I don't know what's going on with Susan Mallory but her books are just not the same. The characters were completely one dimensional, particularly Callie who while I get was poor, she does live in the 21st century so she should know certain things. The plot made little sense and I found it hard to get excited over any of the characters.

Great story about complicated relationships and blended families. Very heartfelt and emotional story. Well written and engaging, highly recommended!

I loved everything about this book. It’s sweet, it’s emotional, and it left me grinning with the perfect HEA. I’d read the phone book if Susan Mallory wrote it. So good!

Callie, Keira, and Malcolm are siblings. Callie, Kiera, and Malcolm did not grow up together, and didn't know about one another until their shared father died. Now, their grandfather wants to bring them all home, but can they really make a family at this late date? This is a story that brings together a family of blood, and of the heart. Moments of peace, as well as humor. Definitely not a story to miss.

Delaney is a once financial whiz now barista as she puts herself through school to become a naturopathic. She lusts after the man in the suit who stops by at mid-day for a coffee fix. Unbeknownst to her he is also the "Asshole" brother of the teenage Kiera whom she has befriended and shares a daily hot chocolate break with. It all comes a head the day Kiera dashes out onto the path of an incoming car to rescue a kitten...…..
Apparently Malcolm Carlesso's father was a traveling Romeo. In addition to Kiera who has just been rescued from a foster home in LA, Malcom has another half sister Callie who has her own share of baggage from the rough life she's lived. The central theme of the story is the three siblings and the painful path they walk towards forging a bond and becoming a true family. There's a lot going on because in addition both Callie and Malcolm also find romance which is in it's own way messy and complicated.

The story starts off with a whole of questions from the readers. Why did Delaney give up her successful and upwardly mobile career to go back to school in a totally different field financing her education by becoming a barista in a coffee stand in an office building? Callie's story comes together in bits and pieces along with the conflicts that she's facing about her choices. Her relationship with Malcolm accelerates rapidly from a light flirtation when he comes to get his coffee to a serious love affair as she befriends his troubled sister.
Kiera has been damaged by her mother's neglect and drug addiction and then a hard life in the foster care system separated from the only person who gave her care and affection. Transported to her newly found grandfather's home in Seattle, sent to a private school, virtually neglected by her older half brother she's full of fear of abandonment and waiting for the next shoe to drop. Her story as if unfolds is heart rending.
Callie has had her own share of challenges. Brought up by a loving mother, a single wrong step in an attempt to fit in leads to a prison sentence and a felon brand that has seared her soul. She's another one who's waiting to be cast out from her newly found rich grandfather's home. Yet she bonds with Kiera and slowly but surely learns to trust her step brother Malcolm who hasn't a clue how to interact with people most especially his newly found sisters. Meanwhile in her desire to work for a living she goes to work in one of the Carlesso factories where she meets Santiago who is Malcom's best friend and Carlesso's CFO. Love hasn't been easy for Callie but despite her fears Santiago coaxes her into a relationship until she finds herself on the other side when his family is involved.
As the five protagonists go through their own journey's and intersect with each other, the reader lives their joys, fears and angst with them rooting for a happy ending. The middle of the story sags a little as we explore all the different facets but then the story comes to a very abrupt end as all the threads are pulled together. This is not my most favorite of Ms. Mallery's books.

Susan Mallery has done it again.. Alberto rebuilds his family by locating his newly discovered granddaughters. Brandon Malcolm isn't so excited to share his home with two strangers. Csllie and Keira add a dimension to his life he didn't know was missing. This story is heart warming, filled with love and anger, saying stupid things and forgiveness. A perfect read.

