bbrewer14's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Homecoming is an epic novel where the author takes you on a journey within a family that spans generations. With the horror of a despicable unsolved crime that occurred in the 1950s to the impact that carries on the family in 2018, the author explores the meaning of home, family, the power of secrets and the importance of the role of a mother in the life of her children.
Nora is in Australia and needs her granddaughter Jess to come home. Jess is in London, struggling to maintain a home and a job. She returns reluctantly to Australia to be with the grandmother who raised her. Polly (Nora’s daughter and Jess’s mother) is caught in the middle of the world Nora created for her as an anxious and ambivalent parent who doesn’t know how to be a mother despite her yearnings. Surrounded by a multitude of characters from the 1950s and 2018, the author takes the reader on a journey through the loss of a mother and her 3 children, the search for a missing infant, the unsolved mystery and years of speculation and rumors to the impact it has 50 yrs later on the family. Nora leaves clues behind that intrigue her journalist granddaughter and lead to an investigation that ends with a twist you won’t expect.
A wonderful book that thrives on artistic depictions of scenery, comparisons to well known literature to help set scenes, and the base desires of humans to seek what they yearn despite the cost to others. Loved the ending and the journey getting there was long but beyond worthwhile. Highly recommend and will be reading more from this author.
Nora is in Australia and needs her granddaughter Jess to come home. Jess is in London, struggling to maintain a home and a job. She returns reluctantly to Australia to be with the grandmother who raised her. Polly (Nora’s daughter and Jess’s mother) is caught in the middle of the world Nora created for her as an anxious and ambivalent parent who doesn’t know how to be a mother despite her yearnings. Surrounded by a multitude of characters from the 1950s and 2018, the author takes the reader on a journey through the loss of a mother and her 3 children, the search for a missing infant, the unsolved mystery and years of speculation and rumors to the impact it has 50 yrs later on the family. Nora leaves clues behind that intrigue her journalist granddaughter and lead to an investigation that ends with a twist you won’t expect.
A wonderful book that thrives on artistic depictions of scenery, comparisons to well known literature to help set scenes, and the base desires of humans to seek what they yearn despite the cost to others. Loved the ending and the journey getting there was long but beyond worthwhile. Highly recommend and will be reading more from this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Infertility, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Suicide, Child death, and Mental illness
Moderate: Gaslighting, Miscarriage, Murder, Death, Child death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Infertility, and Suicide
stephs_cozycorner's review against another edition
5.0
This extraordinary book, sitting at 560 pages, takes you on a beautifully narrated journey through multiple generations in South Australia.
Kate Morton does such a fantastic job in her descriptions that you feel completely immersed in the story, transported to another time and place.
The slow burn of this novel pays off and when you think you may have finally figured out this story you are hit with a few more surprises in the end.
𝙃𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 also has a book within a book called 𝙰𝚜 𝙸𝚏 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚆𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙, and while this usually doesn’t work for me as it can become quite confusing, it is done exceptionally well here. In fact, I feel the book within a book actually enhances the narrative.
Overall this was an exceptionally written, atmospheric and mesmerizing slow burn historical fiction story that I highly recommend!!
Thank you Simon & Schuster Canada and Tandem Collective Global for a gifted copy of the book.
⚠️ Trigger warnings:
Murder/Suicide. Death of a child. Loss. Grief. Infidelity. Postpartum Depression. Depression.
Kate Morton does such a fantastic job in her descriptions that you feel completely immersed in the story, transported to another time and place.
The slow burn of this novel pays off and when you think you may have finally figured out this story you are hit with a few more surprises in the end.
𝙃𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 also has a book within a book called 𝙰𝚜 𝙸𝚏 𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚆𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙰𝚜𝚕𝚎𝚎𝚙, and while this usually doesn’t work for me as it can become quite confusing, it is done exceptionally well here. In fact, I feel the book within a book actually enhances the narrative.
Overall this was an exceptionally written, atmospheric and mesmerizing slow burn historical fiction story that I highly recommend!!
Thank you Simon & Schuster Canada and Tandem Collective Global for a gifted copy of the book.
⚠️ Trigger warnings:
Murder/Suicide. Death of a child. Loss. Grief. Infidelity. Postpartum Depression. Depression.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Child death, Suicide, and Infidelity
marissa_roo's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
A slow start with slightly disjointed timelines, but it's necessary and worth the wait. Pay attention and you'll still be surprised as things unfold!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Murder
onemumreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Murder
Minor: Grief and Infertility
graceolivia's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I begrudgingly finished it mostly to find out if my initial theory was right, one of the twists is very obvious the other seemed underdeveloped. As a whole it felt like the pacing was off, it was very slow until the last 3 or 4 chapters which attempted to answer all of the questions in quick succession. I think it would have benefited from more time spent with the characters coming to terms with the developments and less specific details and time in the first three quarters of the book.
Spoiler
It really frustrated me that Nora was never considered to be incredibly manipulative, Jess seems to forgive her instantly for taking her away from her mother. Polly felt like she should have been the main character, I was far more interested in her thoughts and experiences. It seemed odd that her and Jess never had a proper conversation about why she actually left her with Nora. The pillow lie (x2) never gets acknowledged and apparently multiple people knew Isobel was innocent and said nothing. Marcus seemingly either forgives Meg for killing his best friend and his brothers girlfriend or doesn’t figure out it was her, either way it’s not believable. The idea that the whole thing happened as a snap decision to ‘punish’ Isobel also doesn’t make sense as it doesn’t align with Megs personality, it would be far more believable that Nora did it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Grief, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Infertility, Infidelity, and Kidnapping
authorjmjohson's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Kate Morton is a master of storytelling that is indescribably beautiful and deeply heartwrenching. This book is no exception. There is always a bit of mystery about the story, and trying to fit all the pieces together is what keeps me glued to the page, but more than that, she is deeply invested in exploring relationships, loss, tragedy, family secrets, missed opportunities, life's greatest joys and harshest regrets.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Murder, and Suicide
kiwichill's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Grief, Infidelity, Death, Child death, Death of parent, and Suicide
Moderate: Gaslighting, Abandonment, Grief, and Miscarriage
aneeley's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Miscarriage, Child death, and Murder
Minor: Death of parent, Gaslighting, Animal death, Death, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
kelboo's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Murder
queencariad's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Homecoming had some very powerful lines and moments.
Atmospheric and characters-driven, the way this book shades light on mother-daughter relationships, motherhood, mental health, roots and struggles was definitely captivating.
It is rather slow paced so it got lengthy at times (it’s quite a chunk of a book).
I had guessed one of the major plot twists but it didn’t take away the shock of the confirmation, especially considering the (too?) many others that were to come.
I had one issue with the book within the book format, which tends to take over the main narrative.
4 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, and Child death