The Break by Katherena Vermette
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Read March 25 – 28, 2017
5 huge bright red stars from me!
When I first saw The Break at the bookstore it caught my interest but I decided against it as it had a trigger warning for violence. I can be sensitive to violence however knowing in advance it does take some of the sensitivity away. I saw it again at the library and knew then that I was going to have to read it. It was definitely a good read for me. I felt that Katherena Vermette handled the violence well and is so well written that I didn’t feel sensitive towards it at all.
The Break is an emotional, powerful and intense literary thriller about the strength and love that connects a family of women and friends together, while dealing with a violent act. The Break refers to a field between two rolls of houses but also refers to broken relationships.
The story is told in shifting perspectives of connecting characters as they share their past and present stories. This added suspense to the story as I pieced together how the characters were connected to the crime. There is a large cast of characters and at times I needed to use the helpful family tree that is included at the beginning of the book to sort them all out.
I really enjoyed the beauty and the love that connected these women amid the suffering and their struggles to survive. It will be a story that stays with me for a very long time.
Penny For Our Thoughts 