I really struggled to get through this one. I found myself putting it down to read other things. The content did not hold my attention and I found myself frustrated with the characters. The grandfather did not play a large roll in the story even though it is his idea to find the siblings and bring them all together.

I also thought about not leaving feedback but the fact that did not like the book is my opinion.

Malcolm has just discovered that he has two half sisters, Kiera is 12 and in foster care. Callie is in her twenties and just out of jail. Now that they are all living in Seattle together, can they become a family? ARC from NetGalley.

When I see a new Susan Mallery book I always pick it up. This was a good story but I almost felt it should be two books. The two romances both felt rushed to me. I also had a hard time liking the two main female characters. Callie Smith finds out she has a 1/2 brother and sister when she is released from prison. She seems to let a youthful disaster color her whole life. I just couldn't relate. Her younger 1/2 sister Keira, a 30 year old trapped in a 12 year old's body is much more positive and willing to experience life. Keira was in foster care when she was rescued by her grandfather and 1/2 brother. Delaney is facing her own life crisis when she meets Malcolm and offers to help him discover the joys of his siblings. She's stuck in the past since her fiancee was killed 3 weeks before the wedding. I hope in the future that Keira will warrant her own book. She was the best figure in the book. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

When We Found Home is billed as Women's Fiction. I am more used to Susan Mallery's romance novels. Her small town settings are so realistic, they seem like places I'd like to live or visit, as do the characters that inhabit them. There are three central characters in When We Found Home, each with their own back story and experiences. The overarcing theme wasnt woven in as much as I would have liked. The book almost seemed like three short stories that slightly overlapped, so the resolution wasnt as satisfactory as I would have liked. The characters suffered from their separateness as well, seemingly less complex than I had hoped. I found WWFH entertaining but not memorable. 3.5

Susan Mallery is one of the first authors I read when I first started reading romance books way back when, and I’m ALWAYS interested in checking out something new by her! When I discovered When We Found Home, I was really curious to check it out. It sounded like a really interesting read, and it was! I really enjoyed the story.

I want to start this by saying that for some reason I thought this book was a young adult book, as I thought I had seen that information somewhere, but it is not. It’s definitely a chick-lit book, and it was a fun, quick read which was just what I needed to read at the time.

There are a lot of characters in this book to love, and the story is told from a few different narratives, which was a lot of fun! The story is basically about three siblings who had absolutely no idea either other existed, yet find each other and become the family they never expected to have. But the story is not that easy, as there are a lot of twists and turns and arguments and more along the way, but that just made the story even more realistic, and I loved it.

Overall; When We Found Home was sweet, quick read about family and love and finding yourself, and I really enjoyed the story. Reading this book has reminded me that I still have SO many other books by Susan to check out, including the Girls of Mischief Bay series, which I have been meaning to read for FOREVER, and I’m now super excited to check it out asap. If you’re a fan of cute, quick contemporary reads, do check out When We Found Home!!

Happy Reading!!

Susan Mallery hit it out the park again. She puts romance and real emotions into her book and you can devour her books because you cant stop reading. I love the family aspect she puts into this book.
All around fabulous book and whenever Susan has a book out, I always pick it up!

Three lovely people grow up -separately- without loving parents, and though they don’t share the same mothers, they do share the same paternal grandfather. This guy might be in the background of the story character-development-wise, but he’s the hub that brings his three grandchildren together. Well, with a little help from a friend.

Susan Mallery wrote a terrific story about a non-traditional family. Malcolm was raised from boyhood by his grandfather. Keira was brought into the family home much later – and at the transitional age of 12 has a hard time feeling like she belongs. Delaney, a woman who works in the same building as Malcolm, helps bridge the brother-sister gap. Meanwhile, a third sibling is found and brought “home.” Callie isn’t sure this new world is for her, but feels a sense of responsibility for Keira.

I’ve read a lot of half-siblings-brought-together stories, but none quite like this. Mallery wrote fresh characters with realistic flaws and shortcomings, characters you can be annoyed with and cry with and laugh with… and sympathize with. And Mallery keeps up the realism all the way to the end, when everyone really has found home, even if it’s not what you’d expect. Terrific story about family, loyalty, and love.
https://randombookmuses.com/2018/08/26/review-when-we-found-home-by-susan-mallery/

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving a free copy. Another great read from Susan Mallery! Three siblings who share the same father discover each other after their father has passed away. Despite their age differences, the three overcome their own obstacles and work to become a family. A great read that shows it takes more than blood to become a true family.

