I’m basically giving you her resume because The Break doesn’t read like an impressive first novel; it reads like a masterstroke from someone who knows what they’re doing....Vermette is skilled at writing with a language that is conversational and comfortable and with a poetic ease that makes the hard things easier to swallow. The result is a book that is at times emotionally demanding, funny, suspenseful, and always engaging.

The language the characters use is realistic, though harsh and violent. This is especially true of some of the younger characters, who cannot seem to speak a single sentence that does not contain the word “fuck.”..While the violent characters in the novel are despicable, it is a testament to Vermette’s skill that they also appear pitiable. The Break is a condemnation of reprehensible individual behaviour, but also of a broader society incapable of dealing effectively with problems of addiction, poverty, homelessness, and despair...In unfolding her multigenerational narrative, Vermette ties together several disparate plot strands en route to a realistic conclusion. However, the way Vermette resolves some of her plot points is a bit too pat... However, fiction is capable of helping us to comprehend difference and otherness, and The Break offers clear insight into people struggling to secure a place in the world.