Family is something we all take for granted. Their the people that will always be there, no matter what. What happens when family is not an option? When We Found Home is how to create a family out of nothing. Susan Mallery takes us through broken hearts, first meetings and slowly built bonds through the eyes of three strangers. Callie has not had an easy life. No family, limited choices and at times no hope. The irony is her ability to stay on the bright side despite the pain of her existence. Imagine her surprise when she finds out, she's not alone in the world. She has a family that she never knew, but is falling apart. Can she be the glue that bonds them all? Count on Mallery to tug at your heart strings while making you laugh and inspiring your soul. Family is not always a product of blood. It's a bond that is built on courage, risk faith and love.

I always enjoy Susan Mallery's books and this one did not disappoint. This book was interesting because half siblings were brought to live together from their various upbringings. One, Malcolm, was raised most of his life wealthy and privileged, Callie made a bad choice in her youth and spent some time in prison, and Keira is still young but streetwise. Seeing the interactions between the siblings was fun. The girls got along pretty quickly, but it took some time for the brother to adjust to having siblings. You see the older two siblings start relationships Callie with a coworker/friend of Malcolm's and Malcolm with a woman that works in the coffee shop in the lobby of the building. Callie is also struggling to get past her prison background and come to terms with her new lifestyle. I received this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Three half siblings that didn't know they each existed until recently and due to the love and pursuit of a grandfather they are brought into a home and each get a life reset.

One of my complaints is about Callie and Santiago. He meets her in the warehouse and doesn't know who she is and finds out from Malcolm, but has yet to have a conversation with her and then decides she is the love of his life and he will pursue her, REALLY? He went from 0 to 80 in 10 seconds and without even talking to her, didn't love it. So he admits it out loud, but I just couldn't get behind it, it was just so weird. And it continued throughout the book, I never really got behind that pairing.

On the other hand I liked Malcom and Keira's story so much better. It felt like it had history and back story and I just loved the ups and downs they had in the book, they felt so real and true and honest.

I like to warn when a book has sexy times and this one had a few scenes. It didn't seem too overwhelming, but they were definitely in there so if you like to avoid those books, I would warn you with this one.

I love Susan Mallery single books, they have some romance but they have super strong plots and great characters. I will continue to read her one off books they are perfect reads for pool days.

When We Found Home is an absolutely lovely story. In the same way that this author’s Daughters of the Bride was also a very lovely story. The two are not connected, but if you liked the one you’ll like the other and vice-versa.

When We Found Home is a story about family. The family in this book is a bit unusual, as they discover that they are family rather late into each of their lives.

To put it bluntly, the late Jerry Carlesso was a man-whore. He clearly could not keep it in his pants under any circumstances whatsoever. The only saving grace to the man was that he never married, so at least he wasn’t cheating on a wife while he traveled the country and left children behind in his wake.

Three of them, to be precise. And Jerry’s father, Alberto is determined to find them all and make them family.

Malcolm’s mother found them Alberto first, back when Malcolm was 12. Now he’s 34 and the heir to Alberto’s successful high-end mail-order Italian food empire, Alberto’s Alfresco. Alberto’s private detective found little Kiera a couple of months before the story opens. She’s 12 and her own mother is dead. Kiera was discovered in foster care.

Kiera’s adjustment from being lost in the foster system to being very nearly a fairy tale princess is not going well. She’s the only child in a houseful of adults, her world has shifted completely off its axis, and her big brother is keeping her at arm’s length because he doesn’t know what to do with this sudden influx of 12-year-old sister. And he doesn’t believe he’s any good at relationships.

The story begins with the introduction of the last sibling, 26-year-old Callie. Callie made a terrible mistake as a teenager, and took the fall for a very skanky boyfriend who committed armed robbery. Callie spent 5 years incarcerated, but in the three years since her release she has done her best to start a new life. A life that is sorta/kinda working when Alberto’s lawyer finally tracks her down in Houston.

It’s a very rough journey for this family-lost-at-birth to become a family-of-choice. While Keira and Callie bond fairly quickly, it takes a bit of work for Malcolm to work out his issues with their shared parent, get the stick out of his ass, and upgrade his original status from “asshole brother” to “jerky brother” to just “big brother”.

