How do I begin to describe how much I liked this book? Strong female characters are my jam. Love a woman who makes her own life better but has a man who just supports her. Vina, while she’s still grieving the loss of her best friend and husband, meets a man who finally makes her feel again. Vina and Deke make the best couple. They are both grieving but are helping each other move forward while enjoying each other’s company. Love that Deke treats her like a queen and recognizes she’s not a damsel in distress but just a woman who needs a good partner.

Ugh, this book made me ugly cry (and if you know me, you know that’s a good thing, lol). It’s such a beautiful story about grief and finding a way to move forward after losing the people you love. Davina and Deke’s journeys through their grief were so raw and heartbreaking, and I loved how they worked through it together. Their relationship felt so realistic, with all the fears and trepidations that come with starting something new while still healing. My only complaint is the slight miscommunication and some parts of the writing that pulled me out of the story—but honestly, those are just personal preferences. Overall, such an emotional and moving read!

This book was so well written, I absolutely loved it. It was so beautiful and heart wrenching at times you truly feel for both main characters. Davina pulled at my heart strings with what she went through in her last relationship and also being the eldest sibling that always pours into others but forgets to let others do the same for her. That is until Deke shows up and is one of the biggest challenges in her life and work space. Deke seems so well put together but also has his own grief and family issues he’s trying to overcome. I’ve read other books from this author but this one was by far such a great read that I enjoyed from beginning to end. Grateful for this complimentary copy and all opinions are my own.

"Grief is like a colossal wave. It rises higher and higher and no matter how sturdy your ship is, it'll smash into it and wreck it, leaving you to drown."

Shanora poured her heart and soul into this book, leaving everything she had on the page. It was was therapeutic for the author and her readers, ultimately, restoring my faith in the power of the written word. Beautiful Broken Love embodied the point of view of love after loss. Whether you've experienced the type of loss that Deke and Davina lives with or not, it is impossible to avoid identifying with their pain.

Cw/Rep: Grief, Death, Aspergers Rep, Child Abuse, Domestic Abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Cancer

For the first time in a while, I felt deeply connected to the characters on an emotional level. Deke started off as a character I rolled my eyes at due to his arrogance but by the end of the book those same eyes held hearts and stars. His character arc unfolded beautifully and lead to him being my favorite character. Davina's character heartbreakingly authentic. While I might have felt the cat and mouse actions grating from time to time, I couldn't say I'd do anything different.

Don't worry this book isn't all despair and depression, there is plenty of angst, attraction and audacity in these pages. I loved projecting my thoughts for a sequel on Javier and Octavia and even stretching so far to consider a story for Tish and EJ. The audacity was at an all time high with Giselle and Davina's mother-in-law. I found myself slow clapping at the verbal lashings the received. Lastly the attraction was scorching! Nothing would stop them not even a nearly 5 hour commute from Charlotte to Atlanta.

Beautiful Broken Love was just what the doctor ordered to mend the heart.

4.5🌟
Beautiful Broken Love !💖🥹🥹🥹🥹

"There are no words to truly define grief, but if I had to imagine them, I’d say grief is a beast who likes to stomp, claw, and bite until you’re stripped of everything . Then, when you finally gain some balance, it returns for another round, and the cycle continues, until you’re nothing but a hollow shell waving a white flag. That’s grief, I’m afraid. And it’s so damn cruel."

Shanora Williams wrote this emotionally charged Love story as an homage to grief. Davina and Deke each are on their individual grief journeys navigating life and love. Moving on seems like a selfish term when the person gone stays with loved ones in some capacity. I love how slowly and gently this love is grown and discovered for the characters. They each are able to choose love , when loss was out of their hands. This book is a heart healer !
4.5🌟

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective relaxing medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Rating: 5.0 stars

Davina and Deke have such a Beautiful Broken story; the title does not even begin to dive into the depth of this story. This story is a must-read; thanks to Shanora Williams for this superb writing. However, before reading, please take note of the trigger warnings.

Davina is mourning the love of her life, Lewis. To cope with her grief, she has poured all her energy into her company, making it the best skin care line ever. To capitalise on the increase in sales, she has hired NBA player Deke Bishop as the spokesperson and model for the line. When Davina and Deke meet for the first time, there is a vibe, an attraction.

Deke understands Davina's pain because he has grief that he is coping with as well. Can two persons in their grief bring comfort to each other?

Beautiful Broken Love explores their budding relationship, past, and future. Along the way, family and friends' support helps deepen the story.

