Typically not a genre I would read, but decided to request a range of books when I started my NetGalley account. Great writing, but it wasn’t for me. I couldn’t engage with the characters or the story because it just didn’t interest me

I loved this book. Each of the characters was so realistic. It
brought back memories of visiting family in a home very much
like this.
I know I will want to read this again in the near future. The book
just made me happy. It is such an amazing story.

Thank you so much to the writer, the publisher, and NetGalley
for giving me the chance to read and review this sweet story!

I really liked the authors writing style and felt the mother daughter relationship was very realistic.. The plot was interesting and kept me reading until the end.

Maggie, neighbor Lee, friend Anna and Maggie's daughter are key figures in the story. As much as I tried, the number of characters from the present and past were convoluting the story for me. It was not of interest to me. I did think the author was quite descriptive in their writing.

Could be a very interesting store of a family but it dragged too much for me. I could only read a few chapters.

Received this from Net Gallery and I'm so glad to review this cute little story. You have a mother and little daughter who run a B&B,who come across all sort of kooky characters and then some really strange ones,but they are all accepted. The story takes you on a life of its own back in the 50's. I found the story really good but then it dragged and dragged and then all of a sudden you wake up again. I struggled to finish the book,but I did. I liked it but it would have been on the lower shelf on my book case to fead. Don't go by what I say,give this book a chance like I did,you never know,you may think it's fabulous and it Just might be,but just not for me!! Thanks again for letting me read!

This is a difficult review because despite all the negatives, I kind of enjoyed reading this novel. It's a simple old fashioned story that takes place in the 50s and has so much wrong with it. It's repetitive, slow moving and filled with stereotypes. Every chapter begins with a wise quote from the author. It also begins with pots and pots of coffee, endless coffee, constant coffee (and a few teas) and many, many baked goods...pies, cakes, cookies, and much soup and fresh-baked bread. If the characters actually drank all that caffeine there would likely be many coffee nerves. If they actually ate all those carbs, there would be boundless obesity. But there isn't.

It is basically the story of Maggie, a young widow with a ten year old daughter named Jenna (who is so unbelievably sweet that she could also bring on type 2 diabetes..) There is Maggie's friend Lee, self-involved and spouting malapropisms and religious fervor who is also a gossip but a great seamstress. Relatives Anna and Doc, also saintly, come and go in the manor house that Maggie runs as a bed and breakfast. Oh, and there is one bad guy, William, Doc and Anna's evil son who may have murdered his father for monetary gain.

Along comes Noah, a woodworker with a sad back story who has been on the road since escaping from an abusive father who arrives with his wolf (yes, wolf) and stays. All of this takes place in he town of Tilden in Madison County, Nebraska. Noah's dog may be the most interesting character, but we get no back story on him.

All of that said, this reminded me of books like Anne of Green Gables or The Secret Garden, and I felt drawn back into the books I enjoyed as a child. It was rated "G" and home, warm and fuzzy. So I read it through in two sittings despite all the criticism.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher Outskirts Press for the chance to read and write a review.

The story is set in 1950’s Madison County. It has a dreamlike feel to it at times, a certain old-fashioned yearning for a gentle time long past. The character portrayals are varied. The main character Maggie is a widow bringing up her daughter in her inherited home which she operates as a bed and breakfast. Maggie is one dimensional and a bit too good to be wholesome. She manages to exist running a business with no paying guests and a barter system with her neighbours. Her friend Lee is a more believable character and she shares some great witty dialogue with Anna, another friend/family/non paying guest. At times there is so much background information given on the characters that it reads more like a history book than a novel. The Noah character is the ultimate cliché, drifter with a past etc.
This story was not to my taste and I struggled to finish it. Having said that it might appeal to those who love a family saga, on the lines of The Waltons.
Thank you to Bookbuzz and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
#Bookbuzz #NetGalley #TheLongWayHome

This is a sweet book...a quick read...it was difficult to pause while reading about Maggie and her family and friends. One seldom finds a novel that is heartwarming with some angst woven in. That is what this is-a woven story with lovey descriptions and likeable-sometimes funny-characters. I enjoyed this book so much and hope to read more by this author. Don’t miss this one.

I found this to be a comfort read. D. L. Norris brings to life those days so many us shared with our own families around the kitchen table.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review. There was a lot going on in the story but things were figured out sitting around the kitchen table. Maggie's 9-year-old daughter, Jenna had a way with people. People who others couldn't relate to or get them to talk, they would open up and talk with Jenna.
We learn a lot about family dynamics and how people dealt with different situations. It is a wonderful story, with different personalities, some eye-rolling and under the breath comments.

This book was interesting. It was about Maggie, a widow who liveswith her daughter and runs a bed-and- breakfast. How she makes her living is mysterious as since she has very few guests. The characters and the storyline held my interest, but the subject of death and the removal of characters was very abrupt.

A Long Way Home is an exquisitely spun tale of family and legacy throughout the ages. While the primary portion of the novel is set in the 1950’s, Norris skillfully moves the reader to the past at moments to assist with the understanding that family can be those you are born to but also those whom you choose. The protagonist, Maggie Davis, is central to understanding that the past, present and future all merge in the understandings of the heart. Honor, courage and legacy are central pieces to this enduring story of love, loss and laughter.