A well written, interesting story. Couldn't put it down. Will recommend it to patrons. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

I actually wound up paying for the audiobook of this and am really enjoying it so far. About half way done but giving a 4 star for now.

A sordid love affair in small-town 1960s England results in tragedy and a murder trial.

The story of Beth, Gabriel, and Frank felt a little tired and stale to me. Nothing about this historical fiction love triangle felt particularly original. Multiple times I found myself thinking "I've read this before"...even though, as a new release, I knew I hadn't. I didn't really care for any of the characters. Gabriel was a character we got to see as painted in a somewhat villain-esque light in multiple situations, who was then redeemed, only to be somewhat villainized again? Beth just felt whiny and helpless. And Frank was written as if the man was the second-coming of a Saint. None of the mystery was all that mysterious and the "big reveal" towards the end was something I immediately guessed at...I enjoyed the writing overall but this wasn't some life-altering novel for me. The characters were fine-if a bit flat, the storyline was okay-if a bite tired, and nothing was particularly memorable. Three out of five stars for decent writing.

My favorite book of 2025! Incredible story telling, imagery and complex characters. I loved the humanity of each person and the alternating timeline that kept me guessing. I was completely hooked from the very beginning and cannot wait to read more from Hall.

In 1968 England, Beth and Frank have a good marriage. The family farm keeps them busy and distracts them from mourning the death of their young son a few years previously. But one day, a young boy shows up on the farm, followed by his father, Gabriel, the man Beth fell in love with as a teenager. As Beth is drawn into the lives of Gabriel and Leo--caring for Leo after school while Gabriel works on his latest novel--she finds it hard not to fall back in love with Gabriel.

The town begins to talk, but the one most disturbed is Frank's brother, who fights (mainly unsuccessfully) an alcohol problem. When events come to a head, Beth is forced to choose between her past and her present.

Told in three timelines, the novel foreshadows another tragedy but the reader doesn't discover what it is until nearly the end. This is a moving, reflective book, with no real bad guys, just people who love too hard and sometimes foolishly. #BrokenCountry #NetGalley

No wonder this is a Reese club pick. This was heartbreakingly good. I never expected that ending!!

Links to come!

This story captured my attention from the start. The tragedy at the core of the story was heartbreaking. The characters were all flawed, but as things unfolded, the reasons behind their actions became clearer to me. I did find it tough to connect to any of the characters, but ultimately enjoyed the book!

Beth and Frank live a happy life on a farm until their world takes a turn when Frank's brother shoots a dog going after their sheep. Turns out the dog belongs to Beth's teenage love, Gabriel Wolfe. Suddenly Beth is brought back in Gabriel's life as she babysits his young son who reminds Beth of her own who tragically died. As tensions, rumors, and jealousies mount, Beth must choose between who she was and who she wants to be.

Broken Country reminds you what literature feels like. Hall brilliantly narrates a tale of broken people who love each other very much and yet still manage to hurt each other - a cheating spouse who still loves her husband, a husband torn by guilt, a messy family full of trauma and love. Hall slowly reveals more and more about Beth's relationships with Gabriel and Frank, adding great twists and turns to keep you engaged. Broken Country is a beautifully written tale of forgiveness and mercy that is easily a front runner for best book of the year.

Wow. What a heartbreakingly beautiful story about the different forms of love. I loved how Clare Leslie Hall told the story. It was the perfect blend of character development and plot. It really made me feel all the emotions! I have not stopped thinking about this book since I finished it and will probably not stop thinking about it for a while. 6/5



Thank you Simon and Schuster for providing me an ARC.

Thanks to the publisher for the early copy!

This book is a top favorite of the year!!! I loved it! I highly recommend reading it if you love mystery, romance, and family drama. And the ending?! It will make you cry.

If you see this book--pick it up!

I was iffy on requesting this because the Mystery & Thrillers categorization seemed like it might not be the best fit for the book based on how it sounded, but I went for it anyway. Well, I was right, but I did enjoy this book!

The Romance classification also feels a little off given that the love triangle is between the main character's devoted-to-the-level-of-sad-sack husband and her doomed high school love with whom she begins an affair which will so clearly become Doomed, Again. There's not much passion with either of them, but that honestly felt fairly unsurprising for these characters. They are all very much the types of friends of friends who, when their affairs are shared with you as gossip, would have you like, god, yeah, people sure do a lot of kinda pathetic things to liven up their boring lives.

So why the four stars? Well, I've fallen a little behind in my reviewing and when scrolling through my RTCs this was the one that I remembered instantly and with feeling. It was well-written, well-paced, and just generally good enough in that book club bait way where you know that a lot of people will love it and you can understand why. The ending really stuck with me and the twists were executed well. Overall I liked it, and sometimes that's enough.

My thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was a slow-burning family drama with a touch of mystery that really surprised me. Set in post-war England, the story follows a farmer’s wife whose life is upended when someone from her past reappears, and everything she thought she knew gets shaken. The writing felt really grounded, and I loved how atmospheric the setting was. It took me a little while to settle into the pacing, but by the midpoint I was hooked. This is one of those books that feels quiet on the surface but has so much tension bubbling underneath. I think fans of character-driven fiction with a little courtroom drama would enjoy it.

I don't know if I would have picked this book up if not for reading for my upcoming book club meeting. After reading, I still don't know if I would have read on my own or if I did start it, that I would have finished it. The writing was good enough, but I had a huge problem with the morality of two of three of the main characters. Yes, I know this goes on in our modern world, but it is hard for me to justify the selfish destructive behaviors of these individuals. I'm sure we're going to have an interesting book club discussion.

Beth is married to Frank. Together, they manage a farm with Franks brother Jimmy. The story is told in chapters of before and the present. It is beautifully written and I love how the author slowly unfolds the tale of Beth’s past love and her husband

Book of the motherfucking year. My eyes are wet! If you see any reviews below five stars, they're fuckin' lying. There were moments when I gripped the book with tension, shook my head at a certain character's antics, and exclaimed out loud. Broken Country is more than just a love triangle. It's grief, guilt, loss... I felt it all. Read in two days and I would do it again. WOW.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley — hilariously, I didn’t remember I received this arc and waited like 26 weeks to read it through my library after it published 🫠

Anyway, beautifully written but the end was a bit too far-fetched for my liking. I also realllllly struggle with books about affairs. Just not my bag.

If you’re a reader like me who goes in on Kristin Hannah’s The Great Alone or Delia Owens’ Where the Crawdads Sing, Broken Country might be your perfect next read. Set in a small town in England, a farmer’s wife deals with the grief of losing her son, the fear her marriage will fail, and the yearning for the first man she ever loved (who’s recently turned up back in town with his own son). At the same time, the reader is placed in the picturesque village where they live, a setting in which it’s impossible not to get caught up.

Written in two timelines, the narrative follows Beth as the story of her first love unfolds in the past and as she deals with the trial of a dead man in the present. Hall’s writing of Beth and Gabriel’s love story was breathtaking, and I found myself grinning and kicking my feet feeling like a teenager myself on more than one occasion. That story is juxtaposed with the story of Beth’s marriage (to another man) and their shared grief over the death of their son Bobby.

When Gabriel shows up back in town with his own son Leo in tow (who’s not much younger than Bobby would have been), Beth’s in a tangle of emotions: it’s clear she and Gabriel still have feelings for each other, and Leo, who’s desperate for a friend, comes to rely on Beth, but she feels guilty as well for using him to fill the hole left by Bobby.

Hall writes Beth so well, and I found myself at times having to put the book down because I was feeling anxious and guilty on Beth’s behalf. In addition to characterization, Hall also paints a beautiful, vivid portrait of their little English village: namely the farm where Beth and her husband live (and the animals, birdcalls, species of trees, etc. that inhabit it) and the manor nearby where Gabriel lives (the lake where Gabriel and Beth met as kids is a personal favorite).

I didn’t give this one five stars because I wanted more — more background, more information, more perspectives from other characters. Which is maybe the best reason not to give a book five stars? I felt with more info I would have connected to the other characters the same way I did to Beth.

But overall, I highly recommend this one, especially to readers who appreciate nature as a character. By turns beautiful and absolutely heart-wrenching, this is one to savor.

I adored this book!! I could not put it down! I loved it so much, it’s my first and only five star read so far in 2025. Soo sooo good. I adored the characters, the story, all of it! I call this a must read!

This book is absolutely amazing. Thank you Netgalley and publishers for allowing me the chance to read it. Top 5 of the year.

Broken Country is a truly beautiful book, and though I just finished listening to it as an audiobook, my thoughts continue to swirl around the book's themes of first love, second chances, the loss of innocence and idealism, the complexities of the human heart and the injury that secrets and lies can leave in their wake. In many ways, it reminds of David Guterson's novel, Snow Falling on Cedars, which is still one of my favorite books of all time.

It is beautifully written and expertly executed, and I haven't read a book this good in a very long time. It was worth stepping away from my happily ever afters for a short time, but it definitely made my heart hurt. I am glad that the ending is hopeful and centers around the healing that has occurred in the wake of all the tumult. I can honestly say that I anticipate having a remarkably intense book headache after having listened to this amazing story. Hattie Morahan does a wonderful job narrating this book.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy from NetGalley, and I am leaving my review voluntarily.