Buy on Amazon or the Book Depository
Title: Broken Hearts, Fences and Other Things to Mend
Series: Broken Hearts & Revenge #1
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Macmillan
Genre: Young Adult - Contemporary
Release Date: May 13, 2014
Source: Physical ARC, opinions are my own. – review policy here.
Synopsis via Goodreads:
When a small case of mistaken identity causes everyone, including Hallie and her dreamy brother Josh, to think she’s someone else, Gemma decides to go along with it.
Gemma's plan is working (she's finding it hard to resist Josh), but she's finding herself in embarrassing situations (how could a bathing suit fall apart like that!?). Is it coincidence or is someone trying to expose her true identity? And how will Josh react if he finds out who she is?
Let's talk cover and synopsis to kick things off here...
Yay, fun, relaxing summery cover so I'm thinking light-hearted, romantic comedy beach read. Wrong. There were parts of this book that made me LOL but they were usually at someone's expense or awkward laughs because you know this is not going to end well.
The synopsis gives you some indicated that there will be shenanigans, lots of shenanigans. And there are, but not like "haha" funny, more of let me place a dull butter knife in your eye funny. (Not that violent either.)
Gemma is our lead who is recovering from a break up, which has changed her summer plans into visiting Dad at the Hamptons. Gemma is freaking out because five years earlier she wronged Hallie so she plans to right these past wrongs.
Hold the phone... Gemma didn't play a mindless prank on Hallie. She plotted her transgressions, which continually blew up in her face so she tried harder and harder, until she ruined Hallie's life and few other casualties.
Next let's talk motivation...
Gemma's motivation when returning to the Hampton's is to show Hallie that she's changed and is sincerely sorry... maybe. Gemma is riddled with her own guilt and ,honestly, her charades are a pathetic attempt to relieve her own guilt, not relieve Hallie's childhood pain and confess her sins.
This results in my loathing for Gemma who is now parading around as Sophie with no consequence. Honestly, she has no concept of accountability and refuses to accept her role in the past and her current charade saying that certain outcomes are not her fault...
"The longer I put it off,
the more it felt like I was lying to her." - Gemma arc page 252, quote should be compared to finished book
the more it felt like I was lying to her." - Gemma arc page 252, quote should be compared to finished book
It took you until page 252 to feel like a liar. *eye roll*
Little Gemma this is all your fault... what a tangled web we weave. The mildly funny portions are when she has strands of bad luck and chalks it up to coincidence or karma because she can't believe that anyone could be as wicked as she once was...
Poor Josh, poor, poor Josh. Recovering from a bad relationship he starts to fall for Sophie...err... Gemma...err the girl who traumatized his sister. Josh is my favorite character and the only one worth a halo in my book.
While this read could have gone one of two ways... 1) Cheesy rom-com style or 2) straight up Revenge style it tried to split the difference which created an untrustworthy narrator, spawning a contemporary series of novels.
How this series can be saved... change point-of-views. I want to hear from Hallie, I don't care for Gemma and will never relate to her as long as she's crying victim.
Make Josh happy. Choose route one or two above. Give me silly hijinks in line with Bridesmaids or harmless pranks, or go dark and give me Emily Thorn and let's take them all down.
3-Stars: It's okay, I can definitely see where others would enjoy it as a frenemy read that jump ropes with the insanity line. I'm intrigued to see where the second book goes, so it's about 50/50 whether I'll continue the series or not. Team Josh!
This sounds like a pretty predictable read. It's a bummer you didn't enjoy it more but I guess you could have enjoyed it less :) I'm intrigued because this is a pseudonym from an author I enjoy.
ReplyDelete