Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.The story flows smoothly and while you may feel like you know what is going to happen, you will never guess how it all ends up playing out. There were some shocking plot twists at the end that made me not want to put the book down. My only complaint is I wanted to see her finished project photos. Alas, maybe they will make it a movie!

I loved this book and the characters. I will definitely be checking out all other work by Susan Bishop Crispell.

The Broken Hearts Club by Susan Bishop Crispell is an inspiring and heart-wrenching novel about overcoming adversity in pursuit of a meaningful life. In the novel, readers are introduced to two people, sixty-year-old Halford and forty-year-old Alice, each of whom are struggling with individual heartache that has led to a variety of complex issues.

As the narrative progresses Halford begins to find solace in transforming the 'Broken Hearts Club,' a club his father had started during World War II. The Club serves as a safe haven where it’s members, facing different types of losses, can come together to share and offer support.

Alice’s story is incredibly touching as well. After the death of her beloved older brother, she finds herself struggling to cope with grief and her parents’ changing attitude towards her. Through the club, Alice is able to find comfort and ultimately develops the strength to begin living a meaningful life.

The Broken Hearts Club is a deeply poignant novel about the power of relationships, transformation, hope, and the strength of the human spirit. It is poignantly written and offers readers a glimpse into the life of two individuals facing unexpectant heartache. The characters are complex and well written, with many layers of emotion that can easily be identified with.

Overall, The Broken Hearts Club is an excellent read that touches on a range of topics from the power of relationships to the courage to rebuild a life after trauma. Susan Bishop Crispell’s writing is captivating and wonderfully evocative. It is sure to provide readers with a true understanding of the complexities of life and true, enduring hope.

Such a sweet, romantic book. I really enjoyed it! Susan Bishop Crispell writes with a subtle magic. Would definitely recommend.

Imogen, “Mo”, has not been lucky in love, which is funny seeing that her mom is a renowned matchmaker and she can see people’s love auras. As an aspiring photographer, she created a fake relationship with a boy she met one summer, August, and posted the staged pictures all over social media to fend off any inquiring minds into her love life. When the real life boy she has a crush on finally breaks up with his girlfriend, she sees her chance at love and “breaks up” with August. As she begins to pursue her crush, the real August shows up demanding to know why they “broke up”. Pretty soon her heart gets involved in more ways than one.

The Broken Hearts Club was a cute YA Rom-com with a diverse cast and a hint of magical realism. I loved the concept of it, but the plot felt messy and convoluted to me. I understand showing Mo’s confused and wishy-washy feelings, but I felt like some of her actions and reactions didn’t seem realistic or supported with the way her feelings and arc had already progressed in the plot. It was hard for me to fully buy in with her because of that. I liked her relationship with August, even if it did seem a tad insta-lovey, but I never cared about her relationship with Ren and the conclusion was predictable. I appreciated that all of the characters had flaws though, August especially. He easily could have been too perfect, but he wasn’t and that made me like him even more. One of my favorite parts of the whole story was his and Mo’s banter. It was amazing and made me look past the insta-loveyness. I absolutely loved Imogen’s mom, and their relationship, and the truths that were revealed about her. It made her a much more interesting character. The magical aspect to the story was unique and I wish it had been utilized more to influence the plot. Overall, while this was a cute, easily readable story and showed how messy human hearts can be, it left me underwhelmed, although, I really do wish that Yeastie Boys was a real restaurant because it made my mouth water.

This was just okay. Light and summery. I was really hoping for more growth and emotion from Imogen. It's a little too much lying, hijinx, and immaturity for my liking. I really was disappointed in Imogen's self- sabotage and lack of growth. I was hoping for a bit more magic as well.

Thank you to Netgalley for my complimentary e-arc of this book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. I totally loved this story and could not put it down,

When your mother is a matchmaker, there are high expectations for your love life as well. Imogen has never had a boyfriend so she creates one but what happens when the real guy shows up in town? This story had me chuckling and second hand cringing as I watched Imogen and August unfold throughout the pages. I thought the messages about finding yourself and believing in yourself were great for readers of any age. This story had me hooked from the beginning! Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for an advanced copy! All thoughts and opinions were my own!

Rom coms have not been my favorite lately, but i LOVED this one. Such a cute story, I loved the characters and the way it was written. Can not wait to try more in the future.

This was a really cute YA book, which was easy and quick to read. There were some things I wish were written more about, but overall it was a good read. I would definitely recommend this and I would like to read more books by this author.

