I really enjoyed this story. What a nice start to a new series. The story line was engaging. I love the relationship between the sisters and their father. I like how the author set up our curiosity for what is happening in each sisters life. I anticipate reading each sisters story.

Nina and Clinton have burn up the page chemistry in Owner of a Broken Heart. But outside forces work to break the bond they are building and tear them apart. A sizzling story!

Almost a DNF. Poorly written, terrible cast and pacing issues. If you're looking for a lot of heat between characters and a good twist but not much else, this may be the title for you.

Nina Richardson is the youngest daughter of Sheldon Richardson. She is a journalist who is passionate about her work. Clinton is a very nice gentleman who has the looks and brain that will make any woman stop in her tracks. Nina and Clinton meet each other at her family owned B & B. The connection is instant. Both have had their share of ups and downs in life. Will a new found friendship turn into something more?

Owner of a Broken Heart, does have the normal attention grabbing story line Ms. Hodges is known for. It was not a the normal attention holder story. I liked the Richardson family, but Nina and Clinton story was not holding my attention. I was more interested in the other sisters' stories than Nina and Clinton. I look forward to seeing where Ms. Hodges takes us with the Richardson sisters. It was not a bad read, but it felt rushed and some pieces were missing from the story,

This was a great introduction into the lives of the the Richardson Sisters, this book is full of drama, sex, lies and mis communication, you will not be disappointed by this book. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was great. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

Romance author Cheris Hodges should consider moonlighting as a television writer. Her new African-American contemporary romance, Owner of a Broken Heart, which launches the Richardson Sisters series, reads like a primetime soap opera. The novel is one part sexy courtship and two parts melodrama. Had the ratio of this ‘romance cocktail’ been reversed, I would have better enjoyed the passionate love affair between Hodges’ protagonists.

Sports journalist Nina Richardson has a successful freelance career and a sexually satisfying, undefined relationship with a high school coach. Her life quickly unravels when a run-in with a sexist football player goes viral, and she discovers that her casual boyfriend has been sleeping around. In desperate need of breathing space, Nina retreats to her family’s South Carolina bed and breakfast. The first person to welcome her home is Richardson B&B’s handsome new marketing manager, Clinton Jefferson. Sparks fly and a hot ‘n’ heavy flirtation commences. As Nina and Clinton develop serious feelings for each other, their trust issues threaten to tear them apart. Caught between meddling sisters and vengeful saboteurs their future together is uncertain even if their love is true.

It takes time to settle into Owner of a Broken Heart. It starts out as an off-limits, fake dating romance. Then, Hodges quickly abandons both tropes to write a lusty romance with hot, but repetitive, sex, and the slow-paced plot is overstuffed with gratuitous drama that detracts from the narrative’s overall credibility. Setting descriptions, particularly of Richardson Bed & Breakfast, are regrettably sparse; and shouting matches, involving Nina and just about anyone else, are plentiful.

Nonetheless, I did find Hodges’ characters more or less compelling, and Nina and Clinton are a spirited couple. She is smart, fun, and rebellious; he is sweet, considerate, and honorable. Their connection is palpable; the time they spend together feels easy, comfortable. Although their relationship develops quickly, it’s fairly believable. In truth, I was most captivated by the Richardsons’ close-knit relationship. Nina’s adoring father, Sheldon, and her straight-talking sisters, Alex, Yolanda, and Robin. They interfere in each other’s live to the point of ridiculousness, but their fierce loyalty is endearing. Hodges creates a familial bond that evokes feelings of safety and care that I found comforting. Sadly, the number of times that women slap men in the novel counterbalances those heartwarming vibes. I believe that physical violence often occurs when words fail, but the Richardson women are thoughtful and articulate so I was surprised and dismayed to read scenes in which Nina and her sister resort to physical assault.

Owner of a Broken Heart demonstrates Cheri Hodges’ ability to craft interesting characters and a decent sexy love story. If she reins in the theatrics in future Richardson Sisters novels, then I could be persuaded to revisit the series.

