This is a Beta Read. Broken Strings could be called "torn and battered heart strings, but heart still beating."
“𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩. 𝘈𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬, 𝘴𝘰𝘯.”
Broken Strings (Book 3) was emotional before it even began. Caden North is the third of the band of brothers, best friends, who have grown up supporting one another through thick and thin. Through the eyes of Henry DeMarco in Painted Truths (Book 1) and Nate Hawthorne in Unwritten Rules (Book 2) we witnessed the devolution of Caden’s train wreck marriage to Layla and his devotion to his four year old daughter. Why did he settle for a life and wife that seems so unsuited to him, and what happened to his first love? The one who got away?
That incredible burden of grief and loss was already there, waiting to be inspected, dissected, and then demystified. And then enters Summer St. James. Oh, Summer! What tragedy and injustice kept you from our hero’s heart and care all these years? What brings you back into his sphere even now?
The tragedy - it’s heart wrenching on multiple levels, and even more so as we re-live the death of Caden’s twin, a pivotal event from fifteen years ago, from different perspectives as the author skilfully unravels the drama. The injustice - nothing less than pure evil can describe how these lovers, Caden and Summer, have been kept from one another for so long. The squeezing in my chest felt incapacitating! As for what brings Summer back - that kept me in high anticipation for a long time, because once Summer rediscovers Caden’s adoration, she can’t seem to find the courage to tell him why she’s returned. Not yet, anyway. Not while they can rekindle a small piece of the paradise they lost.
The longing and yearning that I felt from the very beginning propelled me forward, so that I felt as if I were reading with a tailwind. I couldn’t get to the next page fast enough. The romance and sexiness of Caden heated me to the core. I worship Summer’s innate sweetness mixed with a steeliness that could only come from being tempered in the trials of her youth. Henry and Liv, along with Nate and Mila, reappear to my joy as a Brotherhood fan. Plus, a very sexy billionaire, and an equally valiant bodyguard, are introduced with enormous mouth-watering potential for future development. The climax can only be described as explosive, heart pounding, and righteous!
Pamela O’Rourke has proven her mastery over a profoundly tragic narrative that encompasses a huge range in despair and triumph. I. Am. In. Awe. I have loved all three of The Brotherhood couples, but Caden and Summer have had to overcome the Everest of adversity to remain faithful to their original love, and their outcome is the most satisfying of all! Brava, Pamela! Brava!