The Break

I am no quitter. Usually - when confronted with a book I don't like - I struggle through to the end. This one? I am a quitter. I just couldn't finish it. Why? Because I hated the main character and the rest of the cast.Her shallowness, hypocrisy, short-sightedness, unfaithfulness, spendthrift nature, neediness .... you name it, everything about her, was just too disgusting. I could not, ever, bond with her. I managed about 80% of the book and then, well, I put it down, forever.The same with the rest of the characters. I cannot identify with "pro-choice", same-sex marriages with children born from surrogate mothers, botox, false nails, spike heels, loads of clothes, botox and all the rest as if those things are the ultimate pinnacle of enjoyment and real life. No. No thank you. Not for me. Not ever.Bye Bye Ms Keyes, you will not hear from me again.Some of your books were average.This one? Substandard.

I loved this novel, even though it wasn’t as funny as some of Keyes’ previous work. I really got emotionally involved. As with Keyes’ other work, Amy is part of a large, complex Irish family. After struggling to survive as a young single mother when her first husband abandoned her and her daughter, she finally, finally lets herself fall for Hugh.For seventeen years, Hugh and Amy have a good, strong marriage. When Hugh’s dad dies, and then a good friend dies not long after, he can’t shake his depression and says he needs to take a break from their marriage and go traveling. He promises to return and that he’ll always love her and their kids, but during their break, he may or may not sleep with other people. But this means that Amy is also on a break. Will she act on a crush?Obviously devastated, Amy has to soldier on to take care of her teenage and twenty-two-year old daughters. I loved Amy and all her kooky family members. I felt Amy’s ups and downs acutely even though I don’t have kids and my marriage didn’t last anything close to seventeen years. This is an emotional roller coaster ride and I loved it.

In going with my usual format...Did I enjoy the book...Yes and No.Is it a page turner?Sometimes. But would I stay up all night for it or want to stay in all weekend to read? No. Just No.Did I think about this book when I was not reading this book?No. It took me two months to get through. It just did not pull me in until the last 20% on my iPad when I thought, well I got this far, might as well find out what happens.Is this book worth the cost? $10 something on Kindle.I guess. But I would not pay more. Get it at the library. You can wait.Did I learn anything from this book?The older I get, the more I want to learn from a book. As had not read of the concept of a marriage "break" before, the possibility was there. I don't think I actually learned anything but it has made me wonder what I would do were I put in the same situation by a man after 20 years of marriage. How would I cope? Would I take him back? I still don't have the answers but appreciate Amy's point of view.Will I think about this book now that it's over?No.Wait... I have more to say!I have read all of Marian Keyes' books and I do like her writing and style and characters. Except for the Middle Close book. More just no on that one. I enjoyed the premise here - husband taking a break. It's original and you feel for Amy and want to know what will happen to her and her marriage. But seriously, getting to the end can be a slog at times. Where I once found Marian Keyes so funny, now I find it forced. Like she is trying too hard to be witty. And honey, gotta kill some of those darlings. The story is far too long... need to remove the bits which simply do not add to the story. I say this because while Marian Keyes has been writing for ages, this attempt strikes me as amateurish. And it didn't have to be this way. With proper editing, "The Break" could have been so much more polished.

Here is a heads up to the author: a poor finish has the power to diminish the entire novel. Just when the reader is thinking, "Finally, a strong protagonist who overcomes financial and emotional abuse and emotional blackmail from her children", the idiot heroine reconciles with her philandering narcissist spouse. What a bummer, and what a let down. Author, sometimes a happily ever after includes giving your abuser the boot. Ruined the entire story with a few mis-written, poorly conceived pages.

Once again Ms. Keyes has written a page turner that is filled with truth, humor and a vivid look into the intimacy of a marriage. I loved this book. I loved Amy. Her pain and confusion over her marriage were real, as was her realization of what really happened. I loved her 3 girls and I even loved Hugh. I raced to the end, then was disappointed the story was done. This story is still with me 3 days later. It was that good.