Reasons I enjoyed this book:
Easy-to-read, Happily Ever After, Page-turner, Romantic, Realistic, Steamy, Tear-jerker, Tragic, Wonderful characters

Davina and Deke are Everything. It's Impossible to not love the main characters of Shanora Williams Novels. They are Unforgettable just like their stories. Beautiful Broken Love is an Epic Love Story. It makes you emotional, cry and fall in love with the characters and feel the pain they are experiencing.

This Author Never Disappoints her readers. A Must read. Highly Recommend it.

Everything about this book was enjoyable. I can't even put into words how much I loved this book! Hands down the best Shanora Williams book so far.

Shanora Williams’ Beautiful Broken Love is a poignant and powerful exploration of love, loss, and the resilience of the human spirit. With its deeply emotional narrative and richly drawn characters, this novel takes readers on an unforgettable journey of healing and transformation.

At its core, this is a story about overcoming adversity and embracing the possibility of a brighter future, regardless of past hardships. Williams masterfully captures the emotional weight of her characters’ struggles, delivering moments of heartbreak and triumph that resonate on a deeply personal level. The protagonist’s journey is both raw and inspiring, demonstrating how growth and love can emerge even from life’s most painful experiences.

One of the novel’s standout qualities is its supporting cast. The sisters, the best friend, and other side characters bring depth and warmth to the story, enriching the protagonist’s world and adding layers of complexity to the narrative. Their dynamics feel authentic and vibrant, leaving readers eager to know more about their lives—perhaps even in future books.

And then there’s the spice. Williams incorporates steamy, well-timed romantic scenes that elevate the story without overpowering its emotional core. The balance between passion and plot is expertly maintained, making these moments feel earned and impactful.

The writing itself is evocative and immersive, drawing readers in from the very first page. Williams’ ability to evoke intense emotions is remarkable; it’s as if she takes hold of your heart, breaks it, and then carefully mends it, leaving you feeling more whole by the end.

Verdict:

Beautiful Broken Love is an exquisite blend of emotional depth, romance, and personal growth. Shanora Williams crafts a story that is both heartbreaking and heartwarming, delivering a narrative filled with love, strength, and hope. With its compelling characters, perfect pacing of passion, and deeply moving themes, this novel is a must-read for fans of contemporary romance.

This really was a remarkable story about grief, strength, and the courage to love again.

Shanora is constantly making me fall in love with her writing. She has such a wonderful way of writing beautiful stories. Both these characters learning to go through life in spite of their grief and struggles was so heartwarming. You will fall in love with Deke and how strong he is in his determination to never give up on the woman he loved.

I highly recommend this story if you need a love story that will pull at your heartstrings and make you believe in a second chance at love.

Davina is a successful entrepreneur and business woman of Golden Oil Co.; a skincare line. She is working toward a huge endorsement deal for her company that will help to market her line and expand it even further. The catch? Davina lost her husband, Lewis, 7 months ago and is still dealing with the grief of becoming a widow. Enter, Deke Bishop, the NBA star that will be helping her endorse her company. The attraction is immediate for both Davina and Deke. But, both are also dealing with grief and pain that they haven't fully recovered from. Will their business partnership become more or just complicate an already complicated situation?
Review:
Beautiful Broken Love is filled with love, spice, trauma, and grief. It is definitely heavy during certain parts, but absolutely beautiful as well. The connection between Davina and Deke is strong and the spice is definitely spicing!!! The pain, grief, devastation, and hurt is very apparent for both Davina and Deke in different ways. The slow reveal of these traumas and feelings was well done and showed great character development. The love story in general was beautiful, but a little too insta love for me. Attraction is one thing, but I always like a little more build up and tension in my romances.
Beautiful Broken Love published on Tuesday, 12/3! Be sure to pick up your copy!
Thank you to NetGalley, Shanora Williams, and Montlake Publishing for this ARC of Beautiful Broken Love in exchange for an honest review!

This is a repeat author for me, I've enjoyed her books as I did this one. I found this to be a cute read about life, loss and moving on to love again. The characters were well developed and I did like the storyline which went along at a quick pace. I liked that all of the characters in the story had a part to play and I think that there maybe another couple in there that a book could be written about. It was a nice easy read!

Two broken hearts help each other piece back their hearts. The book deals with a lot of heavy topics, including grief and suicide, written with care. We meet the MCs in different stages of grief, through friendship they help each other heal.

