My Thoughts:

This. THIS is storytelling.

Let me tell y’all how I accidentally fell into one of my favorite reads of the year. I was minding my business at the library (because that’s what I do, okay?) when I spotted Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall chilling in the new releases section. Never heard of it. Didn’t see it on BookTok. No hype. Just vibes. But that summary on the back? Hooked me. So I checked it out thinking, “Why not?” and whew, I am so glad I did.

I read this book in two days. TWO. I was sat the entire time. Couldn’t put it down if I tried.

This book weaves between two timelines (1968 and “before”), and honestly, I’m a sucker for a good time shift when it’s done right. And Hall? She did that. The way she tells Beth and Gabriel’s love story in the “before” and then peels back the layers in 1968… chef’s kiss. It’s nostalgic, bittersweet, and oh so beautifully written.

Now listen… we have to talk about Frank. Sweet, loyal, ride-or-die Frank. My heart hurt for him. He’s that one guy who’s always been there, quietly loving you from the sidelines, and when he finally gets the girl—he gives it everything. And I mean everything. He deserved better. He reminds me of the “nice guy” who actually is nice and not just pretending to be for clout. He loved Beth with a kind of softness that just felt rare and real.

Beth though? Girl. I was rooting for you until I wasn’t. I get that Gabriel was your first love. I get it. First loves are intense, messy, unforgettable. But ma’am… you’re married. And to FRANK, no less. Loyal, potato-farming, heart-on-his-sleeve Frank! The way I side-eyed her choices? Aggressively.

Even so, I was fully immersed in their world. I swear, I could feel the dirt under my nails like I was helping out on the farm. I could hear the lambs, see the lake, smell the hay. I was ready to throw on some overalls and go feed the chickens with Jimmy. That’s how vivid the storytelling is. It felt lived in, intimate, and grounded.

And THEN… just when you think you’ve got the story figured out, Clare Leslie Hall drops a twist that left me reeling. Like, staring at the wall, re-reading the page kind of twist. That’s how you write a book that stays with people.

Also, let’s get this out of the way for my fellow romance readers: there’s no smut. Zero. Nada. But you know what? I didn’t even miss it. The emotional depth and tension were enough. You feel everything—the longing, the regret, the what-ifs. It’s raw and real and haunting in the best way.

So yeah, Broken Country came outta nowhere and sucker punched me right in the feels. It reminded me why I fell in love with reading in the first place. Add it to your TBR, make some tea, and let yourself disappear into this story. Trust me, it’s worth it.

My Favorite Quotes:

“I read a lot of Austen and Bronte at this time, I have a tendency to embellish.”

“It’s very different when the prisoner in the dock is the person you  love. Look up. Please, my love. I try to engage him telepathically, the way we always used to, but he stares ahead with his strange, blank eyes. The only giveaway of the distress I know he is feeling–felt in every waking moment since– is the angry clench of his jaw. To an outsider, perhaps, he looks hostile, but I know better. It’s the only way he can stop himself from crying.”

“I wonder if it is always like this when you sleep with someone you once loved long ago. The knowledge of that first time is hardwired into your physiology. It feels raw and right and so real, everything else fades, just the two of us in high relief.”