Such a poignant story! The two main characters of this novel, a sophisticated and flamboyant Holocaust survivor and an ingenuous Australian sheep farmer find each other in spite of their damaged and very different pasts. The back story of Hannah, who has endured unimaginable losses and deprivation delivered by the Nazis, provides the weight and breadth of the novel. Tom too has suffered, but on a different level, from the triple betrayal of his first wife who neglected her son but refused to leave him with Tom, who adored him. As the plot unfolds and Tom and Hannah create a bond and lovely life together around the book store and farm, chapters describing Hannah's past explain the eventual crisis that occurs in their relationship. The main characters are thoroughly drawn as complex individuals, the resolution is satisfying, and the writer's skill make this a book to be savored.

I couldn't put this book down. It was beautiful and sad. Above all it was hopeful. This a story I will read again. It is about a bookshop, love, and loss. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction and those interested in books that deal with books.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

Tom Hope doesn’t think he’s much of a farmer, but he’s doing his best. He can’t have been much of a husband to Trudy, either, judging by her sudden departure. It’s only when she returns, pregnant by someone else, that he discovers his surprising talent as a father. So when Trudy finds Jesus and takes little Peter away with her to join the Jesus Camp, Tom’s heart breaks all over again. Enter Hannah Babel, a survivor of Auschwitz where her son and husband, along with her whole family, were killed. He thinks they could be happy even though she is much older. Then the unexpected happens, he gets custody of the boy he loves so dearly, but in the process may lose Hannah who vowed to never have children. I love books about books and bookstores so this title on NetGalley caught my attention and I requested it not knowing anything about the author. I was surprised to find a very well written book, with very vivid descriptions of Australia, the trials of raising sheep, and a main character that you could not help but admire.

This reader has a book hangover, and is incredibly grateful for the ARC.

What a beautiful, evocative work. It's spare, yet detailed; contained yet emotional. The "blurb" about the story line does it no justice. Though the book probably fits in with the current abundance of Holocaust novels, it is so much more. It is beautiful, moody, human.

I rarely give a five star review - I would give this more if I could.

Everyone lost, everyone was brokenhearted, and everyone made choices that they regretted. Tom, Hannah, Trudy, and Peter all had obstacles to their happiness and had to learn how to love. In The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted, Robert Hillman weaves a tale of hurting characters that are struggling to get through this life in the best way they know how as they each try to figure out how to relate to the hurts in one another. Tom’s wife left him, Trudy got entangled with a sadistic cult, Peter suffered child abuse, and Hannah was a Holocaust survivor whose greatest fears came true and continue to haunt her. While there are not a lot of happy moments in this book, I enjoyed the style of writing and the saga that was told kept me thinking about the characters and their fate. I would recommend this book, especially if you want a book to get lost in and a reason to be thankful for the life you have. Thanks to NetGalley for an advance read copy.

I loved everything about this book. The way the author made the characters so relatable was amazing. I loved every one of them and found myself fearing that their lives would not end up happy. Robert Hillman has written a novel that is realistic yet always hopeful. I look forward to more novels from an amazing author.

Tom is a quiet rancher who finds himself raising another man's son after his wife leaves him again and again. Hannah is a bookshop keeper who has survived the horrors of a concentration camp losing her small son and surviving two husbands to war. She journeys to Australia to forget and start again but all memories come back to the loss of her son. These two broken people will find each other and find a way to trust love again. Heartbreaking and heartwarming, their story will stay with you. This is a slow burn kind of book where the sadness and unfairness stokes the flames and their unfailing love and determination cools the fire. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

There is no doubt that this book is not only poignant but sad. For me, the book was a bit slow and I couldn't really get into it. I had to put it down several times just to finish it, but it just wasn't for me. My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Books about bookshops are a class unto themselves. They attract readers who find comfort and security in reading. The bookstore here is certainly a metaphor, opening the insulated world of the Australian farmer to the rich culture of Europe, but the story here goes much deeper than that shopworn image. The character of wounded Hannah, a victim of the Nazis who fled Europe and the memory of her murdered son and Tom, the hardworking Aussie farmer who over and over again opened himself to the heartbreak of love, extend far beyond the walls of the bookstore.
As the story opens the chapters alternate between Hannah as she tries to make sense of the alien culture of Australia and in flashbacks, Hannah in the tragic world of World War II where she showed her determination to be a survivor. We meet Tom, who brings to mind Gary Cooper as a salt-of-the-earth man of few words and sterling character.. it is one of the pleasures of this book to watch the love between these two develop.
If that were all there was to this story, it would be no more than a Hallmark movie, but the element that makes this book rise above the ordinary is Tom’s love for Peter, the son of Tom’s first wife, Trudy, and the result of a thoughtless dalliance., who Tom loves as his own. Peter’s life goes from idyllic as he is raised by Tom to tragic as he is removed by Trudy to a religious camp ruled by a charismatic and deranged leader.
A word of warning. This book took longer to read than expected because I had to keep stopping whenever it turned to a scene with Peter at the camp. I had to turn away from the intensity of my feelings and continue in very small increments. It is not a spoiler to say, I am glad I continued.
As an aside, I loved the descriptions of the Australian countryside and the friends and neighbors who populated it. It was a wonderful world to visit.

