Coming Home by Melanie Rose

Coming Home

by Melanie Rose

Ever experienced deja vu? An enchanting and magical novel about reincarnation from the author of Could It Be Magic?

A freak snowstorm leaves a young woman unconscious and stranded. Coming to, she has no recollection of who she is or how she happened to be stuck in the middle of unfamiliar countryside. All she recalls is the warm arms of a passing stranger coming to her rescue and carrying her to safety…

She awakes in an idyllic country cottage, a cottage belonging to Vincent, a recently widowed city banker who uses it as his rural getaway. Dashing and polite, the woman can't think of a better knight in shining armour. While the housekeeper isn't best pleased abut her arrival, Vincent's 6 year-old daughter Jadie, can hardly contain her excitement, chattering away excitedly. Trouble is, she's been mute for the past two years…

As she struggles with flashbacks to her past, memories come back to the woman which aren't her own, bringing with them a stream of questions. What secrets does Vincent hide? Why has Jadie being silent for so long? Why does Jadie feel such a connection with her? Will she ever discover her true identity? Or is she, as Jadie believes, an angel come to save them all?

Reviewed by Leah on

4 of 5 stars

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Coming Home is very similar to Rose’s first novel Could It Be Magic? as the main character finds herself in an unusual and magical situation, but I enjoyed the plot. It sounded a lot like Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella, too, and while it is similar in a few ways, the added historical/regression element gives the book its own spin. In a bid to figure out who she is Kate (the name she gives herself as the book progresses) decides to have hypnotherapy to help her to remember but finds herself regressing to a life set in Victorian times. As I’ve been getting into historical fiction recently it was a bonus for me and I thoroughly enjoyed all the flashbacks to that time period.

For once I thoroughly enjoyed all of the characters. Each of the characters in the story matures as the book progresses and they all touched me deeply. Kate made a fantastic lead character and her helplessness about her situation came across very genuinely. The character that had most impact on me though was young Jadie. When we meet her she doesn’t talk to anyone except Kate and it’s clear the death of her sister hurt her a lot. I liked Vincent, but I found him a bit confusing. The supporting characters help the story along nicely.

Melanie Rose seems to be a natural storyteller, the sentences just seem to flow and she makes her books very hard to put down as mysteries are unravelled and secrets are revealed. Rose’s writing when Kate regresses is very in keeping with the time period in which it’s set and she managed to capture it perfectly. I really enjoyed Coming Home. I didn’t personally believe it was as good as Rose’s first novel but it was readable none-the-less. I loved the sections where Kate regresses back to a previous life and I adored little Jadie. I couldn’t wait to unravel the mystery to Kate’s life and to learn why she had lost her memory and the added romance was the icing on the cake for me. I can’t wait to read Rose’s third book and I really hope she’s writing more as she’s hugely talented and I love her books.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 1 January, 2011: Finished reading
  • 1 January, 2011: Reviewed