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Heartbroken
by
Lisa Unger (Goodreads Author)
A shattering new thriller about three women, strangers, on a heart-wrenching collision course none of them could have seen coming.
Long after anyone expected Kate to do anything with her life, she did. Using the journals left behind by her aunt and grandmother, she wrote a novel based on a very real generation-old love story that ended in tragedy. On the other side of town,...more
Long after anyone expected Kate to do anything with her life, she did. Using the journals left behind by her aunt and grandmother, she wrote a novel based on a very real generation-old love story that ended in tragedy. On the other side of town,...more
Hardcover, 384 pages
Published
June 26th 2012
by Crown
(first published 2012)
Win a Copy of This Book
Heartbroken
by Lisa Unger (Goodreads Author)
by Lisa Unger (Goodreads Author)
Release
date: Jun 26, 2013
Ten lucky readers will win a copy of HEARTBROKEN in mass-market paperback before it goes on sale!
Don't miss the book USA TODAY calls "Stellar... Hear…more
Don't miss the book USA TODAY calls "Stellar... Hear…more
Giveaway dates:
Jun 11
- Jun 25, 2013
10 copies
available,
746 people
requesting
Countries available:
US and CA
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Lisa Unger explores the family rifts that can grow and fester as a result of truths never spoken. Kate Burke's annual vacation on remote Heart Island, her family's private Adirondack hideaway, becomes more burdensome than pleasurable. Her seventy five year old mother, Birdie, hasn't softened with age, and Kate's always agonized over why Birdie is so emotionally remote and critical. Kate knows she's become a disappointment to Birdie, settling for a life as a stay at home mom. But this year, her n...more
Lisa Unger is een behoorlijk actieve schrijfster van thrillers. Je hoeft als fan geen jaar zonder een nieuwe Unger-titel te zitten. Het in 2012 verschenen Heartbroken is op 28 mei in Nederland verschenen als Verdronken hart. Op het boek prijkt een stempel met de aanduiding 'Koningin van de psychologische thriller' en dat slaat de spijker op zijn kop. Het verhaal in Verdronken hart wordt vanuit diverse perspectieven verteld. Het begint een beetje traag en net als je je geduld een beetje verliest...more
Drie vrouwen, Emily, Kate en Birdie leiden elk een heel verschillend leven. Emily heeft een goede baan, maar een foute vriend en staat op het punt een verkeerde beslissing te nemen. Kate is de dochter van Birdie die in haar leven nog niet veel bereikt heeft op professioneel gebied en die steeds door haar moeder gekleineerd wordt. Ze heeft net een roman geschreven aan de hand van de dagboeken die haar tante en grootmoeder haar achterlieten. Birdie is een koele, taaie vrouw die door toedoen van ha...more
Heartbroken, by Lisa Unger, a-minus, Narrated by Amanda Carlin, Produced by Random House Audio, Downloaded from audible.com.
Kate’s second marriage to Sean is a happy loving one. They have two children, one from her first marriage, Chelsey and Brandon. But Kate has a difficult, if not impossible, relationship with her mother, Birdie Burkes. Each summer Birdie guilts Kate into bringing the family to Heart Island, which has been in her mother’s family for generations, to visit her mother and father...more
Kate’s second marriage to Sean is a happy loving one. They have two children, one from her first marriage, Chelsey and Brandon. But Kate has a difficult, if not impossible, relationship with her mother, Birdie Burkes. Each summer Birdie guilts Kate into bringing the family to Heart Island, which has been in her mother’s family for generations, to visit her mother and father...more
I received an ARC of this book via Read It Forward (I think? Or Goodreads? One or the other), and it was an enjoyable read. It didn't seem first what I'd call a thriller, but the pace got up once the people started to head to Heart Island, and from then on it became interesting - what was going to happen to these people and how do they bind together? I'm not going to spoil it, but that's where the action will be. You can't bring in the characters from this book to a small island and NOT have som...more
Would really like to rate 3.5 stars.
This book had a "Nancy Drew" feel to it and that was exciting for me. I can remember the mystery series and how as a young girl I got that suspense "high" out of it.
Heartbroken to me was part mystery, part suspense, and part family drama. It focuses on mother and daughter relationships and the consequences of our actions that stick with us forever.
I would have preferred that the author did not go with the ghostly portion; that part was unnecessary.
I did not w...more
This book had a "Nancy Drew" feel to it and that was exciting for me. I can remember the mystery series and how as a young girl I got that suspense "high" out of it.
Heartbroken to me was part mystery, part suspense, and part family drama. It focuses on mother and daughter relationships and the consequences of our actions that stick with us forever.
I would have preferred that the author did not go with the ghostly portion; that part was unnecessary.
I did not w...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Heartbroken
By
Lisa Unger
My " in a nutshell" summary...
