Broken
With the number of positive posts I've seen flood my Twitter feed for K.M. Harding's debut romantic thriller, I just knew I had to give it a read. I admit I'm not much of a romance person, but the thriller part was right up my alley, and I ended up enjoying the romance part in this particular book as well.
In author K.M. Harding's words, "Dani is alive, but not living." Our main character, Dani, suffers from a form of amnesia that has caused her to forget everything about her past. I admit I had a bit of a hard time with this aspect of the story. I've gotten used to listening to my neurologist husband complain about this particular trope and how unrealistic it is every time it pops up in a show or movie we're watching together. That being said, a suspension of disbelief is needed when it comes to fiction, and Dani's amnesia was a much-needed plot device.
On top of her memory loss, Dani has suffered tremendous abuse after being kidnapped and now suffers from severe anxiety and PTSD. She's doing okay on her own. She has a daily routine and her music to comfort her in bad times. But she can't seem to let anyone into her life. She guards her trauma closely, and she refuses to let anyone learn the horrors of her recent past.
However, everything changes when a man walks into the small diner where she works, and Dani's life is turned upside down.
Broken is full of twists and turns, and plenty of mystery to keep the pages turning. There were points where I was waiting for the book to resume it's fast-paced story-telling, and I felt like I was slogging through unnecessary scenes to get back to the action, but the payoff was well worth it.
There was only aspect of the book that I found hard to digest. Minor spoiler...
When Dani's PTSD was essentially cured by hugging Damien after he got hurt, I admit I nearly put the book down. For a character who was so traumatized she could not stand to have her torso touched without vomiting profusely, I was upset and disappointed that she was suddenly able to be hugged and touched with no more issues at all. Poof. PTSD gone. The egregiously inaccurate portrayal of PTSD, trauma, and anxiety rubbed me the wrong way, as someone who suffers from an anxiety disorder. I debated not finishing the book due to this, but in the end, I'm glad I did.
End spoiler//
All-in-all, Broken is a dark, enjoyable read full of twists I truly did not see coming. I can easily recommend it to both thriller and romance fans alike, but be warned - the book does cover some heavy topics. I especially related to Dani's character, as I also rely heavily on music in my day-to-day life, and I liked that aspect of her a lot. The book is a great read, and I plan to check out more books by K.M. Harding in the future, should there be any. (And I hope there are. She has a knack for creative writing!)
