, most-favourite-of-em-all, sexy-male-characters, books-wch-made-me-cry, so-glad-i-read-this

Well what can i say....? The title of the book says everything,this book is 'PERFECT'. No one can write the love relationships better than Mcnaught. I just loved this book immensely. It's certainly my most favourite contemporary romance of all time, I just loved the characters immensely,I loved every line of this book,every meaning the words carried,every emotions depicted so eloquently. I can't really find words to descrbe it. When I started reading it I just could'nt put it down for the first...more Well what can i say....? The title of the book says everything,this book is 'PERFECT'. No one can write the love relationships better than Mcnaught. I just loved this book immensely. It's certainly my most favourite contemporary romance of all time, I just loved the characters immensely,I loved every line of this book,every meaning the words carried,every emotions depicted so eloquently. I can't really find words to descrbe it. When I started reading it I just could'nt put it down for the first half then I had to rush to college but even while listening to the lecture in the class I was restless bacause I kept on thinking about Zack and Julie. Zachary Benedict* a dreamy sigh* is the prince charming,a movie star who has fame,name and everything a human desires but no love in his life. And Julie Mathison is the cindrella who was raised in foster homes for 11 years of her life as an illeterate then is adopted by a loving and caring family.
Awwwwwww!!!!!! This book is just too awesome,it's so wonderful and heart warming that i cried literally when Zack realises his love for Julie and when he gets caught by the police. It's filled with so many poignant moments. It's just magical,sort of fairy tale. <3<3<3
I also liked the way Judith re-introduced Matthew Farrel's character from her previous novel Paradise in it and I loved the part he played in this book.
This book will just drive you crazy because of it's plot and the simple,sincere and flawless way Judith has written it. It has everything from suspense,romance,plot,and the characters who will make u cry. Every character including the leads has their own role and their own beautiful story. I loved Matthew Farrel for his loyalty towards Zack,I loved Ted and Katherine's story too. Most of all I immensely liked the character of Paul Richardson who helplessly falls in love with Julie,I just wished that it should'nt have happened because Julie was meant to be with Zack.Nevertheless each and every scene is just too awesome i just wonder how did Judith perceive such great imagination and such wonderful storyline which will remain in your heart forever and ever. Zach and Julie's love is like perfect,their loved each other with a will which surpassed every limit. When Zach was an oscar winning movie star everyone wanted him,desired him but when he was wrongly convicted of his wife's murder everyone deserted him like plague,and this was the time when Julie loved him,trusted him,made him feel loved and wanted.People thought him as cold blooded monster but Julie made him feel like a human,she broke the cold walls surrounding his heart and made her way into them with her unconditional love, most of all she was ready to leave everything behind her,her career and family just to be with him even if it had to be a federal fugitive's accomplice.The letter which zack writes to Julie after their estrangement expressing his feelings and in that scene Julie starts crying reading the letter and i shamelessly admit it that even I cried. I cried like a baby,I was so overwhelmed with emotions that I just could'nt control them. I mostly loved the part of the book when Zack and Julie are together in Colorado where they spend most beautiful 4 days of their lives. Every scene is special for me,i particularly liked the scene when Zack gets jealous of his co-stars when Julie mentions their names.:p Well words will not suffice if I start describing this magnificient book but I just to want to say that this book is the most prefect book I have read. (less)

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Sep 24, 2011 Kylie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance, rated-r

Perhaps my little disillusioned mind has been pining away for true love, because within the last few weeks I've devoured a never-ending stream of romance novels.

The problem is that the last few I've read have left me disgusted with the genre. This one, in particular, was not only unnecessarily long, but also far too heart-warming for my tastes.

Judith McNaught is the master at convoluted drama. The heroin is always a sweet, willful beauty who is seduced and betrayed in some fashion by a handsome...more

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Aug 16, 2011 Jen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

Hmmmm, so I'm kinda embarrassed that I'm reviewing this book. I've been stuck in escape mode this summer and I'm reading tons of sexy escape books (well, 3). Maybe someday I'll get back West... Maybe someday I'll just accept my fate of living in a town that I don't like and start to actually live and enjoy it. Also it WAS unbelievably hot this summer so there really wasn't much to do but sit around and let my kids play with each other and watch TV while I wasted timing reading. Blah Blah. Blah b...more

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Jan 28, 2011 Eva Nickelson rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance

The plot is totally, totally unbelievable. I know that most romance fiction is that way, but this is just absolutely unbelievable from the very first chapter. Because there is no time to get into the story, it is hard to overlook the glaring unbelievability of the story.

Zachary Benedict is a movie star convicted of killing his wife on the movie set, the day after he found out she was cheating on him with the co-star. Julie Mathison is a bright but illiterate girl from the bad side of Chicago who...more

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Sep 21, 2010 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: library-borrowed

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. My amazon review copied here.

