Only Love Can Break Your Heart

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The characters are very well-rounded and feel human. And you might even be able to relate to it. I have to admit that this book made me feel a lot. The first chapter already gave me chills, and I cried a lot at the ending. This book definitely makes your heart feel heavy, but also gives you hope. Jan 10, Samantha Shannon rated it it was amazing Shelves: I absolutely loved this book.

Wing Jones was one of the best debuts I've ever come across, with its compelling voice and powerful message about believing in yourself, and Only Love Can Break Your Heart is even better. Katherine has a real gift for creating nuanced characters and unravelling their reactions to complicated, and often painful, real-life situations.

Her books lift a mirror to how messy we all are, and you'll always feel better about yourself for seeing it. Reiko isn't perfect, and I absolutely loved this book. Reiko isn't perfect, and I loved that about her — I was rooting for her all the way through. Get your hands on Only Love Can Break Your Heart this summer and treat your soul to stunning descriptions of the desert, a star-bright voice, and a gloriously tangled story of healing, family, grief, and love — not with a boy, but with a place, and with yourself.

Jun 22, stefiereads rated it liked it. There are so much emotional thing and I feel bad for a lot of times. Especially knowing what she has to go through. However the whole story was pretty good. I am pretty sure a lot of you will enjoy it more than I do. Apr 17, Rosanna Threakall rated it it was amazing Shelves: There are no words to articulate how amazing this book is. You MUST pick this up when it's out. Reiko is a force to be reckoned with and her story is one everyone needs to read. Katie Webber can do no wrong. May 08, Daphne Illumicrate added it Shelves: Beautifully written, about love and heartbreak in a gorgeous desert setting.

Will make you nostalgic for that magical feeling you get during school summers. So I have mixed feelings about this one. Perhaps Reiko was using So I have mixed feelings about this one. Aug 05, Lizzie Littlehux Huxley-Jones rated it it was amazing. The thick dry air was as close to the desert as I could get in London. Reiko longs for adventure, for escape from her feelings, to find beautiful things in the desert at night. When a chance encounter brings loner Seth Rogers into her orbit, they embark on a series of night time adventures into the dark.

Anything to keep her mind from her grieving. But as it becomes clear that neither Reiko nor Seth can be what the other person needs, their bond begins to crumble. I absolutely loved the second novel from kwebberwanders. Webber continues to be a shining voice in young adult literature today and I look forward to reading more of her work. Aug 02, Sophie Elaina rated it really liked it Shelves: Wow this is a wonderful book. The characters are flawed and real and unreliable and I adore that. The whole story is just so beautiful and my emotions were all over the place while I was reading it. Katherine Webber's writing is somehow both gritty and lyrical while also being quick, smart and to the point, I've not really read any writing quite like it.

She really knows how to pull at your heart strings and capture you in a story. And regarding the character arc's, they were stunningly well wove Wow this is a wonderful book. And regarding the character arc's, they were stunningly well woven together and I really enjoyed the fact that the growth was realistic. As a whole it wasn't pleasant to read at times but I feel like it was a necessary tale to tell. This is a book that I'm so happy to have read, and I would recommend it to everyone.

Jan 15, Catherine Doyle rated it it was amazing. May 31, Michelle Fluttering Butterflies rated it really liked it Shelves: Quite a few moments when tears threatened to spill over! Will break your heart then put it back together again. Jun 02, Latkins rated it really liked it. An entertaining YA novel, which combines a coming-of-age story with a romance.

Reiko still misses her sister Mika, who died five years earlier. She's from a rich, privileged home in California, and is one of the 'popular' kids at school, but she likes to hang out in the desert. It's there that she meets Seth, who is from a single parent family and lives in a trailer, and one of the less popular kids. So although they begin a friendship, she can't acknowledge him when she's at school for fear of An entertaining YA novel, which combines a coming-of-age story with a romance.

