So… What Did You Think?
Well, I’ve taken the plunge and offered my ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of “A Broken Reality” to a number of outlets before its release… NetGalley, GoodReads, Review Groups, etc.
The reason? An ARC allows authors to get a reader’s reaction to the book before it goes public and also allows readers to offer suggestions, thoughts, and recommendations to the author.
And this blog is one of the perfect places to do it!
So please — positive, negative or indifferent, I’d love to hear what you have to say about “A Broken Reality”.
Try not to include any “spoilers” in your post (content that could give away important facts about the plot, etc.) – I might have to delete them.
However, if you have any questions about the book: the plot, the characters or anything else relating to “A Broken Reality”, just send me an email: Rob@AuthorRobKaufman.com.
I look VERY forward to hearing what you think!
Thanks for reading.
Rob
Let me start this by saying I finished this book in less than a day. So, for me to be that invested, it has to be pretty good.
This book has psychological thriller parts mixed with police procedural and a hint of basic psychology.
It follows the story of a missing 10 year old boy and the effects that has on his family, close family friends, and the abductor.
I liked how it explained the mindset of the abductor and his thought processes throughout as well giving things a slightly different perspective than normal. That, along with the effects of other incidents, explain how traumatic events can effect your perception and memory.
Very good book. Educational and insightful without the text book style, entertaining and engaging, emotional, and it sucks you in from the start. Wow. Just, wow.
Thank you, Taulara. I’m so glad you enjoyed the book. BTW, I’ve needed an “elevator pitch” (a short blurb that answers the question, “What’s the book about?”) and your comments are PERFECT for that pitch. So thank you. I owe you one!
Rob
The hook successfully creates urgent anxiety in the beginning, an obsession to know what happened to Danny, after the accident when he mysteriously disappeared. When we find out, the truth doesn’t disappoint, though some major plot points occurred due to something akin to chance.
The tiniest details, like the fleas on a carpet trying to jump in someone’s ear, ground this story in believable reality that’s easy to vicariously inhabit. The graceful prose is masterful enough to become transparent, so the worried puzzling takes over completely.
The key issues were drawn out a bit too long for my taste throughout the plot without the appearance mystery, and once a wonderfully surprising mystery was added toward the end, I welcomed that but I figured it out well ahead of time. So something besides the revelation at the finale would have made it more haunting.
The author shows profoundly gentle, compassionate understanding of the psychological reasons for people’s logic becoming twisted, rather than just simply portraying those characters as “the bad guys” or “crazy person.” I would have liked a little variation of tone to contrast the angst but the pain and desperation of the characters is heartbreaking. This is an admirable, unique, easy to follow page-turner. The characters are treated with dignity and love by the author who never resorts to sensationalist, shallow gore.
Thanks, Tantra, for your kind and honest review. I, too, would’ve liked a little variation of tone to “contrast the angst”, but I couldn’t find any… or haven’t yet. There were a few (very few) points of levity, but they’re difficult to see through the heartbreak of the circumstances. Since the book hasn’t yet been released, perhaps I can find a way to add a smile or two somewhere. Again, thank you for your words.
Rob
Loved it .Really catchy plot and fine writing. Keeps your interest right til the end. I thought I had it figured out but had to keep reading to the end to find out I was wrong.
Rob Kaufman, please let me know what’s the book is on Amazon. It was so good I feel guilty reading it for free. When it’s up or sale, I’m buying a copy. <3
Thank you, Ruth.
Will definitely let you know!
Rob
I received an advance copy of A Broken Reality from the author. My review in no way reflects the fact I received the book for free. A Broken Reality is one of my all time favorite psychological books I have ever read. The flow of the book is outstanding and the character development is wonderful. This is not an easy book to read as it deals with deep emotional loss and guilt. The author took me into each character and I was able to feel like I was a part of this book. The imagery of this book was off the charts. Although A Broken Reality is partly a psychology book and partly a detective story, I felt the book captured the true essence of a psychology and detective type of flow within the book. One of the more unique aspects of A Broken Reality is the author really captured the politics of the region. Although I’m not a fan of political books, I found the political references in the book really interesting.
Jimmie, thank you for your kind words and for reading, “A Broken Reality”. It makes an author (well, at least me) feel so good when someone enjoys the sweat (and tears) I put into a work. I’m glad you felt like you were part of the book and, though the heartbreak was tough to read, you found your way through it. Again, your words mean a lot and thank you.
Rob
My review as posted on NetGalley
Part police procedural, part psychological thriller, totally intense and emotional. This one is a bit different than the typical in that we know who the bad guy is, so there’s no suspense on that part. That comes from the games Hastings plays with Jesse along with Jesse’s mental anguish and inability to remember anything that happened the night of the accident.
Then we have FBI Agent Rivera doggedly searching for any clue that leads to answers about Danny’s disappearance. I’m not sure I buy the way Rivera figured things out, but it certainly made for interesting reading.
The thing that impressed me most was the way the characters are written. From simple reactions to things they did and said, they felt real and made me want to see how things played out for them. We don’t get quite as much about Charles Hastings, but the pieces we do get are enough to add a bit of the creepy to the mix.