This is the first book in a series about 4 sisters, each dealing with life issues as well as romance. Nina, the baby of the book, has the career she wants, but her love life is not the greatest. After a few failed relationships, she meets Clinton Jefferson, a new employee to her family's hometown B and B. Although sparks fly, can she trust her heart again. Clinton Jefferson , Former employee of the B and B's biggest Rival, Randal Birmingham, has ideas to modernize the B and B, but can he fall in love with Nina, and still do his job at the B and B?

I have read several of Ms. Hodges books, and out of all of them, this one is definitely in my top reads. You could feel the emotions of the characters and some of the characters were redeemable and characters that will never be redeemed. I loved the flow of the book, I could not put it down and it was just a phenomenal story. There were a lot of twists and turns , as well as tears and laughter. And I don't know which sister will the next book be about, but each one was placed in this story to the point where there should be more books. Great job done by the author and I can't wait to see what is next in the series

This was my first read by this author. I was pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed this book. The main character is Niina, a sportswriter The novel focuses on Nina, her father and sisters. The family owns a bed and breakfast that rival Randall Birmingham will do almost anything to possess. While visiting her family Nina meets her father's new employee Clinton and sparks fly. Clinton once worked for Birmingham so Nina and the family try to determine if they should trust Clinton or if he is a spy.
I enjoyed watching Nina's romance with Clinton develop. The only criticism I have is there were a few events that could have provided a lot of drama and action. There was no climax. Some of the events seemed to be resolved too quickly and easily. I would still recommend this book and I look forward to the next book in the series

Owner of a Broken Heart by Cheris Hodges is the first book in her Richardson Sisters series. This book is an introduction to all four sisters but focuses on Nina, the youngest.

Nina Richardson is a sportswriter and the youngest of four sisters. The world of sports writing is difficult enough for a woman, especially an African American woman, without the recent social media scandal that plagues Nina. She returns to her Charleston, South Carolina home, the Richardson Bed and Breakfast, built and owned by her father, Sheldon Richardson.

Clinton Jefferson is a former employee of Randall Birmingham, business rival of Sheldon Richardson. He left his old job and has been recently hired by his lifelong idol, Sheldon Richardson, at the Richardson B&B.

Nina and Clinton are immediately attracted to each other but know that a relationship between the owner’s daughter and his employee would definitely be frowned upon. Their attraction overrides all practical thought and an intense relationship is established. They are tested by questions of loyalty and trust that leave the fragile, new bond in serious jeopardy.

The racy dialogue in this novel is not for the faint of heart. There is a lot of seriously explicit sexual content (calling this erotic romance would not be far off the mark). The novel does reveal strong bonds between the sisters, who are all likable and believable characters. The book lags a bit toward the last quarter but is otherwise appropriately paced. Overall, Owner of a Broken Heart is a good, entertaining read that earns a 4 out of 5 star rating. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good romance, though the explicit sexual content may be off-putting to some readers.

My thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. However, the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine and mine alone.

I'm very much into romance and as a black woman, I'm especially interested in finding romances written by women of colour. This was my first book by Cheris Hodges and overall, I thought it was okay and have an overall positive impression of it.

The premise of this novel is that unlucky in love sports journalist, Nina, meets and falls in with her family's new employee, Clinton. The only problem is that Clinton used to work for their biggest business rivals and it's uncertain whether he has an agenda in joining her family's business and allegedly falling in love with Nina.

I think this novel had a lot of good points and some weak points. The relationship between Nina and her sisters and her father is abolutely excellent. This is the first book in the Richardson Sisters series and it was a great set up for the rest of the series. The author was able to make all the sisters stand out and be interesting with their own personalities without taking away from Nina as the main character. I finished this book really gagging for the other sisters' books- and wishing they existed already. The conflict and the drama in this was compelling and interesting and I was invested in the story. The characterization of each person in the book was strong and each person stood out- I never wondered who was who and I was interested in all the back stories and experiences. The book is incredibly spicy and has a high heat level with an equally strong plot which isn't always the case in contemporary romance so if you enjoy spice, this is a good one to check out even though it has some cringe-y euphemisms at times, like "pleasure pool," which I found a little cringe-y. I loved the fact that our heroine was a sports journalist and if you enjoy a competent heroine, the early parts of this novel are high key- competent heroine joy!