SusN Mallory did not disappoint in this book. The story flowed with love and redemption. Thank you

“When We Found Home” by Susan Mallery


A moving and heartwarming novel of three half-siblings who find their way into a family they never knew they had while growing up. Malcolm found his way there as a 12 year old with his mother, he is now 34; Kiera just turned 13 and was fresh out of foster care; Callie is 26, but had a very poor and difficult life before being found by her paternal grandfather. They all have the same father who had a less than stellar attitude and personality and was absentee, at best. But their grandfather wanted them together, as siblings and to make themselves at home and to feel they came home.

They each have their own individual trials and tribulations and past issues to address. They have to learn to be siblings and how to count on one another. They have to make changes and adjustments and learn knew ways to communicate, accept one another, respect one another, and to love one another. But most of all to have found their way home within themselves and each other.

Wonderful characters that are realistic and ones you can empathize with. They will make you laugh, angry, tear up, and cheer for them. A storyline that has so many life lessons and intersections and divergence and is so wonderful and complete the reader enjoys every minute of it.

“When We Found Home” is easily one of Susan Mallory’s best novels.

Rating: 4.7
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review featured at www.books-n-kisses.com

4.25 Hearts Wow. Just Wow! I know we live in a world where sex is about sex and not about love but to find out that your family has increased by 2 half sisters would blow your world apart but that is what has happened to Malcolm.

There is so much to this book. Romance, of course, because it is Susan Mallery but also family dynamics, love and understanding as well as misunderstanding. This is so real. As the reader meets each new character we feel like a little bit has been added to Malcolm’s (and our) life.

I am a huge fan of Mallery’s Fool’s Gold/Happily Inc series and usually don’t enjoy the “extra” (as I call them) stories as much as as the series but this one just pulls at your heartstrings.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

What would you do if you found out you had siblings that you never knew about? That's the premise of Susan Mallery's newest book WHEN WE FOUND HOME. Mallery, a master storyteller, once again provides her readers with a story that is at once, heartbreaking and heartwarming. Three lives change for ever when they meet, held together by the common bond of wayward and irresponsible father. Initially, the fact they share half their dna doesn;t' mean much. But as each of them learns more about the other, their past lives, and their present, each grows to love and "need" the other int heir lives.
I loved this book - but then I've found I love everything Ms Mallery writes!
Thank you to Netgalley for an arc of a simply wonderful book!

This was a book that I fell in love with from the minute I started reading it. There aren't many books like that, so finding one always brings me joy.



I just instantly fell in love with all the characters, they were just so lovable, especially Keira and Callie. Those two were so broken and in need of real love and a real family.



Malcolm was quirky and lovable in his own way. Santiago was an Italian Superman. Really the characters couldn't get much better than that. I have to admit though, that the teenage Keira stole the show more often than not. She was perfection. An adult in a teenage body. I loved her observations, especially when talking to Malcolm.



The story is really a fairy tale. A grandfather bringing together the illegitimate children of his son, who has passed on. Malcolm, Callie and Keira are such a dysfunctional lot on first glance. Malcolm is the lucky one, as he has been with his grandfather the longest. His two newly discovered sisters need more nurturing.



I loved the romances that built between Malcolm and Delaney and Callie and Santiago. These were light romances that perfectly fit with the story, though the sex scenes felt a bit much for the type of book this was. Santiago was a great foil to Malcolm. The two men were friends since college and both so very different.



It is funny because I liked Malcolm better than Santiago, because Santiago was too perfect and Malcolm, just kept trying and failing and with the ladies, Callie was really the more likable of the two, though Delaney was a nice enough woman, it was just her issues seemed so trivial in comparison to everyone else's. Delaney also came across as selfish especially at the end. Her actions towards Malcolm made me want to slap her simple.



The climatic events in Callie's life were a bit predictable for me, but that didn't detract from a perfect story.



This was an absolute winner for me. I love Susan Mallery!