An island, three women and their secrets...and some really bad choices by almost everyone involved.
My thoughts after reading this book...
Oh me oh my...what a fast paced thrilling novel with so much of everything I love in a book.
There are nice girls...Chelsea and her mom Kate. Mean girls...Lulu...Chelsea's BFF and Birdie...Chelsea's grandmother. There is a lost girl...Emily...oh...and another semi mean girl
Emily's mother.
There is no describin...more
By
Lisa Unger
My " in a nutshell" summary...
An island, three women and their secrets...and some really bad choices by almost everyone involved.
My thoughts after reading this book...
Oh me oh my...what a fast paced thrilling novel with so much of everything I love in a book.
There are nice girls...Chelsea and her mom Kate. Mean girls...Lulu...Chelsea's BFF and Birdie...Chelsea's grandmother. There is a lost girl...Emily...oh...and another semi mean girl
Emily's mother.
There is no describin...more
3.5+ stars. This is billed as a thriller but it’s not exactly that, and I don’t necessarily mean that in a good or bad way. There is a lot of character development here, even as we jump between various viewpoints. Lisa Unger is a bit hit or miss for me (loved Fragile, did not like Darkness My Old Friend) and this was definite hit. It grabbed me right away. As with all her books, there is a multi-viewpoint situation going on and in this we follow several very different women whose worlds ultimate...more
This thriller is a great read! There are all these elements (haunted island, affairs, family secrets, criminals on the run...) that combine to make this book suspenseful. But I really loved how the author gave such insights into the characters' feelings and their decision making processes. There's a theme of life being a series of choices that can lead you to places you could not have predicted.
I also enjoyed the element of the journals of the grandmother and the aunt, and I thought that the st...more
I also enjoyed the element of the journals of the grandmother and the aunt, and I thought that the st...more
Ghosts of the past - real ones!, a frigid wealthy disapproving mother, unspoken histories, doomed love stories of long ago and an affair not so long ago juxtapose against the intrusion of teenagers with cellphones and precarious texts to unsavoury hot guys, making plans to get themselves into tight spots and the lives of other young people, one of whom thinks she is related to the original family. Emily, beaten down by her hateful mother, makes terrible decisions as a result with the only chance...more
HEARTBROKEN by Lisa Unger is what I call a woman's book, but this 59-yr-old man enjoyed it very much! There are lots of good plot lines that kept me interested to the max! When all the characters are in one place, the action explodes! This is a page turner for sure that I think would make a real good "Lifetime" movie. Make time to read this one; you will be glad you did!
(Gerard's review)
Heartbroken by Lisa Unger was a disturbing read for me because Emily continues making bad decisions over and o...more
(Gerard's review)
Heartbroken by Lisa Unger was a disturbing read for me because Emily continues making bad decisions over and o...more
After being intrigued by Darkness, My Old Friend and captivated by Fragile when the opportunity to get an advanced reader copy of Lisa Unger's new novel Hearbroken arose, I immediately said yes. Unger is slowly making her way to the top of "must read" list of current mystery writers along with Laura Lippman, Michael Connelly and Elizabeth George.
Heartbroken is less a mystery and more a thriller from Unger. It's the story of several generations of women and their connection to Heart Island. There...more
Heartbroken is less a mystery and more a thriller from Unger. It's the story of several generations of women and their connection to Heart Island. There...more
Lisa Unger has been a perennial visitor to the Best Seller lists for her engaging thrillers. She has been described as perfecting the art of the emotional thriller. Her stories have run the gamut of espionage, romantic thriller and psychological intrigue.
With her latest release, HEARTBROKEN, she has created a three-part narrative whereby the female protagonists are all on a collision course with each other. The location of this inevitable collision is a remote and mysterious island in the middle...more
With her latest release, HEARTBROKEN, she has created a three-part narrative whereby the female protagonists are all on a collision course with each other. The location of this inevitable collision is a remote and mysterious island in the middle...more
A copy of this book was received from the Amazon Vine Program.
This was the fourth book I had read by Lisa Unger and I look forward to reading her future books. Her stream-lined style of writing draws the reader in the story very quickly and takes you along for a noteworthy and fascinating ride.
The Heart Island, only accessible by boat, lies in the Adirondacks, and has been in the Burke family for years. The family matriarch, Birdie feels that the island is a haven from regular life and wants her...more
This was the fourth book I had read by Lisa Unger and I look forward to reading her future books. Her stream-lined style of writing draws the reader in the story very quickly and takes you along for a noteworthy and fascinating ride.
The Heart Island, only accessible by boat, lies in the Adirondacks, and has been in the Burke family for years. The family matriarch, Birdie feels that the island is a haven from regular life and wants her...more
If found this one to be a tedious read, yet I couldn't stop reading it. I hated Birdie from the start. I thought she was a bitter shrew, who brought all the unhappiness she felt to her life herself. I found it funny that she didn't realize it, but blamed everyone else.
