This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review. Also my tags may have spoilers in them so be forewarned before checking out full review.

 Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞
 Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖📖
Narration:🎧🎧🎧🎧
Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧🧧
 Overall View: ✨✨✨✨.25

No matter the risk, I'm greedy. I want all of you, your mind, heart and your fucking soul. If we don't risk our hearts, then we miss out on life's true beauty. There no reward without risk.

First Impressions
Broken Harbor is the most recent addition to the "Sparrow Falls" series and this is a story that features Cope's book. This is the brother of the family that is the infamous hockey player. I had been hearing so many of the best things about this book and while I found this one to be quite a solid turnout for a Catherine Cowles novel, I wouldn't say that its my favorite. There were some aspects to the story that just didn't quite fit for me so while I had high expectations and did enjoy the reading of this one, as I listened to it in one shift at work, it didn't necessarily wow me like some of her other books have. But its still a solid installment and I had so much fun seeing Cope and Sutton fall in love with each other and truly connect on a level that mattered.

First Line
If I eat all my vegetables, will I be big enough to play hockey?" Licas asked, his words slurring as sleep tried to pull him under.

The Main Protagonists
 The Hero: Cope
 The Heroine: Sutton

  Cope made me want to take chances. To truly live again.

Summary
Broken Harbor is a story that takes our heroine Sutton, into a bad situation where her boyfriend and ex gets involved in drugs and involved with some bad people and when they make some threatening actions towards her and her son, she runs to the other side of the country to escape the situation as she refuses to put her son at risk. They have now settled in Sparrow Falls, she keeps her face hidden from cameras. Her son now is getting involved in hockey and is participating in a summer camp for kids involving hockey. Cope, a professional hockey player, has come home to escape the drama on the team and find some peace. He starts offering his services at this summer camp, which is where he and Sutton run into each other. At first there is this playful tension between them, but they have a deep connection, they both quickly explore together despite the secrets that are keeping them from fully embracing what their relationship is capable of.....

 You came along just when I need you most." Her fingers lifted to my face, tracing my mirroring scar. "You gave us a safe place to land. A harbor in the storm."

What I Loved
This was such a fun visit to get back to Sparrow Falls and I can't wait to return. There is something so majestic and atmospheric about this author's style of writing that I couldn't seem to get enough of where she was going with this story. This does have a more summer feel to the story a bit, as it takes place mostly during summer time. I first want to mention I loved the relationship that Sutton has with her son, they are just an adorable pair together, and I will say that Cope just fits right with their dynamic. It actually flowed smoothly, the relationship between these three.

 I'm tired of living in the dark.
Then maybe it's time to step into the light.

The connection between Cope and Sutton are fire so if you need good spice, Catherine Cowles definitely delivers on that score. I was more intrigued with their emotional growth though And we definitely see some character growth between these two. Their relationship has so much depth to it at times, you become so easily consumed. There is so much emotional drama and pain though, so fair warning going into this one. It will have you crying buckets for these characters, but its during these painful times, that they truly find their connection in a deep intimate way. There is also a balance of witty dialogue and charm that balances out the more poignant times. I really appreciate what the author touched based on with drugs and addictions and how dangerous they are.

 Its a messy business being human. We hurt, and we get hurt.

There is some suspense but it was lighter than I was hoping for. It really happens in the very end and this series hasn't had as much suspense as I prefer in a romantic suspense, which is why I am not categorizing this as a romantic suspense, because it was definitely on the lighter end of it.

What I Struggled With
So there were a couple of things that kept this book from a five star read for me. The first was the spice aspects. So honestly the two issues I have together kinda go together. So first the spice and the type of spice made zero sense with this hero. Kink and dirty talk with Cope? Yeah it just didn't fit. The reason it didn't fit was because he was written very surface level. We saw hardly any background to him and while there was some growth to this character, the background and all of his deep dark secrets just never come to light even though its teased all the way throughout the story. It just fell flat for me and it also felt like the spice was just for shock wow factor, and never truly resonating on why this was important.

Also side note and unpopular opinion: I am NOT a fan of the grandma. What she say in front of little kids her own grandchildren, is wrong and inappropriate. There I said it. Also sex isn't everything but she acts like it is.

Narration
SPECTACULAR! I don't know how much more I can see except this narration pair do such an incredible job with this author and really bringing her books to life in such a deep provoking way!

Overall View
Broken Harbor is a heartfelt story that brings together two tortured souls together in a crescendo of emotion, discovering inner strength and learning to heal through the storm.....CAPTIVATING IN EVERY WAY!

 I love you. With everything in me. All I am is yours. Brokenness and all."

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance
Character Types: Hockey (Athlete), Single Mom, MC on the Run
Themes: Small Town, Tear Jerker, Kids/Teens, Danger/Suspense, Heart/Touching, Mutual Pining.
Tropes: Forced Proximity, Single Parent

Book Perspective
Duo POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
A blend of both

If you like these authors, I recommend This Book
Jennifer Ryan
AL Jackson

Song This Book Inspires
Castles Crumbling by Taylor Swift

Recommendation For Reading Order
You can read as a standalone

Steam/Spice Explanations

Simmering cup of tea---soft warm touches and light intimacy
Warmin' by the fire- a medium level of sexual tension, a balance of sexual and emotional intimacy, lighter on the details in the sexual moments.
 Steamin' up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes.
Blazing fire to the building-The prime focus is the sex scenes, scorching hot, and could burn one. Less focus on the emotional intimacy to the relationship.

Narrators:
Connor Crais
Erin Mallon