Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

“The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.”

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident.

As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become.

A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.

Angela's Review

This book grabbed me from the beginning and it did not let go. It was full of insights on lost love, tragedy, and even endurance. The characters push through life even after suffering events that would make most of us not want to carry on. Beth and Frank have moved forward, though, even if it is to their own detriment.

The pace and twists really are thriller-like. That was a win for me as a fan of a good thriller.

I felt empathy for Beth through the entire book. Her feelings of grief were perfectly highlighted and I had no doubt that her feelings were genuine, even if they were confusing at times. She was a wonderfully flawed character.

This was a solid 5 star read for me.