This month’s review is by Catherine Adde
Broken Country
by Clare Leslie Hall
“The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him. “You can live a whole lifetime in a final moment.”
Do you love a fast paced read that hooks you from the start? Well, here you go: This is a tale of a love triangle; it stirs the soul and is wrapped up in mystery until the very last.
The story centers around a happily married couple, Beth and Frank, who live on a farm in Devon, England. In spite of tragic events that have occurred during their life together, they carry on, keeping the past a secret and buried. What happens next? Frank’s brother shoots the neighbor’s dog, thinking it was going after their sheep on the family farm. That brings about a chain of events so dramatic that all their lives will never be the same. For the poor pooch happened to belong to Beth’s boyfriend, Gabriel, from her early days in high school. He has recently arrived back in their small hometown with his young son. We follow Beth who is rapidly absorbed into Gabriel’s life, as she develops a loving, maternal relationship with his son Leo – who can blame her – for the boy reminds Beth of her own son that she lost. We all know the vagrancies of small-town life, right? Poor Beth becomes hot gossip and chat about town, this results in jealousy between Frank and Gabriel, as well as mounting fears and tension, for the last thing she wants is to have is her past unearthed.
I hope you enjoy this powerful story with its exciting plot and well-crafted characters. I feel that anyone reading it can relate. Because it showcases how matters of the heart can make us do things we know we shouldn’t, after all strong emotions can throw logic out the window!
Critics wrote:
“A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.”
“Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall is an unforgettable story of love, loss, and the choices that shape our lives … but it’s also a masterfully crafted mystery that will keep you guessing until the very last page. Seriously, that ending?! I did not see it coming.” — Reese Witherspoon
This book’s recommendation arrived on my device by the actress Reese Witherspoon in an Instagram video as she interviewed the author: Clare Leslie Hall. I was charmed by Ms. Hall, an English lady from Devon, and though I do not usually follow celebrities’ book clubs, her story intrigued me. I checked our Sierra Madre Library’s website, they did not have it – so, being a supporter of our town’s newly opened bookstore: “Fables and Fancies, it was ordered for me and I simply devoured it. That donated copy is available in our Library’s collection. However, you’ll just have to wait until our newly renovated Library reopens on Saturday, June 6 to borrow this masterfully crafted mystery!