This is my second book by McNaught. I must say this one was infinitely better than Whitney, My Love. This one was another of her books printed more than 15 years ago, 1993 to be exact. It, however, was not perfect for me.

This book started out great. Then as another reviewer mentioned after they left the cabin the story went drastically downhill, however I will say it picked back up again after Zack went to Keaton for Julie.

I loved Zachary throughout the story, both...more

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Sep 07, 2010 Jane Stewart rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Aug 04, 2010 Shxrxn rated it 4 of 5 stars

You know what they say, what goes around comes around? But the trip ussually takes too long.
- Diana
Go fuck yourself.
- Zack
I fell in love with you the night you came to break up our party.
- Katherine
People don't fall in love in five minutes.
- Ted
Animals can't change, but people can, Julie! That's why the Lord gave us minds and wills. If you want to be a good girl, all you have to do is be one. Just make up your mind and do it!
- Mom
About last night—I'd like you to know that I loved it when you kis...more

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Dec 07, 2012 Nicoletta rated it 4 of 5 stars

questa volta le mie stelline sono 4 e mi spiace moltissimo perchè il finale è stato davvero meraviglioso, ma non riesco a farmi piacere le prime pagine
forse sto giudicando il libro in base al primo di questa serie che ho amato dalla prima frase fino all'ultima e non potete immaginare la mia felicità quando li ho ritrovati in questo
la storia presenta un amore e un'ingiustizia ai massimi livelli
un ragazzo riuscito a farsi da solo anche se ha dovuto affrontare a 18 anni un cambiamento radicale di...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Sharreb rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

The one word to describe the book ironically is "Perfect"

When an escaped convict wrongly accused and sentenced to the gallows meets a prim schoolteacher as she offers him a ride in what she deemed as a innocent and Samaritan decision, she could never imagine her perfect life would be irrevocably changed forever. Zack is a worldly man with a deep seated hatred against his family particularly his grandmother and his crude view of the world and people further compounded by life in the entertainment...more The one word to describe the book ironically is "Perfect"

When an escaped convict wrongly accused and sentenced to the gallows meets a prim schoolteacher as she offers him a ride in what she deemed as a innocent and Samaritan decision, she could never imagine her perfect life would be irrevocably changed forever. Zack is a worldly man with a deep seated hatred against his family particularly his grandmother and his crude view of the world and people further compounded by life in the entertainment business. As a result, he was a bitter and cynical man. Julie's unfortunate event from being abandoned to being bounced from foster home to foster home, a young robinhood stealing for the weak but all this ended when the Mathison took her in. What we manage to find is yourself hook to the book even before Julie meets zack. The author painted a very vivid picture of the past and who this main characters are. That you know you would believe the actions they take, the decisions they make all the more plausible because you already know them deep down. Their time in Colorado was like an unplanned honeymoon except she was suppose to be his captive. This book is so moving and makes you laugh and cry and laugh and cry, multiples times. You laugh at all those silly jokes Julie tells zack. You laugh at the childish banter, on zack forbidding Julie to watch any other actor other than mickey mouse. You cry when he verbally abused her. When the darkness in him unfairly lash out at Julie. When he committed the unspeakable when he proved his point by making her body betray her mind. You cry more when the.cops caught him AMD when he wrongfully thought she was a scheming liar. It there were plenty of poignant scenes. My favorite was when he begged for Julie not to leave, to forgive him the morning after ge committed the unspeakable hurting act. Also when she clutch the ring he bought her like she wanted to absorb it into her being.
Other things you would love and I need to mention are: Mr and Mrs Farrell appearing in this book, fans would know they are from the book Paradise. I also love Ted and Katherine, brother and sister in law of Julie.
This love story transcends time and so beautifully written it leaves a smile on your face, a tender feeling in your heart even long after you close the book. That is why it remains my all time favorite. (less)

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Jul 29, 2011 Dayatara rated it 5 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I loooooved this book! PERFECT was just...well, perfect!
I've read about 5 Judith McNaught books so far, and this is the only one I've given 5 stars. And not because I didn't like the other books as much as this one, but PERFECT, IMO, was written better and didn't suffer from having 100s of boring pages describing things, people, and/or situations I couldn't care less about.

Initially, I wasn't very excited to begin the book but I new Matt & Meredith would make an appearance, so I was looking...more I loooooved this book! PERFECT was just...well, perfect!
I've read about 5 Judith McNaught books so far, and this is the only one I've given 5 stars. And not because I didn't like the other books as much as this one, but PERFECT, IMO, was written better and didn't suffer from having 100s of boring pages describing things, people, and/or situations I couldn't care less about.

Initially, I wasn't very excited to begin the book but I new Matt & Meredith would make an appearance, so I was looking forward to that aspect. To my delight, they made more than just "an appearance"! They were in PERFECT quite a bit!