Rounded up from 3.5
Seven months ago, Davina lost her husband and soulmate. Not knowing how to deal with the grief, she throws herself into her skincare line in the hopes it'll become viral. She finally lands NBA star Deke to sponsor her brand. But he's not only interested in her products...
This is a story about love, loss, healing and second chances. A strangers to work to friends with benefits romance. I enjoyed it overall, I even cried a few times, but there were a few things I didn't like that kept me from adoring this book as much as everybody else seems to have. I was a bit annoyed that the MMC kept on bringing back, in one iteration or another that the FMC was "not like the other women". That's one of my romance icks. Also, there were a little too many monologues that lasted for a few pages, which I'm not a fan of. Finally, Zeke is everything and Davina does not deserve him. Overall I liked it, but the reviews are fantastic, so maybe you'll love it!
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley for this E-ARC.

Wow. This book is beautiful. So well written. So enthralling. And so spicy. In a calm, nice way. Nothing that had me clutching my pearls. Just casually covering them. Nice spice.
I cried. Which I do to most books with any sad feelings. But in a beautiful way. It only slightly broke my heart.
It does have one of my least favorite tropes but it’s okay. I kind of knew it was coming.

Davina met her soulmate. The love of her life. And then he gets sick. And he doesn’t make it. She’s getting through life. Struggling a little. Doing her best.

She has a skincare company. And through that company, she meets Deke. A professional NBA player. What an interesting meet.

Deke has everything he’s always wanted. He’s rich. He’s signed to the NBA. He drives a black Ferrari. That’s all you need, right? Life complete? Wrong. Deke has some sadness too.
He is also enthralled by Davina.

It’s an interesting will they/ won’t they. With the most amazing spice. It’s well done spice. Spice I enjoyed reading.

Read this book. You’re welcome in advance.

This was a moving, emotional and captivating story.

Following the loss of her husband to spinal cancer, Davina is doing her best to carry on, growing her skincare business and taking each day a step at a time. She's not looking to move on or be attracted to the irresistible basketball player she just signed a contract with...

Deke, however, has other plans. There's nothing he can do to get Davina off his mind, and as they grow closer, email by email, he knows he won't ever be satisfied with just being friends. Does he have a chance, or is it just too painful?

This was a lovely read and had a bit of everything. Some of the terminology and phrasing threw me off, but overall, it was a great book that captured the pain and challenges associated with loss and finding yourself after it.

Wow, what an emotional experience I had while reading this book. I will forever cherish Beautiful Broken Love. There are no words that can express how I’m feeling.
I’m a huge basketball fan so it was an automatic read for me.

This book was a mixed of emotions, romance, depression domestic violence , amazing friendship bonds and family dynamics. This was absolutely perfection!
It was a beautiful love story that was well written.
It dealt with different stages of grief, which can be hard for anyone to read but the way Shanora writes it. You are just captured by the story and feel so connected to the characters.

I don’t want to ruin the book for anyone, but I will highly recommend it!

Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

This was a beautifully written and poignant love story. We meet Davina as she is navigating her grief of losing her beloved husband. The author did a good job exploring all the mixed emotions that we feel, the pain and loss, remembering the love and the anger too. From the moment Deke and Davina meet there is an obvious attraction but Davina is not ready. I liked how Deke became a friend first. One who despite still dealing with his own unresolved issues was there for Davina any way she needed him to be. Although there is red hot passion the love grows gently between them and I felt that this was more realistic. Knowing that this book came from the heart of the author only makes it even more special.

The title alone is a good indicator of the story you’re about to embark in! I was hooked from the beginning as I was introduced to Davina and Deek’s emotional journey!
Oh the journey this author created for these characters was mesmerizing and compelling!
Brimming with emotions, hot passion, this is a thoughtful and soulful story of grief and finding love again. So realistic and so relatable, once I started reading I was hooked! Even after I finished I couldn’t stop thinking about these characters.
A must read!

Davina recently lost her husband and has thrown herself into her own company to avoid dealing with the grief of losing her husband.
Deke, an NBA player who she gets as a spokesperson to represent her brand.
When Deke meets Davina, he immediately feels a pull toward her. The sadness in her eyes mirrors his own.
They start a friendship, and he becomes her confidant, the person she can speak to about her grief.
What I like about Deke is that he's very patient with Davina and never pushes her for more than she is ready for. He waited for her until she moved to take their relationship to the next level.
This is a tremendous love-after-loss romance. The author does a great job describing Davina's journey with grief, including all of the ups and downs.

The author does a great job portraying Davina's journey with grief. I felt the hero's Deke journey with grief was not given the same priority. We learned that he is also dealing with an uphill battle with brief through his POV, but I believe all that was pushed towards the end of the book, wrapping it up in a little bow, and I feel rushed. This book highlights the heroine's journey and her dealing with her loss and grief throughout most of this book; I wish the hero's journey had been highlighted more in the story to have an equal balance.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the arc for this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.