With Birdie being her mother, I was surprised by how normal Kate was. I loved the woman that she was, that her kids and husband were important to her. It seemed like she did the exact opposite of what her mother did.
I am torn with...more
With Birdie being her mother, I was surprised by how normal Kate was. I loved the woman that she was, that her kids and husband were important to her. It seemed like she did the exact opposite of what her mother did.
I am torn with...more
Positioned as a thriller, "Heartbroken" is more of a family saga. Birdie Burke is the owner/doyenne of Heart Island, and expects her children to visit her there every summer. Her daughter, Kate, reluctantly agrees one particular year -- she has just written a book based on her grandmother's journals and would rather be promoting it. Her daughter, Chelsea, on the other hand, is delighted to spend the summer with grandma -- and even gets to bring her best friend along.
Meanwhile, on the other side...more
Meanwhile, on the other side...more
This is less mystery/suspense and more domestic drama with some crimes thrown in. The story is told from multiple points of view: Birdie, the rather mean-spirited grandmother; Kate, her nervous, insecure daughter; Chelsea, her sweet granddaughter; and Emily, a struggling young waitress with a ne’er-do-well boyfriend. For various reasons, they are all converging to meet on Heart Island, a beautiful, remote island on a lake in the Adirondacks. Emily is the most interesting character. The author do...more
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program
I have been reading and enjoying Lisa Unger's novels for several years now and I always get excited when I hear she has a new release coming up. This year was no exception.
When I saw Amazon was offering Advanced Readers Copies (ARC) to be reviewed for the Vine program, I didn't hesitate for one minute. I knew I had to get a copy. What an honor and pleasure to be able to read her book ahead of the release date!
Heartbroken is a bit different from most...more
I have been reading and enjoying Lisa Unger's novels for several years now and I always get excited when I hear she has a new release coming up. This year was no exception.
When I saw Amazon was offering Advanced Readers Copies (ARC) to be reviewed for the Vine program, I didn't hesitate for one minute. I knew I had to get a copy. What an honor and pleasure to be able to read her book ahead of the release date!
Heartbroken is a bit different from most...more
This is my first book by Unger; I listened to the audio version. I didn't find it to be much of a thriller, but more of a family saga.
I like family sagas, so I don't know why I didn't like this book more than 3 stars worth. The characters were well-developed, the plot was sort of interesting, the dialogue...oh wait. I just realized why I'm feeling meh about this book.
It felt more like storytelling than being immersed into the story, and I think it's because there was not enough dialogue. Too m...more
I like family sagas, so I don't know why I didn't like this book more than 3 stars worth. The characters were well-developed, the plot was sort of interesting, the dialogue...oh wait. I just realized why I'm feeling meh about this book.
It felt more like storytelling than being immersed into the story, and I think it's because there was not enough dialogue. Too m...more
I can't say that I really cared that much for Heartbroken. I'm not sure why I even finished listening to the book. It probably should have been a DNF book for me. I think I was hoping that it would get better or that something would happen. The lackluster ending was very disappointing. I was left with the feeling of...That's it? I'm not sure what type of book Heartbroken was supposed to be. I thought it was going to be a thriller based on the synopsis, but I was wrong. At first, it seemed to be...more
Heartbroken is a complicated, well written story told from the perspective of a bitter woman, her daughter, her grand daughter and the memoirs of her deceased mother. Birdie is a wealthy woman who is demanding and arrogant on the outside and lonely and yearning inside. She has spent her life holding a secret about her mother's infidelity, kept quiet only be cause no one believed her as a child. Although she loves her children, her bitterness prevents her from showing it in a way that would draw...more
Lisa Unger wordt de koningin van de psychologische thriller genoemd. Deze titel komt haar wel toe, maar ze gaat hem wel delen. Lisa Unger kruipt met verdronken hart onder je huid en ze laat je niet meer los. Na een stroef begin met veel, heel veel personages kom je in een verhaal terecht wat loopt naar een geweldig plot.
