Review: Broken Beautiful Hearts by Kami Garcia


Title: Broken Beautiful Hearts
Author: Kami Garcia
Publisher: Imprint Make Your Mark
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Hardcover, 407 Pages
Published February 2018


Summary: When star soccer player Peyton Rios receives an offer from her first-choice college, senior year starts off exactly as planned. But when Peyton uncovers her boyfriend’s dark secret, she confronts him—and finds herself falling down a flight of stairs. Peyton’s knee—and maybe her dream of going pro—is shattered. Everyone is talking: Was she pushed, or did she fall? Peyton knows the truth, even if no one believes her. With her future on the line, Peyton goes to stay with her uncle in a small Tennessee town to focus on her recovery. Dating is the last thing on her mind—until she meets sweet, sexy Owen Law. But Peyton doesn’t trust her heart, especially when she senses that Owen is hiding something. When their secrets are finally exposed, Peyton has to decide if love is worth fighting for.

Emily and I have both been huge fans of Kami Garcia ever since the Beautiful Creatures series (aka the Caster Chronicles), so when we found out about this book, of course we both added it to our TBRs immediately. Emily even got me my own copy for my birthday earlier this year, which is why I'm writing this review!

Something I really enjoyed about this book was the banter between Cameron and Christian. All of their jokes and the way they played around with each other made me laugh nonstop and it added a really comical, light note to a story that sometimes could get really heavy and intense. Those moments of levity were definitely much appreciated.

Now in terms of relationships, Owen and Peyton were a couple that I definitely shipped from the very start. Every time they were together, I felt myself swooning and just falling more and more in love with them as a couple. Especially when they were still strangers and Owen was still kind to her. Kami Garcia has a talent for creating couples that are so complex and intense, with their own passions and desires, and they somehow still click perfectly. It's really great to read.

It was frustrating to see how many people didn't believe Peyton when she told them that Reed had pushed her, especially her own best friend. While I understand that Reed was a master manipulator, it still was a tough pill to swallow as a reader because I witnessed the event as an observer and therefore knew what was the truth. But I really admired the way that Peyton never shut her mouth and backed down in order to save face, no matter the threats -- she was always such an independent, outspoken character, which had me cheering her on all the way.

Something else that really shocked me about this book was when I was reading the acknowledgements was the fact that Kami Garcia talks about how she's been in a situation similar to Peyton's before. It added an entire layer to the story in retrospect, knowing that this author has been in her character's shoes, and thus experienced the struggles that have come alongside it. That was something that was definitely a bit of a shock to read.

Overall, I really enjoyed Broken Beautiful Hearts. It was equal parts thriller and steamy romance, which is the perfect blend that Kami Garcia always seems to master. If this book isn't on your TBR yet, you should check it out, because it was a really good story. I'm looking forward to reading more of Kami Garcia's work in the future! 



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