Homecoming by Kate Morton
Kate Morton’s writing is easy to love. Engaging plots, an interesting collection of characters, and secrets of varying degrees begging to be uncovered. Homecoming is probably my favourite of Morton’s novels thus far. The story starts in 1959 with the death of a mother and all her children.The bodies of Mrs. Turner and her children are discovered lying peacefully by the side of a creek, all looking as though as if they were asleep. Was it murder, or a murder suicide?
Sixty years later we meet Jess, a young woman journalist living in London who is, trying to “find” herself, after breaking up with a long term boyfriend and losing her job. When Jess learns her grandmother suffered a serious fall, she travels to Australia to care for her loved one, and maybe find a change she needs to find a story worth writing about.
Once in Australia, Jess learns of her familial connection to the suspicious deaths of the Turner family and then begins a journey of research, investigation, and coming to terms with family secrets she never knew existed. Jess finds that sometimes your own family history possesses incredible stories that are worth writing.
I enjoyed this book tremendously. It is a long one though so I would recommend putting it on your summer reading list so you can take your time immersing yourself in the story.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for this ARC!

This was my first Kate Morton book and I loved it! It is a long book and you need to really pay attention as lots of detail. However, the detail brings the book to life and immerses you in the story.

The story is told in dual timeline and follows the story of three women(Nora her daughter Polly and Granddaughter Jess) between 1969 and 2018. As stated above the book does feel a bit long, but stick with it as the ending will leave you breathless!

I am giving this book a solid 4 stars as the attention to detail was amazing and I absolutely loved the ending of this book.

Rating: 3.5 stars

I was drawn to this book because I was craving a murder mystery and I was interested in the Australia setting. I've enjoyed murder mysteries where a character from the present day is trying to solve a historical murder case (Rachel Hawkins' recent release The Villa comes to mind) so I was really excited to pick this up.

What really shines in this book are the characters. In the past timeline where the murder took place, you are introduced to a wide cast of characters in a small town in Australia. In the present timeline, you focus more on the family dynamics between the women in the family affected by the aftermath of the murder. The reader gets to spend so much time with these rich characters that by the end of the story, you feel like the case could be a real story. While I predicted almost all of the plot twists, I was kind of happy that I figured it out.

My issue with this book is the pacing and length of the book. While I appreciated the amount of time that was spent developing the characters, I struggled to pick this book up and consistently read it because of how dense it was. In reading other reviews, this sounds like this is a common problem with Kate Morton books so I pushed through but I would have liked the book more if it was maybe 100 pages shorter. I like my murder mysteries to be a bit more fast paced so maybe this is a matter of personal preference.

This book is a richly layered story so I'd highly recommend it if you like character driven mystery novels.

Mystery component was good but took far too long to get there. As another reader mentioned the book would have been more enjoyable with the elimination of about 200 pages where details were already known to the reader or irrelevant information was written.

Ugh… I wanted to love this book. I was so excited when NetGalley sent me the email saying I could read it.
I didn’t love this book though. I liked the ideas, and k even liked the characters, but it was so hard to follow. The memories just kept coming up out of nowhere and there was no clear end of them. Also, for me, too much detail. I felt this book could have been shorter.. much shorter. It just seemed to drag on, and not enough narrative.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Kate Morton has long been one of my absolute favorite authors. She is a master wordsmith, utterly transporting readers into incredible settings, and layering story and characters in a tangled but mesmerizing web of mystery and history.

Morton has also done an incredible job at capturing and creating the world in which these characters live. As a reader, you feel as if you're there -- the sights, sounds, and smells of Tumbilla and the Adelaide Hills were a delight to experience.

As with all of Morton's stories, I found the transitions between past and contemporary storylines very well done. It flowed smoothly and kept me guessing at the mystery. The characters and plot were complex, but all the little threads tied together at the end very satisfactorily. I did figure out a key element to the mystery from very, very early on but Morton kept me constantly second-guessing as to whether or not I was right. This built a really lovely sense of anticipation throughout the plot, driving me headlong toward the final few chapters where there were countless other twists that I absolutely did not see coming. Bravo!

Homecoming is a hefty story that follows several generations of characters. At the core, this is a beautiful story about family, secrets, and a sense of identity and belonging. After eagerly waiting several years on a new Morton novel, this book truly felt like a Homecoming!

4.5 stars rounded up!

Kate Morton is one of my auto-read authors. I love the Australian and British settings and how she balances dark themes with heartfelt storytelling. Homecoming is no exception. ⁠
⁠
London-based journalist, Jess rushes home to Australia when her grandmother Nora is hospitalized and unconscious. She has had a shock and a nasty fall. When trying to figure out what happened, Jess discovers a horrible family secret and then book goes back and forth from the present day to excerpts of a true crime book investigating the family secret. ⁠
⁠
Homecoming is about three generations of women, a huge tragedy in a small Australian town and the horrible decisions people make for love. I really enjoyed it. The only part that I didn't care for was the way the true crime book was written. I found those sections more of a challenge to get through but I still recommend the book.

