J.D. Barker has taken Great Expectations and twisted it into a scifi-fantasy-horror-mystery-love story that had me enthralled from beginning to end.

There is a bitter older woman, a remote and beautifully mysterious young girl, a hopeful young boy and a jaded older man with a dark past. There’s even a Jo Gargery. Whilst it was fun to spot the Pip and Stella similarities between the two however, it quickly became clear that this story stands alone, and that I couldn’t expect the plot to mirror the old familiar tale. For one thing, I don’t remember mutilated dead bodies cropping up regularly in Dickens’ version!

The story begins with one of unrequited love, longing and loneliness. We follow young orphan Jack to the cemetery to remember his parents and see him instantly smitten with obsession for the young girl he meets there. A girl who proceeds to turn up once a year – same date, same place – and is hiding some very strange secrets. Secrets that people might kill to keep. As Jack grows up, through his teens to adulthood, we see his struggles with addiction, unhealthy friendships, his worries about money and his growing interest in a series of gruesome murders. And he isn’t the only one. Detective Faustino Brier has also noticed an unusual pattern and is hot on the trail of the serial killer too, with his own obsessive interest.

There is definitely a big screen feel to this story, and I was reminded of X-Men and Heroes in many places, as we find out more about Stella and the mysterious boy ‘D’, and what they can do. There is plenty of thriller action – with guns and explosions, and also lots of intrigue, deceit and betrayals – balanced with quieter, more introspective moments, where Jack ponders his relationships and the purpose of his life to attempt to decide where his loyalties should lie and who he can trust.

It is Jack, more than anything, that kept me reading. We see him grow and slide slowly into darker habits and dangerous situations, and I just had to keep turning those pages to find out what was going on and whether he was going to survive it.

I honestly don’t feel that I can do this book as much justice as I would like to. It was one of those reads that gave me a book hangover for days, leaving me unable to think about picking up my next read until these characters released their hold on me. I will definitely be reading more from J.D. Barker in the future!





I expected the girl to be sitting on the bench, but she wasn’t. The bench was empty, save for a few red maple leaves caught in the metalwork. Clearing off a spot, I took a seat and opened my comic to the center, to the bulky paperback I hid within the pages, the book with the smiling boy and unsmiling girl on the cover. I turned to the first page and began to read.
Two days later, I returned to the cemetery. The day after that, too. The bench was always empty. I went back every day for the rest of that summer and long into the school year, but I wouldn’t see the girl again for nearly another year.
I never noticed the man watching me from the trees, sometimes there, sometimes not.

– J.D. Barker, She Has a Broken Thing Where Her Heart Should Be


Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

Loved everything about this excellent book,the characters were amazing especially jack,and stella and I had a soft spot for dunk.
Honestly do yourself a big favour and get a copy of this brilliant book,you wont be disappointed.
Many thanks to the publisher,Hampton creek press,for allowing me to read this novel.
Also many thanks to J.D.Barker for yet another fantastic read.
I have reviewed and posted and rated on goodreads.

thanks to #netgalley and #hamptoncreekpublishing for the free copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.

A love story, deep friendship, a bit of a mystery, a thriller, all boils down to book I couldn't put down. I read it on Kindle and usually find that books feel very short because there's no sense of turning pages or a visual of how many pages are left. This book didn't feel short but I was still surprised to see it is over 700 pages. Though it drug a bit in the middle for me, the start and finish certainly made the journey worthwhile.

Told in the first person by Jack - first as a little boy then as a young man, then as the 30something adult - it covers his friendships, his meeting and falling in fascination, then in love with Stella, the trials and tragedies of his life. He is one great character ..... not perfect, which is perfect. Though a little less developed, Stella is a compelling character also.

There's mystery around the recurring date of Aug 9 - Jack and Stella keep meeting on that date beginning when they're about 9 years old. They drop in and out of each other's lives until the story clicks into high gear and they discover the larger mystery of what is different about each of them. Learning about the circumstances of their parents and now how it affects their lives is surprising and has that touch of 'horror' that Barker is known for.

An engrossing read that I recommend. (blog review published 5/4/20)

I wanted to like this book, but I didn't feel the narrative was going to the point and couldn't understand why would anyone like a girl with such a character. Although I liked some parts in the beginning, I couldn't feel an attraction to the story because of the style. It wasn't the type of book for me, but I would still like to read something else from Baker in the future.

FABULOUS!!!!

After the first 100 pages I had to check whether I was actually reading a Stephen King novel. By the end though, I knew it was a J.D. novel all his own because I had been totally enthralled!

Some context: I don't personally care for Stephen Kings books. (I know, it's a reader sin to admit that!).  Initially I was worried it was going to be just like another recent King read: another very long, very dark and very dry book. But I was wonderfully proven wrong!  This book was exactly how I wish King's books could be. It was paced much better, and while it is over 600 pages long, it doesn't feel like a marathon when you're reading. 

