Broken Beautiful Hearts

This story was so heartbreaking and awful to begin with but it transforms into a beautiful tale of family and friendship and love.

Peyton is an amazingly written character. She is still not over her father’s death from an year and a half ago and Reed’s attack just makes her feel more helpless. When even her closest friends don’t believe her, she is very upset but she doesn’t let it all drown her. She picks up the pieces of her life and tries to deal with it all with her head held high and never backs down from the truth. She may have her issues to work through, but she always stands up for herself and takes no bullshit. She is ambitious about her career and despite her injury, is ready to give it all to achieve her dreams.

I show more absolutely adored her family. Her mom is a total badass who is fully supportive but also takes a very no-nonsense approach while dealing with Reed’s stalkery tendencies. Uncle Hawk is very sweet and loving and gives her all the help and space that she needs to recover. Her cousins Cameron and Christian are totally adorable and bring so much humour to the story. They are also very protective and caring, though their attempts usually end up embarrassing her.

Owen is definitely a very strong swoon worthy love interest. Though their case was a little like instalove, I enjoyed every interaction between them – the silent stolen glances, the almost touches and kisses, the way Peyton fights their connection but Owen doesn’t let go – I could really feel their bond through the pages and I loved it. The way the author makes us see the similarities as well as differences between Reed and Owen was very well done.

This book is definitely about Peyton’s journey to face her fears, come to cherish her father’s memories and learn to trust again, but it is also about how manipulative/abusive partners can happen to anyone and its possible that not everyone will believe the victim. But the truth is the truth and one should always standup for it (as much as one can do so safely) and not let the abusers define the future.

The Author’s note was definitely a shock because I didn’t know Kami Garcia’s background and I commend her for finding the strength to tell her story through Peyton. This book is a must read for any YA contemporary lover. show less

This was quite a hard-hitting book dealing with some serious issues, including abusive relationships. Although Peyton was likeable, I don't think she ever reached her full potential. The insta-romance between her and Owen was unbelievable and Payton spent too much time drooling over Owen's physical attributes. I was soon annoyed with her.

I loved Peyton's twin cousins, Cameron and Christian, who were physically big, loyal to a fault, very overprotective and extremely volatile. They made me smile and reminded me of exuberant puppies. However, Owen was by far my favourite character. He was tough, protective and adorable. He was a lovely friend and never pushed Peyton beyond what she was willing to give. A nice read.

This book is perfectly titled. Peyton and Owen are beautifully broken through no fault of their own. When her ex-boyfriend creates an atmosphere so toxic she can't live safely, Peyton's mother takes her to live with her uncle and twin cousins far from her DC home. Everyone in the story is wounded to one extent or another, whether it be from rejection/unrequited love, or something far more threatening like Owen's secret. How these wounded people interact and come back into the light, makes for a great read. Libraries who care about offering teens stories that might mirror situations in their own lives should add this to their collection. If you read the book, please read the author's notes at the back so you understand how much of show more herself went into the story. show less

Oh, goodness. Broken Beautiful Hearts has much of the emotional writing of the Beautiful Creatures series, but with real-life, non-paranormal-inspired drama for a change. (I know I'm behind on my Kami Garcia books--that's going to have to change!)

Peyton and Owen are a great couple, once they finally get all of their secrets out of the way--and OMG, do these two have secrets. Each of them nearly let them destroy themselves and each other, but in the end are (thank goodness!) strong enough to rise above their fears and what they think is most important to them to reach for the things that really are important. I've got to say, the last two chapters of this book nearly slayed me--and then I got to the author's note at the end.

Excellent show more work, Ms. Garcia. A fantastic story, and a strong message. A must-read!

Rating: 4 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book. show less

I have been a fan of Kami Garcia ever since I read her Beautiful Creatures series and I've been meaning to pick up one of her contemporary books for a while now. I am very, very happy that I ended up loving this book. A lot.

Broken Beautiful Hearts is the story of Peyton and her journey of healing and finding strength, courage, and the true meaning of friendship. Peyton is a girl that went through a lot of things. Her father died in an explosion when he was deployed, her boyfriend turns out to not be the perfect guy but instead pushes her down the stairs, causing her to have a torn knee ligament that puts her future in danger, her friends abandon her, and she has a stalker. She has moments when she's scared that history will repeat show more itself with another boy, she has moments when she feels like she needs to hide what happened to hear for fear of being judged or be seen as that girl, the victim, but I also think she hides what happened because she's ashamed; like she should have seen it coming and prevent it in some way. I was very happy when her new friends show her that Reed was the one who should be ashamed, not Peyton. I also loved how Peyton learns to be strong, whether that means finding out what truly happened with her dad, or learning to accept and move on from what Reed did. She goes through a transformation. All of that is secondary to one important lesson: asking for help. I feel like that is the main theme of this book, learning how to ask for help when you need it, how not to be ashamed of something someone did to you, and it's an important lesson to learn.

Owen is a great guy, that has some secrets of his own. I liked Owen, mostly because he represented the courage that Peyton learns to have. He also has a reckless side, probably due to his childhood and his family situation, of which you learn more about as the story moves on. I liked how he doesn't push Peyton beyond what she's comfortable with, in their relationship, but he does challenge her to learn how to trust again.

This was a great story, just as great as I expected from Kami Garcia. I only wish Peyton had found that courage to trust again in herself and in others by herself. The pacing was great and there were a few surprises along the way that I didn't see coming. I just wish there was a book for Peyton's twin cousins, because I loved them.

All in all, I loved this book, and it showed me exactly why I love Garcia's books. show less

This started out so good but then the whole RAH RAH I AM AN ALPHA MALE AND I GOTTA FIGHT FOR YOUR HONOR thing happened and… meh… also the twist was... still, I really enjoyed the start and I thought the author handled the issues at the heart of the story really well.

I really enjoyed the previous Kami Garcia book I read, and knew I would pick up whatever she put out next to see if I liked it too. When I saw this book, I was even more excited as it sounded like something I would really enjoy.

I will say I read half of this in physical copy, and finished it up on audio. I liked reading it both ways. I connected with Peyton as far as having lost a father. I also really connected with her love for soccer and moving to a small town. Seeing the barn parties brought back some great memories for me. I think these connections helped me enjoy this story more.

Yes, this does deal with IPV (intimidate partner violence), but I do not think it was done in a way that was too explicit for teens. I actually like that show more Peyton stays strong over everything that happened and gets herself out of the situation. I think that was a positive message to the story (most books I read, the abuse continues and the victims do not leave until it is too late).

I was expecting to have more of emotional impact from reading this. It deals with the loss of several family members, domestic violence, military losses, and a life threatening condition. It just did not pull at my heartstrings they way I would have wanted. I wanted more “make me cry” parts around some of these areas.

However; I still really enjoyed this and will continue to pick up what Kami Garcia puts out. show less