I’ve read many books by Erin Zak but honestly this wasn’t my favorite. I just could never get into it but alas I would never give up on this author.

😭 😭 😭 😭

This was way more sad than I was expecting!
Not a fun and steamy romp!
The characters were well developed and defined and I loved that.
Poor Gwen really got the short end of the stick though with everyone's bad judgement of her, I really didn't like a lot of the negativity towards her when people didn't know her...

You really get to know the two women and their family and unpacked a lot of emotions and emotional responses to a whole bunch of things.

This is top tier sentimental garbage (a wonderful term of endearment).

I absolutely loved this book. It's so different from the other lesbian fiction/romance novels. I couldn't stop reading it. I laughed, I cried, I cheered. I felt what the characters were feeling, which I always find to be great character development.
When Gwen comes home, despite her reluctance, she finds herself in the midst of a different parent/child relationship. Lila, who was the "second chance" has taken her place in this very different world from which she grew up. The challenges and growth of her character, along with Lila's, will crawl it's way into your heart in this novel.

Very well written! Characters had a lot of depth and emotion behind them. Every action was explained. But that was also part of the problem. It was too long.

Welcome to the latest installment of me catching up on the backlist. Actress Gwendolyn Carter has had a few bit parts over the last few years but hasn’t landed her breakout role yet. Crushed and ready to give up, she’s called home to celebrate her dad’s birthday and to meet her “replacement,” Lila Machowicz, whom her parents have been basically raising since she was a teenager. Lila can do no wrong, and Gwen and her mother have never gotten along. Gwen is only planning on staying a couple of days, but a crushing diagnosis from her mother prompts her to stay a little longer and hopefully repair the rift. As if all of this isn’t enough, she finds herself fighting an attraction to Lila.

I enjoyed this one. It was a nice, emotional story of coming home, repairing rifts, and of course, romance. I liked Gwen’s character arc, even though I found her being really dramatic and childish at times. I guess that goes with the territory as an actress, and it worked pretty well for the story. I liked that Lila wasn’t as one dimensional as Gwen anticipated. She wasn’t the perfect child, but she grew into a mature adult. Zak built the romantic tension well, and Gwen’s prolonged absence left space for a few twists and turns as well as revelations.

Overall, it was really nice to be able to read this during slow work days. It provided a perfect escape from long hours sitting at a desk, waiting to go home. It’s out now, so check it out.

I have strong feelings about this story, but I will preface with, This story is amazing. Zak clearly poured her heart and soul into every word and it shows. This story is gut wrenching and packed with emotional turmoil. Raw is a good way to describe this book and how it will make you feel. For several reasons I had trouble connecting to this story but that never prevented my appreciation and I am sure most readers will completely fall in love with this devastatingly beautiful story.
This is a story of family drama, grief, regret, jealousy, and complex emotional trauma.
The only character I was able to connect with was Gwendolyn. She left home for her own emotional health and never looked back. The only real mistakes Gwen makes in my opinion is taking out her Jealousy and hurt on Lila in the beginning of the story. Otherwise I felt Gwen got the short end of the stick in everyway. She is often painted as selfish, a failure, and heartless by everyone around her which irritated me to no end. I felt that Gwendolyn’s feelings and actions were justified most of the book even if I am the only one who feels that way.
I Love family and am glad that Gwendolyn decided to fight to try to repair hers but I don’t believe that a person should be forced to interact with harmful family members just because they are family. It should always be a choice not an obligation just because they are all you have left.
Lila was too hypocritical for my taste and while I liked her character most of the time, there was just too much disconnect in the way she treated Gwen a good portion of the time that couldn’t get past.
Carol is a complicated character and I have many feelings about her but I will just say she did things the way she thought was best. Most of her choices frustrated me in the ways they hurt Gwen but she is only human. The characters are remarkably flawed as are we all, and the beauty in the flaws is prevalent throughout the story.
There are so many emotional conflicts throughout this story and it really put me through the ringer. Between messy families, illness, confronting years of hurt, complicated relationships, and romantic entanglements there is a lot to unpack here, and Zak does a fantastic job of it.
The romance was good and added many layers to the story that I enjoyed. I had a little trouble fully embracing it due to my issues with Lila but I enjoyed how things unfolded and the attraction between these two was unmistakable and wonderful.
There were a few times when the author of characters sent mixed messages that frustrated me. Just little things usually to do with Gwendolyn, but were difficult for me to brush off.
I can see objectively that this story is fantastic and that it is only because of my perception that I couldn’t fully fall in love with it. This story is incredibly beautiful and fulfilling with a sweet ending.

