Bieker's 2020 debut, Godshot, quickly became a favorite of mine. I was eager to dive into this collection of stories and it did not disappoint. I loved that Bieker's signature spinning of a dark tale into something beautiful was present in this collection. The stories stand alone but also have enough similarities that tie them together in order to create a real sense of place throughout. Her characters never have an easy time - they are often battling their demons in their own ways - but you come to deeply care for them.

I also loved the theme of the mother-child relationship that is woven throughout each story. How do we mother? What does it mean to be a mother? What happens when we are motherless? I could read this collection over and over again, these stories will stick with me for a long time.

This had the exact same gritty mood as Godshot and I loved it. I thought this was only 4 short stories and we got so much more than that. There are some crossover characters and now I really want to go back and reread Godshot.

I struggle with really short stories sometimes because it takes a while to sink into the story and I saw that happen with a couple of these but overall it was a really fun experience to swim through the messed up lives in the desert valley. Smooth writing that somehow evokes emotion for characters I don’t know that well is impressive. It didn’t have quite the same amount of heart catching phrases I saw in her previous book but it was still incredibly written and I enjoy her style.

It's rare that I find a short story collection compelling enough to want to pick up again and again night after night rather than dipping in and out for a two weeks, And yet, Heartbroke has managed to do just that. While dark and often quite troubling, each story was a great examination of working class humanity in its many forms and has made me very excited to see what else sprouts from the depths of Chelsea Bieker's very strange mind. I will say that there were a few stories towards the end of the book that I found myself skimming through rather than devoting my whole attention to. This is a front-loaded collection in my opinion. Regardless of those few less interesting stories I think this is a really well done collection as a whole.

I have had Godshot by Chelsea Bieker on my Want to Read list forever and even though I haven’t read it yet I decided to read her newest novel with yet another enticing cover.

Heartbroke is a collection of short stories cultivated in California’s Central Valley. I honestly thought it was the Midwest based on the rural settings but I wondered where the heck raisin farms would be. I should have known raisins come from grapes, but that’s besides the point: this is not your typical California.

I really loved this collection. Short stories are a hard sell but I was so fascinated by them. All of the stories have some sort of addiction, abandonment, or crime and just make your heart ache for these characters. Some of them are so similar I wondered if they were about the same people. But the only characters I actually recognized were the detective who appears time and time again and Pretty, because how many men are named Pretty?

Even with their similarities I never got tired of reading story after story. I was truly sad when it ended. I really enjoyed how all of the short stories were related by theme and sometimes people and it made it a really cohesive and interesting reading experience. Although it seems like it is entirely different, I am excited to go back and read Godshot now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Catapult for an ARC of this book.

The stories in this collection are really rich and well-written, and also deeply sad. Some of them less so than others, but still. I was really interested in how they overlap, and I'm not sure I quite got all of those references, but overall it was a good effect. I liked how set in California it was (as a Californian) and how the voices it centered weren't ones that normally get that.

I'm not sure I'd recommend this book to many people, just given how sad most of it was, but it was definitely good. It made me think about some things in my own life differently in a way I appreciate.

Thank you to Netgalley and Catapult, Counterpoint Press, and Soft Skull Press for the chance to read and review this ARC.

I really enjoyed the authors’s book Godshot and I was excited to read this one. I love Bieker's style of writing. This collection is filled with young and impressionable characters of those who live on the fringes of society. They are all just searching for love. I highly recommend for anyone who loved Godshot.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I love books with stories that all intertwine in the end! It gives me so much joy. They always keep me interested and engaged because I want to see how it all ends. Definitely recommend and will read Chelsea's backlog!

Review posted on instagram.com/ageminireads

"I requested this book through @netgalley and got it immediately (thank you @catapult books!!) - prompting me to squeal loudly with delight and put down every other book to read it!
Heartbroke and Godshot exist in the same universe. The main characters in each story are from the Godshot world, sex workers, cult members, artists, mothers, and waitresses living in the same Californian town. Reading the stories, each character has a similar thread of innocence and desire connecting them. Like the characters in Godshot, the characters in the stories in Heartbroke are impressionable and young, experiencing manipulation and control in ways they can't quite escape from, or figure out, but ultimately they're all just searching for love. They make innocent mistakes with good intentions, and these are the kind of people we can relate to. They're naive, but not dumb. Even through short stories the author creates fully rounded characters and stories that left me gasping. Love, love, love Heartbroke!!!!! I hope you can get your hands on it, if not sooner, but at least by April 2022 when it comes out!
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the first three stories in this collection felt deeply insufferable to me so i'm putting this one down, i think. there's something disingenuous or overcooked about the narration, which is aggressively voicey, verging on unintentional parody or drag. not to say that no one, ever, can write a regional cadence or what have you that isn't their own, but something was off—and when i googled a recent interview with the author, i definitely had a moment of [michelle visage voice] "that's not how you talk! THIS is how you talk!"

anyway. the collection is largely interested in violence by and against women, but doesn't have anything new (as far as i read) to say about either. the first story was extremely obvious; the second, less obvious, a little gay which i liked, but trying to pull a megan abbott imo. in the third i finally pinned down what was not working for me, which is a sort of forced obliviousness or naiveté on the part of the narrators which begins to grow old. it feels like the author is using a trick lens to distort the scene, which is fine, but ideally you should have more than one trick, if you are a trick person. perhaps there is in fact more to show in the remaining 2/3s of the collection, but by this point, my interest was lost. it's too bad, because the prose has an occasional image or turn of phrase which catches the imagination—but the reader shouldn't have to mine for reasons to keep reading.

thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

goodreads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4547922098

There couldn’t be a more appropriate title for this collection of stories than Heartbroke. Chelsea Bieker’s stories are raw and open wounds. In each, we meet people grasping for and clinging to whatever version of love they can imagine in their lives. The landscapes are as bleak as the relationships, but the main characters are all somehow endearing for their imperfections and for their mistakes. In the same theme as her novel, Godshot, Bieker often reminds the reader that it is often women and girls who suffer the consequences of the foolishness of men.

beautifully-written. i love bieker's sense of voice and line, the way she sketches characters so vividly on the page. these remind me a little of steinbeck in places (a positive association), but ultimately bieker is in a league of her own. the stories were a little more focused on motherhood and the nuclear family than i tend to enjoy, but the quality of her prose pulled me through. highly recommend for anyone who loved godshot.

The deal: From the author of GODSHOT, it’s a collection of "stories set in California’s Central Valley, where everyone is seeking or sabotaging love under an unrelenting sun." (PS - I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for this review.)
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Is it worth it?: If you like Flannery O’Connor and short stories, generally, you’ll probably be into this. While contemporary, there’s something about how Bieker writes that feels both timeless and deeply herself.
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Pairs well with: Aforementioned Flannery O’Connor. There’s an energy here similar to Anna North’s OUTLAWED, too, even if it’s entirely separate genre-wise. Also, if you like this, you will LOVE the most recent collections from ​​Dantiel W. Moniz, Anthony Veasna So, and Brandon Taylor.
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B-

Personally, I just don't like short stories. You get this tiny glimpse into a characters life and it's over just as you're getting invested. But I absolutely fell in love with Chelsea Bieker's writing when I read Godshot, so I still wanted to read Heartbroke.

Her writing shined throughout, and as the title implies, it was heartbreaking. But, at the end of the day, I still just don't like short stories. Here's to hoping her next book is a full novel. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

I love this story collection, which is varied and interesting throughout. Bieker is a smart and sophisticated writer while never sacrificing intimacy with her characters and trusting the reader to grasp and sympathize with their deepest longings and secrets. This feels like an intensely personal collection and should appeal to fans of character-driven literary fiction.

Am interesting roller coaster of people seeking and sabotaging their own love. Some of it is heart wrenching to read and some of it will have you laughing out loud. It is definitely one of my favorite types of books to read - the short stories style. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Weirdly, I didn’t get that this was a short story collection from the cover or blurb, so was confused for a bit here. The writing and stories were well done and well written. The American West is captured well here.

This book is indeed heartbreaking. I felt like I got to know the characters intimately. It was sad for me to read about how different the characters’ lives are from my privileged life. I was moved by the struggles of the women in abusive relationships. I enjoyed the small links between the stories, such as Ned’s Family Diner and Pretty. The reason I’m giving it 4 stars instead of 5 is because I felt depressed after reading it. Overall, this is a great book.

I really enjoyed the authors’s book “Godshot” and I was excited to see that she had a short story collection out. I’ve read several short story collections this year, and this one was truly a standout.
The stark landscape of the California Central Valley simmers not just with the heat, but with the regret and sins of the residents that reside there. These are stories about loss, longing, and love; and just like most short story collections, there were some stories that I preferred over others. Certain characters even appear in other stories, which comes as a fun surprise . As in “Godshot”, the author is gifted at showcasing people that live on the periphery of society and whose lives aren’t often examined.

WOW! Looks like 2022 is going to be an amazing year for short story collections. You can add "Heartbroke" by Chelsea Bieker to that list! I devoured ALL 11 stories within a few days. I've never read Bieker's previous novel, "Godshot" but I will definitely be reading it now. Her writing style is so electric, quirky, fiery, and deeply personal. Some of the stories connect to other stories. You'll see the side character, Pretty mentioned a lot. The opener, "Mama's, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Miners" is seared into my brain. Such raw emotion. It brought tears to my eyes. The closer, "The Bare of our Chests" is absolute perfection. I also really enjoyed "Fact of Body", "Keep Her Down", and "Women and Children First". These stories deal with some heavy and disturbing topics like: domestic violence, child trafficking, homelessness, alcoholism, drug addiction, and attempted murder. I found these various characters incredibly fascinating. Also, this book has some humorous moments as well. A nice balance of humor and heart. Highly recommended!

Thank you, Netgalley and Counterpoint Press for the digital ARC.

I am so happy to recommend another book, this time a series of connected theme short stories, from Chelsea Baker. Heartbroke follows on Mx. Bieker's debut novel Godshot, a novel that struck me for the powerful and immersive writing style and attention to the complexities of religious fervor/devotion. Heartbroke offers a similar examination of people who live their lives in places and contexts that are not often examined; she looks at low SES in particular and how this shapes daily lives, professions, and relationships. I was reminded of another book I recently reviewed, Real Easy, which also offered a realistic and compassionate examination of sex workers and their lives.

What stands out besides again strong powerful writing is that these characters are written with empathy, a vibrancy that might be missing when we see real world or other media/fictional portrayals of lower SES individuals, phone sex workers, or those struggling with to have money for daily needs. Mx. Bieker allows us to not just read but feel the hopes and dreams of her characters, to see them as dimensional. I am a fan of this author's writing and attention the lives of those living on the periphery/outskirts and her strong effective writing style.

Thank you to NetGalley and Catapult press for the chance to support this book and Chelsea Bieker's work. I look forward to sharing this book with my literary fiction groups on Instagram (#litficpicks) as a future selection and with other literary fiction fans. T