I did feel like too much was given away in the blurb, but the author still gives us plenty of twists and a few chilling moments along the way. Even though I knew certain things were going to happen, the story was intense and compelling enough to keep the pages turning. And that ending! I have to say I saw it coming, or at least had a good idea of where things were heading, but the conclusion was no less jarring.
On the whole, this one kept me turning pages long past bedtime with its tragic and compelling storyline and terrific characters.
Thanks for your review, Becky. I’m so glad you enjoyed “A Broken Reality” and that even though you were aware of what the ending could be, you stuck with it and still had the experience I hope everyone gets to have. Thank you again!
Rob
Life was good. Becky and Don Madsen, and their son, Danny lived in a small town, Hingham, Massachusetts. Jesse and Melissa Carlton, who couldn’t have children of their own, were Danny’s godparents. The two families loved being together so much that they actually lived on the same street. Jesse spent as much time as he could with Danny, even helping out with his baseball sports. Then the unthinkable happened! Becky and Don’s son, Danny is missing. He got off the bus close to his home, but did not make it home. Jesse is frantic and hasn’t slept in many many hours. He’s scouring the icy slick streets for Danny, but he’s nowhere to be seen. Then Jesse’s car slips and slides on the road and crashes. When he is rescued and finally comes to, he can’t remember anything after the accident. What had happened to lead up to the accident? What has happened to Danny? Who has taken him? Why was he taken? He has walked the short distance to his house many times without incident. Will they find the culprit? Will they find Danny? The FBI and local law enforcement are working overtime to find Danny, but the hours, days, and weeks go by without any leads. Everyone is exhausted and frustrated. They want to find Danny. All of a sudden vandals start breaking windows and causing property damage at Jesse and Melissa’s house. They leave messages like “MURDERER” on their property. No one can figure out why they are doing this, or who these individuals are. The plot was genius in this book. It certainly keeps the reader enthralled throughout the entire book. The suspense is riveting. The character development was definitely on point. The reader could relate to everything the characters were going through. The ending definitely is one that I didn’t seem coming, that’s for sure. I enjoyed this book as well as the author’s writing style. I look forward to reading more books from this author.
Thanks for your review and kind words, Vickie. It means a lot when I see someone so fully involved in the story and ENJOYING it, too! Again, my thanks for taking the time to read “A Broken Reality” and for posting such great words.
Rob
Thanks rob for the ARC…. excellent read!!!… I did it in two sittings and put everything else in my life on hold… highly recommend to anyone who wants something that will be unputdownable. My only criticism, and only because I’m a math teacher is that I noticed that at the 75% read mark the most important part of the plot was revealed… so at 75% done, I had my own personal AHA moment and wondered what more could be possibly revealed that would be as heartstopping… the last 25% seemed to tie everything up with a bow…. all in all a read worth giving up a day or two!…thanks again rob!!!
Jaclyn, thank you for your kind words. I’m happy that even though you had the “AHA” moment 75% of the way through, you stayed involved and were able to have the full experience. Thank again for reading “A Broken Reality”.
Rob
Ten year old Danny is missing and his godfather, Jesse, will do anything to find Danny safe and unharmed. As Jesse is driving through an ice storm, looking for Danny, he sees him in his headlights…something bad happens but Jesse can’t remember anything when he wakes up in a ditch, with emergency personnel pulling him from a car. Jesse is left with missing pieces of his memory of what happened right before the crash.
As the search for Danny continues, we meet Jesse’s wife, Danny’s heartbroken parents, Danny’s kidnapper, and the law enforcement personnel involved in looking for what happened to Danny. Jesse feels an uxexplainable guilt concerning Danny’s fate and over the next few months his mental and emotional health deteriorates. This is such a heartbreaking book, that kept me reading, even as I hoped for a happy ending that I knew could not come.
Thank you to Rob Kaufman and NetGalley for this ARC.
Thank you Marilyn for reading “A Broken Reality”. I appreciate the fact that “through the heartbreak” you kept reading. I hope it was worth it!
Rob
First, I want to thank Rob Kaufman and NetGalley for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.
If you are a parent you are going to want to hold your child a little closer tonight after reading this book. Rob Kaufman’s A Broken Reality is an incredibly chilling, shocking, intense, emotionally painful, heart wrenching novel about a missing boy out in a middle of a winter storm. This book is filled with secrets, stalkers, abductors, vandalism, threats, missing persons, investigations, extremely worried parents, etc.
Rob did an incredible job throwing you into the craziness of the story! This hooked me so fast onto the story! A missing child in the middle of a snow storm and you are trying not to get into an accident yourself. How exciting yet scary is that! Every parent worst nightmare come true!!! For the first part of the book I was on the edge of my seat!!!
One amazing aspect about Rob’s writing is his eye for bringing out the detailed emotions in his characters. I was overwhelmed by that. I could feel exactly what each character was feeling and how much they were suffering. I am not a parent but I could not imagine if that was my child out there in those weather conditions. Not knowing where he is! Not knowing if he is safe, if someone has him, if someone hit him, etc! His mom had not heard from him for weeks and thinking the worst! My heart went out to her! We as readers needed to feel the emotions she was going through. Rob was the king of that!