So although they begin a friendship, she can't acknowledge him when she's at school for fear of losing her status as a popular girl. As time goes on, and their friendship turns into something more serious, she begins to realise that it's unfair to him to keep their relationship secret. But what will happen when she introduces him to her friends?

I thought this was a perceptive tale, as it doesn't go the way you might expect it to. Both Reiko and Seth were fully rounded characters and their actions and motives were believeable. The sad story of Mika's death which underpins the novel provides a deeper background to the tale, and it also highlights the transient nature of high school social hierarchies. Aug 13, Larosenoire rated it liked it Shelves: As the story goes, I gradually lose interest in it. It's not as good as I expected. The desert setting should have complemented the story better if the writer makes the most of it, but unluckily, it failed to satisfy me.

The direction that the story and characters ended up taking let me down. The first chapters are great and heart-warming, but Reiko is selfish and mean. She wants to keep her relationship with Seth in the dark for fear of losing her status at school, she leaves him on his birthda As the story goes, I gradually lose interest in it.

She wants to keep her relationship with Seth in the dark for fear of losing her status at school, she leaves him on his birthday, she kisses another guy, she takes him for granted It's just like an one track love. Their romance doesn't touch me at all, maybe that's why how it ends? I made Seth into someone I needed him to be, in the same way he made me into someone else.

He was an escape from my grief, and i was an escape from a world he didn' t want to be in. I don't think love should be an escape. What satisfies me most is the bittersweet ending, which ends in a different way from similar tropes I often catch sight of in YA reads. No one is always there waiting for you. At least Reiko realizes that she can' t rely on anyone to get over Mika's death, she has to do it herself. The ending of a relationship is the beginning of new Reiko. Jumping in a relationship doesn't mean filling a hole in your heart - just a temporary solution.

That is the most realistic part of this story. Sep 24, Ophelie rated it it was amazing Shelves: At first, I thought I was going to give this book a 3-star rating. It was good, but felt like any YA story I had read or listened to. But it swept me away by surprise towards the end with a whirl of mixed emotions and rawness. It nailed almost every single feeling and question I have asked myself. It was so transparently true and heart-felt. It made me cry. That is why Only Love can Break your Heart is so incredibly strong and inspiring. I would recommend this book to all, because so many of us are still not whole we sometimes just need a reminder and something propelling us forward.

Reiko is particularly complex, but her complexity unravels as she begins to understand who she is; a perfect character development. They are to a certain extent addressed by Reiko as she attempts to comprehend her situation, but never confirmed. I wish they had been. The other characters have this proper human-feeling, from the supportive best friend, to the imagined lost sister, to the brother making his own way in life, to the concerned parents unsure how to best act.

Such an array of characters, and I love them all well, I could do without Libby but people like her exist in our world and have their own rightful presence. This book is charming, raw, human, full of self-discovery and self-rebuilding following tragic situations. And in a way, its own self-help manual when love breaks your heart.

I felt a lot of sympathy for Reiko and her situation and loved her eventual character development and arc that developed throughout the story. But I never fully felt connected to her, or Seth for the matter. Ultimately this is a really sad story about coming to terms with grief. Mar 28, Nigethan rated it really liked it Shelves: Adored Wing Jones , so was really excited to pick this one up.

Took me a little while to get a feel for the characters and immerse myself into the story, but the pay-off was worth it. Loved how family and friendship came to the fore, and the surprising direction that the central 'romance' takes. It's clever, surprising and gorgeously written, populated with complex characters and even more complicated emotions — I enjoyed it a lot, and can't wait to see what Katherine Webber brings us next! Full r Adored Wing Jones , so was really excited to pick this one up.

Full review at The Bookbag: Aug 19, Katey Lovell rated it really liked it. What a gorgeous, gorgeous book about life, love and loss. Katherine Webber's writing is just exquisite and I think I must have had a lot of love for this book because my heart was well and truly broken. The desert setting, the characterisation including really relatable characters with flaws and imperfections and the beautiful descriptions had me reeled in.

Oct 11, Rani Multani rated it really liked it Shelves: Dec 01, Marie the Librarian rated it really liked it.