Homecoming is classic Kate Morton, with dual timelines competing for my love and attention. Morton crafts her stories in such a way that I don’t have time to properly fret over a cliffhanger in one timeline because I’m getting pulled back into the equally engaging storyline in the other.

We begin in the past, where we’re briefly introduced to members of the Turner family on New Year’s Day 1959 before skipping ahead to Christmas Eve of the same year, when a local man comes upon the family in a tragic and haunting tableau that forms the mystery at the heart of the story. Fast-forward 60 years to London, where we meet a young woman named Jess. She’s struggling personally and professionally and seems to be at a bit of a cross-roads in her life. When Jess receives a call that her beloved grandmother has been hospitalized, she returns home to Australia and soon finds herself unexpectedly discovering family secrets.

Themes of motherhood, explored throughout the story, as well as the dynamics portrayed between the three generations of women: Nora, Polly and Jess, were honest and at times heartbreaking. I enjoyed getting to know each of these women.

The dark mystery at the heart of the story was complex but not convoluted, with all of the pieces fitting quite nicely together by the end of the story. While I was able to correctly predict some of the mystery before the reveal, there were other twists I didn’t see coming, and I really loved being surprised. I enjoyed the idea of the book within the book that helped Jess solve the mystery, though I probably could have done without some of the lengthier excerpts.

I don’t often reread books, but I could see myself reading this one again to discover clues that I didn’t pick up on during the first read. As a long-time fan of Kate Morton, this book didn’t disappoint. It truly did feel like coming home again!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and Netgalley for an egalley of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Told in dual timelines, The Homecoming is a noir mystery novel. The story opens with an introduction to the Turner family, who live in a beautiful homestead in 1950s Adelaide. Isobel is a stylish mother to four children and a dreamer for a husband. She loves her kids but is disenchanted with her marriage and takes a perverse pleasure in going against her husband’s dictates. The depictions of the countryside are breathtaking and lead the reader to a level of comfort that is shockingly destroyed just hours later by a heinous crime.

Present-day, journalist Jess is called home to Sydney when her beloved grandmother suffers a fall and is admitted to the hospital in serious condition. Jess learns Nora (her grandmother) received a letter from a solicitor in South Australia that upset her and when questioned she becomes very confused and so anxious the nurse must medicate her. Jess is left wondering and searches the house until she finds a book on the history of Tambilla and an unsolved murder hidden in her grandma’s bedroom.

This is a sweeping saga of family, love, secrets, and loss. I struggled with the long passages of the story told through the pages of the true crime novel, but… it was so gripping! Thought-provoking, heartbreaking, emotionally draining- a great read!

Ok, there’s so much going on in Homecoming, it’s almost hard to summarize.

At its heart, Homecoming is about family. Then throw in a lot of secrets and a shocking mystery from the past, set in Southern Australia, and you’ve got this book.

The dual timelines worked wonderfully at weaving a carefully constructed story. We are introduced to a large cast of characters, but none of them are flat. They are complicated and believable. And quite likeable, for the most part, in spite of their flaws.

The writing is gorgeous. The descriptions were so vivid, I could picture Halcyon is all it’s glory, and the town of Tambilla. It’s also gripping. I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish this story!

What I liked least was the “book within a book” portion. I found that rather dry, and a bit of a slog. If that was pared down, this would be a five star read.

Kate Morton is a must-read for me. I love who she always pays homage to readers and acknowledges the roles books and stories play in a bibliophile's life.
This book had everything you expect from a Kate Morton novel: long buried family secrets, lost love, the search for self, and a stunning setting that is as much a character as the people.
Homecoming is a book to get lost in; a story to dedicate a weekend to, and one that you will not easily leave behind to start the next.

Kate Morton is one of my auto buy authors. When I saw she was coming out with a new book I knew I wanted to read it. The story did not disappoint.

This is a multi generational, multiple POV story told with switching timelines, and takes place between the United Kingdom and Australia. Typical Morton really. It is a story about secrets kept and what unfolds is a complex story of love, loss, and who is family.

Homecoming is Morton at her best. There were so many questions I wanted answers to and I received them, plus answers to so many more questions I didn’t know I wanted answers to. The story was convoluted and unexpected, while being so beautifully written and full of family who loved each other and used secrets to protect each other.

This is a book made of those who love to sit and read, and just savour the story.

