Got this as a 24 hour preview on Netgalley! I am soooooo glad I did! WOW what a ride. I don’t want to spoil it but if you’re thinking of picking this one up, GO RUN!

Broken Country is pitched as thoughtful, heavy and mysterious. Maybe it's the farm and farming life as a backdrop - sure to be backbreaking and unforgiving.

To me, however, this was an impossibly light and quickly moving story. There is plenty of simmering, tragedy and sadness but also joy, lots of. joy. The short chapters and the bouncing between time keeps the plot moving so quickly, there is little time to despair.

I truly loved this farm story - a romance or two, a tragedy or two, and lots and lots of joy. Pick it up, you will be glad you did! #simonandschuster #brokencountry #clarelesliehall

Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall is a beautifully written novel of young love gone wrong and the choices faced when one's first love returns many years later when circumstances have changed completely. The beautiful Irish countryside is a major player in this novel and I thank the author for that! This is one I could reread multiple times. How fortunate are those who still get to be swept away reading Broken Country for the first time! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

A complicated love triangle, a wild Irish countryside, and secrets galore. What could go wrong? A lot, it turns out. This is a beautifully written, complex novel about the ripples that our choices can make.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Clare Leslie Hall has written a beautiful, compelling novel with Broken Country. This reviewer absolutely loved the book. The characters became so real it seemed like I knew them, and the sweeping landscape became a vivid reality.

Beth's love for two men, and their undying love for her, make it impossible to judge her choices, since we know her heart so well. She marries Frank, the seemingly perfect man, who loves her unconditionally, above all else. Tragically, she can't let go of her first love, Gabriel, the man who once broke her heart. When Gabriel returns to town, Beth's unresolved feelings for him tests her marriage in unexpected ways. At the center of the triangle is Bobby, Beth's young son, who is killed in an accident on Beth and Frank's farm. The repercussions of Bobby's death are at the heart of Broken Country. No spoilers here, so you'll have to read the book to learn the outcome. The resolution to a seemingly impossible triangle of love, grief, and forgiveness blew me away.

Broken Country is a beautifully written, original, and compulsive read that kept me turning the pages well into the night to finish the story. The plot twists and turns are nothing short of brilliant, and so unexpected they took my breath. This reviewer reads hundreds of books a year, and surprises are at a premium, but this novel offers the perfect resolution to every complex plot point. The book is a joy to read and highly recommended. The novel has been optioned by Sony Pictures and I can hardly wait to see the movie. Don't miss this one!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for providing an advance copy of the book to read and review. This review will post to Bayside Book Reviews.com at https://baysidebookreviews.com and its Instagram page on release day. Follow us! *NetGalley Top Reviewer*

This is a beautiful story about a love triangle and the domino effect of damages it causes over time.

My biggest issue of the book is that Gabriel has no personality. He's hot, apparently smart, and good at camping. That was probably enough for teen Clare to fall for him. But as an adult, when he comes back into her life, I wasn't seeing the appeal (I mean, after finishing the book, I got it, but while reading he seemed rather one-dimensional.)

The characters that were more interesting to me were Frank and his brother (and Clare's life on the farm as a wife and mother.) The author does a great job of peeling the story back in soft layers. No one's motivations are simple. All of their trauma runs deep and is teased out and intertwined in an artful way.

The book has a VERY tidy ending, where you pull out the lens and see the big picture that explains why everyone made the decisions they did in the story. Is it TOO tidy? Perhaps. But most readers will appreciate the resolution of all lingering questions and some semblance of a HEA.

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

I enjoyed this book. It was sad and moving with both love and suspense. It was emotional and beautifully written.

I enjoyed this story -- I sat and read it in one afternoon, which I never do. I didn't think it was a great book; it was a very good book with an interesting timeline (which got a little confusing for me). The characters felt realistic, flawed, and human. It was an emotional lread, but I didn't cry. It did make me think, and made me glad of the choices I'd made in my life.

First book from this author -- I would read more.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

Wow! What a fantastic book. Solid, memorable, real characters with lots of flaws. You immediately like all of them simply because of their flaws, they were just so darn relatable. There is no perfect person or gold at the end of the rainbow. This author has a fantastic gift for story telling. I like how we get a glimpse of something that happened and are puzzled for a minute and then the author backfills in the details in the next chapter. That was a great suspense tactic.

Beth, Gabriel and Frank are the three main characters with several supporting characters that add color to the story and bring the plot to life. There is so much going on here you just have to read the story. I was on the farm with Beth, David, Frank and Jimmy one minute then caught up in the deep love Beth and Gabriel had for each other the next. What a page turner. Can you tell I freakin loved this book?! I hated for it to end.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster and Clare Leslie Hall for an advanced readers copy of what may turn out to be my favorite book of the year!