Families can be so complex. Malcolm, Callie and Keira all share the same irresponsible father, but only Malcolm was brought up "properly" and is part of the family company. Keira is 12 and had been in the foster system until a few months earlier, Callie is 26 and had just been found and brought into the rest of the group, also consisting of an elderly grandfather, the founder of the company that gives them their wealth; he is the one who leaves taking care of the girls to Malcolm. Both girls must learn to live with this very unexpected windfall and also how to deal with their older brother - who has absolutely no idea how to deal with either of them. Callie has a big secret that she hides from all but her immediate circle, Keira has to learn that she has a family and they will not kick her out if she misbehaves.

The book becomes a love story or two. Malcolm finds Delaney and Callie finds Santiago -- and grandfather sort of admits he and his long-time housekeeper are been together too, although in secret! The three half-siblings learn how to deal with one another, with their new and exciting and daunting lives, and how to trust that all of the above was real and lasting.

I love Susan Mallery's writing style.  She does a wonderful job of giving readers all the feels while adding in just the right amount of quirk and fun.  And with When We Found Home, she doesn't disappoint.    

Malcolm joined the Carlesso family when he was 12.  And while he had a great relationship with his mom and formed a bond with his new-found grandfather, his dad was pretty awful... and now they are finding out just how awful with the addition of a couple of half sisters.  You just have to feel for Malcolm as he struggles to relate to his new family dynamic.  His has no idea how to connect with his 12 year old half sister, Keira, and the sudden appearance of a new sister only a couple of years younger than him makes it even more complicated.  Luckily, with the help of a lovely barista, he just might figure things out.  

Callie has gone from having nothing to having everything, including a family, and she's just not sure how to handle it.  Adding in an intimidating and emotionally distant brother doesn't help.  But the relationship she forms with her new little sister, as the two of the bond over their now drastically different circumstances, will just melt your heart.  Throw in a guy who thinks she hung the moon, and her life might become just about perfect.  

Keira is the one I wanted to cuddle the most out of the group (although Malcolm comes in a close second - the man is just clueless but he does try ... ish).  Her childhood was awful, including a druggie mom and a stint in foster care.  It's no wonder that she's convinced her new posh life won't last.  Luckily an accident, a friendly barista, and the appearance of her new half-sister just might be the catalysts to help her trust in her new situation.  

Mallery uses her trademark wit & snappy dialogue, along with engaging & well-developed characters, to deliver a wonderfully emotional read.  While there is a romance for both Malcolm and Callie, its the three of them trying to figure out how to become a family that really steals the show.  The complications from being thrown together at this point in their lives make it even that much harder to find a way to connect but with a little guidance, some honesty, and sheer will, they just might make something wonderful out of a terrible beginning.

Such a sweet and heartwarming story!

When We Found Home interweaves so many stories--there's half-siblings Malcom, Callie, and Keira, who have to learn how to be a family after years of not knowing they were; Delaney, who survived heartbreaking losses and may have taken her life down the wrong path who befriends Keira and might want something more with Malcom; and Santiago, Malcom's best friend and coworker who loves his family but also finds himself falling for Callie. Watching the siblings forge a relationship is possibly the best part of the book--seeing Malcom's name in Keira's phone go from "a**hole brother" to "jerky brother" to "SAB" (slightly annoying brother--she's twelve) made me laugh as many times as it made me sigh.

The POVs in the story were Delaney's, Callie's, Malcom's, and Santiago's, and it was a good blend of the four of them. Overall I felt that Callie and Malcom were the most consistently sympathetic characters--both relationship black moments were essentially caused by Delaney('s fear) and Santiago('s choosing his family over Callie), which was a bit annoying at the time, but they did make up for it in the end, and even if their resolutions did happen a bit quickly, they were still satisfying.

Rating: 3 1/2 stars / C+

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

What an incredibly well written story about family . That’s it. Family. One of the most powerful words, in my opinion. It can mean so many things to different people. Yes, there’s an actual definition, but the essence of the word is so much more. This is a story of family and its power. And it is outstanding.

From the blurb you know three half siblings find each other and this is their journey to family. What you don’t know is the powerful way Susan Mallery turns mere words into a saga that is captivating and emotional and heartfelt and joyous, that you just don’t ever want it to end. Honestly, I could have read about this family for a ling time. She’s a wizard, this woman. I never tire of her stories. I could read one story for days or hours and I would feel the same about each one. She has done a phenomenal job with this book. I was engaged from page one.

