Review: BROKEN COUNTRY

Title: Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

Book Beginning quote:

Friday56 quote:

Summary:

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident.

As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become (Publisher).

Review: I don't remember how I heard about Broken Country. Maybe it was on a list of possible book club selections or maybe one of you mentioned it on your blog but whatever it was I determined I needed to read it without doing much research. I didn't even know it is a love triangle story until I started it, months after I initially placed a hold on it at the library. I tend to avoid these types of stories because I find myself getting all judgey-judgey and second-guessing all the decisions the characters make. 

Anyway, I started it and was hooked right from the beginning. The setting, a farm community in North Dorset, UK, was so pastoral. The years, 1955 and 1968, made life seem simpler and less chaotic. All of the characters, except for Gabriel's mother, were sympathetic. And the story was completely heartbreaking. I am pretty sure I cried through the last half of it nonstop. So much of the heartbreak hinged on the son, who died tragically. There is even a mystery. Reese Witherspoon, who selected Broken Country for her book club, said, "It is a masterfully crafted mystery that will keep you guessing to the last page. Seriously, that ending! I did not see it coming." There you have it. I dare not say more or I will spoil the book for you.

My rating: 4.5 stars

-Anne