I think for me, where this novel was weak was in continuity at times. At a point, mid-way in the book, Clinton comes up with a solution to a major conflict, getting the villain off his back, but later on, it's like the solution is forgotten or abandonned when the conflict re-emerges. Also, to me, the Clinton-Nina-Lamar love triangle angle with Nina didn't make much sense. Certain interpersonal conflicts between characters were also resolved a little too easily, for example Clinton and his father's lifelong issues. There were also some crumbs that I think could have led to more drama - e.g. Lamar's stalking behaviour. Lastly, I think this novel could have ended a little earlier because it started to feel a little dragged on and like the kitchen sink was being thrown in.

Overall, on the balance, I liked this. My love for what this author did to create such compelling characters and an interesting story supercede my peeves with the plotting. I would recommend this book because it's the kind of thing you read and you don't want to stop, and you're yelling at the characters out loud and feeling things and when a book does that, you know it's interesting. I am invested in the Richardson family and I'm following this author closely now to see when the next books in this series come out.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the Kenisington Books' imprint Dafina Books in exchange for an honest review.

Sassy sisters.
Nina, Alex and Yolanda are well-developed, vivid characters. Not so much Clinton. Nina is sassy and admirable, intent on keeping her independence. Alex is sassy and bitter while Yolanda is plain sassy. The dynamics between the sisters is funny and interesting. The confrontation between Sheldon and Randall Birmingham is less than convincing while Clinton ‘smirks.’ Jamal is annoying and can’t take a hint. Owner of a Broken Heart is fast-paced and Hodges knows how to hook the reader. 3.7 stars

Owner of a Broken Heart by by Cheris Hodges
Nina is a sportswriter and Clinton is the marketing exec who works at her father’s B&B. This is the first ARC that I requested that I didn’t love. I’ve also seen those Twitter threads about bad reviews so I will be careful. As a beginning writer analyzing what doesn’t work for me in a story helps me recognize issues in my own work so forgive me if I think out loud in this review.

First, there are many things I did like about the story. The relationship between the sisters and their father was lovely to behold. I have two sisters and the roles we play for each are so similar. I also loved that the heroine worked at a traditionally male job.

Where the story breaks down for me is with Clinton and how he relates to the other men in his life: his father and his former boss. We are told through Clinton’s POV about these men but are not shown much about how he interacts with them. In the second half the book these guys are very important to the story but feel shoehorned in.

The title and the blurbs let me to believe that I was looking at an enemies to lovers type of story but that promise wasn’t kept. It was more of a rebound guy story but I think Nina’s ex gets more character development than the hero.

The story still has a lot going for it which is why I give it 3 stars. Story structure issues don’t bother everyone. I’ll will likely check out the later books in this series because I have to see who gets through to Alexandria the all business older sister.

I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I requested Owner of a Broken Heart completely randomly, in the interest of reading more diverse authors, and the blurb sounded promising. I really enjoy family-centered series, where that is a focus just as much as the individual member’s love story, and that works very well here.

The relationship between Nina and her family is, of course, wonderful. I love how it focuses on her personality juxtaposed against theirs, with them being particularly protective of her in the midst of her continued disasters with love, and the concern she may be moving on too fast with someone new. I particularly liked the dynamic with Alex, who plays the biggest supporting role, as the sister who lives and works in the family bed-and-breakfast while the others pursue their own thing. She’s very much a mama-bear while Nina is pursuing her new relationship with Clinton, and while it takes her a while to warm up to him, it felt earned when she did.

I also found Clinton compelling, given his situation of having difficulties with his father and idolizing the Richardson girls’ father, with the question of his loyalties forming a central part of his arc for the book. While there was never really a question in my mind about what he would choose, the antagonist of his arc still presented a realistic enough challenge that the issue felt present and not something that could be overcome too easily.