On the subject of Jesse there was one scene where I wanted to scream at Melissa I was so upset with her!! Of course, Jesse was withdrawn, he lost weight, he was worried about Danny, he was not himself emotionally or mentally. Danny was missing! Jesse was in an accident himself. He couldn’t find Danny. He didn’t know if he was dead or alive. That would all take a toll on someone! Melissa didn’t get that.
Even though I really liked the book I felt some places were kinda choppy and a little disconnect at times regarding Charles story line. He just weirded me out in general.
Becky was confused about Dylan being Danny and that scene confused me too.
I loved hearing about how Melissa and Jesse met. That was a sweet story.
Rob Kaufman was a new author for me. I am a huge fan of this genre. I would definitely read and review from him again.
Thanks so much for your comments, HeidiLynn. I appreciated all your thoughts and will “clean up” the potential confusion in the scene that confused you. I hope you enjoy my other books as well.
This book is beyond outstanding. It is well worth the reading. I was literally on the edge of my seat and biting my lip. My emotions were completely overtaken by this storyline. The plot was authentic and believable. The climax was so moving and satisfied my need to know. If you are looking for a psychological thriller, this is the one.
Thanks, Ruth. Great to hear such a nice review after working so hard on this. Glad you enjoyed it!
A Broken Reality written by Rob Kaufman has made to my list of my new favourite books with genre, Mystery & Thrillers.
‘A Broken Reality‘ – a book named perfectly.
“Ten-year-old, Danny Madsen, has been missing for four days when Jesse Carlton begins his own search for his godson on a frigid, snowy night. Driving along a deserted rural road, Jesse hits a stretch of black ice at the same time Danny appears from the thicket. Unable to control the car, Jesse slams into the boy and watches helplessly as Danny’s body flies back into the dark brush.
When Jesse regains consciousness, he has no recollection of how he and his car wound up in a ditch. However, there’s a witness: Charles Hastings, the sociopathic kidnapper who chased Danny through the brush and into the path of Jesse’s car.
Hastings takes this chance to set up Jesse so he’ll take the fall for both Danny’s disappearance and death. And so the mind games begin—an onslaught of psychological manipulation that devastates Jesse, his wife, Danny’s parents and the cops’ investigation. Inexplicably, the torment continues even after Hastings is killed, leaving everyone involved on what seems to be a never-ending rollercoaster of emotions and heartbreak.”
You get to know the characters and you also get to know how sick Charles Hastings is!
I usually get annoyed by the unnecessary comic relief characters. ‘A Broken Reality’ did a good job by not annoying me.
This story isn’t predictable or too revealing. You can’t guess what is going to happen next. (At least I couldn’t.)
It was amazing and worth reading. Not forgetting to mention it maintained my interest till the end.
It is a book full of emotions, heartbreak, and tragic moments.
Love suspense, mystery and thriller?
‘A Broken Reality‘ is the book just for you.
Till Then Happy Reading!
Thank you to Netgalley for providing ARC of this book to me in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Looking forward to read more books written by Rob Kaufman.
I recommend this book to all thriller lovers.
Thanks for leaving a review, Shanza.
And I’m SO happy you liked it!
Rob
Review of – A Broken Reality
This was a great book to read.
Really surprised at the ending, but I won’t give that away.
A little boy goes missing, family is frantic.
The boy’s godparents and parents are extremely close and he is like the godparents’ son, as they haven’t been lucky to have one of their own.
When godfather Jesse is out searching desperately for the boy on a snowy night, he accidentally comes across the boy, fleeing from his captor, and he hits him with the car.
After the accident Jesse is unable to remember anything and the boy is still missing and not able to be found.
The story goes with the desperation of a missing child, a killer who covers things up and tries to transfer the blame.
Really enjoyed the book. Great writing style and was wanting to not put it down.
Looking forward to more excellent work from Kaufman.
Hi Vanessa,
Thank you for your nice words. So happy it held your interest and you enjoyed it.
You can always find more of my books at http://www.AuthorRobKaufman.com.
Again, thank you for your review and for reading my work.
Rob
I loved this mystery about a young boy who goes missing. Unlike others in this genre, the novel focusses on an unusual premise as early on we see Jesse, the man who’s out looking for Danny accidentally hits and kills him. So what’s left to know? Well, the pedophile who kidnapped Danny is still on the loose and looking for Danny as well! The plot continues to thicken as Jesse has no memories and Danny’s family is heartsick not knowing Danny’s whereabouts. Lots of family drama and relationship struggles make this novel a great read. I look forward to reading more by Kaufman!
Thanks to NetGalley and Rob Kaufman for this ARC!
Thanks, Anne. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
You can always visit http://www.AuthorRobKaufman.com to see if any other books I’ve written might interest you.
In the meantime, I’m glad you liked “A Broken Reality”. Great to know before it gets released!