The Long Way Home: A Novel

Written by Robin Pilcher

Narrated by Kate Reading

"The Long Way Home is Robin Pilcher at his best. I devoured every word of this masterful storyteller."—Debbie Macomber, #1 New York Times bestselling author

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.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Macmillan Audio
• Release date: Mar 30, 2010
• ISBN: 9781427209641

Robin Pilcher

Robin Pilcher is the son of bestselling novelist Rosamunde Pilcher. His first three novels, An Ocean Apart, Starting Over, and A Risk Worth Taking were New York Times bestsellers. He lives in Dundee, Scotland.

Reviews for The Long Way Home

[Julie Kick · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Robin’s mother Rosamunde Pilcher is one of my favorite authors and he writes just as well as she does and in the same style. This is a great story that leaves you guessing until the final chapter. I didn’t want it to end.

[booklovers2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Overall enjoyed the story with mixed emotions. Being not fond of infidelity, and/or adultery, it was difficult to root for the main characters. Many moments of wondering if it was necessary to have such detail of the lovemaking. Sometimes, its best to leave it to our imagination.

[bcrowl399 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was my first venture into Will North's offerings. It made me interested in Wales and all the things I didn't know about Wales and Snowdonia in particular. It was a wonderful love story, so well written. It had a slow suspenseful rise from beginning to end.

[poprockz · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This was in a Readers Digerst condensed book which I read at work becasue there was nothing else to read. It started out slow and kept going without any surprises. The usual boy meets girl ect.

[chuck_ralston · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novel strikes a dissonant chord in the ideal harmony of marriage enduring 'in sickness and in health' and the realities of physical attraction and emotional needs. An American man, Alec Hudson, travels to Wales, where as executor of the will of his late ex-wife, Gwynne Davis, scatters her ashes atop Cadair Idris, which mountain peak she had proudly climbed and considered her spiritual home. While walking in Wales, he encounters Fiona Edwards, proprietress of a bed and breakfast, while also caring for her invalid husband, David, on their Tan y Gadair Farm, which lies in the shadow of Cadair Idris. Weaving a fabric of heartaches, tragedies, families, and duties, Alec and Fiona fall in love, yet manage to deal with all its perplexities, including loyalty, fidelity, the passions, without losing balance or perspective. Parallel to this is another, more awkward 'young' love triangle involving Fiona's daughter, Meaghan, her boyfriend, Gerald, and Owen, the foreman of Fiona's farm/bed and breakfast. Alec's nearness to Fiona is countered by the palpable estrangement he feels while at church amongst the people of Dolgellau and at Tan y Gadair Farm -- Fiona's world not Alec's. This is a rendering of one meaning of 'home', similar to Homer's Odyssey, an epic version of the long voyage home and a longing return to hearth and harmony. Our sense of 'home' is the heart's longing for the familiar always in contrast to the intelligence's seeking adventure and the unfamiliar.

[nyiper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Just exactly the perfect book for total escape. And when was the last time I heard the name Fiona---Fi--wonderful. I enjoyed the cooking descriptions and plan to almost immediately try the dicing/slicing maneuvers described. Of course you almost know exactly where the story is going but the trip along the way is one I was delighted to read.

[litelady4ajh · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Quaint love story set in Wales... was a pleasurable read.

[hallie27_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a great beach book that can be read in a matter of days. Although the author does come through with a few truly beautiful lines, most of the book is fairly predictable. Perhaps most disappointing was the final chapter that read like it was thrown together as an afterthought, instead of the meaningful conclusion it could have been.

[dissidentdaughter · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A charming love story between an American divorcee/widow and a Welsh woman stuck in a loveless marriage. A challenging situation that ends happily. Enjoyed hearing about the geography and culture of Wales; it was almost as if the geography was a character in the story.