I received this from Netgalley.com in exchange for a review.

It is 1968: twenty-four years since Hannah and her own little boy arrived at Auschwitz. Migrating to Australia she meets solid, reliable Tom Hope and he is taking on a battle with heartbreak he can barely even begin to imagine.

Good story, Tom and others move the story along while the past is lived again through Hannah and how she survived Auschwitz and the war.

3.25 stars

This story starts in 1968 Australia, with Tom Hope grieving his wife Trudy, who left him. Later Trudy comes back, pregnant by another man and Tom takes her back. Trudy has no love for her son Peter but Tom loves the boy as if he were his own, raising him for three years, while Trudy is still with him, and then for two more years, after Trudy leaves him again, alone to raise Peter. For Peter, Tom is his father and he loves Tom with all his heart. Then Trudy takes the boy and Tom's heart is broken, not for Trudy who he has no love for anymore but for Peter, the boy he loves as much as he could love his own blood. Peter's heart is broken too, the place he is taken is not a good place and he dreams of being with Tom again.

Into Tom's life comes Hannah, 12 years older than him, survivor of Auschwitz and other horrors. All of Hannah's relatives died during the persecution of her people and Hannah, although she survived, can never forget what she saw, heard, knew of those times. Heartbreaking losses that have have affected her mental and emotional health. She vows to never love another child after losing her own boy, the first day at Auschwitz.

Hannah and Tom fall in love despite having to deal with Hannah's moods which are more than moods. They are really black spells when she is lost to Tom, as she relives past horrors. This story is a slow story and it's telling is in a different style than most stories. It almost feels as if we are in Tom's thoughts or Hannah's thoughts and sometimes some of the words get past me but I liked this book a lot. There is so much sadness and death and as strong of a man as Tom is, I had to wonder if losing Peter and being married to Hannah, was going to break Tom.

I know this book won't be for everyone but I liked it. I liked the people, the good people, not the religiously obsessed crackpot people that Peter was sent to live with. I also dreaded the parts of the book with animal death but I know that comes with living on a farm so it had its place in the book. I felt for the people in this book, especially for Tom and Peter and for Hannah too, who lost everything, including her mind but still could imagine good things happening.

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and NetGalley for this ARC.

Tom Hope is a rather simple man who became a farmer in rural Australia simply because he inherited a farm. The novel opens after Tom's wife has left him suddenly, and when she returns, just as suddenly, she is pregnant. For a few years they raise the child until she departs again for a religious commune. leaving Tom to his farm work while raising a toddler. Again she returns to retrieve the boy, breaking Tom's heart all over again.

Hannah is a twice widowed Holocaust survivor who departs Budapest for Australia to restart her life far from the memories that haunt her. Her goal is to open a bookshop and spread knowledge - with the hope of selling 25,000 books to balance the books burned by Hitler Youth. Tom meets her when she needs carpentry help in the shop, and soon they are a couple, despite their age and social differences. Each is haunted by the child removed from their life, and when Peter returns to the farm unexpectedly, it creates turmoil.

Well written and expansive, The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted will appeal to readers who liked "The Light Between Oceans" and books by Chris Bohjalian, Beatriz Williams, and similar Historical Fiction Authors.

This is a lovely and poignant novel about an Auschwitz survivor and a simple farmer who eventually find love and forgiveness. A bookshop brings them together in an interesting way. The sense of place, rural Australia, is vividly portrayed and the characters are so unique and well-drawn.. Lots of twists and turns.

Loved this book. It has many twists and turns in plot and just when you think all is lost, it's not. I would say love, loss, love, loss and ending with love. Very satisfying read!

I don’t know if this is just me, but when I first read a synopsis on NetGalley, I get super excited and need the book. Upon receiving the approval email a sense of true book loving joy courses through my terribly small veins and I get a sort of readers high. But as the expiration date nears, I get the undying desire to read anything but the book kindly approved through NetGalley that has an approaching due date. When I finally start to feel the pressure, I pick up the story begrudgingly. I read the synopsis again before I begin the story and an excitement refuels the fire I felt for the story when I initially requested it. And the fire sometimes burns bright and other times it flickers out. But in this case, I started this story and about 23 pages in and I was hooked.