I was very disappointed with this latest offering from Marian Keyes. I usually really enjoy her books. I find them easy reading, with likeable characters, that familiar Irish humour and with a tangible warmth throughout. I found The Break lacking in all of these characteristics however. The characters were very hard to identify with, not to mind like. Their thoughts and actions seemed illogical, self centred and short sighted and ultimately not “believable”. The storyline was very slow moving and repetitive. The introduction of the abortion sub story in my opinion was a clumsy attempt to weave a topical issue into a storyline that didn’t fit it. I wouldn’t recommend this book, but look forward to Ms. Keyes next book where she will hopefully be back to form.

Marian has such an amazing gift. Each new book is better than the last and The Break is no exception.I binge read this book because putting it down wasn't an option. I slipped so easily into Amy's world and my heart broke with hers. I felt all the feels and cried openly more than once. I laughed aloud more than once too!!You're a bloody genius Marian Keyes. Thank you for sharing your gift with us.Xo

The writing is lively and fun but there's little else positive. The story line is extremely thin and predictable. The "break" idea is a good start but it's downhill from there. The characters are vacuous and self centered; none more so than Amy who spends money she hasn't got on clothes she doesn't need, giving more concern to heel height and designer knock offs than to people. No-one has a job which benefits anyone but themselves.The older characters, Mum and Pop, are portrayed as various forms of brainless, being characterised unsympathetically, linked to Alzheimer's and incontinence. Be warned, it's really unnecessarily long. (I had no idea as I'd downloaded a free Kindle version.) It's suited to readers who want to live in a fantasy world of celebrities and fashion.

Well, I waited and waited this to be on special offer on kindle, gave up and bought it. What a disappointment.INormally I love reading Marian Keyes. I find she writes about emotional, important issues - drug taking, early unexpected widowhood, domestic abuse - in a witty yet sensitive manner. I was expecting this to be similar, that I would be drawn into the characters and root for them. Instead, I found them dull, one-dimensional and really didn't care what happened to them. I could tell which ones were supposed to be funny and what situations i should be laughing at but they all just missed. I felt that this was an attempt to write a more serious book than previously, but I felt I was reading a draft rather than a finished novel.Amy's husband, Hugh, comes over as a selfish man - he decides to go off and do his own thing for six months as he has trouble coping after the deaths of his father and his best friend. He doesn't tell Amy this then leave. Oh, no, he tells Amy then hangs around for a few weeks till he settles on his itinerary, books tickets, assembles his stuff and otherwise makes it clear that he intends to go and travel and have sex with other women and there's nothing she can do about it. She reacts by crying a lot and wondering how their family, friends and not so much friends will react. Unfortunately, it all felt a little unreal.There was a section about one of the girls going to England to get an abortion and that was done well and sensitively.There are pages and pages describing the sex Amy has with another man when Hugh is away - it's boring and the "f" word is very much over used.If you expect something along the lines of any of the Walsh family books or "This Charming Man" you are in for a disappointment. I hope this is a glitch and her next is back to normal (I've recently re-read "Rachel's Holiday" and found it as good as ever).

A slightly different read to my normal romance novels, but after watching an interview with Marian Keyes one morning on Breakfast telly, I thought I'd give it a go. The Break sounded interesting. A man in his forties, taking a break from his marriage to 'find himself" (that's a break NOT an end to his marriage). I was intrigued. What does that even mean?! How does it affect his wife of 17 years and how is she expected to behave in his absence, knowing full well he'll be off on a shag-fest around Asia???The story didn't go the way I thought it would, which was brilliant. I'm a bit done with predictability which is why I enjoyed this book so much. I loved Amy's attitude to so many gritty subjects that came up during the course of the book, her outlook on life in general and the way she handled events and issues at home, without her husband Hugh (who I wanted to punch through most of this read).This is my first Marian Keyes novel and it will NOT be my last. Extremely funny, yet utterly heartbreaking and scream-worthy at times. I could hear the authors voice all the way through and loved the whole family setting and her writing style. Bloody brilliant!

Very disappointing book. Frustrating to read and just not as fun or interesting as her other books. Written mostly with conversations between the characters who are all very difficult to like . I struggled to finish it

Such a shame . Loved the past books was so looking forward to reading this but unfortunately the 3 star reviews comments have correctly summed up this book. Its too long winded, its not funny. Amy is desperate, her PR job personality and home personality is at odds with each other. Wouldn't recommend.