Member Reviews

"What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" is an incredibly touching story about love and loss. Author Lisa Hobman writes in a masterful style, able to evoke real emotion in her readers with every page turn.

We follow Cassie Montgomery, once a hopeless romantic, who finds her life unravelling when she discovers her fiancé's hidden secret. On her quest to find a new life and home, Cassie finds herself in a small, rural coastal village and quickly forms a connection with Mac, the cool surf teacher who unexpectedly ignites an inferno of emotions.

Filled with twists, turns, romance and hope, Hobman has delivered a deeply emotional story about true love and self-discovery. Fans of Lucy Diamond, Heidi Swain, Laura Kemp and Holly Martin are sure to find solace in Cassie's journey to healing and hope.

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I loved the characters and the storyline development of this book. It was absolutely one of my favorites so far and I can't wait to delve in to the next one that this author writes. The storyline was simple, enjoyable, and entertaining.

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I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. A story of romance, friendship and new beginnings. I loved the relationship between the main characters. Well written, well paced a lovely easy read. Heartwarming. Gorgeous Scottish location - sounds like somewhere I would like to live.

Highly recommended - a must for lovers of happy endings. A perfect summer holiday read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

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This is an enjoyable modern fiction story. It's a kind of riches to rags story about Carrie who had everything perfect in her life. However now this perfect life has been shattered. Read on!

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This was a book that I was more drawn into than I expect3d when it started. Enjoyed the story and wanted it to last longer.

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I was very kindly offered an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. I have given this story 4 stars.

What Becomes of the Broken Hearted is another wonderfully lovely story from the talented Lisa Hobman. It was a fun read, that was incredibly heart-warming as Cassie learned to find herself again after a heartbreaking discovery.

As always it was well written, well paced and the characters were pretty well developed and I found myself really enjoying it. I despised Seth so much but Lisa can sure write a bad guy, good! And I actually looked forward to the interactions with Seth, he was so over the top, it was great! The love story between Mac and Cassie was so sweet, I was rooting for them from their first meeting. They complimented each other so well.

The only thing for me is that I am not a fan of sickly sweet pet names and there was plenty to be had in What Becomes of the Broken Hearted but it doesn't really really effect the story, especially when you have as much trouble as the leading lady pronouncing a certain name - It was all great fun!

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I'm terribly sorry but I didn't like this book as much as I hoped. I enjoy Lisa Hobman's books but this one... The idea is very good but not the development, I found it too simple and sometimes a little silly. Even Lisa Hobman's writting didn't move me like it usually does. I loved Mac, though, what a lovely guy *.*. Maybe I wasn't in the mood, maybe I expected another thing, maybe the characters suffer too much... I don't know but I'm a little dissapointed. But if you are a Lisa Hobman fan maybe it works for you, you should give it a try! I'll keep reading her books beacause I know she's going to be a wonderful writer.

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This was ok but very predictable and the character of the ex husband was almost farcical in its one dimension. It was nice enough and I got to the end but the speech in particular was often painfully scripted. I wanted to like it more because I could see the writer worked hard, and I definitely couldn’t do better but it wasn’t my favourite.

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Cassie Montgomery thinks her life couldn’t be more perfect with a fiancé and a bright future ahead but things aren’t always what they seem. Burnt by her experience she finds it hard to trust again so escapes from the city to a village by the sea. I felt a bit of déjà vu reading this story, if things are idyllic then something bad is round the corner. I did find Cassie’s winding storyline a bit much at times but generally a good read. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

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Cassie at the start of the book has everything, her own business, finance Seth and amazing penthouse flat, so when everything goes wrong she runs away to a little cottage by the sea to lick her wounds. Can the wounds just be healed though or will she find that life can be better than what she thought was her perfect life in a much simpler way...... especially with the lovely surf teacher Mac!

Another lovely book by this writer, a good storyline with interesting characters,..... even the horrible ones like Seth...... and I fell in love with the village and wanted to move there!

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Amazing book. Loved it from beginning to end.
Well written which kept me captivated throughout.
I will definitely be reading other books by this author

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Cassie had a perfect life. And she felt blessed every minute. But fate can be unkind and she uncovered a secret which sent her life spinning and spiralling in ways she could not have anticipated.
Cassie did what everyone in her shoes would have done and she removed hrs.ef from the situation. She went to a pretty cottage on the southwest coast. And felt peace for the first time in a long time. But fate intervened again in the shape of Mac the local surf teacher. A story of love, life, second chances and new beginnings.

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Cassie, the heroine, was frustratingly passive. Otherwise, it was a cute read.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

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This wasn’t my favourite of the authors books but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it. I became very frustrated with Cassie as I felt she needed to grab life by the balls and move on. The first part of the book dragged a little but then it picked up well.

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley, many thanks.

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What a great book! I loved all the different takes to the story line. I really recommended this book!

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Cassie Montgomery has everything she thinks she needs – a successful business, a wonderful boyfriend and a great life.  Until one day, she discovers a secret which brings her world crashing down.  Wanting a fresh start, Cassie moves to a little village where she finally begins to feel like she belongs somewhere.  But can she learn to trust people again?

This was a lovely romantic story which grabbed me from the beginning.  I liked Cassie’s character, but probably warmed to her more as I moved through the story.  She obviously has huge trust issues, (who could blame her), and her self-esteem was at rock bottom.  The first half of the book, Cassie did come across as quite an angry person but when she meets Mac and begins to learn to trust people my heart just melted for her.

The location of the book was just absolutely perfect, and the author described these scenes beautifully.  The characters within the new village where Cassie moves to were delightful and they showed true community spirit in welcoming Cassie and taking her in as one of their own.    This is not just a story of abuse and heartache though, it’s so many more things.  It brought tears to my eyes at times, and made me laugh at others.