Good story, couldn't wait to keep reading all what was going to happen. The Road Home made me feel like I was on my own Road Home.

Erin Zak's The Road Home is a DNF for me.
I wanted to push through it, but I couldn't make my way through the present tense writing.

This book is incredible. It is absolutely A+ storytelling from start to finish. Zak has a fresh youthful writing style that brings vibrancy to the page, yet she is fearless and bold. She doesn’t balk when it comes to digging into the tough stuff, like grief, complicated families, personal failures and, of course, love. She can gracefully write a story laden with complex and heavy-hearted subject matter very impressively. She is a writer that should be taken very seriously.

There are so many things to appreciate about this book. The character development is incredible. Gwen’s inner journey and transformation over the course of The Road Home was gripping and painful, but so essential. Zak really puts Gwen’s heart through the wringer at times, but she knows how to temper the tension with the proper amount of humor. In the final chapter, Gwen is no where near the person she started out as. She owes that, in part, to a girl she thought she couldn’t stand and a mother she thought she hated, but the rest is all Gwen’s hard work.

Zak tackles the complexities and idiosyncrasies of a complicated mother and daughter relationship with tender care. She moves Carol and Gwen’s relationship along as they heal and forgive in a way that is so convincing and believable, readers feel the emotions as the characters experience them. Remorse, regret, forgiveness, peace and gratitude–it’s all there. Zak lays it out like a dot to dot and the readers to get the full experience. Be advised though, tissues will be needed.

Once the grief, regret and even jealousy are pealed back, readers are able to see the real life force in this story—love. Love from family, from friends, from lovers is revealed in the most surprising places. The most surprising, though, is Lila and Gwen’s love. They are two women who are very much at odds with each other. They are equally fascinated and intrigued with one another, yet at the same time quite leery and untrusting. While their instant attraction is awkward considering their family connections, it is still undeniable. Their chemistry is something that neither can seem to ignore or resist. In fact, it’s downright futile, for it ultimately becomes their lifeline during Carol’s battle with cancer.

The love Lila has for Gwen is so pure and sweet; it turns out to be the balm for Gwen’s wounded soul. With Lila’s love and support, Gwen is quietly encouged to reconcile with her mother and heal a relationship that is so very fractured. Lila’s love and unconditional presence helps Gwen come fully into her own and patch the holes and heal the wounds in the troubled relationship with her mother. Lila’s love helps nurture the strong, confident person that has lain dormant for quite some time, just below the surface, waiting to unfold and sparkle. All she needs is time and space and love.

Gwen’s love for Lila is passionate and unbridled. It’s something she hasn’t felt in years, if ever. The strange thing is, it’s Gwen’s mother, a woman who initially could not accept Gwen as a lesbian, that recognizes their love and encourages it. Their attraction, if not awkward at first, is certainly undeniable. The chemistry they share is something that can not be ignored. As much as they both would like to resist it, they know it is futile. Fittingly, it ultimately becomes their lifeline during Carol’s illness. Without it, they would nearly drown in their sorrow and loss.

This is a phenomenal book. It is intricate written and well woven together. The storytelling is absolutely gripping and very difficult to put down. The Road Home is raw and honest, and one hell of an emotional roller coaster ride. I highly recommend it.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book started out with the character's emotions all over the place, in hyperdrive - she's in therapy, is intensely angry with her mother, thinks the woman her mother has befriended is a replacement daughter, feels like a failure in her career, hasn't been home in 17 years and her dad is a saint.

