Customer Reviews

Broken

5 star:		(78)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

All the usual disclaimers apply - I know Megan, she's my friend and we've given each other nicknames and all that stuff. Still, she's not ensorcelled me so I'm incapable of an actual honest opinion on her book although dude, if she had that power it would be so cool, I'd totally make her use it on my behalf. Anyway, I digress...

Broken is a lot of things. It's one of those books that stays with you a really long time after you finish because there are a lot of layers to it. In my opinion, it's the best thing Megan has written and she's a darned good writer so that should say something. Each time Sadie sits next to Joe and we hear a tale of his latest conquest, we're really drawing down another layer of Sadie.

Whatever Broken is about, I can tell you what it's not about - Broken is not about infidelity. I want to make that clear up front. Sadie loves Adam, her husband. But Adam has withdrawn himself emotionally after an accident has left him a quadroplegic. She's lost him in many ways even though he's there physically. Her entire being centers around his care and schedule - it isn't that she hates him or wishes he didn't exist, it isn't that she wants to sleep with Joe behind Adam's back. Her life has made her into a mechanism - she takes care of everyone else and she doesn't get much emotional feedback because her husband has lost himself and she's helpless to help him regain what he's lost. So for that one brief time every month, she's unfettered from all that responsibility and context and she gets to be a woman.

She wants to be held and listened to and those brief times once a month as she sits and listens to Joe tell his stories, she can transport herself elsewhere in her head.

Sadie's loneliness is sharp and painful at times. Her loss throbbed in my gut as I read. Her connection to Joe, his attraction to her, her committment to Adam and her embracing her life no matter what it has become creates a book that sent me reeling over and over.

Broken is not an easy book. It's not lighthearted and romantic. It's an unflinching look into someone's inner life. I cried when I read Broken. It made me furious. It made me laugh and grumble. It drove me to email Megan a few times and give her what for.

Broken is evocative and deep and disturbing and yet, it's uplifting too. Because Sadie can be any of us, you know? And she survives and rises and finds her way in a world that could easily drive her to give up for let go of the things that anchor her - to her life, to her husband, to everything she finds important. She's not a saint, she doesn't take care of Adam because she loves the hairshirt, she takes care of him because he's her husband and she loves him and it's the right thing to do and she believes that. That makes Sadie a character that rises above so many other characters in books. She's flawed, yes, but she's *real*

Broken is erotic, yes. The sex is integral to the story as a vehicle for Sadie's mental escape and also as a glimpse into Joe. The story is in first person but I really felt I knew Joe and his insecurities as he told his stories. In them he's not a sex god, his vision of himself is interesting and pretty unflinching. The moments between Sadie and Adam are heartwrenchingly beautiful and skillfully done and the connection between Joe and Sadie is powerful as well.

I've gone back and forth writing this, it's hard to distill what Broken is because I think everyone will read Sadie with their own filters. And because Broken is a complex book. It's not easy. But it's worth it. Broken is, without question, an amazing book and I truly hope it gets the attention it deserves. Technically, it's mindblowing. As an author, when I read it, I was floored by the skill Megan used as a writer. The story is marvelous but she tells it perfectly.

Sadie's a therapist whose beloved husband Adam was paralyzed four years ago in a skiing accident. She's catered to him out of love and loyalty, but longs to have someone hold her and touch her. Adam has withdrawn from life and as she holds on by a thread, she fears her loyalty is being put to the test when she looks forward to her once-a-month visits with Joe Wilder. At their lunchtime meetings, Joe shares his sexcapades with Sadie, in great detail, with Sadie imagining herself as a participant. She doesn't mean to be disloyal to Adam, she just needs a release and time to herself. The erotic passages are very detailed and each encounter provides further insight to Joe's character. Sadie teeters on that thin cusp between her love for her husband and her need to escape her obligations. A secondary plot includes Elle Kavanaugh, from Hart's previous novel "Dirty"; she's a patient of Sadie's and is about to embark on a new odyssey in her life.