A heart-warming read teaching us that we can learn to live and love again.  Would definitely recommend.

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I’d never read any of Lisa Hobman’s books before, and what a discovery! I’ve found a new favourite author.

Right from the start I was hooked. Her characters are fantastic. I thought from the blurb that Cassie was going to be smug and spoilt, but she wasn’t at all. She’s funny and sweet, and self-deprecating. I wished I could step into the pages of the book and tell her that Seth was no good for her!

When she moves out of the city, the setting is beautiful, and I could picture it perfectly. Her growing friendship with Mac is wonderful, but there’s so much more to this story, with quite a few twists and turns along the way.

This book is totally compelling reading, the plot and characters are superb. I enjoyed every page of it.

The ending was very original and really enchanting. I was just so sorry that the book was finished. I’ll be reading more from this author in the future.

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This is the story of a young woman named Cassie, living what she thinks is the perfect life with her fiancée, Seth. After meeting through one of Cassie’s best friends/Seth’s sister, Vina, Cassie feels that she has the Prince Charming she’s always dreamed of, but as their wedding approaches, Cassie learns that Seth is not who she thought he was. Looking for a fresh start, Cassie locates a charming cottage overlooking the sea in a quaint, friendly town where she begins rebuilding her life. However, the past continues to haunt her as she forms new friendships and tries to reclaim her own life and happiness.

I loved the previous two novels that I have read by Lisa Hobman, so I was very excited to participate in this blog tour. And I truly enjoyed this novel – but there is something I need to get out of the way first! This novel is just too long. I get that characters were being developed, suspense was built, conflict was interjected, and so on but this didn’t have to be so long. At times I wasn’t sure that I would stick with it because I felt it was dragging and the drama/conflict became too much, but I am glad that I did.

My favorite things about this novel are the village of Coldingham where Cassie moves, her landlord Rab, his nephew Mac, and her little dog, Cliff. All the residents of the little village are wonderful, and I instantly wanted to pack up everything I own and move there! Not very familiar with Scotland, I even googled Coldingham and was so excited to find it and see the pictures that are just as the author described, including the multi-colored beach huts.  

My least favorite things about the novel were Seth, Vina, Pippa, and at times – Cassie. Keep in mind that I have nothing but respect when authors can develop characters so well that I literally want to jump into the novel and wring the characters’ necks, however, Seth was just ridiculous. This man was conceited, selfish, had numerous psychological issues, and just an all-around horrible human being. Pippa was o.k. initially, but quickly got on my bad side. I think Vina meant well and I’m glad that she and Cassie found some peace between one another, but she still wasn’t my favorite. Which brings me to Cassie, the main character of the novel. In some ways I adored her, specifically the way she loved her Seattle grunge music and sort of marched to the beat of her own drummer. But in other ways, I saw her as someone repeatedly allowing herself to be a victim, repeatedly allowing herself to be manipulated by Seth, and at first, repeatedly being rude to and pushing away the only friendly faces in the novel. Considering that she was intelligent and creative enough to run her own publishing business out of her home, she showed very little intellect until maybe the last 2-3 chapters of the novel. Yes, I was excited and enthusiastic when she confronted Seth in an “I am woman, hear me roar” fashion. But she kept slipping back into the same thought patterns and allowed herself to be made a fool of. I’m glad that Mac hung in there and that Cassie did find her HEA, but I found myself not finding her very deserving of Mac’s repeated patience and understanding.

Nevertheless, as I stated previously, I really did enjoy this novel. Yes, I have issues with the length, which resulted in increased annoyance at Seth and Cassie, but the overall themes regarding family, friends, and finding one’s happy place in the world made my heart smile. What Becomes of the Broken Hearted had Hobman’s distinct tone and brutally honest dialogue, as well as, her trademark beautiful setting and fairytale ending. I’m sure that long after finishing this novel I will find myself daydreaming of a cozy cottage overlooking the sea in Coldingham.

*Thanks to Aria and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

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I am a huge fan of Lisa Hobman’s books. She writes the most wonderful stories that sparkle with warmth, humour and joy that I always struggle to put down and she is back with What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted, another captivating tale that will touch your heart and make you smile.

Cassie Montgomery leads a life most women would envy. She lives in a beautiful penthouse apartment, is setting up a business that is already on the road to success and her fiance happens to have once been voted one of Glasgow’s most eligible bachelors. Cassie seems to have the Midas touch and is living the dream. But her picture perfect life looks set to come to a sudden and shocking end when she uncovers an earth-shattering secret that breaks her heart and makes her realise that all that glitters is not gold. Unable and unwilling to spend another minute surrounded by lies, deception and heartache, Cassie packs her bags and escapes to a rural and idyllic coastal village where she might just find what she has been looking for all along…

As soon as she arrives at her new home, Cassie immediately feels as if she has finally found a place she belongs. She falls in love with her beautiful cottage and finds herself drawn to surf teacher Mac, who begins to make her feel things she thought she would never feel again. As Cassie begins to think that she might finally have found a place to call home, she begins to wonder – with Mac’s help – what truly makes her happy. Are the trappings of her old life merely hollow illusions masking how lonely she truly felt? Is a simple life what she has truly been searching for all along? And is happiness really within reach? Or does she need to keep on striving for it?

What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted is another winner by Lisa Hobman! A story that explores the devastation of secrets, the unexpected path life often takes us down and healing from the past, What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted is a terrific story with a fantastic heroine who is resilient, engaging and believable, a gorgeous village I’d love to move to and plenty of drama, emotion and romance to keep readers glued to its pages.

Lisa Hobman has outdone herself once again with What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted and I am already waiting with bated breath for her next book!

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Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. What a lovely heart warming read. Its well written but a little bit too long in certain places.

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