The reader is with the main character, a boy named Jack, from his early years to his mid 40s. An epic story that involves a young boy, falling for a mysterious young girl, and a mystery that he spends his life trying to solve, trying to understand. A corrupt business always trying to thwart or kill him and a generous dash of paranormal that makes for a thrilling read.

The reader lives every moment of his life along with him. Along the way we meet all the different people that had a major impact in his life, and we learn to like, love, or hate each of them as we continue on his journey.

The detail written in all his relationships is completely engaging.  You come to truly care for these characters. And maybe most important, this book has plenty of light and love to counter the darkest parts.  A fabulously well written book that I feel excited to now add it to my "Read" book list!

*Thank you to the author, J.D. Barker and Hampton Creek Press via NetGalley for access to the digital review copy!

Well written, fast paced with thoroughly developed primary and secondary characters. Keeps you on the edge of your seat up until the very end.

Saw this book featured on Facebook. Author included link to Nook/Amazon AND NetGalley.
The info mentioned "new" Stephen King. This and description intrigued me.
The beginning was slow but writing style flowed so I continued.
Events in the book reminded me of The Shop in Stephen King's Firestarter.
I guessed a plot twist or two - and was surprised by some I did not see coming.

reviewed on Goodreads & Amazon

Thank you Hampton Creek Press & Netgalley for the free early copy in exchange for an early review. All opinions are my own.

I finished this book this morning, and let me start by saying that the book is just as long as the title, with 775 pages. Books of this size tend to make me nervous. It’s such a huge time investment if the book is just meh (or no good at all). I loved Barker’s book The Fourth Monkey (and my goal is to finish the trilogy this year) so I decided to snag this one when I saw it available as “read now” on netgalley.

The plot immediately captured my attention. I felt some X-Men meets The Institute vibes right away, which I loved. I’ve been a fan of X-Men for ages so I was excited to be absorbed in a story that had many parallels (but not too many!). I loved the characters and that it was spread out throughout the course of their lives.

Surprisingly, the book never felt too long and it never lost my attention. The author did a fantastic job typing up all the lose ends. When I was getting close to finishing, I remember thinking “hmm but I wonder what ever happened with X” and being disappointed that I didn’t get to find out. Shortly after thinking that I got my answer.

There was one aspect of the ending that felt a little out of left field for me, while another had me wondering how the main characters didn’t see the solution sooner. Because of this at the end I didn’t give it a perfect five stars, but felt that 4.5 was well deserved for this brilliantly crafted, cross-genre, brick of a book!

***Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

A story reminiscent of Stephen King and Dean Koontz. It definitely doesn't stand up to these giants, but A for effort.

I loved this one! It reminded me a little of Stephen King's Firestarter.
A group of college students join in a scientific study and are injected with an experimental drug. The idea is that this would mean their future children would never need to be vaccinated. Three of the students have children at the same time; Jack, Stella and David.
Stella is the first to show some kind of ability and her parents go on the run leading to devastating events.
The story mostly follows Jack, who loses his parents at the age of 4 on August 8th. We meet him at the age of 8, on the anniversary of his parents death, this is when he meets Stella for the first time. They meet at the same place on the set date every year.
But there are people after them. People who know what they are. And one of those people is David, who has a terrifying ability of his own.
This was a pretty long book but it really doesn't feel it when reading. It kept me gripped from beginning to end. Definitely recommend.

I absolutely loved Dracul and The 4MK Trilogy so as soon as I saw She Has A Broken Thing Where Her Heart Should Be, I had to read it. J.D Barker's latest book is fantastic and it's hard to review it without giving too much away. It's part-thriller, part-paranormal and part-love story and spans over three decades. Jack Thatch meets Stella in a cemetery on the 8th of August when he is a child. He returns every year on that date hoping to see Stella. Jack soon becomes fixated on her and his simple life living with his Aunt Jo and helping her at Krendal's Diner, soon becomes unravelled. Thanks to NetGalley and Hampton Creek Press for my digital copy.

From the beginning of this book, I didn't want to put it down. It's a long book but it certainly didn't seem long. It's full of interesting, multi faceted characters, people that make choices, right or wrong but also full of people that are caught in something that makes them do things they would never do, under other circumstances. I think that is the scariest thing about this book, the horror of losing control of everything that you are, everything that you believe, being just a passenger inside your body, with no options but to act a certain way. 

Jack is such a likeable main character. He's an honest, hardworking, smart kid and he loves his Auntie Jo, he pines for his dead parents and relives vivid dreams about something that happened to him and them, when he was four years old. Auntie Jo says those visions are just dreams but they are so real and as time goes on, there is more and more proof that what Jack dreams really did happen. 

Auntie Jo is another character I really like. Smoking herself to death, working hard at her job as a waitress, she loves Jack and as harsh, blunt, and crude as she is, her heart is gold. Her customers, neighbors, and co-workers know that Jo is a diamond in the rough, a good person and Jo will do anything for her nephew Jack. 

