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A review by mjsam
The Road Home by Erin Zak
4.0
ARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I knew going in that this was as much about a mother and daughter coming to terms as it was a romance (more so really) and that it had a cancer storyline, so my fault entirely for requesting it anyway. My only defence is that I have enjoyed all of Zak’s books and thought I could handle it. Yeah, I was wrong.
So, the main characters here are Gwen, a barely made it actress who lives in LA and has been estranged from her mother Carol for 15 years. She comes home for her father’s birthday and discovers that her mother is ill. Complicating this is that while she was gone her parents essentially replaced her with Lila, who not only moved in and became the new daughter, she also coaches volleyball with Carol.
Most of the story and many of the most moving parts revolve around Gwen and her mother and their reconciliation. During this process Lila and Gwen get to know each other and fall in love. To be honest, I didn’t really buy into their relationship, I didn’t feel the chemistry between them and the constant harping on them almost being ‘sisters’ was annoying and distracting. There’s also a lot of soap opera moments around the parents marriage, including a reveal at the end that just had me shaking my head. In a book that was trying to do so much, it felt like a step too far.
Having lost my mother to Alzheimer’s and my dad to cancer/Parkinson’s reading this was like picking at a never healed wound and around the 85% mark I had to put it down, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to finish it. Not because it was bad, just because of the feelings it evoked. It’s a raw and unflinching look at the devastation of illness and finding hope even in grief. I’m giving it 4 stars only because I thought there were a few too many soap opera twists towards the end, but still recommend it, just be warned, it’s not an easy read, and it will be harder for some.
I knew going in that this was as much about a mother and daughter coming to terms as it was a romance (more so really) and that it had a cancer storyline, so my fault entirely for requesting it anyway. My only defence is that I have enjoyed all of Zak’s books and thought I could handle it. Yeah, I was wrong.
So, the main characters here are Gwen, a barely made it actress who lives in LA and has been estranged from her mother Carol for 15 years. She comes home for her father’s birthday and discovers that her mother is ill. Complicating this is that while she was gone her parents essentially replaced her with Lila, who not only moved in and became the new daughter, she also coaches volleyball with Carol.
Most of the story and many of the most moving parts revolve around Gwen and her mother and their reconciliation. During this process Lila and Gwen get to know each other and fall in love. To be honest, I didn’t really buy into their relationship, I didn’t feel the chemistry between them and the constant harping on them almost being ‘sisters’ was annoying and distracting. There’s also a lot of soap opera moments around the parents marriage, including a reveal at the end that just had me shaking my head. In a book that was trying to do so much, it felt like a step too far.
Having lost my mother to Alzheimer’s and my dad to cancer/Parkinson’s reading this was like picking at a never healed wound and around the 85% mark I had to put it down, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to finish it. Not because it was bad, just because of the feelings it evoked. It’s a raw and unflinching look at the devastation of illness and finding hope even in grief. I’m giving it 4 stars only because I thought there were a few too many soap opera twists towards the end, but still recommend it, just be warned, it’s not an easy read, and it will be harder for some.