The Break is the third of my summer holiday ‘easy reads’. It might not actually have been the best choice in some ways, as it was Marian’s previous novel, The Woman Who Stole My Life, which took me almost the entire duration of the summer holidays to read, meaning I didn’t enjoy it as much as I should have done.
But I love Marian Keyes and had heard good things about The Break, so I decided to give it a go, even with its 600+ pages.
When Amy’s husband, Hugh, announces that he needs to take a six month break from their marriage, Amy is devastated. He says he still loves her and promises he will be back after the six months is up. But even if he does come back, how can anything ever be the same again?
As Amy struggles with her own grief and shame, while juggling a demanding job and her three grown up and nearly grown up daughters and nearly daughters, she wonders if maybe she too is on a break?
Amy is a very likeable character and her love for her family gives the book a lot of warmth. But there were still times when I wanted to shout at her, because she was far from perfect.
The Break is a really good story, easy to read and written in Marian’s unique, entertaining style. To me, it’s not laugh-out-loud funny, but it is still very humorous. I always particularly like Marian’s Irish words, like ‘spendy’ for expensive and the many derivatives for the word ‘ride’ for you know what…
If you’re looking for a fun read (which is still moving and has plenty of dark moments) and aren’t put off by the huge thickness of the book, you could do a lot worse than The Break. It really is classic Marian Keyes. And that has always got to be a good thing, right?
September 7, 2018
Totally agree with you about this book. I sniggered in a few places and smiled a lot. I too didn’t really enjoy ‘The Woman Who Stole My Life’ I found it really slow moving and kept putting it down.
September 8, 2018
Interesting that you didn’t enjoy The Woman Who Stole My Life that much either! I just blamed the fact that it took me too long to read! This one was definitely better.
September 11, 2018
I have not read a Marian Keyes book for around 10 years but I like the sound of this book. I always enjoy reading books when they feature either grown up children or teenagers. I will keep an eye out for this one I think x
September 12, 2018
I’m sure you will enjoy this one! I like books with older kids too, it definitely makes it easier to relate to the characters. x
September 11, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. I hadn’t read any Marian Keyes before but I thought it was a fabulous story.
September 12, 2018
Wow, I’m amazed that you’ve never read any Marian Keyes before! She is a fantastic writer. It’s probably 20 years since I read my first Marian Keyes. x
October 15, 2018
Do you know I’ve never read a book from Maria Keyes before but after reading your review I feel like I should start with this one! #readwithme
October 16, 2018
I can’t believe you haven’t read any Marian Keyes! She is such a good writer and her style is unique. This would definitely be a good place to start.
October 15, 2018
I don’t know if I’ve ever read any Marian Keyes; I have a really terrible memory! I do like the sound of this one.
October 16, 2018
You should definitely give this one a go – it’s a really nice mix of humour and emotion.
October 15, 2018
I’ve never read any Marian Keyes – do you have a recommendation for which one to read first?
October 16, 2018
There’s so many good ones! I like The Brightest Star in the Sky and Anybody Out There. I wasn’t so keen on The Woman Who Stole My Life.
October 15, 2018
I like the sound of this. Must be several years since I last read a Marian Keyes book #readwithme
October 18, 2018
I always read them when there’s a new one out and I never tire of them. This one is well worth a read!
October 16, 2018
I love Marian Keyes but I haven’t read this one. Will add it to my Christmas list :o)
#ReadWithMe
October 16, 2018
You won’t be disappointed, it’s a really good one!