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Now go read this and write your own review so I can like it: How he grew up with a brother he idolized who was 8 years his senior and how everything fell apart one night when said brother left him for dead. This little book pinged my radar for one reason alone — the cover looks remarkably similar to The Good Luck of Right Now which I read and enjoyed last year. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and imitating this cover might end up selling a few books too.

And best of all, Only Love Can Break Your Heart provided a soundtrack that took me back to my own childhood and the sounds that would spin from the turntable of the relative I idolized. Hey hey, my my. Rock and roll will never die. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. View all 22 comments. This is in many ways a coming of age story told by Rocky at age 8 , then as a teenager and an adult.

At 8 , he's a sweet young boy idolizing his older brother while they sit in his room listening to music. I couldn't help but love Rocky who at 8 doesn't think of his half brother Paul , 16 as a half brother, but as his brother. I also couldn't help but feel for Paul even as he betrays his young brother to get back at their father. Yes , there are the obligatory scenes when teenaged Rocky has h This is in many ways a coming of age story told by Rocky at age 8 , then as a teenager and an adult.

Yes , there are the obligatory scenes when teenaged Rocky has his first sexual encounters with a woman 10 years his senior and the crazy project to get himself expelled. But it is much more than a coming of age story. It's about a dysfunctional family , actually three families and more than that about a piece of time in a small southern town.

The author perfectly sets the stage for in the country as well as in Spencerville. Some things did happen that made me think - what? How is all this going on or more accurately what is really going on? But yet , all of the characters are so real and the writing really captivated me, especially in the last part of the novel. I love when a writer , at the end gives us a glimpse of the future of the characters, rather than leaving us with the ending of the story at hand.

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As the titles implies , it is about love , all kinds of love and how that somehow sustained these characters. A debut novel that left me hoping there will be more from this author. Thanks to Algonquin Books and Edelweiss for the opportunity to read this advance copy. View all 24 comments.

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I'm in the box of shame again Most of my friends loved this book. I really just did not read it right I'm not saying anymore.. Netgalley in exchange for review. View all 36 comments. As each new plot element was introduced and believe me there are many of them, a little something for everyone, anyway I kept thinking that this should not work. All these elements should not be in one story, so how is it possible that I ended up liking this so much?

Well for one, it is very well written and second, I loved the narrator who starts this story when he is eight years old and continues on until adulthood. Rocky is a wonderful observer of his family and people and events in his town. He looks up to his older brother who is considered a rebel, a bad boy and is sixteen.

They share a love of music that forges a bond between them despite their age difference. Their family and the family in the big house across the road will be the focus of this novel. All the different elements made this so interesting and fast paced even while I was shaking my head. Definitely readable and a good look at a small town and their prejudgment, what fear will do to people. So hats off to this amazing author.

View all 10 comments. Ed Tarkington really knows how to turn a phrase and if you were a teenager in the 's you are in for a nostalgic read. I learned to play guitar on Neil Young songs, practiced cheerleading skills to the Rolling Stones, and spent countless hours in my room moodily pondering my teenage life with Joni Mitchell's music in the background. I don't know if it's strange to vividly recall the soundtrack of your life, but I met and fell for my husband the summer of Peter Frampton Comes Alive and remembe Ed Tarkington really knows how to turn a phrase and if you were a teenager in the 's you are in for a nostalgic read.

I don't know if it's strange to vividly recall the soundtrack of your life, but I met and fell for my husband the summer of Peter Frampton Comes Alive and remember singing Bruce Springsteen's Born In The USA later with my growing toddlers. This was of course before cell phones, video games , PC's , and TV stations. When I saw this book's title no one had to tell me it was from a Neil Young song , that was just a given. This is the coming of age story of Rocky Askew as he looks back years later and realizes he's had a pretty darn interesting life.