And they all need a little help along the way. Help that they manage to get, and eventually accept, from the second best thing that ever happens to any of them.

Becoming a real family is the first best thing.

Escape Rating A-: Just like when I read Daughters of the Bride a couple of years ago, When We Found Home was absolutely the right book at the right time. While yesterday’s book was just about perfect, it did turn out to be a bit angstier (and meatier) than I was expecting. When We Found Home had just the right amount of fun and froth while having a bit of meat on its bonesand plenty of heart.

There are two romances in this story, but the romances are not the point of the story. Rather it’s the other way around. The healing that becoming a family brings to the lives of both Malcolm and Callie allows them to accept and cherish the romantic love that enters both of their lives.

All of the adults in this story have plenty of baggage that they need to work through before any of them are ready to become a family or reach anything close to an HEA.

Callie’s past seems the most difficult. She made a huge mistake – and she paid for it. But even though she has theoretically paid her debt to society, that same society makes her keep paying for that mistake over and over and over. As much as she needs the helping hand of her family and her grandfather, she’s afraid to trust it will last – because she doesn’t feel like she deserves it.

Kiera and Callie bond because they have some of the same fears. Not that 12-year-old Kiera is a convicted felon, but that she’s been abandoned before and is afraid that all this good fortune can’t possibly last.

Malcolm seems like he has it all, but he is still recovering from a heartbreaking betrayal by those he trusted. It’s difficult for him to reach out to anyone, and he nearly loses his sisters because of it.

It’s not so much that they all grow up, as that their hearts all grow three sizes in the course of the story. They do a lot of self-examination, they lift each other up, and they figure out that they are a family after all.

And that’s how they earn their happily ever after.

I enjoyed this book a lot. It tells the tale of three half siblings as they come together after their grandfather tracks two of them down. Learning how to live together is tough, but also learning that they have a trust fund and own part of company is a lot to take in, when you have come from having nothing.

The trust that has to be earned is a long road, and comes with many mistakes but the bond the family forms is worth it. You also see two of them on their journey to recover and find love. Heartwarming family story, finding redemption, forgiveness and love.

Let me just say that Susan Mallery's books never disappoint. From the start I was drawn to Malcolm, Keira and Callie's stories. Keira, at 12, is spunky and more worldly than I am. I hope there is a book for when she gets older so we can see her fall in love. Callie, I love her and she's someone you could be friends with. She's honest, loving and a great big sister to Keira. Malcolm took some getting used to but his heart down deep loves his sisters and wants to do right by them. This amazing story contains different kinds of love stories. Romantic and familial and I want more!

If you enjoy a fast paced unique story that keeps you enthralled in the lives and loves of Malcolm, Keira and Callie, I highly recommend When We Found Home!

When Malcolms grandfather finds out that his father had two other children he sought them out. All three were raised in different ways where twelve year old Keira was in foster care, Callie was recently out of jail down on her luck trying to live life after being a convicted criminal. Then there was Malcolm raised with his loving grandfather with everything he could possibly want. All three siblings will now live together and learn to become a family.

I didn't read the description to this book all I knew was that this book was by Susan Mallery and I had recently binge read almost all her Fool's Gold series and was looking for more books by her. This book did not disappoint. It was a bit hard for me to get the hang of things being that there is a few point of views normally I'm good with just two point of views and its easier to keep things straight but once I got the hang of things the book only got better. I thought it was interesting seeing this family dynamics and how they interacted with one another. It showed money isn't everything and just because everyone is given a lot doesnt mean all needs are met. I thought that it was interesting seeing how the girls handled the wealth they now had after having a hard time in the past. I thought it was interesting getting to know each character and their past that made them the way that they are. I thought it was interesting as well to see how the brother and sisters reacted towards eachother and how they were able to build a relationship.This book was really good and I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. I have given an honest review.

