Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall – 320 pages
Book Blurb:
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.
My Review: 4.75 stars
Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall is probably one of my favorite reads from 2025 due to the compelling storyline and crazy good mystery.
This one is told from multiple points of views with snippets of a trial peppered throughout the story. Readers have no idea who is on trial which adds another layer of suspense to this beautiful novel about first love and mature love. Beth, the main protagonist, fell in love with Gabriel at a young age and together they had a deep and meaningful love story. When they breakup, Beth leaves Oxford and dates the boy from high school (Frank) and together they find a true connection and a commonality for love of the land.
When Gabriel returns to their hometown and meets up with Beth after years of not speaking to each other, it’s a shock and double whammy as he has a young son with him. Beth is grieving her own loss, and of course this is when the quagmire of a love triangle ensues. This is a difficult book to review as saying just a bit too much will ruin some of the unsuspecting plot twists.
There are some amazing minor characters, Jimmy, Nina, Tessa and more. Every book club that I’ve discussed this book with has been a huge success. Trust me, there is so much to talk about! Themes of alcoholism, dealing with grief (or not dealing with it at all), trust, infidelity, old love versus new love and hope are threaded throughout the novel. Don’t miss this one!
Quotes I liked:
You write, therefore you’re a writer.”
“This is a love story with too many beginnings. I refuse to think about how it is going to end.”
“It’s strange, the patchwork stories we tell someone when we want them to catch up, a shortcut to knowing us, as if such a thing were possible.”
“You have to fool yourself into thinking you already are the thing you want to become.”
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