There's a lot going on here as this book accounts for his life from age 8 and beyond. Luckily it's written in three parts because as it says on the cover , the story will be in turns sad, tender, suspenseful, insightful, and full of nothing but heart, heart, heart. As some reviews have stated there will be a few times the story will be stretched almost to implausibility, and I agree perhaps Ed shouldn't have tried to cover so much ground here.

I personally would have been happy without all of the phallic references, but the way Rocky manages to get expelled from the pricy prep school his parents can no longer afford is pretty clever. That said, you will be hard pressed to say this book doesn't entertain. View all 17 comments. Feb 09, Cheri rated it really liked it Shelves: Younger brother Rocky, 8 years old, wants to grow up to be just like big brother Paul, He had a terrible habit of launching into incontinent monologues in front of his elementary-s 4.

He had a terrible habit of launching into incontinent monologues in front of his elementary-school-age son the way he might in speaking to some random stranger passing a boozy hour or two on a layover at an airport bar. No one hears from either of them. There are love stories all around, as well, love in all its many forms and complications. Each is flawed, but despite these flaws-or maybe especially because of them-your heart goes out to them with each twist of fate. Ed Tarkington weaves a tale like a bee charmer charms the bees, softly, slowly and with love.

View all 6 comments. Jan 06, Karen rated it it was amazing. This was such a great book for me. Took me back to my teenage years with the music, mostly Neil Young references. This story centered around brothers Rocky and Paul is just as the cover states.. I just loved it!!!! Mar 12, Tom Mathews rated it really liked it Shelves: Only Love Can Break your Heart is a coming-of-age-story, a star-crossed romance, a story of a dysfunctional blended family and a mystery.

But it is ultimately the story of a relationship between two half-brothers. Richard, aka Rocky, is seven when the story begins. Paul, his brother-by-another-mother, is sixteen. The story starts out dramatically with the somewhat accidental shooting of Paul by a neighbor.

Paul recovers, though, and he and the story ramble on, at times rather aimlessly. Paul lea Only Love Can Break your Heart is a coming-of-age-story, a star-crossed romance, a story of a dysfunctional blended family and a mystery. Paul leaves home and years pass with no word of his whereabouts. Rocky himself becomes a teenager and experiences life and what passes for love with teenagers.

Still the absent Paul never leaves him. Ed Tarkington writes like he has lived what he is writing. His story is haphazard at times but then, so is life. I was often fully sucked into the story because the events he described are those that many of us have faced. In real life one sometimes has to deal with a loved one who suffers from dementia. I have just complimented it for being lifelike yet I feel compelled to mark it down for not having the tightly staged plot that one comes to expect from fiction.

On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements: Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered great or memorable. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending. Not sure for how long but I got my copy! Jun 05, Larry H rated it really liked it Shelves: I'd rate this 4. I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Many thanks to Algonquin Books for making it available! And who wants to live without love? Nothing tremendously earth-shattering happens except to the characters , but those books are tremendously enjoyable to read because they're well written and their I'd rate this 4.

Nothing tremendously earth-shattering happens except to the characters , but those books are tremendously enjoyable to read because they're well written and their characters are fascinating, complex people. There are no real shocking surprises, no literary pyrotechnics, just excellent writing that evokes both nostalgia and emotion. In the late s, eight-year-old Richard "Rocky" Askew worships his year-old brother Paul, who is just a bit rebellious, drives a cool car, listens to classic rock, and has a beautiful but troubled girlfriend, Leigh.

One day Paul picks Rocky up from school, saving him from certain punishment after getting caught fighting, but the day ends with Paul nearly abandoning Rocky to die in the woods. The next day, Rocky and Leigh disappear. Eight years later, Rocky, now a teenager himself, begins a relationship with the older daughter of the family who lives next door to his, a family that has been in the center of many of the Askews' problems.

The relationship, along with several other occurrences, sets a chain of events in motion that will shake both families, and those around them, to the core. As you might tell from the title, this is a book about love, and the things we are willing to do for it. But it goes beyond romantic love, as the relationship between Paul and Rocky is core to the story as well.

