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The House of Broken Bricks
The House of Broken Bricks: A Novel | Fiona Williams
6 posts | 5 read | 11 to read
Every marriage has its seasons. Its autumn when we meet Tess, but her marriage to Richard is in a deep, cold winter. A winter so harsh that their union may never see the bright light of spring despite the change of seasons outside the walls of their creaking house. Tess is a Londoner whose relationship with Richard transports her from a Jamaican diaspora in the city to the English countryside where predatory birds hover over fields, buses run twice a day, neighbors barter honey for cider, and no one looks like her. As Tess and Richard settle in, the dramatic arrival of their fraternal twinsone who presents as black and the other as whiterecasts the family dynamic, stirring up complicated feelings and questions of belonging. Tess yearns for the comforting chaos of life as it once was, instead of Max and Sonny tracking dirt through the kitchen where cooking Caribbean food becomes her sole comfort. And Richard obsesses over getting his crops planted rather than deal with the conversation he cannot bear to have. In a narrative quartet of unforgettable, alternating perspectives, secrets and vines clamber over the houses broken red bricks, and although its inhabitants seem to be withering, Sonny knows that something is stirring. . . . As the seasons change and the cracks let in more light, the family might just be able to start to heal.
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review
sarahbarnes
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Mehso-so

This is a powerful story of the impact of a grief the weight of which I can‘t imagine. I struggled to hold the different threads of the story together - maybe the audio didn‘t work well for me - and it felt like perhaps the writer was trying to do too much in one story. I loved the beautiful descriptions of gardening and cooking throughout the book.

TheBookHippie SAME. I had to get it in print and I too loved those parts! 4d
sarahbarnes @TheBookHippie I do wonder if reading it in print would‘ve made it feel more cohesive. 4d
30 likes2 comments
review
Tamra
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Mehso-so

There is a twist in this novel that is slowly revealed to the reader, which was an element I enjoyed. Also, lots of food & nature descriptions. ❤️ Not sure about the ending; seemed a bit contrived and convenient.

Cathythoughts Nice cover all the same ! Won‘t be rushing to read though. ❤️ 1mo
Tamra @Cathythoughts gorgeous cover! There was a lot to like, but it is melodramatic. 1mo
Suet624 Oh dear. I loved this one. 1mo
53 likes3 comments
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Suet624
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Pickpick

I‘m surprised this book hasn‘t gotten more press. It‘s stunning. I rarely cry when reading a book & this one got me. A bi-racial couple & twin sons in rural England, attempting to navigate racism & poverty amidst a dissolving marriage. Told by all the characters in the novel, it is a story told through seasons of a year & a study in grief that is so quiet & so deep. Beautifully written and filled with bountiful descriptions of nature. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

TheBookHippie Loved this book!!!! Loved! 2mo
TheBookHippie I read this in part of my #20BooksbyBlackWomen Challenge 2mo
Tamra Sounds great - stacked! 2mo
See All 24 Comments
Suet624 @TheBookHippie I didn‘t see your review. I was and still am so moved by it. 2mo
Suet624 @Tamra I hope you like it as much as I did. 2mo
TheBookHippie @Suet624 I probably didn‘t 😅 I have to get better at posting what I read. I did post my list. 2mo
TheBookHippie @Tamra I believe you‘ll love it! 2mo
Suet624 @TheBookHippie we have such similar tastes… I need your reviews!!! 😊 2mo
Chelsea.Poole Great review. And the cover art is gorgeous too! 2mo
Suet624 @Chelsea.Poole the art is as gorgeous as the writing. 2mo
Tamra @Suet624 @TheBookHippie I was able to put a hold on the audio and it should be a relatively short wait! 👏🏾 2mo
Suet624 @Tamra I hope the audio tells the tale. I always get lost in audio. 🫤😊. 2mo
TheBookHippie @Suet624 it‘s my goal for 2025 🤣😂🤷🏻‍♀️😬 2mo
Suet624 @TheBookHippie GOOD!!!! 💕 2mo
Suet624 @TheBookHippie also, a side note: I have twin sons who are very close, so this was especially poignant and felt very accurate. 2mo
kspenmoll Sounds wonderful! Will put it on hold at my library. (edited) 2mo
Cathythoughts Great review! Stacked. 2mo
sarahbarnes Stacking! 2mo
BarbaraBB Oow, stacking too of course! 2mo
Suet624 @Cathythoughts @sarahbarnes @barbarabb I can‘t wait for you all to read it. It might have been that the piano music I was listening added a particular feeling to my reading but still…it was fabulous. 2mo
BarbaraBB It won‘t be published here until March but I already placed a preorder 🤷🏻‍♀️ 2mo
Suet624 @BarbaraBB oh! I never even thought of the fact that it hadn‘t been published there yet. 2mo
BarbaraBB Neither did I. I hadn‘t heard of the book until a few hours ago 😉 2mo
Cathythoughts I checked in Waterstones here. They had the hardback and it‘s gone, but they should have the paperback by end of Jan 👍🏻 2mo
53 likes3 stack adds24 comments
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Suet624
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It‘s a gray day, I‘m waiting another 1/2 hour for the library to open, and I‘m sitting in an uninspired restaurant setting. Wish I‘d gone elsewhere. 😊 This book is wonderfully written but I can tell it‘s heading to a very sad place. A snowstorm is coming and I have an hour ride home in the storm. BUT I‘m retired and I am so thankful that I have the space and time to do whatever I want.

AmyG Yikes. Safe travels. 2mo
DogMomIrene Freedom is the best part about retirement. Structuring my day however I like has been such a game changer for my mental health. Safe travels home. Maybe you beat a good chunk of the storm 🤞🏼 2mo
dabbe Be safe! And yay to retirement! Time moves completely differently now, doesn't it? 🤩😂🤗 2mo
See All 11 Comments
Mollyanna Safe travels home. 2mo
BarbaraBB Safe travels ❄️ 2mo
sarahbarnes Be safe! ❄️ 2mo
Suet624 @AmyG @Mollyanna @BarbaraBB @sarahbarnes I made it home safe and sound. Thanks for your best wishes. 2mo
Suet624 @DogMomIrene @dabbe I‘m still getting used to it but I‘m feeling so much more of a sense of freedom that it‘s kind of mindblowing. Time is so different and I‘m learning about how great it is to have so much time available to me. It‘s delightful. (edited) 2mo
AmyG Good! 2mo
Jeg And watch how fast that time fills up. With the things that bring you joy. X 2mo
Suet624 @Jeg I can‘t tell you how excited I am to know that there‘s nothing on my calendar. That will eventually change, I‘m sure, but for now candles burning, twinkling inside Christmas lights, snow outside and books are my absolute joy. It‘s a beautiful thing. 2mo
47 likes1 stack add11 comments
review
VanessaCW
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Mehso-so

Set in a rural part of southern England, it‘s the story of a broken bi-racial family with ‘rainbow‘ twins. It‘s told via various viewpoints. Not a lot happens in this story and it‘s ultimately quite sad. The descriptions are very vivid and it‘s a very quiet book. A slow burner. It is left on a note of hope but it‘s not a story I particularly engaged with.

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VanessaCW
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A library book. There‘s been quite a reserve list for this at the library so I‘m getting stuck in now. 😀