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A review by aliu6
The Road Home by Erin Zak
4.0
3.5 stars
Actress Gwendolyn Carter hasn't been home for 17 years. In the time since, she hasn't made much of herself beyond a few supporting roles in movies and a lot of therapy sessions. Gwen is finally convinced to return home for her father's birthday, dreading a confrontation with her mother and with Lila Machowicz, the woman her parents think of as another daughter. Then she finds out that her mother's cancer has returned, and despite all the hard feelings between them, Gwen knows she has to stay to take care of her. Her mother is a lot more accepting and supportive of Gwen than she was all those years ago, which should feel amazing. Except Gwen can't help but be jealous of Lila and the place she has taken in her parents' lives. Throw in all that pesky attraction between them, her mother's hard truths, and her father's secrets, and Gwen has way more than she bargained for.
cw: difficult cancer battle, infidelity (only between side characters), homophobia
This was a solid read. The story was entertaining, but there were some downsides that brought the book down in my opinion.
The Characters: I found both characters to be quite likable. I will say that despite being the older one, Gwen came off as childish and immature, especially in the beginning, although it was partially understandable given the circumstances. Lila was really sweet and seems like a genuinely good person. Gwen works through her issues by the end of the book, so I liked her character growth. There's some reliance on side characters, but I'm a little disappointed that none of them besides the mother was really given a personality.
The Romance: This part was really cute. Erin Zak does great build up with the attraction between the MCs, and I was rooting for them the whole way through. I love me a good enemies-to-friends-to-lovers story.
The Plot: I'm not sure how I felt about this. The plot was mainly driven by the mother's cancer battle and Gwen working out her insecurities. I thought that these two conflicts were enough to keep the story interesting. When additional issues popped up concerning Gwen's dad, it felt a little unnecessary. Maybe Zak added it so the story could have more depth, but it kind of just bummed me out. I also thought the revelation about Gwen's mother at the way end was unnecessary and out of the blue.
The Writing: Hmm. So to start with the positive, I really loved the humor that Erin Zak brought into this book. Not an easy thing to do when the main topic is cancer. There was pretty good dialogue between the characters, especially during the heart-to-hearts. Something I didn't like (which is just a pet peeve of mine) is the story was written in present tense. Also, it was written in 3rd person omniscient, so we hear both Gwen's and Lila's thoughts, but it felt disorganized, and I found myself getting confused about the narration several times.
All in all: An entertaining, above-average read. I would recommend this if you want a cute romance and don't mind the cons from above.
**I received an ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Actress Gwendolyn Carter hasn't been home for 17 years. In the time since, she hasn't made much of herself beyond a few supporting roles in movies and a lot of therapy sessions. Gwen is finally convinced to return home for her father's birthday, dreading a confrontation with her mother and with Lila Machowicz, the woman her parents think of as another daughter. Then she finds out that her mother's cancer has returned, and despite all the hard feelings between them, Gwen knows she has to stay to take care of her. Her mother is a lot more accepting and supportive of Gwen than she was all those years ago, which should feel amazing. Except Gwen can't help but be jealous of Lila and the place she has taken in her parents' lives. Throw in all that pesky attraction between them, her mother's hard truths, and her father's secrets, and Gwen has way more than she bargained for.
cw: difficult cancer battle, infidelity (only between side characters), homophobia
This was a solid read. The story was entertaining, but there were some downsides that brought the book down in my opinion.
The Characters: I found both characters to be quite likable. I will say that despite being the older one, Gwen came off as childish and immature, especially in the beginning, although it was partially understandable given the circumstances. Lila was really sweet and seems like a genuinely good person. Gwen works through her issues by the end of the book, so I liked her character growth. There's some reliance on side characters, but I'm a little disappointed that none of them besides the mother was really given a personality.
The Romance: This part was really cute. Erin Zak does great build up with the attraction between the MCs, and I was rooting for them the whole way through. I love me a good enemies-to-friends-to-lovers story.
The Plot: I'm not sure how I felt about this. The plot was mainly driven by the mother's cancer battle and Gwen working out her insecurities. I thought that these two conflicts were enough to keep the story interesting. When additional issues popped up concerning Gwen's dad, it felt a little unnecessary. Maybe Zak added it so the story could have more depth, but it kind of just bummed me out. I also thought the revelation about Gwen's mother at the way end was unnecessary and out of the blue.
The Writing: Hmm. So to start with the positive, I really loved the humor that Erin Zak brought into this book. Not an easy thing to do when the main topic is cancer. There was pretty good dialogue between the characters, especially during the heart-to-hearts. Something I didn't like (which is just a pet peeve of mine) is the story was written in present tense. Also, it was written in 3rd person omniscient, so we hear both Gwen's and Lila's thoughts, but it felt disorganized, and I found myself getting confused about the narration several times.
All in all: An entertaining, above-average read. I would recommend this if you want a cute romance and don't mind the cons from above.
**I received an ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.