This was a good story about a man coming back from a horrendous gay bashing in which his partner was killed.

Eli is scarred physically and mentally and determined never to fall in love again when he meets his new housemate Alec. Alec is a psychologist who specializes in the healing of psychological trauma and has been asked by Eli's friend Ilsa to see if he can help. But Alec falls for Eli and refuses to help in a professional capacity. They become friends. When Eli is finally ready for them to become a couple he finds out what Alec's seciality is and withdraws, believing Alec was only interested in him for professional reasons.

The descriptions of the two men, their gradually growing friendship and the issues they encounter were well done and made for an interesting read. It is too bad the book ends before the emotional payoff for both of them can happen. I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I'd seen the two of them become a real couple. ( )

I received this book from goodreads.com first reads giveaway. The book got here super fast, which was awesome. In addition to the paperback version of "Broken" the author also included an information card with her author biography on one side, and a snippet from another of her books "Character". I am currently reading several other books but I just couldn't wait to start, so I put the other books aside and began!

The first wonderful thing I have to say about this book is that it came with an advisement to readers. I would call it a forward, but it had nothing to do with the story as far as the characters went. It simply stated that this book was going to contain some things that might trigger unpleasantness for people who had suicidal thoughts, or had suffered abuse in the past. Then went on to say that the author thought the readers emotional and physical well being was more important to her than reading her book and to make sure that we are safe. I found this very touching, I thought it was just the most wonderful thing that in a world where authors want nothing more than for people to read there works, that this author wanted to make sure that she didn't cause any harm to the readers.

The first "con" I put that word in quotations because it really has nothing to do with the story at all, but I didn't like the cover art. If I had been looking through the shelves at my local library or book store, just based upon the cover art, this would not have been one that I would have picked up without knowing ahead of time what the book was about. That is my own personal preference and I know the saying goes "Do not judge a book by it's cover" but I think that a lot of people still do. Especially if they are just browsing along the shelves.



*****



I have now finished reading the book. I understand the cover art better, however I still can't bring myself to enjoy it. Perhaps if it was a photograph of a hand holding pearls the message would come across clearer.



I thought this was a very good book. It was sad, but it made you feel for the character. As a reader the way the book was presented you had a 99% understanding of how it was ultimately going to end, writers are sometimes known for the twists and turns but this was pretty straight forward.



I don't think Taya was physically described until about halfway through the book, which made me feel like she was more accessible as a character because she could be any girl. She could be you, your sisters, someone from class. Even when she was physically described it wasn't in such great detail that as a reader you couldn't find something in common with her.

I felt very sad for Taya. The way the mother was portrayed made me feel indifferent to her. I wanted to be angry with her for not removing herself from an abusive relationship with Taya's father, I also wanted to be angry at her for not seeing what was going on. Although it is made clear on both the accounts of physical abuse by her father, and by her own cutting that she kept it very well a secret. I was angry with the father, as I think most readers would be, it takes such a sick person to beat his wife and abuse his daughter when the role of a good husband and father should be to provide and protect these people that he supposedly loves.

Although I did enjoy the book and thought it provided a good look into what some teens go through, I was disappointed that Taya didn't have the courage to go to her favorite teacher, Mrs. Simmons, and tell her what was going on. I know she didn't believe that her mother would believe her, but I feel like the story may have been able to have a happier ending if she had just tried to talk to this teacher. Although by that point she was being bullied by just about everyone and seemed to feel there was no hope. I would also have liked to think that the teachers who had known she was a good student would have seen her slipping grades as a sign that something was wrong and reached out to her. However with the class sizes these days (although not stated in the book) I know it can be hard for teachers to be able to look after everyone.

All in all I think Tiffini Johnson did a brave thing by writing this book and hopefully bringing more attention to the growing problem of teen suicide. I would definitely read another book(s) by this author and would recommend this book to anyone who wanted a good book to really think about after they finished.

( )

I haven't read a book that hit me emotionally as hard as BROKEN in a long time. From page one till the very end it holds on to your heart and just never lets go. In fact i delayed finishing the book for days just to keep the main character Taya with me, as if i could do something about protecting her if i did...

It's more than a book about bullying, it's more than a book about sexual abuse, it's more a memoir of a 15 year old girls heart. Taya is sensitive and intelligent, she deals with crap at home, crap at school and she internalizes it all...god i just wanted to give this character a hug.
You know how schools have required summer reading?? THIS should be one of those books before entering high school, followed by a report written on how it impacted the student.
As for the cover art? Love it, even tho the real meaning behind it doesn't become truly apparent till the end. Very meaningful. Don't eliminate it Tiffini.

When i did finally allow myself to finish BROKEN, my heart was broken. We all go thru life 'broken' in some way....it doesn't mean we are dispensible tho.

3.5 stars. ( )

Broken is, as expected, a story very heavy in the angst side but not overtly dramatic. I poured my one tear or two, but basically, I think the story was more sweet than anything else, and I really enjoyed the fact that it was 'physical' without being sexy. Let me explain a bit: both main characters, Eli and Alec, are very aware of each other in a physical way, the love between them is both a match of minds than bodies, and all around them there are people who are in different stage of relationships, but the novel never goes down to the details, never once there is a full sex scene, even if, more than once, the men fall asleep together (and you will have to read the book to know what I mean). So yes, the novel is physical, but it's not sexy, we and they are aware of the men and their sexuality, and so no, this is not a 'sweet romance' as the old romance rules state (no sex we are English...), but it's sweet since the author manages to maintain it on a balanced level, not too much of that, not to few of this.

Eli is recovering from a trauma, his life partner was killed in a gay bashing, and 2 years after his impromptu family, the lesbian best girlf friend of his former partner, and two gay roommates they were living with, think it's time for Eli to come out from the self-imposed 'widower' mourning. Ilsa in particular decides to take the matter in hand and rent the attic of the house where they are all living to Alec, an American writer and Psychology professor who is searching a place to live in London, after moving from Chicago due to another one of his 'usual' heartbroken. Just from that you can understand that Alec is not exactly the classical psycho-therapist, that let me say, I sometime find boring: when a man has all the answers, I think he is not a nice character. Alec, instead, I think he is a man who learns how to understand and comfort people, since he wanted to understand his own fears and doubts. When one of his relationships fails, he moves to another city to completely change his life; it's a run from reality, but he knows it well. And I think that Alec has also some self-esteem problem, he always thinks that the relationship fails due to some fault from his side... unlikely, but the human mind works in a strange way.

Anyway, when Alec meets Eli, he is the only one who understands that Eli has not the need to be pushed out from his mourning, he needs to be taken by. Eli is almost ready, he only needs to find a reason, and maybe the reason can be a new love, Alec. Obviously when you hide to Eli that Alec is a psychologist, and more he is specialized in after-trauma, well, you also understand that troubles are behind the corner.

Eli and Alec are very nice characters, well developed and likeable. The story between them is nice and sweet. What probably is the best part of this novel is that they are not the only ones to be good characters. They can be the main focus of the story, but all the supporting characters around them, from the most important ones, like Ilsa, Lyle and Tony, Eli's roommates, to Casey, Mirabell, the best girl friends, to even the cameo roles like Dray, Reggie and Ray, they all have an interesting background story, they all aroused my interest and made me wonder about them, about their story and its possible evolution. Broken could be Eli and Alec's love story, but it's also a choral book where all the characters have a very important role.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1615810870/?tag=elimyrevandra-20