Reviews

Broken and Screwed by Tijan

clgaston31's review against another edition

5.0

OMG! I was obsessed with this book after the first couple of pages. This book is about a messed family and relationship, but you get so engrossed with it that you don't want to put the book down. Alexandra's brother, Ethan, is in a car accident and dies which pulls Alex and Jesse closer together. When these two are together, the pain of loosing Ethan is drowned out by the need for one another. They hook up on important dates and then ignore each other any other time, but will that be enough for the both of them as they both seem to want more in one way or another.

Alex and Jesse are both hurting from the loss of Ethan, but also with all of the other drama in their lives. Alex, has parents who are very depressed to the point where her mother tries to commit suicide. This leaves Alex on her own with no one but friends who seem to have perfect lives. Jesse, is dealing with hating his Producer father as he is never around and a womanizer. Both on their own and their hearts keep finding one another.

Alex wants more with Jesse from the start, but Jesse seems to fight it as this is not what Ethan wanted. Little does Alex know, Jesse has wanted to be with Alex long before Ethan died. What will happen between the two now that the cat is out of the bag?

I absolutely loved this book and immediately bought the second book! The only thing I was disappointed with is the cover (different from above). I don't know what cover is the correct one, but I bought my kindle book on Amazon and I hate the cover! It almost made me not want to read the book! The cover was awful and the worst part is that the guy on the cover who I am assuming is supposed to be Jesse is scrawny! In the book Jesse is described differently and he is supposed to have tattoos! The cover does not do justice for the book. The cover above is much better!

desireem's review

mysterious slow-paced

1.0

hibashakes's review against another edition

5.0

Thank you, Tijan, for another spellbounding book.

I once again stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to finish the book. The plot and characters were so captivating.

drez80's review

1.0

I kept waiting for this book to get better, but sadly it didn't happen. Alex was depressing, and she constantly thought she was getting better, only to decide she was actually worse. Her friends weren't really friends, not her high school friends or her college friends. Jesse was a jerk, and Alex kept letting him treat her like crap. She let her friends treat her like crap, and the whole story was just too depressing. I hated everyone in the story, and I have no idea why most of them were included because they did nothing but create ridiculous drama. This series was really not for me.

esmeem's review

4.0

I have been in a Tijan re-reading mood, so I decided to pick this one up as well, since it's one of my favourites by her. Well, together with the second book, because separately this is kind of sad and fucked up. I love it anyway. The reason Tijan's books are so addicting is because they all follow a similar recipe: weird and slightly fucked up main character, hot (and I mean really really hot), alpha male, protective, strong, you name it, love interests, some miscommunication and sex. Yeah, these books are sexy and I love them. Broken and Screwed is not an exception. I like Alex, even though she's really stubborn and her relationship with Jesse is obviously messed up. Jesse is just really dreamy and since I re-read it and had some more information, I liked him even better this time around.

Spoiler

Alex's family and friends are seriously fucked up, and I felt really sad for her in the end, but since I've picked up Broken and Screwed II right after, I know every turns out great (obviously). I loved Jesse and Alex together, even though they are really fucked up (frequently used words in this review, sorry), they kind of heal each other. I mean yeah, you could say that it is not healthy and she depends on him and blah blah blah, but this is an entertaining romance, I am not analysing this really deeply to be honest.

And it was so damn hot. Tijan usually doesn't shy away from sexy scenes, but this book, my god. *fanning myself* Anyway, I can't really rate this book separately from the second one, since they really go together in my mind. So yeah, five stars again. It's not a coincidence I usually stay up waaaaay too late (got like 3 hours of sleep last night, oops) to read these books. They are addicting and I tend to read them in one sitting. I love the romance and I'm pretty sure I'm not done with my Tijan binge.

mariecraftco's review

4.0

I only started reading Tijan this year and I have been so hooked!! And this book was no exception.

What to say without giving too much away: I thankfully have never lost a brother, so I don’t know what she is going through. But Alex is extremely broken. And I felt for her through the entire thing.
She misses her brother and doesn’t want to feel that grief. She is so numb to everyone around her and Jesse is the only think that makes me feel like herself. Because he loved her brother just as much.
The back and forth with them made me scream at her. Because he is going to hurt you. But also. He was very upfront with you on this.
My heart just breaks for her.
She is so lost and confused and no one in her life is doing her any good.

Which brings me to....
I didn’t like: Her friends or Her parents. They all sucked and she deserves better.

I felt like some part of the book were just skimmed over. Because Jesse went to college not much could happen with them. So skimming from November to July didn’t affect me too much. But the ending made me slightly mad. She set a mini fire in her kitchen and literally every single person left to her, abandons her? Why? What happened?

Again. Shitty. Ass. Friends.

I am hoping that will also be addressed in book two. 🤞🏼

lauren_soderberg's review

4.0

3.75 stars

joakra85's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

aoibhrua's review

5.0

★★★★★

Genre: New-Adult, Romance

Recommend: Yes

Book 1/2

SPOILERS

Review originally posted on Aoibh Reads




Alex's brother died in a car crash and her life has never been the same. Jesse lost his best friend that night, and has a special bond with Alex - they're both hurting over the loss of someone they love. Thrown into a world of despair and darkness, they both find strength in each other.
Alex loves him, but she knows they'll never be together. Jesse doesn't want to feel, and Alex is the only girl that understands what he needs and he will take what he can get.





Hot damn. This far surpassed FCH. There were no sex scenes but yet it was the steamiest novel yet.

"The nights were the worst as I stayed in my home. I had been abandoned. I was haunted. And all I wanted to do was destroy everything."

For a book about not feeling, I certainly felt a lot.

Alex: She is one great character. I really feel for her. She's not some damsel in distress but yet needs Jesse to hurt with him. She's absolutely rock solid. She's been through hell and back and in some depression but gives no shits. She was in no way portrayed as perfect or an unrealistic ideal of the perfect girl who had it all - making it so easy for me to feel for her and want to see her kick ass and get her happy ending.
She's so far gone that she recognises Jesse is using her and that she doesn't care if it results in her being hurt constantly.

"He was going to screw other girls tonight and I know she'll still go for him if he ever calls her. You do that too. You're both so weak. You're spineless"

Jesse: OH MY GOD! He is amazing. He's so heartbroken and raw and hurting and I love how he is portrayed. Deep down he appears to love Alex, but he needs her to cope and that's all she will ever be. I love how Alex didn't change him in this - he wasn't some project needing to be altered by the girl. Am fed up of novels where the main female converts the bad boy to a whipped boyfriend. Jesse remains aloof and stern and it's so fantastic and captivating.

Friends: I liked how her friends Angie and Marissa were sort of shit friends. Reminds us all that there are times where we have friends that aren't good for us. I felt bad that Angie wouldn't really try and sympathise but then Alex did a good job of blocking everyone out. Really got an idea of Alex's numbness to all when Marissa tries to take Jesse and Alex can't even react.

Story: the trauma and despair in this is crushing and it only gets worse for Alex. What is brilliant though is all that occurs is a domino from her brother's death. Her parents reaction or grieving state directly impact Alex and makes for an even bigger heart-wrenching story beyond just Alex suffering the loss of her brother. She's really mourning the loss of her whole family and dealing with the realisation her parents care more for Jesse than they ever would for her.

Overall:

Thank God book 2 was available when I read this. I was totally sucked into their bleak world and couldn't believe how strong their attraction spewed from the pages despite them not even being together in this book. Best Tijan read so far.


See more of my reviews here

leojole's review

4.0

Heartwrenching- ready for second book hoping she can have some happiness in her life!