Not exactly on-again, off-again, Malcolm and Joanna are in-again, out-again: in love, out of each other’s arms, in an awkward co-living arrangement, out of the country. Their unconventional relationship is the only way, Joanna says, to protect herself from the specter of commitment, which inevitably leads to heartbreak. A When Harry Met Sally for the Millennial generation, set in the damp and drizzly neighborhoods of Portland, Oregon, Broken Homes and Gardens is a meditation on enduring friendships, lust, and the perseverance of love.
Editorial Reviews
“Rebecca Kelley’s writing is meticulous yet lush, punctuated by a witty edge. She paints scenes like Apartment Therapy: carefully crafted messes that beg the reader to stay for a giant mug of chai under a moss-green chenille throw. Her characters―complex, complicated, bright women on the precipice of complete romantic meltdown, and sympathetic good guys with powerfully flawed timing―are truly likable. Kelley’s work evokes everything that is great about a young hipster in the Pacific Northwest, without the tragic mustaches and old-timey bicycles.”
(Heather Arndt Anderson, author of Portland: A Food Biography)
“Funny and engrossing, Broken Homes and Gardens proves that the human heart is the worst jigsaw puzzle ever made.”
(Mark Russell, author of God is Disappointed in You)
“Rebecca Kelley’s less-than-fairytale love story marvelously details the ups and cringe-worthy downs of dating in the twenty-first century. Malcolm and Joanna are characters so real and funny and flawed, they feel like friends. And while they may never manage to get the timing of their romance right, I certainly fell in love with them!”
(Shari Goldhagen, author of In Some Other World, Maybe)
Broken Homes and Gardens was published by Blank Slate Press in 2015!
Rebecca Kelley 