Every Broken Thing

Far from Ruined, Book 1

De: Nikole Knight

Narrado por: Nick Newport

Two strangers whose paths should never have crossed. One traumatic encounter that brings them together.

After high school senior Silas Brigs is rescued from an attempted assault, he finds himself indebted to a blond stranger. But he wants nothing to do with the calm, quiet Ben Adams. The California diver reminds Silas too much of what brought them together in the first place, an event he just wants to forget. Yet no matter how hard Silas tries to distance himself, the closer the two inevitably gravitate.

With Silas's attacker lurking in the shadows combined with Ben's mysterious history, their blossoming friendship seems doomed to failure. Both are haunted by their shattered pasts, but can they learn to face their demons together? Because, no matter how much Silas wants to resist, they're exactly what the other needs. Even if they don't know it, yet.

Trigger Warnings: On-screen, semi-graphic attempted sexual assault, aftermath and trauma of assault, homophobia (including but not limited to: bullying, dialogue, insults/slurs, physical abuse/assault, etc.), mentions of past parental abandonment and abuse, and underage substance use, including alcohol and marijuana.

©2019 Covey Publishing LLC, Nikole Knight (P)2024 Nikole Knight

Excellent listen

Really enjoyed this new one from Nikole Knight! It was well written and quite immersive. This was a new narrator for me and I quite liked him! Will definitely be listening to him in the future.

Incredible amounts of blushing

This story plods along in what is probably meant to be slow burn. Instead it is repetitive, filled with misunderstandings and withheld information. Told exclusively from Silas’ POV, the reader is reminded what makes a lot of teens really hard to deal with. I didn’t write this review until after I had finished the second installment. This series feels very much like a Kiera Andrews cash grab - this is only one book, but it is spread over three titles to induce the reader into buying three plodding books.

The narration is generally well done, although there are a few consistent mispronunciations. He definitely helps the story.

I don’t think I can bring myself to use a credit for the third book.

Ben & Silas!!

I'm going to be completely honest and say I didn't read the blurb going into this book. I love this author so it was an automatic yes for me. So having said that, I wasn't completely prepared for the HFN (ish) situation. But I love getting to know Silas and Ben and their friends. There are a few surprises I wasn't expecting and also some content that may be difficult for some readers. I am ready for the next book to come out and can't wait to see what happens next.

Not very compelling

I read this series and remembered being mildly satisfied with book one. I bought it in audio because books 2 and three were much better. I’m hoping that is the case in the audio version as well. Frankly, I should know better. Everything that I don’t like about YA is evident here: obnoxious high schoolers who love to get drunk and act sort of moronic. Not sure that I will move onto the next book. This just isn’t working for me. It could just be my taste.

Ben & Silas

I'm rounding this up from 3.5. I enjoyed the overall story but there were a few things in this story that didn't work well for me. I did enjoy the narration by Nick Newport very much though.

I received an ARC and this is my unbiased opinion

My heart 💔

4.5 ⭐️

Ughhhh my heart is completely broken for these babes! 💔 Ben and Silas absolutely destroyed me and the book just ended with me absolutely gutted! I’m desperate to start the rest of the series to see these two boys get the happiness they so so deserve.

Silas’s prickly exterior to protect himself had me laughing one minute at his quips, and then cringing for him just moments later. All I wanted was to wrap him in a blanket and spoil him rotten, the poor babe! And Ben! I KNEW what was going to happen with his story but hearing it was just heart wrenching. I actually had to speed up the audio in the last two chapters because I was so distressed…if I’d been reading with my eyes I would’ve been speed reading like a mofo 😅

If it wasn’t 1 in the morning I’d be starting the next book right now because goodness, I am so invested in this story and this slow burn! 😭

All the angst in this HFN AND WORTH IT

This book was hard to start and impossible to put down. The book takes place during the senior year of high school, (TW) heavily features bullies, and the first 20% or so deals with on-page sexual assault and the emotional aftermath - and how that situation brings these two broken boys together. This situation is a large part of the dynamics between Silas and Ben and is a recurring theme throughout the book. I did not realize it was a HFN but thank goodness all three books are out (though only the first so far is on audible, which I’m good with because I prefer to read first then “re-listen”). Both MCs have past trauma impacting their current relationship and- we see Silas’ from page one but Ben’s is revealed more slowly (and I suspect more heavily featured in future books). It’s really single POV until the last chapter. There is some “sexual tension” but no “heat” (which is totally appropriate given what I’ve described above). I don’t really consider myself as having triggers, but the first little bit was a lot. I ended up reading it (somehow that processes easier) and then going back to the audible, which I could not stop reading. Only a handful of books in recent years have been ones that were so consuming I couldn’t put them down, and this is one of them. I didn’t know finishing this series was how I was going to spend my weekend but here we are and I have no regrets. If you can stick with it, highly recommend because it’s worth it.

Angsty Slow-Burn Teen Romance

Learning to cope in the wake of trauma is at the core of ‘Every Broken Thing’. After being rescued by Ben from a brutal attack, Silas wants nothing more than to forget it ever happened. Patient, soft-hearted Ben begins a slow breaking down of Silas’ brash and antagonistic walls in order to offer Silas emotional support. Angsty, at times funny, this book tells the first half of an ever-so-slow-burn of romance between two damaged teens.

I can only assume, based on Book 1, that this is a duet story. ‘Every Broken Thing’ features Silas’ POV–which ends in an abrupt cliffhanger–and an epilogue giving readers the barest glimpse into Ben’s tragic past. It appears the story won’t have its HEA until the end of Book 2, which will most likely be Ben’s POV. I look forward to it.

Nick Newport’s narration is somewhat overdramatic, but it makes sense give the age of the main characters. He does a wonderful job conveying the differences in Silas and Ben’s personalities.

Great story and characters

This one grabbed me immediately and I'm now bingeing the entire series. I loved the slow burn between Ben and Silas and all the secrets that are being revealed and still to be revealed. The attacker plot line is creepier than I expected and I can wait to see how this resolves itself. Nick Newport did a great job bringing the characters to life and capturing Silas' reservations about getting involved with Ben.

A Heavy Story!

This audiobook was interesting. It is told primarily in the first person perspective told by main character Silas. The story started off heavy in the sense that I definitely felt all the emotions really quickly. I wasn’t expecting the heavy content to hit me that fast. For some listeners there may be triggers. Despite the dark content of this book hearing the banter between Silas and Ben was fun! Their friendship grew beautifully throughout the story. As this story is in the young adult genre there wasn’t much intimate moments, but nevertheless it was enjoyable. The narrator of this story did a great job with the characters, I may listen to him again in the future.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this audiobook.