Susan Mallery has done it again. She creates amazing characters, and the ones in this book are no different. I believe I was two or three chapters in, and my eyes were starting to fill up. I couldn't believe it. I thought to myself, these are all new people, and if I already feel this way, wow!

Malcolm, Callie, and Kiera find out they are all half siblings- same dad, different moms. Their parental grandfather finds out about them and gets them all together. Weirdly enough, this story could be totally plausible in today's world. Each has a different background with their own hardships and flaws. The book takes you through each character's transition from life before siblings to life with two siblings. They each change so much, and it is interesting to see how much. I felt the story was a little slow at times, but I was definitely engrossed enough to find out what happened next. I am sorry to know this is a standalone book, for I would love to visit with these characters again!!!

Favorite Quotes:

He gave her a smile that would have melted a frozen planet.

She agreed with generous —he was that. As for kind, well, he was growing on her. Like the famous Seattle moss, she thought with a smile.

I’d offer to let you borrow one of mine, but you’re what, twenty pounds lighter, two inches shorter and yet you have bigger boobs. Why do I like you?

We’re going to deal with our heartaches the way God intended— with liquor, sugar, a movie and people we love.

You did everything right. And when you screw up, I promise to be just as gracious.

My Review:

I always look forward to reading Susan Mallery’s books, as her stories have never failed to please or satisfy. She is top shelf entertainment with engaging storylines full of feels, a full slate of endearingly lovable yet vulnerable and flawed characters, clever humor, witty banter, and sharply honed repartee. When We Found Home was well paced and adroitly plotted while equally balanced with levity and heart-squeezes. I was engaged and invested from beginning to end. The characters experience new love, second chances, discover and develop vital family connections, solve a mystery, and even save a precious kitten. Sigh, it was nirvana.

When We Found Home is a touching tale of three half-siblings who didn't know about one another being brought together by their grandfather. Malcolm, an executive at his grandfather's company, Keira, a twelve year old found in foster care, and Callie, a former convict, have to guide through the murky waters of becoming a family. Each had been alone for so long they weren't sure how to accomplish that. It's not an easy road, and there are plenty of mistakes and heartache along the way as they try to figure each other out.

I loved all three of the siblings. Readers will feel for them, as they've each gone through their own share of heartache, and all are bonded by a father who wanted nothing to do with any of them when he was alive. All have a fear of being rejected. Malcolm struggles the most, with no idea how to interact with his sisters, especially Keira.

At the same time, both Malcolm and Callie are developing romantic relationships with Delaney and Santiago. I'll admit I was more of a fan of the developing family bonding than I was of the romantic relationships. I thought both Delaney and Santiago each overacted to two separate situations, which caused hurt to Malcolm and Callie. And the siblings were too quick to forgive their significant other.

I was disappointed we didn't get to see more of Alberto, the grandfather of Malcolm, Callie, and Keira. He was insistent on tracking down the sisters and bringing them to live under his roof, but then he disappears, only making a couple of brief appearances throughout the book. He drops the care of the girls onto Malcolm, who clearly has no idea how to handle the situation. I would have liked to have known why he was so insistent on bringing them to his home, only to disappear and not facilitate the family bonding and healing. With how much he wanted the family to be reunited, I would have expected him to play a larger role in that than he was.

Overall I really enjoyed the story. It's a heartwarming tale of finding a family and a home when it's least expected. The story is well written, the struggles are realistic, and the siblings will touch the hearts of readers. If you've never read a Susan Mallery book before, When We Found Home is a good place to start.

**Received a copy via NetGalley**

I really enjoyed this latest stand alone book by Susan Mallery. The characters were very real and I particularly enjoyed how the two sisters bonded almost immediately and the brother had to do some very deep soul searching on being accepted. I also liked the secondary plots that went on between the sister and the brother's work associate/friend and also the rather unique love interest the brother had. The characters in this book were all very strong, however I believe the strongest character with a great deal of spunk was the youngest sister Keira. It was a very quick and enjoyable read and I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a book with strong family relationships in it.

