3.5 closer to 4 stars. I am getting really picky
about my stars. I can’t believe I am saying this but I think I maybe reading
too much and this has been influencing my ratings. Maybe I should quit reading
for a few months and try to reset my brain? I think I can quit cold turkey
without too many symptoms of withdrawal.
Or not. Anyways…..
Broken at Love is about Quinn and Emilie. Quinn is
a rich playboy tennis player whose rising career came to a sudden halt when he
sustained an injury that he cannot recover from. Quinn’s estranged father tells
him he needs a new career and must enroll in college PRONTO. No way was he
supporting a dead beat that can’t even succeed at playing. Between his absentee
father who seems to love to hate him and his psychotic half-brother Sebastian,
he goes into a down-ward spiral of partying, drinking, and serial girl chasing.
That is until Emilie becomes the next target of his brother’s sick betting
pool.
Emilie is having problems of her own. Although, her
family is equally well-off they disapprove of her chosen profession…becoming an
artist. Either she becomes a doctor/lawyer (they don’t care which) or they are
pulling her funding from school and letting her sink or swim on her own. She
absolutely does NOT have time for Quinn and his games.
Granted there were times when Quinn was
intentionally cruel, not only to the other girls in Emilie’s school but to her
as well. And even though, he had good reasons to start the bag-the-girl game
with Sebastian, he could have found other ways around it….he just didn’t care.
His interactions with Emilie forced him to care.
Is the plot predictable?
But I liked Emilie. Yes. She is too good and too sweet. Yes she
forgives him for his transgressions a little too easily. Personally, the way he treated those girls
sucked and he needs a good punch in the d*ck. But still, the story is good. Quinn
is plenty complex. He is hurting and it’s coming out of him swinging. Quinn was
not used to love. He was not shown how to love growing up and hanging around
his dysfunctional brother isn’t helping. So when he starts to feel these
unfamiliar feelings with Emilie…
What really gives this story some heft is Emilie’s
best friend Ruby and Quinn’s crazy step-brother Sebastian. Ruby is Emilie’s
best champion, even above her own self. When Emilie is contemplating giving
into Quinn despite his reputation, it’s Ruby that tells her to go for it and
live her life without regrets. If Quinn turns out to be the tool that he is,
well, Emilie is going in with eyes wide open. Ruby doesn’t fall for Quinn’s
whore-mannish ways either.
“You are annoying and strange. It’s weird that I want to rip your clothes off and slap you at the same time.” – Ruby to Quinn
I like Emilie too. When Quinn disappoints her,
she’s hurt but not broken. She is nice but not a doormat. She doesn’t even give
in to her self-pity party for more than 24 hours. She just dusts herself off
and, with an oh-well-at-least-the-ride-was-nice attitude, she keeps on painting
and going on with her life. She gave him a second thought but that was IT!
Finally! All these books with the MC with a deserved reputation as a man whore
and the FC is surprised when he acts like a d*ck and stomps all over her. Well…
You knew how he was before. All of a sudden you think
he’s going to act like Mother Theresa. Tsk. Tsk.
It was a good book and I’ll probably give it higher
stars when I read it again after my reading hiatus *cough bullshit*.
Writing: Pretty good
Characters: Pretty good as well
Recommend: Two words. No cliffhanger. I’d recommend
it on that alone.
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