De familie Burke heeft een privé eiland, Heart Island, hierop wonen ze de hele zomer. Het eiland is al verschillende generaties in het bezit van de familie Burke. Birdie Burke,...more
De familie Burke heeft een privé eiland, Heart Island, hierop wonen ze de hele zomer. Het eiland is al verschillende generaties in het bezit van de familie Burke. Birdie Burke,...more
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This is more of a 3.5 rating, even though I did read it all, a few things bothered me. The story is strong, the characters are very well thought out and have clear strengths and weaknesses but the whole ghost thing added nothing to the story, the same thing could have been accomplished with memory flashbacks. And talking about retrospect, I think it is a great technique that gives background on the characters, but this should be used at the beginning and maybe middle of the story when we are sti...more
Family drama with a hint of suspense, Heartbroken by Lisa Unger takes the reader to Heart Island and into the complicated relationships that exist between mothers and daughters. Unger seamlessly weaves together differing mother-daughter relationships to further develop an intricate plot, which slowly builds into a rather well thought out and suspenseful plot. Going into the book I was expecting Heartbroken to be more of in-your-face suspense/thriller, however Unger takes the book into a differen...more
Having read most of this author's work, I think it's safe to say that, in my opinion, this is her best to date. Like her other novels, this one has a healthy dose of hold-your-breath suspense, believable and sympathetic characters, and exquisite plotting that rockets along seamlessly. But unlike Unger's prior work, this one includes layers of depth that separate it from hers and other more run-of-the-mill thrillers. This is a book about family and how those familial connections shape us...for be...more
Dit is mijn eerste boek van Lisa Unger die ik gelezen heb en ik ben blij dat ik weer een (tenminste voor mij) nieuwe auteur aan mijn lijstje toe kan voegen. Lisa schrijft vlot en direct en vertelt net genoeg om je eigen fantasie te prikkelen zodat je heerlijk weg kunt dromen.
Het duurt even voor je alle lijnen van het verhaal bij elkaar hebt gepakt, Lisa Unger neemt hier ook de tijd voor en dan is er het moment dat je dit boek echt niet weg kunt leggen voor je het uit hebt. Het werd bij mij half...more
Het duurt even voor je alle lijnen van het verhaal bij elkaar hebt gepakt, Lisa Unger neemt hier ook de tijd voor en dan is er het moment dat je dit boek echt niet weg kunt leggen voor je het uit hebt. Het werd bij mij half...more
Family connections, secrets, and the love of place are the primary themes of Lisa Unger's "Heartbroken: A Novel." And intriguingly, Heart Island, the Heart family's summer home, is the place where they vacation every summer.
For Birdie Heart Burke, however, the island is so much more than a vacation home. She would stay there all year long if she could. At 70+, Birdie has many wonderful memories of childhood times here...and she also ponders the bitter rivalries in her life that insert themselves...more
For Birdie Heart Burke, however, the island is so much more than a vacation home. She would stay there all year long if she could. At 70+, Birdie has many wonderful memories of childhood times here...and she also ponders the bitter rivalries in her life that insert themselves...more
This wasn't my usual genre....a thriller, but I liked it a lot. The characters were complex, and I could visualize what was happening because of the author's beautiful descriptions and changing point of view. She was able to create sympathy for characters who on the surface didn't deserve it. As she told the story, she created an understanding, and also added to the growing suspense as the story reached it's ending. This story flowed through four generations of a family, and traced the actions,...more
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Ik heb een exemplaar ontvangen van de uitgever, waarvoor dank! Ik had nog nooit een boek gelezen van Lisa Unger, maar was al tijden benieuwd nadat ik positieve verhalen gehoord had.
Drie vrouwen, een mysterieus eiland. De ingrediënten voor wat een spannend verhaal beloofd te worden.
Het verhaal vertrekt vanuit de drie standpunten van de verschillende vrouwen, waarbij de relaties tussen hen niet allemaal even duidelijk zijn (De moeder-dochter natuurlijk wel). Vanaf het begin bekruipt...more
Ik heb een exemplaar ontvangen van de uitgever, waarvoor dank! Ik had nog nooit een boek gelezen van Lisa Unger, maar was al tijden benieuwd nadat ik positieve verhalen gehoord had.
Drie vrouwen, een mysterieus eiland. De ingrediënten voor wat een spannend verhaal beloofd te worden.
Het verhaal vertrekt vanuit de drie standpunten van de verschillende vrouwen, waarbij de relaties tussen hen niet allemaal even duidelijk zijn (De moeder-dochter natuurlijk wel). Vanaf het begin bekruipt...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read It Forward: * HEARTBROKEN by Lisa Unger | 18 | 77 | Mar 22, 2013 09:38am | |
| Read by Theme: Heartbroken | 2 | 18 | Aug 18, 2012 01:47pm | |
| Bookworm Bitches : Discussion: Heartbroken by Lisa Unger | 7 | 28 | Aug 13, 2012 08:01am |
Lisa Unger is an award-winning New York Times and internationally bestselling author. Her novels have sold more than 1.5 million copies and have been translated into twenty-six different languages.
Her writing is hailed as "stellar” (USA Today), “sensational” (Publishers Weekly) and “sophisticated” (New York Daily News) with “gripping narrative and evocative, muscular prose” (Associated Press).
More about Lisa Unger...
Her writing is hailed as "stellar” (USA Today), “sensational” (Publishers Weekly) and “sophisticated” (New York Daily News) with “gripping narrative and evocative, muscular prose” (Associated Press).
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