Thanks Hachette Australia and netgalley for this ARC.

If you like Erica james' books then this one will be right up your alley. Loved the feel of getting into a good book.

EXCERPT: 'We don't plan with whom we fall in love,' she'd said. 'Look at us; it just happens when it happens. I call it a lucky collision.'
How right she was. Falling in love again at his age had seemed as likely to him as dancing on the moon, but that day at Brooklands, when he'd first approached Romily having frequently seen her about the club, he had felt something astonishing happen to him. Something he hadn't believed he was still capable of feeling. After taking her for dinner, he'd promised to go straight out and buy one of her novels. To his shame, he'd never found time to read much before; work had always consumed him.
In the days that followed, when she had been too busy to see him again, he had found it difficult to concentrate on anything; all he could think of was being with this extraordinary woman. Yet at the same time he had wanted to deny what he felt, telling himself he was too old to succumb to such absurd behavior. But after seeing her again, he'd known that he'd been given a special gift, a second chance to love once more. And to use Romily's analogy of a collision, she had hit him with all the force of a fast moving train.

THE BLURB: From Erica James, bestselling author of Summer at the Lake, comes an enchanting tale of one family coming together and finding their way.

It's the summer of 1939, and after touring an unsettled Europe to promote her latest book, Romily Temple returns home to Island House and the love of her life, the charismatic Jack Devereux.

But when Jack falls ill, his estranged family are called home and given seven days to find a way to bury their resentments and come together.

With war now declared, each member of the family is reluctantly forced to accept their new stepmother and confront their own shortcomings. But can the habits of a lifetime be changed in one week? And can Romily, a woman who thrives on adventure, cope with the life that has been so unexpectedly thrust upon her?

MY THOUGHTS: I have had a long and enjoyable relationship with Erica James over the years. We have had the odd wobble, but I have never completely fallen off the bike. Coming Home to Island House only seats me even more firmly in her camp.

This is a lovely story of a family with baggage, with pride, with hurt feelings, resentments and sibling rivalry. Called home suddenly these 'adult' children are faced with death and the shock of a stepmother not much older than they are. Add into this mix an unexpected clause in a will and the outbreak of WWII, and you have all the ingredients for a captivating and enthralling family drama, which is exactly what Erica James delivers.

James writes with passion of people in difficult situations. She also writes with compassion and demonstrates a great understanding of human character.

WARNING: Keep a box of tissues close by.

Thank you to Hachette Australia, Orion for providing a digital copy of Coming Home to Island House by Erica James for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system. This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com https://sandysbookaday.wordpress.com/...