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The Long Way Home: Book summary and reviews of The Long Way Home by Robin Pilcher

The Long Way Home

by Robin Pilcher

The Long Way Home by Robin Pilcher X
The Long Way Home by Robin Pilcher
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  • Published Mar 2010
    304 pages
    Genre: Literary Fiction

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Book Summary

In the vein of Maeve Binchy, Rosamunde Pilcher, and Nicholas Sparks, New York Times bestselling author Robin Pilcher returns with his most enchanting novel yet, filled with captivating twists and turns of heart.

When Claire Barclay receives news that her beloved stepfather has had a stroke, she's more than a little shaken. Leo is her last real relative, and his own children rarely check up on the old man. Claire and her husband, Art, leave New York and fly back to Scotland to care for him during the summer. Their visit makes clear that Leo is no longer capable of living on his own, but he is determined to stay in his beloved old house. Art comes up with the idea of turning the place into a conference center, thinking they could purchase the place from Leo and build him a cottage on the property.

But the situation is much more complicated than it seems. Claire's old flame, Jonas Fairwether, has become Leo's caretaker and trusted confidant. Though Claire distrusts Jonas's motives, Leo chooses to take his advice to put the house up for public auction rather than sell directly to Art and Claire. Claire is immediately suspicious, and even more so when she finds out that another application has been submitted to develop the property. Does Jonas Fairwether want to knock down the Leo's house and build a development? It looks like whoever is behind the plan is being driven by financial gain, but there may be an even stronger motive.

The Long Way Home will keep readers on the edge of their seats. This is a masterful novel from a master storyteller.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Pilcher weaves a wonderful story filled with love, deceit, and friendship that is reminiscent of his mother Rosamunde's work." - Booklist

"Pilcher's unhurried tone and cozy description of Scotland makes for a companionable, if unexceptionable, read. Mild-mannered stuff for a rainy day." - Kirkus Reviews

"Leo is the best thing going, but he's relegated to a plot device. With such slapdash character work, it's tough to care about where it's all going." - Publishers Weekly

This information about The Long Way Home was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Robin Pilcher

Robin Pilcher has worked as a farmer, assistant film cameraman, and PR consultant. An Ocean Apart, his first novel, was a New York Times bestseller and a favorite among Pilcher fans, old and new. This is his fifth novel.

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