This is not an easy read, and for me, it was a detailed look at how far we have come since the awful days of 1980’s homophobia.
The scene is set with the opening chapters focusing on an horrendous car crash which killed 3 passengers and paralysed a fourth. Amongst the dead are young bride and groom on the eve of their wedding. In the fallout from the accident, brother and sister Connor and Ellen are thrust into focus as their lives are changed forever. Connor takes the blame for the accident as the driver and Ellen is suddenly being courted by the handsome doctor’s son. After a whirlwind courtship, Ellen finds that her romantic and loving boyfriend was replaced at the altar by a cold and condescending brute. Connor flees Ireland and doesn’t fare much better as his sexual preferences become apparent.
I avoid spoilers in my reviews and sincerely hope that I haven’t given away too much. I found this book to be a heart-breaking read and poor Connor and Ellen, although miles apart, found hardship as they passed through the decades.
Graham Norton is a wonderful storyteller and his descriptions of the characters’ experiences evoked a real atmosphere and I could feel Ellen’s desperation and could almost smell the stale beer in Sobar.
The book isn’t all doom and gloom by any standards and there are several wonderful characters who lend their kindness to this page-turner.
In particular, I enjoyed how Connor’s relationship with Tim evolved from being a love affair to a deep friendship that tied them to one another.
Linda was a feisty character who could have been forgiven for being angry at the world but, instead, she offered kindness and understanding.
Please read this book; I hope that you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Graham Norton is a wonderful storyteller..... yes it is that Graham Norton. His characters are so real that you feel everything that they feel. You feel as if you are living it with them. This was a heartwarming but powerful story of family, friendships, lies and secrets.

One fateful day in 1987 will change the lives of so many in an instant. The small Irish village is preparing for a wedding he next day. But tragedy strikes when an accident on the way home from a day at the beach kills 3 of their own. The 3 survivors have to live with the guilt and shame. The village will never be the same again. The families and friends of the deceased changed forever. It is too much for the driver, Connor, to beat and he leaves the country for a new life, a fresh start where nobody knows what happened.

There is a lot more to it than that bu you will need to read it to find out. The 80s was a different, less tolerant time for many. This book is so cleverly written with all the characters playing their role in what happened and what is to happen in the future. A great afternoons read.

Thank you NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for my advanced copy of this book to read.

What a great book this was to read. It was interesting that you didn't know the full story as the book began, it slowly evolved throughout the book, almost like drip-feeding a snipped in here and there to push the story on. This made it very enjoyable and made you change your opinions of the characters at the same time too. A very emotive read too and one I can't but highly recommend.

I really enjoy the writing of Graham Norton both his autobiographies and more recently his excellent novels. His writing is so good and I have read all three of his novels and can highly recommend them.
The story begins in 1987 when a small Irish community is preparing for a wedding. The day before the wedding tragedy strikes when a group of young friends, including bride and groom, drive out to the beach. There is an accident. Three survive, but three are killed. All the lives of the families are hit by the tragedy but non more than Connor. Connor is one of the survivors but now must live the shame of having been the driver. He leaves Ireland , taking his secrets with him to try and forget his past and start again. But these secrets cannot be left unspoken and sooner or later the truth will come out.

Graham Norton has the gift of making his characters so real and the more you read this book the more you feel you are sitting in the same room listening and watching the story unfold. Another excellent read and I can highly recommend reading all three of his novels.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Hodder Stoughton for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve enjoyed this author’s previous books and was excited to read this one. However, although it’s a thought provoking read, I didn’t enjoy as, overall, I found it to be dour and sluggish,

It’s a story of small town Ireland with its narrow minded, bigoted inhabitants and its slow move to change. There’s some interesting characters and as a social commentary it works well, I just struggled to find a hook that engaged me.

The book begins with the town’s preparation for an upcoming wedding. Then, there’s a car crash and the aftermath involves secrets, lies, families ripped apart and in particular, the story of Connor who was driving the car.
Following the accident, Connor moves to Liverpool, London and eventually, New York and the story takes us on his journey as well as reflecting back to his family in Ireland and their lives.

There is little light to the book and although this accurately reflects a small town and its views on homosexuality and changing views in general, it felt more like following individual’s diary entries over a period of time, rather than a storyline that engaged.