I feared that this book was about infidelity and that I would be upset like I was after reading Lolly Winston's "Happiness Sold Separately." I couldn't have been more wrong; rather than infidelity, it's a portrayal of a women's quest for a sense of her own self-identity after suffering a huge blow that alters the future she and Adam carefully mapped out. I laughed; I cried; I absolutely loved this book. Megan Hart writes so eloquently and draws the reader in that they feel like they know these characters. Her portrayal of quadriplegic Adam, warts and all was incredible and sensitive. Megan is definitely the queen of "eroplotica" - erotic novels with actual storylines. I look forward to each novel she writes.

I just finished this book, read it in only 2 days (would have been 1 but unfortunately I had to have some rest). I'm usually a fan of your typical romance/erotic novel for the escape from everyday life, but never have I been so pleased to find such a wonderful plot. The characters are so developed. I laughed & cried. Alot of times I sell my books after reading them, but this is one that I'll keep on the shelf to read again and again. I've never read anything by Megan Hart before, but I've just ordered Dirty and hope to be as pleased as I was with Broken.

Please keep in mind that this is an erotic novel and there are some very steamy scenes. However, you'll be so impressed with the rest of the story. I would highly recommend this book! I loved it!

STORY BRIEF:
Sadie is a psychologist. Adam was a brilliant poet and taught at a university. They were wonderfully in love and married. Then Adam was in a skiing accident that made him a quadriplegic. Although they have hired help, Sadie's life revolves around caring for Adam. She must wake every two hours at night to tend to him. She's lost any desire to have children since she's overwhelmed with caring for Adam. She puts on false cheerfulness in his presence. She loves him, but she also resents him. Adam loves Sadie and also hates her. I think the hate is because she gives up her own desires to take care of Adam, causing him to feel guilt. The marriage is "broken."

For two years, Sadie has been meeting Joe for lunch on the first Friday of every month. Joe tells her about a recent sexual encounter, always with a different woman. He tells these stories in first person from the female's point of view, with explicit detail. Somehow this helps Sadie.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
This was sad. I was depressed through most of the story. I hurt for the way Adam and Sadie hurt. Their marriage was no longer precious. They were missing things in life. They were unhappy and miserable, yet they still loved each other. Joe was a mystery. I had too many unanswered questions about him. I wish the author had explained what his problems were and how he felt about Sadie. Even after finishing the book, I had this uncomfortable void concerning Joe. I needed to know more about him, his history, and his feelings. I was also frustrated with unanswered questions about Adam, especially with something that happened in November.

I bought this book thinking it was a romance novel. It is labeled an erotic novel and written by a romance author. I read romance novels to feel good. This book did not make me feel good. See Spoiler below. If I had known what it was, I would not have bought it. It is women's fiction about a woman having relationships with two men. It's mostly about Sadie's thoughts and emotions, not the men's. I wanted to know more about the men's thoughts, feelings, motivations and actions. But that was missing. Throwing in erotic sex added more confusion to the genre question. The sex scenes were pretty good if you're ok with passionless hookups, but they're set within a sad story which is an uncomfortable pairing for me.

For someone wanting to experience life with a quadriplegic - this book is touching, moving, thoughtful, and painful.

CAUTION SPOILER:
Relationship development is a major component for romance novels. There was none of that, either with Adam or Joe. We watch two broken or lacking relationships which eventually end. The epilogue is about hopefulness - the start of something new - but we don't get to experience or feel it. Therefore, I'm not calling this a romance novel. I see it as women's fiction with a lot of erotic sex scenes.

DATA:
Story length: 370 pages. Swearing language: strong, including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong/erotic. Number of sex scenes: 15. Approximate number of sex scene pages: 90. Setting: current day Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Copyright: 2007. Genre: women's fiction with erotic sex, quadriplegic fiction.

I finished this book last night. I got to a point where I couldn't put it down and stayed up way too late because it was that compelling. This is the first book I've read by Megan Hart and I have now added 5 others written by her to my Wish List, Dirty being at the very top.

There was so much emotion in this book, and I believe it to be a cautionary tale of what happens when we take the deceivingly easy route of hiding our feelings from those who are most important to us. It creates distance and makes strangers out of the closest of loved ones. And if we aren't careful, they are gone without warning, leaving all the meaningful things unsaid and unfelt.