Gwen goes ho.me for her father's birthday celebration and the emotions continue to ping all over the place.

Lila, the young woman befriended by Gwendolyn 's mom is just as emotional and needless to say, the two women do not like one another over misconceived expectations and unshared information.

. Do not read if you're looking for light froth -
The book takes you through so many issues - learning your parents aren't always who you think they are, terminal illness and loss, love

4.5 Stars
Wow - really enjoyed this book. There was so much going on on the interpersonal levels between not only the leads but with the secondary characters - it gave the story a phenomenal amount of depth and pathos. Zak likes her angst - and there's lots of angst triggers in this novel: estranged mother/daughter, rivalry for mother's affection, terminal illness, distant father, hate to love relationship, career doubt and a volleyball championship. Sounds jam-packed and all over the place but Zak weaves them all together to make a particularly poignant and satisfying story.

Returning home for the first time in years, Gwendolyn is dealing with a Hollywood career that is stalled and having to face her estranged mother and the woman who seems to have replaced Gwendolyn as a surrogate daughter. There's a brittle and icy edge to their first scenes - and Gwendolyn is no saint. I think that is what I liked best about this book - there was no black or white, right or wrong - the characters were nuanced and flawed but still willing to change and accept. The enemy to lover storyline between Gwendolyn and Lara works particularly well - especially as they are drawn closer together as Gwendolyn's mother illness progresses. Unlike a lot of lesfic novels, this unravels over a months long period of time, giving all the characters a chance to shift and grow.

I won't lie - this one got me tearing up but it didn't feel like it was exploitative, the characters and the situations just resonated. There's a raw honesty and emotion in the characters and their evolving relationships that, as hard as they sometimes might be to read, also provide a wonderful sense of hope and resolution.

Although it sounds like a dreary and depressing novel, The Road Home is a riveting family drama that has it high points and humour as well. I think, out of the books I've read this year, this is the best drama I've read and Ms Zak has a masterful ability to pull the best out of angsty tropes and make them real and relatable with characters that could very well be someone in your own life.

Strongly recommended.

This was so close to being 5 stars for me. I’d totally agree with someone giving this book 5 stars, I just reserve that rating for books that I would read again and this one was sooo sad that I can’t!

If it hasn’t been mentioned by others, this story deals with someone with cancer and going through radiation. The beauty of this book is that it’s written so brutally honest, which may trigger some people who have witnessed the harsh realities of fighting cancer. Tissues were needed, bigly.

The book did start a little slow for me, but once Gwen came home, it really progressed and I couldn’t put it down. There is a bit of a enemy to lovers thing happening between Gwen and Lila, but luckily it doesn’t get too crazy or unrealistic. In fact, nothing that happens in this book felt contrived. It’s just a very well written, real life romance book.

Overall, I would highly recommend people give this a read.

A heartfelt story of regret and love.

This story touched me quite profoundly. The characters have an evolving chemistry, but the heart of the story belongs to Carol, a mother to both Gwen and Lila.

The pace of depth of the novel are finely tuned, it delivers perfectly, like a delicate recipe.

Thank you so much to net galley for sending me a copy of this book. I was so excited to read this book but I ended up being a little disappointed.

After 17 years Gwen comes home to her parents. There she gets to know the person who took her place as surrogate daughter in her absence. During her stay she has to realize that her mother, with whom she has no good relationship, is seriously ill and stays to help.
Erin Zak's book "The Road Home" is about loss, forgiveness and life. The description of how a sick person slowly leaves this world is, in my experience, very accurate and is described in detail. You can see how a diagnosis can change a person and the people around him.
The book is written well and realistically.

I received a copy from netgalley in exchange for a an honest review.

