Read for: Requested Review/ Penguin First To Read
Synopsis: "What could two troubled souls from different walks of life have in common? Maybe everything.
Andra Lawler lives isolated at her family’s horse ranch, imprisoned by the memories of an assault in college. When she needs help training her foals, she hires a Haitian-Creole cowboy from New Orleans with a laugh as big as the Montana sky.
LJ Delisle can’t stand the idea that Andra might be lonely—or eating frozen TV dinners. He bakes his way into her kitchen with a lemon velvet cake, and offers her cooking lessons that set them on the road to romance. But even their love can’t escape the shadow of what they've been through. Despite their growing friendship and his gentle rapport with the horses, LJ is still an outsider facing small-town suspicions.
Before they can work through their issues, LJ is called home by a family emergency. In the centuries-old, raggedly rebuilt streets of New Orleans, he must confront memories of Hurricane Katrina and familiar discrimination. And Andra must decide if she’s brave enough to leave the shelter of the ranch for an uncertain future with LJ."
My Review: As soon as I saw horse ranch in Montana, I knew I wanted to read this book. I almost immediately fell in love with the characters, they felt so rich and well developed, with varied backgrounds, interests and experiences. I loved LJ's relationship with his mom, it made me smile throughout the book, for being a side character Rose really filled out the story. I like how Hazen integrated traumatic situations and the following depression, anxieties and fallout from those situations. The way the characters were developed throughout the book was beautiful. There were a few soap box moments that really kind of pulled me out of the story but overall I really enjoyed it. We don't get to see many inter-racial romance books and I really appreciated that aspect of this story, how the characters dealt with that ever present matter, the difference of their homes also plays into it and amplifies the issues they face and how they must overcome them. It was a really beautiful story and one I thoroughly enjoyed reading.
My Rating: I really enjoyed the characters and the dynamics throughout this book, there are a lot of tough issues brought up and handled well in the story. I give it a rating of Four Paws!
Note: Check the trigger warnings before reading this one, it tackles some very tough issues including kidnapping, rape, abuse, and natural disasters. It is also a romance novel with very open doors and explicit scenes.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via the now defunct Penguin First to Read program. The above is my honest opinion.
Unbreak Me releases August 13th but you can pre-order your copy in print or digital format from Amazon or Barnes & Noble or request it at your local library.