This book wasn't your typical romance. Sadie is truly torn between who she is and who she wants to be. A constant theme is playing the roles we're expected to play - the smart one, the pretty one, the athlete, the slut - and breaking out of those molds and stereotypes to be the person we really are in all situations and environments.

The best thing I can say about Broken is it left me wishing I had the kind of talent for writing that Megan Hart possesses. It was a fantastic read and I can't recommend it enough.

This is the second novel I've read by Megan Hart, and frankly, the minute I take it out of the box, I'm torn. It's like the best chocolate. Part of me wants to slowly savor it, the other part of me wants to stuff it in my mouth as fast as I can, because I know how wonderful it will be. "Broken" is the gourmet chocolate of books. I had to devour it in one day. Just like "Dirty", I know I'll read it again.

Joe and Sadie meet the first Friday of each month on a bench in the atrium of the office building they work in for lunch. Actually, lunch is an afterthought. Joe tells Sadie a story each month about his latest sexual encounter. With each story, Joe reveals more of himself to Sadie, and Sadie has an hour's relief from the loneliness and worry of her own life.

"Broken" is a great book. Megan's characters are unforgettable, the writing sparkles, and the story will stick with you.

A moving story that took me on an emotional ride with the heroine. It explores the question of what cheating is exactly. If you don't have sex with another man, but regularly talk about it with him, is that cheating on your husband?

It also explores how a woman might handle an unexpected disability in her husband. How would it affect one's sex life? Many marriages might fall apart. This heroine definitely garnered my respect.

The romance was interesting and there were many varied sex scenes, almost all m/f. I love a happily ever after ending, but even though this one was a hopeful ending rather than a happy one, I believed the heroine would get together with the guy I hoped she'd wind up with, and therefore, I was satisfied.

VERY well written and enjoyable, with a beautiful cover. This was my first Megan Hart book and won't be my last!

Joe and Sadie meet once a month for lunch were Joe tells his latest tale of seduction. Sadie relishes these meetings because she's dealing with the grim reality of a husband at home who has become a quadriplegic.

If you read these type of novels for an escape, don't choose this book. It depressed the heck out of me. Half the story was about Joe's mindless sex which was not romantic at all. The other half was about the grim reality of being trapped in a marriage with major problems.

The books "payoff" at the end was abrupt and I couldn't find any romance. It was well written but I didn't enjoy it.

Megan has know joined the small list of authors who are an automatic buy for me.
It is almost impossible to find an author who can write erotica which makes you laugh,cry and feel emotion the way Megan does.
The erotica is (amazingly) almost secondry to me..and thats saying something as the sex scenes are scorching.
Bravo and five stars from me and may i have Joe's phone number :)

For a romance, I'd seriously give this 1 star. For a erotic fiction novel, I'd give this one 5 stars without question. It's like nothing you've ever read before and it will definitely stay with you. My hesitation to give it higher marks is my disappointment with the romance.

Sadie and Adam were the true love story of this book. Their courtship is described, and is very sweet and believable. Adam is paralyzed in a ski accident and their lives are immediately changed. Their marriage goes from being a partnership to a caregiver/caretaker relationship. Sadie loves Adam desperately, but also desperately misses being "loved" like a woman.

This book alternates between Sadie's life with Adam and her once a month meeting with Joe, a stranger with whom she shares lunch with on the first Friday of each month. During these meetings Joe describes his recent meaningless sexual escapades with virtual strangers. In my humble opinion, Joe is a full blown sexual addict. Always seeking the new thrill that will ease his emptiness, yet only finding more emptiness after each encounter.

To say that I believe for a second that Joe and Sadie's relationship has a chance, would be a complete lie. I believe that Joe has a serious problem that Sadie will not be able to "fix". This is not a believable romance and I was completely unmoved by Sadie and Joe.....

I was moved by Adam and Sadie. This is a heartbreaking tale. One that could happen to any of us at any time. It made me thankful and appreciative of what I have and very empathetic to those who have had...and then lost.

Very memorable.