Another title that is not crime fiction.

Romily Temple, best selling crime fiction author, has recently secretly married Jack Devereaux, but while she is overseas, Jack has a stroke, and now Romily has to summon the 4 family members to his deathbed. So they arrive home at Island House to find not only that they have a stepmother they did not know existed, but eventually to discover that their father has put a very strange clause in his will.

Jack Devereaux has been estranged from his two daughters, son and female cousin for some time. Their childhoods were not happy as their mother died when they were very young and Jack did not cope, installing a series of nannies, and keeping the children at arm's length.

This was a very readable story. The terms of the will require the family to spend a week together with their stepmother in order to qualify for their inheritance. The interaction between the characters is fascinating. On the day of Jack's funeral England declares war on Germany and this gives the novel an interesting historical background. One of the daughters arrives home with a refugee child in her arms, the men of the village enlist for war, and the social climate is changed forever.

I'm sure I will read another by Erica James. There are over 20 novels to choose from, and most of the plots look interesting. ( )

This is a character-based novel set before and during the early years of World War II. Three adult siblings and their cousin have to spend a week together, getting along; their new stepmother Romily is there too, as a kind of catalyst and encourager.

Erica James has a gift of characterisation, and even the obnoxious oldest son got under my skin by the end. There are some caricatured critical old biddies who begin and end the novel with their observations, but the main cast are believable and likeable. My favourite was nine-year-old Stanley, an evacuee from London, but I also became very fond of several other members of the household.

It's a book of many interwoven subplots rather than having any main storyline as such; some quite serious issues are covered in places, and there are one or two shocks and some poignancy as well as some lighter-hearted moments. I found it hard to put down by the time I was half way through.

Very highly recommended.

Full review here: https://suesbookreviews.blogspot.com/2019/05/coming-home-to-island-house-erica-j... ( )

This was fab!

I am not a fan of Downton Abbey, nor do I watch many of the newer adaptations of novels or period dramas that are popular, but this book would appeal to fans of these genres. This book is set in the years prior to and during the first year of World War 2 and follows the Devereaux family, starting with the death of the patriarch, the grief of his younger bride and the reading of the will. The attempt of the will to bring together the children back at Island House starts off the whole saga and the rebuilding of the family.

The characters are all different, but their stories are all similar in that they have suffered loss, anger towards their father, and anger towards each other. Time, and the personality and patience of Romily Temple Devereaux, works wonders despite it being a time of national uncertainty in the face of Hitler and the advance of Nazism.

This is more than a holiday read, this is a novel that deserves your time. Pick it up, turn off the TV, make a cuppa with some biscuits and disappear to Island House for a few hours. ( )