3.5 / 5 ⭐️
Be ready to weep your heart out. Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Very emotional read. Very good. Be prepared to cry. I was given an advanced reader copy of this well written book by NetGalley and I am freely sharing my review

A heartbreaking story about confronting one's past in order to pursue a future. All of the characters come to life off the page, and you just can't help but feel a connection to each one. Although the story revolves around Beth, you meet Frank, Jimmy, Gabriel and Leo as their lives touch hers. She has a history and wants a future of sorts with each. This is a tale of first love, heartbreak, real love, family dynamics, secrets, rumors - it is a tale of a full life. Beth is always in a state of holding onto one thing while letting go of another. She is a great character, but Frank is the understated hero of this tale. When Jimmy is shot, this group of people draw together to discuss what is right vs what is true before they are pulled apart. The book evokes a lot of strong emotion -- you will cry, but you will also find the magic in the moment and the best in people!

I was drawn to this one with curiosity, never had read a romance murder mystery before. It has a different vibe from what I use to read and I liked the country, bucolic tone of it, adds to the deep emotions. I will recommend it to my readers. I liked it as something out of my usual reading tbr.

A youthful fling and an extra-marital affair can have deadly consequences, on top of the guilt that often follows. Beth is married to Frank Johnson, but he is not her first love. They share a secret and also the devastating loss of their son at nine years old.

When Gabriel returns to the estate adjoining the Johnsons' farm, Beth resumes a relationship with him that ended abruptly a dozen years earlier. He knows about the loss of Frank and Beth's son, but he doesn't know the family's secrets. When Frank's brother is killed, all the secrets come to light, and someone must pay for the crime.

This is one of those books that will be pondered long after it is finished. None of the main characters were completely innocent, but it seemed to me that one of the most innocent ones suffered the most -- by his own choosing. The reasons he chose to do so were quite complex but completely understandable. Few would be so noble. Perhaps it seemed to me just a bit too noble to be believed. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This carefully crafted story straddles the romance-mystery genre in a now-then pattern that works surprisingly well, not leaving readers confused once they find the rhythm. The writing is so good at the beginning that some passages invite a rereading just to savor the quality of word choice. Although this fades somewhat as the plot takes over, the quality never deteriorates to the point of making the reader rush through to finish the story. Steamy sex, hard farm labor, love of place, and the dilemma of deep love unconfined by the conventions of monogamy overlay a plot that appears to have missing pieces, all of which are resolved in a satisfying denoument. The title seems to be a bit of a misnomer, though, as it is the country that heals and holds the whole messy situation together. If not for the love of the land, these characters would have no hope of a happy ending.

This story centers around a family living on a farm in England. The beginning of the story starts with Jimmy, the brother in law, shooting and killing a dog going after the sheep on tbe farm. The dog ends up belonging to Gabriel Wolfe, one of Beth’’s former flames, a man she feel in love with as a teenager. Beth befriends Leo, who is Gabriel’s son and becomes involved in their lives, which ends up being detrimental to several people in the community.. This book touches on love and loss with tbe twists and turns of a thriller. I highly recommend this book. It was a quick read that I was not able to put down. Thanks Net Galley for the advanced copy of this book.

Thank you, NetGalley and Simon & Schuster books for this ARC for review. This was a winding story about a love triangle and what happens in a small town when you misbehave and get caught. Beth was with Gabriel when she was young, but they broke up and his mother never wanted them to be together. Then Beth married Frank, and she really does love him. They have a happy home together. But Gabriel is and always will be her first love. Tensions rise when a dog is shot, and Beth is pulled back into Gabriel's life, and they begin an affair. This pulls apart everyone's life when secrets are finally revealed.

My poor heart feels like it was torn out, shredded into pieces and handed back to put back together. It may be a bit before I can actually do so. What a simple, yet complex and heartbreaking story about life, love and loss. It was so beautifully and richly told. The characters so perfectly flawed. And Frank, oh Frank. What a truly good and selfless man. He was there to pick up all the pieces for everyone and hold them all together. I have no words for how much I love that man, who he was, and the choices he had to make. I'm not crying...I swear (sniff, sniff).

Really good book about love and heartbreak. I didn't expect much when I started this but wow this got me in my feels! So good

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

A fascinating, heart-wrenching, emotional book. It's filled with so many big emotions that we face daily in our lives. I love the dual timeline {which does get a little confusing in parts} but overall, a beautiful book that I enjoyed reading.