It's also the story of how when love goes wrong, it can be the catalyst for many problems. I really enjoyed this book, and thought Tarkington did a terrific job making you care about the characters. While I wasn't necessarily surprised by anything that happened, I still felt tremendously invested in the story, and wanted to know how or if everything would be resolved. This is really good, solid, well-written book, and I hope it's just the start of Tarkington's literary career, because he has real talent.

See all of my reviews at http: View all 12 comments. Only Love Can Break Your Heart is a well written book with great characters about a boy coming of age. The main character, Rocky, tells the story from age 8 to adulthood. It is slow at the beginning and there is A LOT going on but the story does come together at end. While at no point did this story offer any great surprises or major aha moments, it did tell a good story of relationships, family, and growing up. View all 4 comments. Jan 05, Judy Collins rated it it was amazing Shelves: Top 50 Books of !

Jammed-packed with everything from Classic Rock, Stones, Beatles, Pink Floyd, Zeppelin, Mick Jagger, Neal Young, 70s, 80s, Doobie Brothers, Carolina Shag, Camels, Marlboro Lights, Reaganbeer drinking, southern town life, family dysfunction, mental illness, brothers, small town, domestic, affairs, sex, murder, financial loss, arts, culture, literary, religion, cult, hippies, femme fatale, sons and fathers, psychic, community, and loyalty.

Set in upper southern town of Virginia inside the city limits of Spencerville, near the Blue Ridge Mountains, at the turn of the 's. The town was built on tobacco money and the people were willing to plead ignorance as long as the world would let them. The narrator, Richard "Rocky" Askew is eight-years-old and idolizes his older half-brother, Paul, age sixteen.

He also has a love for vinyl and music. He invites his little brother in his life his sidekick -- despite the age difference. She married him for his money, no doubt since her parents were killed in an accident raised by her grandmother. She needed a father figure. Across the grassy knoll in the distance, sat the old white-columned estate house known as Twin Oaks. Twin Oaks had been vacant for many years, and Paul says it is haunted. From its ancestors--tobacco, liquor, poker, gambling, and whores. Then the stock market crash. No one has lived there since. After all, his older brother had broken in and there was some trouble.

Her father forbade Leigh to see Paul. A tragic event occurs, things get crazy, and Paul takes off with his girlfriend Leigh Bowman. Rocky is devastated to lose his best friend. As Rocky becomes a teenager, he turns to the rich neighbor ten years older , the Culver's daughter, Patricia--teaching him the ways of the world The Graduate. The mysterious older woman.

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She hires him to watch the horses, take care of the stables, mowing plus more. In between equestrian activities, there is sex. He knew Paul would be impressed with his affair - the sexy older woman. Compared to Patricia, his own childhood seemed mundane. She had lived all over the world. He misses his brother.

Only Love Can Break Your Heart

There is also a back story of the two families: The Askews and the Culvers. An investment goes bad. Leigh returns and engaged to Charles, Patricia's older brother. Rocky never forgets his older brother, and then one day when they are experiencing great financial difficulties, he returns. How can Rocky afford to remain at the academy, when they have no money?

A hideous brutal crime. Everyone is under suspicion. Then there is Leigh and Paul. Leigh has a mental illness. A new love and life for Rocky? What would a Southern novel be without tragedy, music, love and sadness? Written with passion, reminiscent of earlier times--not so much a plot-driven novel; however, a bold, rich character-driven novel, with vivid settings.

As a reader you are fully invested in it's characters. The focused attention is in their distress, and the possible consequences. They find that elusive peace that, as the other Paul once wrote, passes all understanding. Where would we be without our mistakes? The risk of love. The ties that bind for better or worse; love always comes with the risk of a broken heart.

The question for us all: Can we live without it? Is it worth the risk? What really makes the novel: I thoroughly enjoyed the inspiration behind the novel: But when we come to the end of their story, we discover that this was the only way it was ever going to be — all of this had to happen.