It’s a cute book! It’s maybe a little too on the YA range for me, which feels wild to say because I will still read them like no other. This one just wasn’t hitting the way I wanted/expected it to, which is rough because it features a lot of the tropes that I typically like.

It’s a great book for others, it just wasn’t the one for me and that’s ok!

such a cute book omg! perfect for the summer, it’s a perfect mix between romance, humor, friendship, everything. i usually don’t vibe with love triangles but this one got me real good, it made sense why imogen would like both boys, although i had a preference for august. the concept was super fun and pretty original (august and imogen are already fake dating and have been for a year which is kinda fun in my opinion). absolutely recommend! 5⭐️

Imogen's crush faces a breakup and she jumps on the chance to draw Ren's attention to her. She's had a long distance (fictional) relationship that she can now drop in her pursuit of Ren. But August shows up and Imogen scrambles to keep her lies straight as she navigates her "break up".
I suppose based on the title I expected this to be a little more of a traumatic read. There were zero tears but lots of miscommunication and hoodwinking. I wanted a little more magic but it's very light and summery.
Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

The Broken Hearts Club was a quick fun read. I really enjoyed the relationship between Mo & August. The characters felt real yet sweet. I absolutely loved the writing style!

What you’ll find in The Broken Hearts Club
- Friends to Lovers
- Love triangle
- Sweet treats
- Romantic moments
- Love rules
- Summer vibes

If you’re looking for a sweet, romantic summer read, this is the book for you ☀️

a cute and charming romcom that was delightful.

thank you to netgalley and to the publisher for this review copy.

The Broken Hearts Club by Susan Bishop Crispell would've had me obsessed when I was in my early twenties. Before going to therapy and developing some emotional maturity. This is YA, so characters are not expected to be emotionally mature, but this main character could've had a whole Netflix documentary about her. Basically, she's been in love with this guy for years, but he's always had a girlfriend whom he loves (and we know this because our main character can read people's auras and see the actual love around them). So naturally, the main character decides to create this whole fake relationship with a guy who she dated last summer...and she uses his actual name and everything. Everything else, though, is fake. She takes pictures of the supposed gifts he sends her and creates a fake profile for him so that she can impersonate him...do we see where this is headed? Like, I'm sorry, but no regular sixteen year-old is that smart, and if she were, it's probably because she's a sociopath.

Fun, cute, easygoing read. I enjoyed this book thoroughly. It's definitely a book that allows you those summer feelings! Highly recommend!

the characters in the story were written well with realistic character development. i haven’t read a “coming of age” type story in a while so it definitely felt nostalgic. the magic of seeing peoples aura’s was very unique and fun! i think i just wanted there to be more about the magic. i also sometimes got annoyed by mo… i mean she was a 17 year old who was in dire need to be IN love so i guess that makes sense 😂

Imogen (Mo) is the daughter of a professional matchmaker and shares her mother’s ability to see the emotional colors of love and heartbreak that surround people. Mo believes this gift intimidates potential boyfriends – she’s never had one or even been asked on a date. Which is kind of embarrassing considering her mother’s job. So, she invents a fake relationship with August, a boy she briefly met over a year ago. He lives on the other side of the state, so he’ll never find out, right? But when Mo’s longtime crush is suddenly single, she creates a breakup with August in hopes of having a chance with her crush. Then her best laid plans go way off the rails when August shows up in town asking why they broke up.

From the charming seaside town setting, to Yeastie Boys (the biscuit diner where Mo works with her best friend), to the not so great choices Mo makes, this is a fun read. The biscuit descriptions (all named after Beastie Boys songs) had me drooling, and I wanted to hang out with August and his scene-stealing little brother on the beach. Mo’s had an idealistic view of what love looks like her whole life, and I liked that she learns it’s not the rosy picture she envisioned. It’s a messy, bumpy road that can take many directions. The relationships between Mo and her friends and her mother were also written realistically – those roads also come with potholes.

If you’re looking for a fun vacation read that will keep you flipping the pages and craving biscuits, grab a copy of The Broken Hearts Club and toss it in your suitcase before you leave.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Arc review!! This book was so cute and cheesy but a bit too cheesy and similar to other reads for me. I loved Mo and August’s relationship and how even though it started off rocky, it got better. If you’re into young adult romance with a fake dating trope, this one’s for you!

This was beyond adorable. I loved the friendship that Imogen and Gemma have, the way they balance each other out. I loved the setting of the beach town and the Biscuit shop that they work at. The writing was fun, pulling me since the first page making me want to read more and more. I loved August and Owen, their relationship and how close Imogen became with them, I really loved this one!!