Alberto Carlesso's family immigrated from Italy to Seattle in the 1930s. As a teen during WWII, he first created his own marinara sauce using his cooking skills and fmaily recipes, that eventually made it to NYC. Ultimately, Alberto decide to sell his food directly, creating Alberto's Alfresco, now a multinational multibillion dollar enterprise. Along the way, he married the girl next door and they had one son, Jerry. But Jerry was not really interested in managing the business, preferring sales and traveling all around the country. To his parents sorrow he never married. But when Malcolm was 12 years old, his mother brought him from Portland, Oregon to speak to Alberto. Malcolm was the spitting image of Alberto's late wife (I don't recall her name ever given) but Jerry insisted on a DNA test. Then Malcolm and his mother were moved into the large house, but the only reason she brought him, was because she was dying. Alberto showered Malcolm with love, but Jerry was indifferent. Many years later, after Jerry died and Alberto and Malcolm went through his papers, they found there were two other children, 12 year old Keira, found in foster care and 26 year old Callie in Houston, who are brought home, embraced by their grandfather, but held at arms length by Malcolm, not out of malice, but his not knowing how to relate to them. He doesn't trust easily, not only because of Jerry, but he has recently been betrayed by the woman he had planned to marry.

Santiago Trejo, became Malcolm's best friend in college. A farm worker's kid he entered University of Washington on a football scholarship. Malcolm showed Santiago that he was much smarted than he thought he was and Santiago taught Malcolm how to loosen up. Santiago eventually gave up football for finance and when Malcolm wanted to expand the business, he hired Santiago on. Santiago is a player, convinced that one day he will meet the right one, but until then, relationships are not for him

Delaney Holbrook, is reinventing herself, currently back in college studying to be a naturopath and working as a barista in the coffee shop in the lobby of Alberto's Alfresco's building. Until a couple years ago, she was engaged to Tim, a policeman, like her father, a man she had known all her life and she working at Boeing, senior management in finance. Then on the same night, both were shot in the line of duty; Tim was killed and her father paralyzed and now in a wheelchair. In the aftermath, she became lost, thought she needed a change, but now is having doubts.

All these intriguing and intricate characters are woven into a powerful story about family dynamics, love, lost, trust and hope. While I have read most of the author's books, in my opinion this is the best and most powerful of them all. There is even a delicious recipe at the end.

Malcom, Callie and Keira are a new family. Siblings with different mothers, but the same father and brought together by a grandfather that loves them. What's interesting about this story is how different in so many way these three characters are. They have several important things in common but each come from a totally different background. They all have to learn how to be a family and how to be there for each other yet also figure out who they are on their own. Callie and Malcolm each find love and that isn't a easy path either. Many of the secondary characters are interesting too add a lot to the story. I wasn't sure how much i would like this book considering there is a lot going on and a lot of characters but i ended up really loving it. It's not the kind of story i usually read but I have enjoyed this author before and the blurb was intriguing so i took a chance that paid off for me. Well worth the read!



Find out more about Susan Mallery and this book here www.susanmallery.com

I was very excited about reading this book because I’ve read Susan Mallery’s contemporary romances before (some of the Fool’s Gold series) and I wanted to try a different genre by her. Plus the premise of the story seemed to have everything I was looking for in a summer read. This is about three half siblings who didn’t know anything about their father or their family until the father died and their grandfather decided to track them all down. Different ages, different pasts. And they all need to learn to deal with their new family as well as move on with their lives. I thought this would be very interesting. Instead, the execution fell flat for me.

I actually liked all the characters in this story and the main issues presented. But I didn’t care for the actual reading experience. I found myself constantly bored. There was a lot of day to day detail that I found wasn’t getting me to any kind of point fast. It’s slow moving and in the end nothing really caught my interest enough.

There are two romance storylines as well for the older siblings of the bunch. One of them I didn’t have much of a problem with. But the other was the biggest case of insta love. Guy sees girl and without even talking to her knows she’s special and not like his other string of women and pursues her pretty strongly. I just can’t buy into that kind of scenario, it’s probably just on me.

In the end, I’m sad to say I couldn’t get over the boredom and even though I finished it I can’t say it was a great read.