The Broken is a story of two lonely men drawn together by the beauty of music. The Broken tells the tale of aristocrat James Bradford and virtuoso musician Sheamus Flynn, the Irish servant of another aristocrat, Cade Edward. The story is lovely in some aspects and horrific in others.

The early stages of the romance between James and Sheamus are a little too abrupt. The introductions are barely made before James has Sheamus in his bed. At other times, the novel slows down to torturous crawl. Scenes describing Sheamus’ return to Edward’s household and the consequences of that action take way too long to evolve.

Notecar’s characters are sympathetic in their need for affection and companionship. James has lost much of his family in India, while Sheamus has been without love or support since the death of his mother during his childhood. As The Broken moves to its climax, Notecar paints some very vivid and painful imagery, as well as some very sweet scenes between James and Sheamus. The Broken earns 3 stars for the quality of the writing.

Stars: [rating=3]

Review originally appeared on Blackraven’s Reviews
Publisher: Smashwords
Image courtesy of Smashwords