‘The Shattered Door’ is a phenomenal book and a deeply emotional experience all at once. Its honesty and heartfelt directness left me feeling overwhelmed, raw, and in need of some reflection before I was able to put together my thoughts for this review. As I was reading Brooke’s story, I kept thinking about the title. A shattered door is a pretty strong visual, and depicted perfectly on the cover. Even though I didn’t fully understand the connection to Brooke’s life until the last few pages, one thing was clear to me throughout. As much as a door symbolizes both an entrance to something new and an exit away from something old, and many other things as well, the spiritual meaning of a door is communication. In this case, shattered or broken communication. While that describes part of Brooke’s problems very well, there is more to him and his situation than that.

Only now that I finished this book can I see how all of the symbolic meanings of a door apply in describing Brooke’s life, his struggle with being gay, and his search for an understanding of what it means to be Christian. Stories about people’s struggle with their faith can be boring and preachy, but nothing could be further from the truth in this case. Even if you are not particularly religious, I think this story may give you an insight into what life is like for someone who is. Of course, that is only one layer of the story. Above all Brooke is human. Following him through a truly messed-up youth and a mother who doesn’t deserve that name, to his reconciliation with who he is, only to find everything shattered yet again and him having to go back home to face his past, deal with his present, and try to build a future, was nerve-racking at times. The teeny-tiny sliver of hope at the end of the book was a nice respite from the harrowing journey Brooke was on.

As much of a struggle as Brooke faces in most of the areas of his life, the relationship with Jed is almost too perfect. I say almost because they do have their issues, but there is never any doubt that Jed loves him and supports him in whatever Brooke needs to do. Jed comes from a loving family, and while he is shocked when he gets to know the circumstances in which Brooke was raised, he has the strength to deal with it and be there for Brooke. Jed also has a great sense of humor, seemingly endless patience for Brooke, and no tolerance for nonsense from anyone else.

The way the story is written is also fascinating. There are a few flashbacks, but they are placed so that the mystery about what happened in Brooke’s past unravels slowly. As happens in real life, events trigger memories, and the way it was done made me feel closer to Brooke and gave the novel a more life-like feeling, As if Brooke were sitting in front of me and telling me his story, remembering to fill in some of the blanks only as he understood he had missed a piece needed for my understanding. It was an interesting effect. Luckily there were moments of happiness and laughter strewn in with the misery and hatefulness Brooke had to deal with. I don’t think anyone could have survived without them, including me when I read it.

If you like realistic accounts of people who have suffered a great deal before they come out the other side, if you want to read an honest story about one gay man’s struggle with his sexuality and his faith, and if you’re looking for a read that is multi-layered, sometimes painful to read, and as horrific as it is hopeful, then you will probably like this novel as much as I did. One thing is certain – Brooke’s story will stay with me for quite a while.


NOTE: This book was provided by DSP Publications for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )

From Mark Skelton's review:

[...] but i do wonder whether many people coming to this book without a faith and therefore perhaps without the mindset of Brooke would see no deeper than the idea that it was a book about prejudice and the intolerance of the Church and not see Brooke's quest as a genuine and reasonable one or indeed one worth wasting any time over.

This is a genuine concern as, coming from a point of being increasingly disillusioned with organized religion, this was my reaction exactly. My first thought upon finishing the book was 'this embodies every single thing I despise about the Church' and it took considerable effort to finish it.

However, having thought a little more about it, I can see how Brooklyn pulled much of his strength from his beliefs.

This is not a nice, pretty read. It's painful and gutting and downright disturbing in places but it is worth every moment of discomfort.

Edit: I've been thinking about this book all night. The more I think on it, the more impressed I am with Brooklyn's conclusions in regards to managing his sexuality and beliefs and his continued faith in God and his religion. And the way he manages his relationship with his mother after everything she's done... He's an impressive person.

The secondary characters in this are also beautifully fleshed out - familiar without being caricatures, and the descriptions are fantastic. ( )