Thank you to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours and Harper Collins for an invitation to join the blog tour and a copy of the paperback to read and review.
Synopsis:
When your heart belongs in two places, can you ever truly find home?
Brooklyn, New York
Bea has grown up in the heart of the Irish community, always hearing stories of home. When she discovers a letter from her younger self, written years before, it sends her deep into her own family history.
Kilmore Quay, Ireland
Years earlier, Lucy Mernagh leaves her much-loved home and family in search of the New York dream. The Big Apple is a world away from the quiet village she grew up in, and the longing for home aches within her.
When Bea uncovers a shocking secret, it takes her back across the water to Kilmore Quay, where – finally – long-buried truths will come to light. But fate has one last twist in store…
My thoughts:
This is the first time I’ve read a book by Carmel Harrington and I now need to go back and read her earlier novels.
I enjoyed this dual timeline novel, finding out about Bea in the present day and Lucy in the past. I didn’t know anything about the ballot for Irish people to move to the United States, and it was interesting to hear about how many people who moved away from Ireland, continued to celebrate their Irish heritage in the United States.
This was an emotional story, featuring loss and secrets, with Bea wanting to rectify some wrongs from her past, partly prompted by a time capsule letter and partly by some news she had received. I loved my virtual visits to New York and Kilmore Quay, and loved the sound of the Irish Breakfasts.
There are some twists to this story, only one of which I had guessed. I was quickly hooked by the story, this was a book I stayed up late reading (thankfully it was half term) and I found myself with damp eyes at the end.
A beautifully written book I’m happy to recommend, featuring the importance of female friendship, honesty and family.
Author Bio:
Carmel Harrington is from Co. Wexford, where she lives with her husband, her children and their rescue dog. An Irish Times bestseller and regular panellist on radio and TV, her warm and emotional storytelling has captured the hearts of readers worldwide.
Carmel’s novels have been shortlisted for an Irish Book Award in 2016 & 2017 and her debut won Kindle Book of the Year and Romantic eBook of the Year in 2013.
To keep in touch with Carmel, follow her on social media or visit her website. @HappyMrsH http://www.carmelharrington.com
Karen K is reading 
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