I thought that line elegantly captured that conundrum. Fans of Southern authors, John Hart, Pat Conroy, and Wiley Cash will the appreciate intimate relationships between father and sons, a brother's bond, and life in a changing time— At its core, it is a love story. You will be reminded of the works of: In addition to the digital reading copy, I had already pre-ordered the audiobook. Peter Berkrot , is my favorite male narrator, providing an extraordinary performance! A perfect voice for Rocky--adding icing to the cake. What a powerful collaboration.

Highly recommend- cannot wait to see what is next! An author to follow. I have a strong feeling this is only the beginning --to a long line of bestsellers. Read Author's Essay bit. Judy Collins, now 76, is as creatively vigorous as ever, writing, touring worldwide, and nurturing fresh talent. A product of the 50's, am proud to be named after this extraordinary woman. View all 3 comments.

Jan 09, LeAnne rated it it was ok. A very disjointed coming of age novel with way too much going on and with regular name-dropping of various songs the title is taken from a Neil Young ballad. If three quarters of the plot twists were trimmed, this could have been quite good. So far, this book has gotten an average of 4 stars, so perhaps my expectations were too high. There is some graphic, gratuitous sex tossed in here, maybe to bump this up from an upper middle grade book to YA. Im no prude - the nasty sex in "A Feast of Snak A very disjointed coming of age novel with way too much going on and with regular name-dropping of various songs the title is taken from a Neil Young ballad.

John Irving often features affairs between young boys and older women as part of his story line and does it with class. That just made me annoyed w the author We have an adoring young boy whose older, chain smoking, half-brother Paul goes off his nut when his drunken mother dies, and because his father refuses to attend the funeral of the drunken mother his ex-wife who abandoned their boy years earlier. Paul is angry with his father for not attending the funeral, so he runs away after half heartedly threatening to abandon his young half-brother in the forest to die.

He decides not to leave the little boy out there, but runs away and takes his 20 yr old girlfriend with him. And his cigarettes, of course chain smoking is mentioned repeatedly throughout the book. Girlfriend is made to have sex w guru. When she happens upon the guru making one of the little commune kids fellate him, however, she runs home.

Chain smoking brother does not and stays gone for 7 years. Preggo girlfriend, now back home, has her father force a late term abortion on her. Makes her a bit cuckoo. Goes to a clinic. Comes home on Thorazine. Ends up engaged to an ugly bachelor whose parents bought house next door to the brothers. Are you still with me? Little bro, who was nearly abandoned in the woods, meets new neighbors.

Poorly done by the author. Her goal is to stop her brother from marrying the cuckoo. Why, I dont know. From here, add in: Meanwhile, the school play is presented and is supposed to reflect real life. Of course, most of the characters are in the audience.

This play within the novel is described in detail and is supposed to explain why a certain man can only become erect when around horses. The flaming drama teacher makes the boys who represent horses wear skin tight leather pants and go bare-chested. I kid you not.

Of course, the horndog gets away with murder and escapes, chain-smoking half-brother is exonerated, and they live happily ever after. The book was ridiculously convoluted, despite having good promise. This guy's editor should have done a better job View all 11 comments. Jan 14, Liz rated it really liked it. I had to let this book settle in my brain for a day before I could write a review. Different people are going to take very different things from this book, depending on their own experiences. I think, amazingly enough, this guy has somehow managed to tap into several themes that will reach out to those readers whose lives resonate with them I had to let this book settle in my brain for a day before I could write a review.

I think, amazingly enough, this guy has somehow managed to tap into several themes that will reach out to those readers whose lives resonate with them in some way. Obviously the title theme is rich throughout the book. Truly, the ones that you love are ones who can hurt you the most and to whom you yourself are most vulnerable. Our narrator Rocky is just a kid who adores his older brother Paul, when Paul betrays him and disappears from his life.

What stood out to me was the subject of regrets. What would they change if they could? One quote from that scene has stuck with me: For if even a second of my life before them had been different, my perfect beautiful girls might not exist — or else they would be some other people.

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