There is a twist, but, it’s a predictable one and I’m left feeling flat and rather depressed. Some of that may be due to my Irish heritage and the knowledge that, despite appearances, there’s still much bigotry, misogyny and narrow mindedness. Having said that, there’s a light at the end and a glimmer of hope.

I’ve really challenged myself on my star rating, but, it’s a true reflection of my view and I feel it’s important to be honest.

I’m sure this book will have its audience and I hope many enjoy. I’ve increased my rating to an OK read, as, based upon the social commentary, it is that. Just not an enjoyable one.

Thanks to NetGalley And and publishers for the opportunity to preview.

I haven't read any other books by Graham Norton so I didn't know quite what to expect, but I loved this moving, engrossing and ultimately very satisfying novel. The characters are well-drawn and the depiction of Ireland is very real. I will definitely be recommending this book, and reading more from Graham Norton.

Home Stretch is the first of Graham Norton’s books I have read. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but as I had heard good things about the previous two, I had high hopes.
To be honest, the first few chapters I found to be confusing. The reader is introduced to a lot of characters in a very short time, I know this is to set the scene of the car crash, who has died, and their family relationships. I found I had to make notes on who was who, just to help me keep track in the early stages. Once I got to know the characters, I didn’t need to keep checking back.
The book settles into a coming of age story for our two main characters, Connor, and his sister Ellen, both affected by the car crash and it’s repercussions, but in different ways. One stays in the town, while the other leaves, and still the aftermath of that disastrous day shapes them for many years.
We also get to know the wider small town community, feel their grief, judgement and prejudices through their years old connections and ties with each other.
Around half way through, we have a complete shift in perception of events, and therefore our view of certain characters completely changes. This for me, is when the book really takes off. I read the last half of the book in one sitting, without realising I was reading so quickly, as I was so absorbed.
The book covers thirty years of the character’s lives, and also thirty years of change in society’s acceptance and tolerance. To see the contrast in Connor and Finbar’s experiences, through their generational age difference is heartening. I hope this change in acceptance is happening in all communities.
Home Stretch is a book you can get lost in, I really enjoyed it. 4*

This is the third book of Norton's I've read,and I've enjoyed them all. I think this is my favourite book so far as I imagine he experienced similar in Ireland in the 80’s. You'll be hooked once you start. Unputdownable
This one deals with small town,an accident and it's repercussions.
How a lie can spiral out of control and change many lives over a lifetime.
Graham Norton is a great storyteller as like his previous novels I really enjoyed it. This story like his others are always heartfelt and warming and found realistic set in Ireland.

In a suburb of Cork there has been a terrible accident and three young people have died. The driver of the vehicle,Connor, has been given a suspended sentence but just can't face the people he knows and loves and so takes himself to England as part of a building crew. There he comes out, moves to London and starts to find a life for himself having only ever sent the one postcard home. The effect on the community reaches long but life goes on and things get back to a normal of sorts. By twenty five years on Connoris now living in New York with his partner Tim. A story of love and hope and how people and times change.I quickly got into this as I did with Graham's other novels as there is an ease of writing and although quite a few characters they come across incredibly well. You could well imagine being in an irish bar with many of them.; It made me slightly wistful, a sense of what could have been or should have been perhaps, in a very different way. A story of love between family members and wrong being put right of a sort. Dans wedding speech had me pretty much in tears, and then reading after the final sentence “ Hodder and Stoughton…was founded by two young men who saw that the rise in literacy would break cultural barriers” OMG. One stunning read and one I will remember. A treasure of a book.
For more reviews please see my blog http://nickibookblog.blogspot.co.uk/
or follow me on Twitter@nickisbookblog

(rest of links on publication)

Graham Norton's 'Home Stretch' feels really different to my last read of his, a charming murder mystery from 2016 entitled 'Holding', but is no less engaging for the reader. It has elements of intriguing mystery but is, at its core, a tale of family love, loss and grief. Having grown up in a small-town Catholic community (granted, not in Ireland), there was a certain familiarity about the relationships in the novel for me. Norton vividly paints a huge cast of characters, but manages to keep our attention by perfectly plotting the character development of our two main narrators, Connor and Ellen.

