Broken Lives

Broken Lives was such a heartbreaking read that I had to stop reading for a few days. It was full of emotion and convincinly shows the true life of a social worker, which can be a very dark place. There was no beating about the bush with this, it was straight to the core but it did have some lighter moments. There were plenty of twists and turns to keep you intrigued. This was a very well written book.

This story was bleak with bits of light shining through. Pretty true to a social worker’s experiences. I wish the ending had been resolved, but that is often the way these tales go. Well done.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

Samantha is a mom to two little girls who she absolutely adores. Samantha lacks the coping skills she needs, so she depends on alcohol to assist her.... which leads to social worker April Gardiner getting involved into her life. They form an unlikely bond due to their pasts/childhood experiences.

I have mixed feelings about this book. The main character is a social worker named April, and the author writes with convincing detail and with great sympathy about the hardscrabble lives of the families that April comes into contact with. It is obvious that the author knows quite a lot about social work, at least how it is practiced in England. However, there is too much explanation/exposition and quite a bit of repetition sprinkled throughout the story. The publisher’s summary emphasizes April’s relationship with one client, Samantha, I disagree with the notion that “the two women form an unlikely bond after similar childhood experiences…” I found myself interested in the stories of the client families and not as interested in April’s personal problems.