The Long Way Home

Name: The Long Way Home
Brand: Simon & Schuster Audio
Availability: InStock
Author: Fanny Blake
ISBN: 9781398504066

Author: Fanny Blake

Narrator: Sandra Duncan, Esther Wane

Unabridged: 10 hr 57 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio UK

Published: 01/07/2021

Categories: Fiction, Family Life, Women, Nonfiction, Travel, Road Travel, Sagas, Romance, Clean & Wholesome Romance, Seasonal Fiction, Holiday

Synopsis

A family secret, a mysterious legacy, and a journey that will change everything…

When Isla, a 65-year-old grandmother, is left nothing but an old painting in her mother’s will, while her sisters and aunt inherit the estate, she is devastated. Close to retirement, getting ready to live on her own terms, the last thing she expects at this time of her life is such turmoil. So, to find an explanation for her mother’s rejection, she embarks on a road-trip.

But, right at the last moment, she’s forced to take her sullen – and, in her view, impossible – 14-year-old granddaughter Charlie with her. Cramped together in Isla’s car with her smelly old dog, these ill-assorted travelling companions set off to uncover some shattering and life-changing family truths at the same time as learning to love each other…

The Long Way Home is set in the UK and 1950s Paris where the story really begins, spanning four generations of women and the secrets that get passed down through them.

About Fanny Blake

Fanny Blake was a publisher for many years, editing both fiction and non-fiction before becoming a freelance journalist and writer. She has written various non-fiction titles, acted as ghost writer for a number of celebrities, and is a former books editor of Woman & Home magazine. She has been a judge of a number of literary prizes, including the Costa First Novel award, the Desmond Elliott Award, the RNA Romantic Novel of the Year award and the British Book Awards. She is also the commissioning editor for Quick Reads and a book reviewer.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Dale

The story starts with a young woman, May, in Paris in 1954 then moves to Isla and Edinburgh in 2019. Isla is 65 years old, mother of Helen and grandmother to 14 year old Charlie. Isla’s mother recently died. When her will is read, Isla’s sisters Lorna and Morag, inherit her estate, along with her A......more

Goodreads review by Fabulous Book Fiend

I really enjoyed this intergenerational, multiple country road trip novel! Full review to come.........more

Goodreads review by Hannah

I really liked this tale of discovery, especially the fact that it was told from the perspective of an older character. I’ve not really read many books like this so it was a pleasant change! Isla is such a lovely character and I really could picture her as a loving grandma. There were a few different......more

Goodreads review by Wendy(Wendyreadsbooks)

A lovely dual timeline story about family and secrets. It was wonderful to hear the story from Isla’s point of view, an older woman, giving a different perspective on life and what she thought of as family. Her relationship with Charlie was brilliant and I loved how they really got to know each othe......more

Quotes

‘Thoroughly enjoyable, with endearing, believable characters and long-held secrets'

‘Fanny Blake knows how to pinpoint what goes on in families. She is warm but never sentimental and her stories take a grip on the reader’