The story starts the day before a wedding which, tragically, never occurs. A car is driven off the road, killing three of its young passengers, the driver, Connor, snuffing out these promising lives. As a result, Connor is almost banished, sent away to Liverpool, beginning a complex journey with his own homosexuality and how his identity can possibly align with his upbringing. He leaves behind a younger sister, Ellen, who marries her dream man but it does not take very long for her to face the drudgery of her married existence. As Connor loses touch with his family, we follow him and Ellen as they grow and age, spanning 1987-2019.

I found the relationships in this novel gripping, particularly how they are explained using aptly positioned flashbacks throughout the narrative. I enjoyed Norton's style in this book and how the reader has their assumptions and prejudices challenged by these characters. It is an ultimately heartwarming and rich family drama which captures the essence of this Irish community. I would argue this is Norton's best work yet.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Home Stretch is the third novel from Graham Norton. I have read his previous two fiction novels and I think this is the best one yet.
It’s 1987 in small town in Cork in Ireland. Six friends going on a trip to the beach. When on the way home there is a fatal car crash and 3 of them return home. The repercussions of that fatal day effect the friends and their families in the small community for the rest of their lives. Connor has been blamed for that fatal day is shunned by the local community, so he leaves the small town and goes to Liverpool to start a new life. He decides that his family is best off without him, so he decides not to contact them again. Until years later when he is sitting in a bar in America, he meets Finbarr, who turns out to be his nephew he has never met.
Graham Norton is a great storyteller as like his previous novels I really enjoyed it. This stories like his others are always heartfelt and warming and found realistic set in Ireland. But this time we learn how prejudice people can be especially in 80’s Ireland where they think that if you are gay you will burn in hell. Being gay is not natural. They did not understand that love can come in many sources. The story is also about reflection and life doesn’t have one straight path in life. This an uptown able story that everyone will love. Five stars from me.

Having read Graham's 2 previous novels and enjoyed them immensely I eagerly looked forward to reading 'Home Stretch'. He has again used his fabulous story-telling skills to write a novel set primarily in a small Irish town that is dealing with the repercussions of a tragic accident. The book reaches out over 3 decades and encompasses secrets, guilt and prejudice. I was hooked from the very beginning and thoroughly enjoyed it. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends and family.
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an advance reading copy.

3.5 stars

A serious car crash occurs in the village of Mullinmore near Cork in 1987. On the eve of a wedding, three young people are tragically killed including the bride and groom. The driver, Connor Hayes is relatively physically unscathed and the book explores the devastating effect it has on him, his parents and sister Ellen among others. The novel covers the years 1987 to 2015 and includes many of the far reaching changes to Irish society.

I so wanted to love this latest novel from the excellent Irish talk show host although it’s fair to say that I loved two thirds of it. Initially there are so many characters to get your head around it’s bamboozling! This does thankfully slim down as the book progresses with the main focus on Connor and Ellen. It also jumps about in time which makes continuity hard although in fairness I can totally see why Graham Norton does this.

So, what are the positives? The differing effects of the crash on a small community are portrayed extremely well as are the attitudes of the time. A number of characters lives are totally shattered and they are never the same again. It does a really good job on demonstrating the liberalising of Irish law and attitudes towards the gay community - this is a key part of the storytelling. With the exception of the beginning which deals with the crash the pace is quite slow and uneven until about a third of the way through and then it most definitely ramps up. There are some jaw dropping shocks especially for Ellen and the reader! Her life and marriage to Martin Coulter who becomes the local doctor is very compelling reading and makes you feel a whole range of emotions for her. Ellen, like her brother is very likeable, Martin is not. I don’t think it’s unfair to describe him as a total jerk but I must admit I do like to have a character to loathe! Connors life makes for interesting reading especially in the USA and there are moments when his story becomes very moving and poignant. There is a really good ‘coup de grace’ when one character (mostly) gets what they deserve.

This is a novel that examines grief and the different ways it effects people, it looks at how a multitude of secrets and lies can be extremely destructive and one of the main messages is acceptance of who or what you are. It’s easy to read and becomes very absorbing after a while. Its easy to read and becomes an absorbing story. It’s maybe predictable but that is not necessarily a bad thing.

With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC for an honest review.

This book is set over many years. In a small town in Ireland in the 80's, a car of young adults crashes and three of them die with others seriously injured. The boy responsible for the accident flees the country and loses touch with his family. The book then follows Connor throughout the years and several moves. I thought this was a really gripping and interesting novel. It reminded me slightly of The Hearts Invisible Furies and I would definitely recommend to anyone that enjoyed that!