When We Found Home is the latest stand alone by one of my favotire authors. I love her books because they always resonate with me. This story is about three broken people who are thrown thrown together because of DNA and end up finding the family they need. This is a wonderful story about family that I highly recommend.

My favorite part of the book was watching the siblings figure out how to be a family. It wasn't a smooth process and took a lot of work. I was really rooting for them the whole time. My favotire character was Callie. One mistake screwed up her life and she was continually living with the consequences. It was heart breaking to see how she always expected the worst. Malcolm grew the most by the end of the book in learning to trust again. There are two romances in the book and they are an added bonus to an already heartwarming story. This is definitely one to check out this summer!

3 1/2 stars

Lately it seems as though a lot of romance authors are branching out into women’s fiction, which is a good thing. I think. However, for me, a lot of these novels show the growing pains of the writer trying to be true to their roots while forging new ground.

While Susan Mallery’s When We Found Home is extremely well-written, in her usual fashion, and the subject matter of three half-siblings discovering each other is intriguing, the amount of repetition and lack of spark made the novel very put-downable for me.

The novel began promising enough with Delaney, a former financial whiz–now barista, crushing on the man in the suit, Malcolm Carlesso—a classic romance novel opening. However, you’ll notice that Delaney is not even given a mention in the blurb, and yet it is as much her novel as it is the Carlesso siblings as Delaney comes to terms with her new direction in life after the loss of her fiance and the paralyzing of her father.

We are then introduced to the Carlesso family and Malcolm’s best friend and now business associate, Santiago. At this point, I felt the novel brought a lot of repetition and yet simultaneously not enough depth to some of the characters and situations, ultimately it felt as if nothing new were offered.

For me, the issue is that When We Found Home reads a lot like a romance novel, and normally the focus would be primarily on one couple with a lot of attention given to that situation. Instead, because When We Found Home is trying to be women’s fiction, the focus is skirting over one couple and moving on to another. Mallery is trying to show family and getting in touch with each other, which is all very admirable, but due to the episodic quality, I didn’t come away feeling particularly involved with any of them.

In fact, this is the second women’s fiction novel in the past few weeks that has left me with the feeling that the author should have focused on fewer characters and delved into “story” more, that perhaps two relationships (not necessarily romantic) should have been eye-balled. This just goes to the adage more is not better.

Regardless, When We Found Home is a safe book. It’s well-written, the story interesting, the characters equally interesting. It’s the kind of book you can read when you don’t want anything too deep. It’s heartwarming.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When We Found Home by Susan Mallery

The siblings starring in this story don’t know one another or even know of one another until their father dies and a few years later their grandfather, Alberto Carlesso, goes through his son’s belongings to find out that he has other grandchildren. Instead of just the one grandson Malcolm, that joined his grandfather when he was 12, Alberto finds he also has two granddaughters. Callie is in her twenties and has no family and she has a past she wants to put behind her. Keira is a preteen coming out of the foster system and filled with fears. When they all come together under the same roof the only thing they seem to have in common is their grandfather…oh…and their rather useless philandering father…and perhaps a similar smile that graces all of their faces.

At first things are rocky but as time passes the guards come down, communication occurs, grandfatherly love is abundant, a kitten is adopted, love interests emerge, problems at work are uncovered then resolved and a whole lot more happens.

This is a story of finding out who one truly is and what is most important in life. It is about family and friends and trust and caring and sharing and expectations (personal and external) and well…just a great book that was difficult to put down. I have to be honest that the first four chapters felt a wee bit slow but once past those I flew through the pages. I felt and cared and wished and hoped right along with each of them. There was one question I had and that was why Jeremy, the three half siblings father, was as worthless sounding as he was. Jeremy had a privileged life with what sounded to be perfect parents so…how did he turn up as he did? Other than that one quibble…I loved this story.

Thank you to Net Galley and HQN for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4.5 Stars