Jack and Auntie Jo visit his parents graves very August 8th, the anniversary of their death. When Jack is 8 years old, he meets a beautiful, mysterious girl, Stella, who is sitting on a bench at the cemetery. From that first meeting, Jack is obsessed with Stella and can not get her out of his mind, thinking of her, drawing pictures of her, wanting to see her again. He continues to see her on that date for several years and then things get crazy, crazier than they already seem to be, with Jack's strange dreams and strange things happening around him. 
In the end, so much is connected, connected to Jack's dreams, to Stella, to the people he knows. Who can Jack trust? Why can't his heart let go of Stella? What is it that draws them together and who are the people dressed in white, who are always with Stella? 

What Jack learns is bigger than two people and there is danger and death in Jack's past and future that he sees coming, sees happening in the past, and he can't stop what is happening even as he is part of it. And, there is another child, a boy, who might be the most dangerous person of all, who wants Stella and will let nothing and nobody get in his way. 

Thank you to the author, J.D. Barker, Hampton Creek Press, and NetGalley for this ARC.

What an amazing and awesome story! I was absolutely gripped from beginning to end. I’d never read anything else by this author, but I hope there will be more. This was exciting, unpredictable, intriguing. The best thriller I’ve read in quite a while. It is a bit like a Stephen King (as some other reviewers have said), but better, in my opinion. The most discordant thing about it was the title! Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.

Wowsers! I absolutely loved this book. My favourite read for 2020 so far. Saying anything about the plot will give too much away, but I can tell you that it is part coming-of-age, part adventure, part fantasy, part mystery, part conspiracy, part horror and it had a pretty thrilling ending.

We follow the main character, Jack Thatch, from a geeky eight year old through into adulthood and beyond. Life throws an awful lot of manure at Jack and he with it - sometimes badly, sometimes rising to the occasion but at all times we are rooting for him, for his dogged perseverance.

This was a long book, e-books don’t have page numbers but it is around 800 or so pages long and yet it doesn’t feel anywhere near that long. You are in it for the journey and, for me, it finished too soon. This is nothing like the author’s 4MK trilogy. I was captivated, the characters were brought to life and I could not put this down. Thanks to Netgalley, Hampton Creek Press and especially J.D. Barker for my review copy. I wish I could give it more stars!

Well thankfully I started reading this during quarantine because it is a long one. This book is such a well written book with so many interesting characters. It is written mostly from the point of view from the main character, Jack, who is an orphan being raised by his aunt. Jack met a girl named Stella on August 8, while visiting his parents grave with his aunt as he did every year on the anniversary of their death. After that, every year on that date he looks for this girl. The date of August 8 becomes very significant. It’s a slightly twisted read but I definitely think it’s worth your time.

What a roller coaster ride this book was. Following Jack through his early life after his parents died in a car crash that he survived, he was brought up by his aunt Jo. Visiting his parents graves each year, on 8th August, he would become bored while Jo insisted on ‘talking’ to his mother. He wandered through the cemetery and came upon a young girl, Stella. He became besotted with her but couldn’t understand the strange people, dressed in white that accompanied her. Meanwhile, also on the 8th August each year a dead body would be found, horrifically burnt but with no damage to surrounding areas or indeed their clothes. As the years go by and Jack becomes an adult, he has many more questions than answers. Searching for those answers and following his desires could put him in terrible danger but Jack has little concern for his own safety. Without revealing any spoilers, this lengthy story created many a mystery and murder with a dose of fear in every chapter. It never became laborious and although a major part may have seemed slightly far fetched I throughly enjoyed it and was sorry when it ended. I will never look at a white vehicle in the same way again!

So many characters, so much story. I loved it!! Barker is one of my favorite writers and I will continue to read all his work. This book was long and complex but what better way to spend the quarantine?

If you liked his previous titles, you will LOVE this one. Creepy and suspenseful that will keep you reading way past your bedtime!

I just love this author he is up there with Stephen king ....
This book was different to his last 3 but I loved every word it was thrilling a love story and a mystery you had to keep reading it just pulled you along ....
I hope there will be a second book with these characters I loved them all even the bad ones and I want to know how there life carrys on and where it takes them so please a book 2 would be wonderful ....
Congrats to this author you never disappoint.

This is a hard one to review. It's definitely in a different vein than Barker's other books I've read, and it puts me in mind of the Stephen King books that I like--Elevation for one; a little Stand By Me (the movie); and Stranger Things (maybe?). Another reviewer said it's a slow burn, and I think that's true. There's something subtle to it, understated, something I can't really explain. There's no doubt about it, JD Barker is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors.

I was happy to see that the audiobook is on Scribd, so I listened to it there. The audiobook narrators did a superb job. The ebook is free on Kindle Unlimited too.

A big thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a copy of the ARC. All opinions are mine.