This synopsis really does tell the happenings of this story. Tom begins the story abandoned by Trudy, his wife. When she returns, he knows that it will take time and eases into their carrying on. While Trudy suspiciously rushes back into things with an ulterior motive. Time progresses and Trudy is pregnant, but not with Tom’s child. Being the gentleman that Tom is he raises Peter. Trudy once again abandons Tom but this time leaves Peter. Alone they form a bond that is unbreakable, blood relations being no concern at all. But not all good things end well. Eventually, Hannah enters and turns Tom’s lonely life upside down in the best sort of way. But love isn’t easy and the past can haunt someone for their whole lives.

The characters of this story vary so greatly providing a great ensemble of cast members. Tom is without a doubt the shining star of this novel. Tom is the reason I fell so quickly in like with The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted. Tom is so very effortless to love. A genuinely good soul. But the sad part is that Tom doesn’t understand his worth. There were portions of his story that broke my heart. When he started his relationship with Hannah, he let her do most of the talking. Why? He didn’t want to “bore her, as he’d bored Trudy.” He accepted fault for her leaving, but he was in no way responsible. But that was just the kind of good man Tom was. Trudy on the other hand is a character readers were never intended to bond with. She has many faults, but she has potential to redeem herself. But I will NOT forgive her for claiming emotional cruelty and abuse for her reason for filing for divorce. My exact written thoughts were, “How F***ing dare that Trudy!” Lastly, we have Hannah. Hannah’s story is incredibly emotional and tragic. She is the classic case of a person who is beautiful on the outside but incredibly broken on the inside by life’s cruelty. She has been through more than any person should have to face. But she is a survivor. It is what she does, survive. But surviving and living are not one in the same.

I loved a great deal about this novel. The relationship between Tom and Hannah is so enticing and addicting. I wanted these two broken individuals to find love in one another so bad. Also, Tom and Peter’s connection was a great aspect to the novel. It further supported how great of a man he could be especially for Hannah. But there were some issues. For example, when Hannah arrives in Auschwitz, there are many lines written in German. There really isn’t much surrounding support to understand what is being said. Furthermore, Hannah actually can speak German. I can’t help but be annoyed by being left out. But I have this inkling that it was done purposefully. I imagine that it was done to offer readers a taste of the victims experience and inability to communicate or understand the Nazis. If it wasn’t that deep then I am not a fan of this barrier! Also, The book does slow down a bit after the beginning of Hannah and Tom’s relationship. And there were a few times, I had to re-immerse myself into the novel. These moments were mostly during the middle of the novel. The beginning and end were fire. But as a result of the middle, I ended up rating the story with 3.5 stars, but rounding to 4.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for approving my request.

A story of lost and hardship and finding a way to survive and love after loss. The story of a bookstore opened in Australia after seeking home after World War II.

Tom was a simple man who inherited his uncle’s farm in rural Hometown, Australia. His first wife, Trudy, was unhappy in the marriage and left him. When she returned, she was pregnant with another man’s child. Tom took her back and raised the boy, Peter, as his own.

After a few years Trudy left for good. This time she took Pater and headed off with other family members to a strict religious sect miles away. Tom was broken-hearted but resigned to life as a single man. Then he met glamorous Hannah, an older woman who had emigrated to Australia in the 1950s. Hannah was a Hungarian Jew who had survived the Auschwitz camp. She had lost her first husband as well as her only son there.

Hannah wanted to open a bookstore in Hometown and fill it with copies of the thousands of books written by Jews and burned in Hungary during WWII. She enlisted Tom’s help in converting the chosen space into a bookstore and soon they fell in love. The. They married. Hannah was still suffering emotional scars from her experiences in the camp and the loss of her child and had periods of melancholia.

Then Peter escaped from the religious compound and traveled back to Tim’s farm. This led to conflicts between Hannah and Tom as she could not bear to raise another child after losing her own.

The story has a predictable ending and that is one of the reasons I lost interest. As soon as Peter appeared back on the farm, I knew how it would end. The author has crafted an interesting story with good character development. I have visited Australia, have friends there and was looking forward reading a book set in that country.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Not at all a cozy little bookshop story, but a nuanced and well written novel with unforgettable characters. Tom Hope is an Australian farmer, known as reliable. His wife Trudy leaves him, taking Peter, her son who wants to stay with Tom. Hannah comes into Tom’s life, with the complications and heartbreak of an Auschwitz survivor. Thought provoking, I recommend this novel, thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I found this book very tedious to read (and i am a prolific reader). It just could not find a connect with me and even though I completed reading it, as is my wont, I would hardly recommend this to anyone. The story lacked depth, the characters were not well nuanced and the plot meandered. Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC though.

I am so pleased to have received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley and Publisher G. P. Putnam's Sons. It had me from the get go! My first great read for 2019.

Robert Hillman is quite the author. There's a sparsness to his writing, and yet each character is wonderfully drawn, I feel as I know each of them intimately. I could "see" the landscape, the buildings and settings. Just really well done, kudos.