A Soul Less Broken [Paperback]

Helen Laibach (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2010

After being brutally attacked, Catherine Wilcox must discover her own inner strength and courage as she struggles to piece her life back together. She finds herself falling in love with the emergency room physician who treats her, but soon realizes the attack has left her so emotionally scarred that she must turn away the only man who truly loves her. And at a time when she feels her life is finally beginning to heal, Catherine must then face the devastation of learning that her dearest friend has terminal cancer. In A Soul Less Broken we follow Catherine as she discovers the depth of true friendship, the healing power of love, and the stamina of the human spirit.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"... Helen Laibach has written a brilliant novel. This book is a love story, but certainly not in the conventional sense.  It will haunt you long after you turn the final page..."
--Pacific Book Reviews

<span>"... Helen Laibach has written a brilliant novel. This book is a love story, but certainly not in the conventional sense.  It will haunt you long after you turn the final page..."</span><span></span>
--Pacific Book Reviews

"I read it in one day; I couldn't put it down! This is a complex love story of three friends being led to their destiny. When all seems lost, love does conquer all."
<div align="right">-- Dianna Richardson, Sales & Marketing Account Executive</div>

"Helen Laibach skillfully chisels the many raw facets of pain and grief until the characters shine, transformed through a tender prism of devoted friendship and dnduring love."
<div align="right"> --Kathy Carroll, Author of Working Over Time</div>

About the Author

Helen Laibach lives in Southern California with her husband of twenty years and their youngest daughter. Along with being an avid reader and talented nature photographer, Helen enjoys writing contemporary women's fiction. All her novels will have messages of hope, self-discovery, and empowerment. And while the characters will go through their fair share of loss, heartbreak, betrayal, and even danger, this author promises that each book will have an ending that satisfies. Her debut novel, A Soul Less Broken, is no exception.

Product Details

• Paperback: 178 pages
• Publisher: Wheatmark (September 15, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1604944668
• ISBN-13: 978-1604944662
• Product Dimensions: 0.4 x 8.9 x 5.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,197,325 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Helen Laibach lives in Southern California with her husband of twenty years and their youngest daughter. Along with being an avid reader and talented nature photographer, Helen enjoys writing contemporary women's fiction. All her novels will have messages of hope, self-discovery, and empowerment. And while the characters will go through their fair share of loss, heartbreak, betrayal, and even danger, she promises that each book will have an ending that satisfies. Her debut novel, A Soul Less Broken is no exception. Please visit her author website at www.helenlaibach.com

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Soul Less Broken Review by [...] July 27, 2011

By MamaZen

Format:Paperback

A Soul Less Broken is the story of Catherine Wilcox, a promising law student who suffers a brutal attack late one night leaving the library. She is left for dead and is taken to the hospital where Alan Peterson works in the Emergency Room. When he meets her he is convinced that soul mates exist and he will stop at nothing to help her through her terrible ordeal.

This story is about recovery, strength, love and friendship. There are emotional twists and turns are heart-pounding and leave you wanting more. This is not my usual genre of reading, but I found myself trying to carve out time to read and my eyes welled with tears on more than one occasion. I usually go for the paranormal romances, but this really got me. Catherine isn't a character that I can relate to, personally, but the story drew me in. I was really touched by Catherine's journey.

I am pleased to have been apart of promoting this book, as it is Helen Laibach's first novel. I think that it is a very strong beginning to what I expect to be a successful career. I like to be "in the know" and I know that she is going to be a main-stay in women's fiction. I highly recommend this quick, but satisfying read.

A Soul Less Broken

For more book reviews and topics regarding family and parenting, please visit [...]

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing story of a woman learning to love and trust again after tragedy July 9, 2011

