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A review by kaje_harper
Unbreak My Heart by K-lee Klein
5.0
An older guy who lost his partner is still grieving, when he meets a younger guy who breaks through to his heart - so familiar a plot, and yet so full of potential. Romance is a genre with a lot of well-used tropes and there is nothing wrong with that. The key is all in how they are handled, and for me, this book got it right.
This began as a four-star read. But I was sucked deeper and deeper in, and in the end had to give it five stars for the way I really felt Brett's grief, his indecision and confusion, and the pain as he was torn between his old love and a new one. The emotions, including the guilt we all feel when someone dies suddenly, with last words unsaid and regrets that can never be fixed, were palpable here. Even the word choices and writing style seemed actually perfect for Brett's narrative voice, suited to this country singer and sometime-rancher, and his confused coming back to life.
JT was less of a rounded character, but he was a sweet foil for Brett's affection and desire. And I loved the secondary characters - Brett's interfering mother, Millie, and his foreman and mentor, Ray. The progression of the relationship was months, not days. The guys may have begun with abrupt physical attraction, but they got to know each other and were friends before it moved to more. And thank-you K-lee, the old love was not displaced by the new or suddenly second-best. Brett didn't need to recall flaws in his love of Walt, in order to love JT. I enjoyed the slow pace to this romance, and it touched my heart.
This began as a four-star read. But I was sucked deeper and deeper in, and in the end had to give it five stars for the way I really felt Brett's grief, his indecision and confusion, and the pain as he was torn between his old love and a new one. The emotions, including the guilt we all feel when someone dies suddenly, with last words unsaid and regrets that can never be fixed, were palpable here. Even the word choices and writing style seemed actually perfect for Brett's narrative voice, suited to this country singer and sometime-rancher, and his confused coming back to life.
JT was less of a rounded character, but he was a sweet foil for Brett's affection and desire. And I loved the secondary characters - Brett's interfering mother, Millie, and his foreman and mentor, Ray. The progression of the relationship was months, not days. The guys may have begun with abrupt physical attraction, but they got to know each other and were friends before it moved to more. And thank-you K-lee, the old love was not displaced by the new or suddenly second-best. Brett didn't need to recall flaws in his love of Walt, in order to love JT.