Unbreak my Heart by Melissa Walker
Pages : 232
Genre : Contemporary Fiction
Stand alone
My Rating : 4,5/5
What it’s about :
Fortunately – or unfortunately – summer was just around the corner, and this year her family has it all planned out : they will be spending the whole summer on their sailboat. Maybe some time away on the water is exactly what Clementine needs to forgive herself; after all, the sea might just have a few surprises in store for her!
My Thoughts :
Unbreak my Heart was so much more than I had expected! It was the perfect summer novel : short, cute, filled with feelings, a tad of romance and gorgeous days on the water, under the sun. I thought I was in for something simply light and heartwarming, but the book turned out to be a little more than that.
First I must say that I have very little compassion for liars and cheaters. Most of the time, cheaters are sitting in the “unlikable character” seat, written to be despised by the main character; when they are the main characters, there are often a multitude of reasons generously provided to excuse the horrid cheating behavior (it was just one time – his girlfriend is a horrible human being – it was meant to be – etc). So I started Unbreak my Heart feeling pretty sure I wouldn’t like Clementine much.
That didn’t happen, at all. Clementine spends a huge chunk of her summer thinking back on what happened, and why. With her we revisit her sophomore year, how she met Ethan, what the two of them shared together. She explains exactly what happened, how she could have stopped it, how she even lied to herself. Like all teenagers, Clementine can be a tad dramatic, but I didn’t feel her actions were a cheap ploy to create drama in the story. Instead, I felt it showed her inner turmoil really well (with the added bonus of reminding me my own embarrassing teenage years!) In the end though, Clementine didn’t make excuses, and it was so refreshing. She lives with her guilt and her regrets, but through this summer, we really get to see her grow.
Another aspect I really enjoyed was how heartwarming and fun and realistic the relationships were : the ones with her family, with her best friend, with Ethan or with James, the new cute boy Clementine meets on her vacation. Sometimes they get along really well, sometimes they don’t, but that’s just life, and it was really well written.
I also felt the book was as much, if not more, about friendship, family and staying true to yourself than it was about romance – and I loved that. It made the characters and the story more realistic, easier to relate to.
So, I really liked this one. Short and sweet, it’s a perfect summer read – and it’s coming out in paperback on May 28th with a lovely new cover!