By Jamie

Format:Paperback

I really didn't connect with the characters in this book. I wanted to, but it just didn't happen. Catherine ("Cat)" is tough, but understandably she has a lot of issues after the attack. As horrific as her attack was, I just didn't sympathize with her like I felt I should. That's when I knew I wasn't connecting with the characters. I thought Alan was sweet for sticking by her side all of that time, even before she even knew who he was, but if I was Catherine I might think that it was kind of creepy. Especially after what she had just went through; he was around a lot, asking about her and sending her flowers. He wasn't really being pushy in the beginning, but his shows of concern could have very easily pushed her away. Madeline ("Maddie") starts out being a crisis counselor for Cat, but they end up becoming close friends. I felt like her friendship with Maddie seemed a lot more genuine than her "relationship" with Alan; I'll explain more about that later.
This story has a great message about taking a stand against rape and violent crimes against women. It also deals with the terrifying and devastating effects of cancer, both the physical effect on the person's body who is suffering from it and the emotional toll it takes on those who love them. I also like how at the end of the book the author gives links to resources: RAINN (Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network) and the National Brain Tumor Society. They are certainly both issues that we can all help bring awareness to and give support. I found the dialogue between characters to be slightly awkward. It didn't flow well for me. For instance, when two characters would be talking to each other, they would use the other person's name every time they addressed them. Without it, the dialogue might have felt a little less clunky.... There is one major plot point in particular that bothered me; it was extremely predictable and far too convenient in my opinion. It's actually a revelation that Maddie makes, but I won't go into any more detail because I don't want to ruin it for anyone. I appreciated the major issues that this book tackled, but I think it took on a bit too much. The book really had 3 main themes: rape, love, and cancer. I think it would have been a lot better read if it had just focused on Cat's attack and then on her healing process, with more emphasis on her growing relationship with Alan. The cancer aspect just threw a wrench in everything and, to me, made everything even less believable. I appreciate that awareness that the author is trying to bring to the subject of cancer, but maybe it could have been tackled in a separate book. I wanted to believe in this blossoming love between a woman who has her world torn apart and the man intent on saving her. In the end I just didn't believe in it. It's not that I don't think that maybe everyone has a soul mate; there's no guarantee you'll ever meet that person, but maybe when you do, you instantly know. I think that idea might have worked. But the story jumped around too much; one minute she didn't really know who Alan was, aside from being her doctor, the next they were basically in a relationship. There was no gradual easing into it, them getting to know each other and us as readers getting to see sweet moments between them that would make us believe that they were truly falling in love with each other. I wish there would have been more time taken for those little details, it would have built the story up a lot more, made it much easier for us to connect with these characters. The way the story skipped around, it made it seem as though they were barely together at all, surely not long enough to develop a healthy relationship. Even at the end I still wasn't convinced that they were really soul mates.
To be completely honest, I didn't enjoy this novel. I couldn't connect with the characters and therefore had trouble sympathizing for them. I did shed a tear at the end because I've had a family member die from cancer and I know how heartbreaking it is. By reading the synopsis I assumed that the story would focus more on Cat and Alan's relationship and although they did think about each other a lot and attempted to communicate occasionally, they simply didn't spend enough time together to show us why they were in love. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Soul Less Broken May 5, 2011

By Monica Smith

Format:Paperback

A Soul Less Broken is moving story that takes the reader through many emotional levels. In a time where so many tragedies are happening around us, it is inspiring to read a story about the courage of overcoming life's most difficult obstacles. The conclusion of the book left me wanting more. I hope a hope A Soul Less Broken is just the beginning of these wonderful character's journey.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down! May 3, 2011

By Jennifer Sw Tsang

Format:Paperback

It is hard to believe that A Soul Less Broken is Helen Laibach's freshman effort! I thoroughly enjoyed this book; it had everything, from a concise writing style, to an engaging story, and twists and turns. Helen gives you just enough of the story of Catherine and Alan, but leaves you aching for more. I truly look forward to a sequel to A Soul Less Broken! I'm also hoping that Soul Less Broken will be made into a film, so even more people can be inspired by the story of Catherine and her healing process.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A True Reflection of the Human Spirit! September 3, 2010

By Susan Lauhon

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I generally read crime novels so I was very happy to find a story outside of this genre that was so captivating. The characters come to life with every turn of the page. You are drawn into their lives, experiencing their pain, heartbreak, and joy. 'A Soul Less Broken' is a true reflection of the strength of the human spirit. I look forward into the next journey into the human soul!

3.0 out of 5 stars A tear-jerker with a message of hope February 20, 2012

By Shelleyrae TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

I believe A Soul Less Broken would be classified as inspirational fiction - the protagonist, Catherine Wilcox, endures devastating tragedy leaving her broken, spiritually and physically, but is able to recover hope and purpose in her life.
The novel deliberately yanks at the heartstrings demanding sympathy for the characters, Catherine lost her mother at a young age, has little self esteem after years of being victimised by a philandering father, also now dead, and yet is studying law in a desire to do good in the world. When she is brutally beaten, raped and left for dead it would be no surprise if Catherine simply spiraled into depression and remained trapped by the horror but, with help from a caring doctor and psychologist, she fights her way through the pain, faces her attacker and becomes an inspiration to women who have suffered a similar experience. It's a harrowing, if ultimately uplifting, story but just as Catherine triumphs, she is again rocked by the terminal diagnosis of her therapist, Maddie, who has become her best friend.
I admired the main characters for their strength in overcoming adversity and felt that the author created credible personalities. The friendship between Maddie and Catherine is well developed, Maddie has her own demons that she has worked to overcome only to be diagnosed with a deadly brain tumor. But for me the romantic attraction between Catherine and Alan is uneven even though their love story is promoted as a major plot line. The emotional connection is hampered by the fact Catherine and Alan are physically separated for the bulk of the novel. It felt in some ways, that Alan's role as a love interest was written in after the bulk of the story had already been plotted....
While the plot is crowded with tragedy, Laibach is able to balance it well enough with a sense of hope. I like the message that the author shares about stopping violence against women and the importance of seeking justice. However, the plot is predictable with several heavy-handed coincidences affecting the credibility of the story. The writing in general isn't bad but the dialogue is largely unnatural. Conversations are stilted and either too formal or too casual for the situation. Though largely free from errors,'gunna' is overused, and is even found in the text of a letter.
Despite some flaws in execution, Laibach does achieve her stated goal of `creating a novel with the message of hope, self-discovery and empowerment'. A Soul Less Broken is a good first effort from this self published author and if you are in the mood for an emotional tear-jerker with an inspiring message of triumph over adversity, then you will likely enjoy this novel. Read more ›