However, one of the things that comes up in Clinton and Nina’s relationship a lot over the course of the book is their respective trust issues. When his connection to someone seeking to buy out the Richardson B&B is revealed, it forms a somewhat natural conflict. However, there’s also the issue of him thinking she’s still hung up on her sort-of-ex (it’ll make sense once you read the book), and they have a blowup over that, even though she’s only shown signs of wanting to be rid of him. I expected her to have issues, but him? And over something where he doesn’t even have real reason to suspect her?

This is still a promising start to a series, with plenty of hints as to what the other sisters’ stories may entail, so I’m excited to see where it goes. I recommend this to anyone looking for a contemporary romance with a strong focus both on the romance and the importance of family.

This was a nice book. Nina and Clinton were both interesting characters.
The drama was a lot. Too much at times.

Heat Factor: There is a lot of sex.
Character Chemistry: They have trust issues.
Plot: He works for her dad, but his old boss is trying to sabotage him, and also her ex-boyfriend won’t take no for an answer.
Overall: The writing seriously impeded my enjoyment.

Let’s start with the good things about Owner of a Broken Heart.
- Our introduction to Nina is solid - she’s a sports journalist who gets called “sweetheart” by a quarterback she’s interviewing, and the resulting Twitter furor has her needing to lie low for a few days.
- Nina has a great relationship with her sisters and father; the members of the Richardson family are engaging, show individual personalities, and deeply care about each other.
- I definitely believed the attraction between Nina and Clinton, and Hodges builds enough of a connection that while they move quickly, it never feels like instalove.

However. There were two huge issues I had with this book in terms of craft.

1. Telling, not Showing

Example: We know that Clinton and his dad have a troubled relationship. We know this because Clinton thinks, “I have a troubled relationship with my dad”; later, he tells Nina, “I have a troubled relationship with my dad.” I am paraphrasing here. This book is heavy on the dialogue, which can work - but in this case, the dialogue felt expository rather than natural. As I was reading the second half of the book, it felt to me like the only pauses for description that occurred was so Nina and Clinton could have sex.

2. And instead of Therefore

Here’s how the plot is structured:
And this happened, and then this happened, and then this happened.

As opposed to:
This happened, therefore this happened, therefore this happened.

Because of this structure, the plot was kind of all over the place. It didn’t feel like one cohesively structured story. Yes, real life is not a cohesively structured story, but this is one area where realism in fiction is definitely overrated.


I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report (as of mid-Feb 2020)

This was such a solid romance story. I really enjoyed the character development that we got from the main character Nina Richardson. I loved the relationship with her sisters and her father. The romance in this was fast but not instant which I appreciated. I saw the conflict that was used a mile away and also the mustache-twirling villain was a bit much. The fact that the same conflict was used in two different ways wasn't my favorite either. Overall, I'm interested in seeing the rest of the series because the setup for the other sister's stories had me wanting their stories. I will be recommending this to friends.

I'm still getting over the sheer amount of times Nina slapped Clinton. At least four times? Plus I'm pretty sure her sister slapped Clinton, Nina slapped her ex. There's a lot of slapping and I have a hard time with that.

Overall I felt the promise of the beginning of the story, Nina's sports journalism career being jeapordized by her anger and reaction to a sexist comment never panned out. Instead there's a wild ride for our heroine as she has conflict with her ex, worries about Clinton trying to scam her family's business, and even more I won't spoil here.

I was also looking forward to seeing Clinton's character explored, as he's described as a bookish not at all into sports guy with daddy issues, but despite this description we never really get to see his work as a marketing genius for the B&B nor do we get to really see his nerd come out except for a fun scene where they watch classic 70s blaxploitation films. He and Nina's insta-attraction subsumes their romance, so there's a lot of amazing banging but not so much emotional relationship building, plus they are constantly ALL IN and then ALL OUT as small conflicts are blown out of proportion, a slap is thrown, and someone storms out.

What does absolutley work is the relationship between Nina and her sisters and their father. I wanted more of their scenes because they sparkled.

Thank you to Library Journal for providing the advance copy for review. I'll try to remember to post the link once it is live

A good read, the story of Nina and Clinton.

Nina's family own a historic B&B and Clinton is their new employee. Do they trust him, after he used to work for their opposition?

Looking forward to reading the rest of this series.