The story description on the back cover wasn't very good, so I was expecting a somewhat hokey story of kindnapping and falling in love. But of course McNaught gives us Julie & Zack's backstory and makes you care for and root for each of them from the very beginning. She really has a way with dialogue and with allowing you into each character's innermost feelings. It was wonderful!

I thought the scene where Zack & Julie were playing in the snow at the mountain house was so adorable. I was reading and grinning from ear to ear. There were many such moments at the mountain house that had me totally captivated.

And of course, I began to feel very uneasy because I knew the "big misunderstanding/big breakup" which has plagued every McNaught book I've read so far, would be coming very soon. I'm not a big fan of this plot device but it wasn't so bad in PERFECT! The main problem I have with "big misunderstandings" is that in McNaught books, they tend to go on for 100s of pages and those pages tend to be kind of boring. In PERFECT, I was never bored and never was tempted to skip pages. Everything I read was very interesting and moved the story forward. I must say, I was extremely disappointed in Julie when she lost faith in Zack. I had to put the book down for awhile. I just couldn't stand to read about the big set up in Mexico and had to work myself up to reading it!! I knew Zack would be so hurt and devastated. I knew he'd hate Julie and I felt like she deserved his hatred. But inevitably, I ended up sympathizing with her since she was so incredibly miserable. And I was very happy that Zack & Julie's breakup didn't last for 100s of pages.

Also, I loved the side story about Katherine & Ted.

PERFECT was a great story that I'd recommend to anyone who's already read PARADISE. You gotta read that one first!!(less)

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Jul 19, 2010 Slavena rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: contemporary-romance

In my opinion this book can rate anything between 3 and 5 stars.

You cant help it but feel for the injustice toward Zachary Benedict wrongly accused for the murder of his wife and thrown out at the age of 18 by his grandmother. Julie Mathison’s story is also heartbreaking until the age of 11 when she is adopted by a loving family and strives to be the best she could be so her family will be proud. When the plans for Zach’s escape are delayed by a few days he is forced to find a way to get out of...more

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Oct 06, 2011 Molly rated it 3 of 5 stars

Perfect by Natasha Friend was actually not that great of a book, in my opinion. It had little challenging vocabulary and felt too safe.. Like it was not written for my age bracket? The story line (plot) itself was decent, but could have had much room for improvement on small details. The characters were alright, but again were too simplistic. You could relate to what they were going through, or empathize towards what they were saying because granted every teenage girl (or even guys) have gone th...more

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Jun 18, 2010 Misty Vauble rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, dtb-fornat, 4-star, read-but-not-owned

one of my all time favorite Romantic Suspense reads. Julie and Zack are a couple that years later you like to revisit just to go on the Journey again. Perfect is a very long read at almost 700 pgs but never boring and well worth the time. It took me longer to read than it would have because it was a pb and I have such a hard time with those now that I have a K2. I really hope at some point this is available on Kindle

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Jan 24, 2011 Kathy Davie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance

Oh, this was good. It felt a bit cliched at first then I got sucked in with all the tragedy and the goodness of Julie. McNaught put a nice twist on it with Zach's coldness versus his gentle manners and Julie's early upbringing enhanced by her eventual family combining together into her innate goodness. Zach's kidnapping of her and how he treated her in Matt's Colorado cabin was so sweet.

From the other two books in the series, I had wondered how the betrayal fit in and that was very interesting....more

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May 23, 2012 Elena_twiarcady rated it 4 of 5 stars

I was completely absorbed in the story of the characters, who despite all their imperfections, want to find a perfect balance in their lives, while having to face up to all the demons of their own tumultuous past...( full review on http://bookishtemptations.com/2012/05...)

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Other Editions (23)

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Genres

Romance

446 users

Romance > Contemporary Romance

179 users

Contemporary

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Romance > Historical Romance

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Romance > Romantic Suspense

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Womens Fiction > Chick Lit

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Adult

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Suspense

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Mystery

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Drama

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About Judith McNaught

Judith McNaught is a bestselling author of over a dozen historical and contemporary romance novels, with 30 million copies of her works in print. She was also the first female executive producer at a CBS radio station. McNaught is credited with inventing the modern Regency Historical romance subgenre.

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Books by Judith McNaught

Whitney, My Love (Westmoreland Saga, #2)

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Quotes from Perfect

“I used to be ashamed
And now I am proud.
The world once was black
And now it is bright.
I used to walk head bent
And now I stand up tall.
I used to have dreams
But now I have hope.” — 59 people liked it

“She wept with shame for her lack of will and with fear for a love she couldn't control.” — 30 people liked it

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avg rating	preview: Perfect Goodreads rating: 4.26 (9737 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/129617.Perfect?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1171988350l/129617.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/129617.Perfect?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Perfect by Judith McNaught[/url]

Perfect (Second Opportunities #2)

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