17 years ago, Gwendolyn Carter left Indiana to pursue a career as an actress in Hollywood. She never came home once in those 17 years because she believes her mom absolutely hates her. During this time, her mom and dad took in a girl named Lila who became their surrogate daughter. When Gwen returns home to celebrate her dad’s birthday, things are awkward to say the least because Gwen thinks her mom loves Lila more than her. But, as time goes on, Lila and Gwen can’t deny the attraction they feel towards one another. When Gwen is ready to return to Hollywood, she discovers that her mom has cancer. Deciding to stay, Gwen is forced to unpack her demons and learn how to trust and love her mom again.

I absolutely loved this book. The moment I started, I couldn’t put it down until I was finished lol. There was so much more than just a f/f romance in The Road Home. The way that Zak wove the storyline was so beautiful and powerful and authentic.

From the start, with Gwen in therapy talking about the trauma her mom put her through as a teenager, I knew this was going to be a rollercoaster. I mean, can you imagine thinking your mom literally replaced you with someone else as soon as you were out of her house? And on top of that, thinking your mom hates you because you’re gay, but then she accepts her new daughter despite the fact that she’s gay too.

There were a lot of parts in the story where I got frustrated though, because they really could’ve avoided a lot of the problems if they just talked to one another, but I guess that’s just them being human. Another reason is that I felt like no one really tried to get to know Gwen in the beginning. Like Lila “tried” to be understanding, but she ended up just losing her temper and calling Gwen a child (which okay she was acting like a child LOL I’ll give her that) even though she doesn’t know what caused her to leave her home. Idk about you, but I think if I heard that someone left their home for 17 years and never came back, I don’t think I would be mad at the person. I think I would question the household that they were raised in to see why that happened and what could’ve been so bad that made them do that.

Aside from that, the romance was amazing. Gwen and Lila go from sort of enemies to friends to lovers and I love that. They were there for each other when they needed it the most and there were definitely some steamy moments ;). I really enjoyed watching them get to know each other and start to open up and learn to understand why the other person acts the way they act. One complaint that I do have is that I wish Gwen opened up more about how her mom was not accepting of her sexuality with Lila. I feel like she just kind of brushed it off even though, obviously, it was traumatic enough to send her away for 17 years.

And finally, the storyline where Gwen and Lila have to learn how to deal with Carol’s (Gwen’s mom) fight with cancer. This was probably my favorite aspect in the book. Seeing Gwen rebuild her relationship with her mom and understanding that people can change, whether it be for good or for bad, made me very emotional. One of my favorite moments was when Gwen’s best friend helps her understand that everything happens for a reason. If she hadn’t left 17 years ago, maybe her mom would have never accepted her sexuality. But the fact of the matter is everything that had happened, led up to that moment where they can begin to rebuild their relationship.

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 replaces 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 to 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.

ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

This book really wasn't for me, but I did feel it was well written.

I read this book slowly. I would read for a while and put it down, then pick it up after a break. This book was both wonderful and heartbreaking. Zak did such a great job with Gwen in this novel. The emotions were written in such a way the reader experienced the entire range, even if the reader has little or no personal experience with cancer. I see how this could be a difficult read for some especially if the circumstances are very close to home. I always love when a character is written to be exactly the person the other needs at a particular time. Lila was exactly that, someone who could move beyond first impressions, be incredibly supportive while also acting as a bridge. While this isn't a book a will be rushing to read again, it is a book that I will not soon forget. Pick this one up when you want a more serious read you will not be disappointed.

Wow! I could not put the book down once I began reading. It was like watching a movie from beginning to end, I was that deep into it. It was sad, made me cry, hate to see people dealing with illness, but it's a part of life. Love how the daughter fell in love with the one person she thought was replacing her and taking over her life. The one bedroom scene was smoking hot. I was kind of sad, the way you wrote that scene was so erotic and I wanted more. It would have been nice to have at least three instances where they were intimate instead of just the one. Overall, great book, that had a valuable lesson, life is too short so forgive and love while you can. Spend moments with your loved ones, cherish them always, you never know when tragedy may strike. I will definitely be reading more books by this author. Great job!

I received an ARC from the wonderful author via Net Galley.