As I loved Graham Norton's previous novels, I went into this one blind, expecting something similar to his other books but I was wrong. I think this is his best book by far.

It all begins in a small town in Ireland when a car full of youngsters crashes leaving 3 dead and 1 paralysed. Connor, the driver of the car, is forced out of Ireland by the villagers who blame him for bringing this tragedy to their small town.

After a few trying years, Connor finds himself living in London as an openly gay man and is finally finding happiness.

20 odd years later, Connor is now living in New York , dealing with a long term relationship breaking down until a chance encounter leads him to face up to the life he ran away from.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, I loved all of the characters and there were points I could feel myself fighting back tears. It was great reading about the changes in attitude of people from the 80s to the present day and a gay wedding to top it all off.

I loved it, such a great read!!

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder Stoughton for the advanced copy.

With this, his third Irish contemporary novel, Graham Norton has established his reputation as a serious writer, one who casts his eye on the limitations, judgementalism and prejudices of small town Irish communities whilst charting the more welcome shift in social attitudes through time in Irish society. In 1987, on the day before a wedding, a group of young friends get together to go to the beach, only for tragedy to occur in the form of an accident that leaves 3 dead and 3 survivors, wreaking devastation on a grieving and shattered community and the families, leaving them reeling, their lives left changed forever, the repercussions felt decades into the future. The driver, Connor, finds his life ripped apart as he faces blame for the tragedy, and his family the unbearable shame.

This instigates Connor's lonely move to Liverpool and then onto London, and a unexpectedly positive development in the situation in which he finds himself, where unlike home, he has the space to be who is, and live as an openly gay man, who then goes on to live in New York, estranged from his family. His haunting past has been buried, but surprisingly bought to the fore with a coincidental meeting in a bar that brings it all slamming back into his life as he returns home to Ireland. In a narrative moving from the past and the present, Connor's sister, Ellen, marries Martin and has two children, but all is not right, in this coming of age story of secrets, lies, deception, survival, hidden desires, sexuality and prejudice.

A thoughtful, compassionate and human quintessentially Irish novel, that took a little while to settle into, with some great characterisation, of family, community, and emigration that was a pleasure to read. Many thanks to Hodder and Stoughton for an ARC.

I really enjoyed Norton's crime novels and this is an interesting move into commercial fiction. The story is well told and clearly rooted in experience. The pace could have been tighter in places and I like to have heard more detail about the peripheral characters. But it's a heartfelt story in the tradition of Maeve Binchy and will be widely enjoyed

I read this in one sitting! Having read Graham Norton’s previous books I found that he just gets better and better. He definitely has the Irish tradition of storytelling in this gripping story about a small town who is shocked and changed overnight by a tragic event. I found this book unputdownable, it’s that good. The fallout that happens as a result of this tragedy is just so familiar to me as someone who lives in small town Ireland. I really grew to care about what happened to the characters. I particularly liked how Norton has shown the growth and change in modern Ireland. Will definitely recommend this book. Congratulations to the author and thank you to NetGalley and publisher for this advance copy.

When Graham Norton published his first novel I was a dismissive - assumed "another celebrity writer" - totally wrongly, and without even reading it! I read his second, A Keeper and adored - and immediately backtracked on all my assumptions. Home Stretch, his third novel, has utterly captivated me from the very first page and I feel truly bereft to now have finished this book.
Telling the story of a few families in a small Irish town, who have to deal with the aftermath of a tragedy involving 6 young people - that claims 3 lives, and alters the lives of the other 3 forever. From Ireland, to Liverpool, to London and New York, Norton deftly weaves together the stories that tie these families together... and break them apart.
This isn't a great plot twister of a book - this is gentler and more meandering. At times I found myself blinking back tears, and at others wanting to cheer and clap! I loved every page of this book - and I am now going to undo my mistake of not reading his first novel - because this is an author I want to read everything he has written.

An interesting coming of age story based around a family in Ireland. After a horrific car crash which killed three teenagers and paralysed another Conor runs off from home ashamed of what happened and life goes on without him. As family lies and secrets start to spill out and a chance meeting in New York can this family ever be healed and come back together.