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violetcat's review against another edition
2.0
I had high hopes for this book because I've enjoyed Cassandra King's previous novels, but I had a really hard time finding any interest in the characters.
sparklingreader's review against another edition
5.0
"Queen of Broken Hearts" by Cassandra King is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It is poignant, uplifting, tear-jerking and insightful.
When I opened the book to the first page, my heart plummeted. First person point of view – not my favorite. And I'd just finished another review book in first person that I most definitely did not like. Not only was this one in first person, but present tense – a double whammy. To say I started reading with a negative attitude in place would be a truism.
Then the story took over and I forgot about the point of view. While the present tense did occasionally intrude, the story was so well written that I couldn't count that against it. Like "Steel Magnolias" or "Fried Green Tomatoes", this is a story of the deep South, but it touches on themes that affect us all.
The story is set in a small Alabama coastal town and centers around Clare, a therapist who's got her own problems. Clare, a widow, runs group sessions and retreats for women going through divorce. Her work is everything to her, even taking precedence over the two men who want her as more than just a friend. She can dish out advice, but when it comes to taking it herself, Clare has more than a few problems.
Full of quirky characters, "Queen of Broken Hearts" will make you laugh and cry, cheer and boo, but most of all, it will make you keep reading to the very end. The story has a touch of romance and all the angst you can handle as you get a peek at the lives of the inhabitants of Fairhope. This one is definitely a keeper.
elenajohansen's review against another edition
1.0
In media res is a valid strategy for opening a book, but not if you constantly allude to the backstory, circling around and around it, without ever explaining it.
DNF @ 10%, page 51, without a single sign of a real plot in sight.
Sure, there are tons of characters. But not one of them in ever introduced. I started to wonder if this was second in a series, because that's how obtuse everything was--I was simply supposed to know who all these people in this small town were, just like I was the main character.
But I don't? And it isn't.
The most I was able to put together was that Clare, our MC, had two really good male "friends" (most of the fifty pages I read were spent in laboriously drawn-out conversation with one or the other) who were going to be the spokes of her love triangle. That was clear. But the story opens with her desperately trying to avoid this guy, this awful, terrible guy, but who he is to her is not made at all clear. Eventually she mentions that she went to college with him and Dory (his wife) and Mack (??? except that he's dead.) But then who is Dory? Why is Clare so concerned that she got back together with her husband? Why is he so awful?
I know the answers to none of these things, but I know a lot about drinking wine at four in the afternoon in a garden. The atmosphere is so folksy I couldn't stand it.
DNF @ 10%, page 51, without a single sign of a real plot in sight.
Sure, there are tons of characters. But not one of them in ever introduced. I started to wonder if this was second in a series, because that's how obtuse everything was--I was simply supposed to know who all these people in this small town were, just like I was the main character.
But I don't? And it isn't.
The most I was able to put together was that Clare, our MC, had two really good male "friends" (most of the fifty pages I read were spent in laboriously drawn-out conversation with one or the other) who were going to be the spokes of her love triangle. That was clear. But the story opens with her desperately trying to avoid this guy, this awful, terrible guy, but who he is to her is not made at all clear. Eventually she mentions that she went to college with him and Dory (his wife) and Mack (??? except that he's dead.) But then who is Dory? Why is Clare so concerned that she got back together with her husband? Why is he so awful?
I know the answers to none of these things, but I know a lot about drinking wine at four in the afternoon in a garden. The atmosphere is so folksy I couldn't stand it.
dhilderbrand's review against another edition
3.0
It is a sweet love story - far from gripping but interesting. I enjoyed reading it. I cried at the end - a happily-ever-after type of thing.
katereads2much's review against another edition
3.0
I'll tell you what I think of this book, just as soon as I figure out what I think about this book.
shelleyrae's review against another edition
3.0
You need to read this in the garden with an iced tea or mint julep to sip on. The language is evocotive of Southern society and the environment and it flows with description and dialogue. The pace can feel a bit slow unless you have the time to enjoy it - its not a quick read. There is a huge cast of characters but interestingly it doesn't feel crowded as can often be the case. They are well developed and complex but the relationships between the characters and in general are really the heart of this book.
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