A review by miraeli
Broken by Susan Jane Bigelow
4.0
I’d been wanting to read this ever since I first heard about it over a year ago, and when Netgalley put it up for review, I decided now was the time. I’m glad I read it.
Broken grabs you from the start, introducing us to the two main players in the novel, the title character Broken (formerly Silverwyng before she lost her ability to fly) and Michael Forward, who can see the possible futures of others by looking at them. Michael knows he’s going to be left with a baby that will one day either destroy the world or save it, and that it’s his responsibility to get the baby to a place where he can be raised to be a good and kind leader. Michael also knows, however, that he himself is likely going to die in the process.
Michael’s a good main character, though he isn’t the only narrator. I felt for him a lot, as he’s only fourteen and having to literally save the world. He was admirable and strong, deciding to go through with things even if it meant he was killed. Likewise, Broken was an equally good character, and she has the better development of the two. (Sadly, Michael doesn’t really get a whole lot of development. While he’s layered, he doesn’t move very far past what he was in the beginning of the novel.) She’s literally broken, a homeless drunk who still tries to protect and defend things that can’t defend themselves, and has lost pretty much all hope for herself and the future. Her transformation from going to a drunk who barely talks to people to someone willing to do anything to get the baby to safety was believable and well done.
There’s another character that joins the group early on in the novel, but although she had a distinct personality, she felt a little extraneous at times. I hope she’ll get better development in the next books, although what we had here was satisfying enough.
The world building, what we see of it here, is intriguing but very sparsely explained. I’m not usually pleased when novels spoon-feed us information on a world through their characters, but Broken could have benefited from explaining it a little more than it did. Why are the Ratons, an alien race that helped humanity in the Last War, so hated now? To the point where a government bent on killing them or getting them away from Earth is able to come to power and the majority of society’s fine with it? I can see the makings of some good, solid world building here, but I was frustrated at times that we weren’t told more of it here. I’m hoping that’s fixed in the other books.
Likewise, in the middle the pace begins to drag a little. They go from place to place and there’s a lot of walking, and that can get a bit tedious after a while. Thankfully that didn’t last long, and the tremendous last act more than made up for the wonky pacing. Some readers are likely not going to enjoy the way the narrative switches POVs constantly, a lot of the time even in mid-chapter for a line or two before going back to someone else. It personally didn’t bother me, but it might someone else.
An interesting premise, solid characters but some writing that probably won’t be for everyone, a bit of dragging pace in the middle and some almost-but-not-quite there world building, Broken will be a mixed bag. I happened to enjoy it, and the last act made up for a lot of the issues I had. If you like character driven stories and superheroes, it probably won’t be as much of a drag for you and I suggest you check it out. I know I’m going to be back for more.
See more of my reviews at On The Nightstand!
Broken grabs you from the start, introducing us to the two main players in the novel, the title character Broken (formerly Silverwyng before she lost her ability to fly) and Michael Forward, who can see the possible futures of others by looking at them. Michael knows he’s going to be left with a baby that will one day either destroy the world or save it, and that it’s his responsibility to get the baby to a place where he can be raised to be a good and kind leader. Michael also knows, however, that he himself is likely going to die in the process.
Michael’s a good main character, though he isn’t the only narrator. I felt for him a lot, as he’s only fourteen and having to literally save the world. He was admirable and strong, deciding to go through with things even if it meant he was killed. Likewise, Broken was an equally good character, and she has the better development of the two. (Sadly, Michael doesn’t really get a whole lot of development. While he’s layered, he doesn’t move very far past what he was in the beginning of the novel.) She’s literally broken, a homeless drunk who still tries to protect and defend things that can’t defend themselves, and has lost pretty much all hope for herself and the future. Her transformation from going to a drunk who barely talks to people to someone willing to do anything to get the baby to safety was believable and well done.
There’s another character that joins the group early on in the novel, but although she had a distinct personality, she felt a little extraneous at times. I hope she’ll get better development in the next books, although what we had here was satisfying enough.
The world building, what we see of it here, is intriguing but very sparsely explained. I’m not usually pleased when novels spoon-feed us information on a world through their characters, but Broken could have benefited from explaining it a little more than it did. Why are the Ratons, an alien race that helped humanity in the Last War, so hated now? To the point where a government bent on killing them or getting them away from Earth is able to come to power and the majority of society’s fine with it? I can see the makings of some good, solid world building here, but I was frustrated at times that we weren’t told more of it here. I’m hoping that’s fixed in the other books.
Likewise, in the middle the pace begins to drag a little. They go from place to place and there’s a lot of walking, and that can get a bit tedious after a while. Thankfully that didn’t last long, and the tremendous last act more than made up for the wonky pacing. Some readers are likely not going to enjoy the way the narrative switches POVs constantly, a lot of the time even in mid-chapter for a line or two before going back to someone else. It personally didn’t bother me, but it might someone else.
An interesting premise, solid characters but some writing that probably won’t be for everyone, a bit of dragging pace in the middle and some almost-but-not-quite there world building, Broken will be a mixed bag. I happened to enjoy it, and the last act made up for a lot of the issues I had. If you like character driven stories and superheroes, it probably won’t be as much of a drag for you and I suggest you check it out. I know I’m going to be back for more.
See more of my reviews at On The Nightstand!