Audiobook Review: Come Home by Lisa Scottoline

Title:  Come Home

Author:  Lisa Scottoline

Narrator:  Maggi-Meg Reed

Unabridged Length:  12 hrs, 29 mn


Here is a summary of the book from the Macmillan website:

Lisa Scottoline has delivered taut thrillers with a powerful emotional wallop in her New York Times bestsellers Save Me, Think Twice, and Look Again. Now, with her new novel, Come Home, she ratchets up the suspense with the riveting story of a mother who sacrifices her future for a child from her past.

Jill Farrow is a typical suburban mom who has finally gotten her and her daughter's lives back on track after a divorce. She is about to remarry, her job as a pediatrician fulfills her---though it is stressful---and her daughter, Megan, is a happily over-scheduled thirteen-year-old juggling homework and the swim team. 

But Jill’s life is turned upside down when her ex-stepdaughter, Abby, shows up on her doorstep late one night and delivers shocking news: Jill’s ex-husband is dead. Abby insists that he was murdered and pleads with Jill to help find his killer. Jill reluctantly agrees to make a few inquiries and discovers that things don’t add up. As she digs deeper, her actions threaten to rip apart her new family, destroy their hard-earned happiness, and even endanger her own life. Yet Jill can’t turn her back on a child she loves and once called her own.

Come Home reads with the breakneck pacing of a thriller while also exploring the definition of motherhood, asking the questions: Do you ever stop being a mother? Can you ever have an ex-child? What are the limits to love of family?  
 

My Review:
This was a great audiobook to listen to, as it was filled with action, suspense, and emotional struggles.  Reed did a wonderful job narrating this audiobook by embracing her characters as we follow her along a journey that has her struggling with her parental responibilities, loyalties, and obligations.  Jill's life appears to be on the right track, as she is getting ready to marry a wonderful man, her daughter Megan is excelling in school, and her career as a pediatrician is back on track.

Jill cannot foresee how her life will take a drastic change when her stepdaughter from her previous marriage unexpectedly shows up on her doorstop one evening.  Abby informs her that her father is dead and she suspects that he has been murdered.  Jill thinks that Abby is hysterical from grief so takes the girl under her wing, hoping to alleviate her suspicions.

As Jill spends more time with Abby she is reminded of the love that she developed for both her and her sister.  She was their mother at one time and she can't help but allow the motherly feelings to resurface.  Jill does not expect the renewed relationship with her stepdaughters to create a rift with her husband-to-be, but she cannot ignore her parental longings.

As Jill takes a closer look at Abby's allegations surrounding her ex-husband's death, she notices some things that don't add up.  As she continues her quest for the truth, Jill could end up in the middle of a scheme that not only puts her life in danger, but also everyone that she loves.

This was a very engaging audiobook, with my only complaint being the crying that happened early on in the book.  I found these parts downright annoying, but maybe that comes from raising a daughter.  Otherwise, this was a great book to listen to and with themes of parental obligations, love, and truth, I think it would also make a great book club selection.  I don't hesitate in recommending this book for your listening pleasure.

My Rating:  4/5

Disclosure:  This book was provided to me by the publisher from Audiobook Jukebox in exchange  for an honest review.