Review: Very moving debut novel!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 01 3, 2014
Paperback copy received by the author in exchange for an honest review.I must say that I was pretty much sucked into the story very quickly after having read the powerful prologue. This is a story that deals with both mental and physical abuse so it is definitely not for the faint-hearted.The story begins with Izobel (Izzy) beginning at university – we very quickly learn how she longs to leave her home, and the reasons behind it, but she is not certain if she has the courage to do so. Izzy knows, however, that she has to set herself free, otherwise she fears that she will become a shadow of herself, never being able to let the past go – and never really live her life to the fullest.“I know I want to revert to who I was before, bring it back to the surface. I refuse to be who I am now, a result of consequence.” (Izzy)Izzy meets a gorgeous guy (Declan) at the bus stop and she is drawn to him immediately – she is no innocent virgin, mind you, and understands the physical attraction she feels towards him, but she has also promised herself that she needs to stop with the random sexual encounters (and there have been quite a few) and focus on her studies.She also meets Aiden on her first day, a charming man who she feels an instant connection with because he reminds her of her late brother, Zack, who died a horrific death 18 months earlier.By a twist of fate, Izzy ends up living with Declan, Aiden and Max, and they all show her, little by little, how you can choose your own family, and that it may not be the one you were born into. These three men all contribute to teaching Izzy about letting go of her past, and especially Declan who is no stranger to abuse, just like Izzy.“I knew you the minute I looked into those big eyes; beautiful but very sad eyes.” (Declan)Now, it is very much on purpose that I am being so vague about the specific storyline. You just have to read the book yourself, because I refuse to give you any spoilers.I like the voice of Izzy very much: she has suffered a great deal but is prepared to fight to get back on her feet, and you have to admire that kind of tenacity. And what I really like is that even though she does not seek professional help, she does not shy away from it when it is offered to her freely. That takes a lot of courage, and the way Miss Jensen portrays Izzy and her struggles in letting go of her grief in order to move on was very moving – it even brought me to tears once or twice, and you ought to know by now that that is some of the highest praise I can give a book.And Declan is quite the man candy (*wink*) – as I stated above, he is no stranger to violence so he sees a kindred spirit in Izzy; due to his own past (which I will not elaborate too much upon here) he is not interested in a proper relationship. You cannot really falter him for it, even though he makes some mistakes that made me cringe a bit, and part of the reason why I get his reasons is the few chapters the author has chosen to give us from his POV. They really made me connect with him, so that is a major plus in my world and part of the high ranking I am giving the book.“Please don’t let me run,” I whisper in fear. “I always do the running…and you…please don’t you run anywhere either, please stay. Please make me stay.” (Izzy)“I’m not running anywhere Izzy and I promise you I will not let you run either, never. Not now I’ve got you.” (Declan)The supporting characters are all very important to the story – I would have liked to get to know Max better, though, as I feel he stands out a bit – and Izzy’s best friend, Sofia, made me laugh so much! She is definitely a feisty and quirky character. I really hope that she will get her own story (hint-hint, Miss Jensen!) because I feel that she has so much to say.Overall, I believe that this is a really good debut novel; the story and characters feel believable, the journey both Izzy and Declan go through is easy to relate to, and even though the book could have benefited from being edited a bit, I enjoyed it immensely and I cannot wait to see what this author writes next. Oh, and the fact that the story takes place in the UK does not bother me one bit! In fact, I find it very refreshing. So if you are unsure of what to read next, I definitely think that you should pick up “Broken Fairytale”.