Thank you @netgalley and @simonandscusterca for the opportunity to read and review this beautiful story.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of Homecoming by Kate Morton. One of my favorite authors, she always delivers an amazing read. She weaves the characters and the story and delivers twists and secrets the reader doesn't expect.
The story is told in the present and past and centers around 3 main characters, 3 generations, Nora, her daughter Polly and granddaughter Jess
The secrets of the past were supposed to stay hidden, but as Jess flies home to Australia to see her grandmother who has been taken to hospital, she starts to uncover some family history and details about the past the she and her mother were unaware.

Kate Morton has created another amazing story, the kind where you want to read every word. I was so fortunate to receive this ARC, in my mind it is a must read

Dealing with dual timelines and mystery, you will find this once difficult to put down. I'm always worried when I start a book over 450 pages because I don't want to invest so much time into something I don't end up liking. Luckily, that is not the case here as the plot hooks you from the start and keeps you hungry for the next chapter.

Homecoming is a gripping, intergenerational thriller which also explores the lasting effects of death, grief and trauma. and the bonds of motherhood.
The unfurling family historyof Nora, her daughter Polly and her granddaughter Jess offers many different threads to discuss - toxic parenting, the psychology of grief and loss, and finding a way home.
Kate Morton has once again given us another excellent read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

I loved this one, the history of south Australia intertwined into the story was beautiful and brought me to a whole new area of the world I long to visit. This was outside of my normal historical fiction choices and very much enjoyed.

4.5 stars

<b> Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for an egalley.</b>

Kate Morton is one of my favorite authors and so upon receiving an ARC, there was just no way that I was going to wait for one more second to give it a read.

A dual timeline set in Australia in 1969 and 2018, this is the story of three women and their tie to a shocking true crime of the past. At present, Jessica is a journalist called back from London to take care of her ailing grandmother, Nora. Upon visiting the hospital and speaking to those who see Nora on a daily basis, Jessica knows that there is something that has deeply shaken her grandmother. Curious to learn more, Jessica begins searching her grandmother's home but as the secrets begin to unravel, will Jessica be able to truly understand the stories of the past?


I was sucked into this narrative right from the start and I was grateful for a quiet house so NOBODY would interrupt my reading. I loved the mystery of the past and I was constantly trying to guess where this story was headed. I enjoyed that instead of straightforward flashbacks, we learn all the details of the past through a true crime book. If I had one little quibble, I did feel around the 80% mark that the book was getting a bit long.

That aside, this was one of <b>my eagerly anticipated novels of 2023</b> and it didn't disappoint.


Expected Publication Date 04/04/23
Goodreads Review Published 12/02/23

Homecoming is absolutely my most anticipated read of 2023. Kate Morton has been a longtime favourite author of mine and I’ve read and re-read her previous titles multiple times. So when I say I was ecstatic to receive an advance copy of this book I am not overstating my enthusiasm to read this!

As with Morton’s previous works, this one is structured as a dual timeline historical fiction novel with the present day characters unearthing family secrets. However, unlike Morton’s previous books, this one takes place primarily in Australia rather than in England. Morton being an Australian native, this is truly a delight and lends further depth to the theme of homecoming that gives title to this work.

This book also has a mystery running through both the historical and present day storylines. I often balk at this because I’m excellent at anticipating a twist (being good at close reading really does ruin most mysteries) but this one was the perfect. I was able to anticipate some elements of the mystery but not all.

As much as I adored Morton’s earlier titles, I do believe this one to be her strongest work yet. It’s wonderful watching an author truly grow and excel over the course of their career and to eagerly await every new book they publish.

Definitely give this one a read when it hits shelves in April!

Thank you to Simon & Schuester Canada, Netgalley and Kate Morton for the ARC of Homecoming.

I rate this book 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. This book seemed like everything I love - dual perspectives, historical fiction and family dramas. However, this book just didn't fully suck me in the way I was hoping. For one, it was sooooo long. Almost 600 pages. Not that that is a bad thing, but in this case, I think the book could have been edited down 200 pages. The middle was a bit of slog to get through, but by about 2/3 through, I was sucked in. I did enjoy the setting. Halycon was made up to be almost another character, and I really liked how the author thoroughly described the setting. I also liked reading from Jess' perspective. Nora was another good character, but I don't love reading a book within a book and that was a big chunk of the middle.

Overall, this was a well written family saga but with a little bit of trimming, this could have been better.

Homecoming releases April 2023, so check for it on bookshelves then!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review an ARC.

I have loved Kate Morton since I read The Forgotten Garden and this novel did not disappoint.

The characters are so real and vibrant that you feel pulled into the story and invested in the outcomes. The story was compelling on its own and made for more than one late night reading "just one more chapter".

Another fantastic novel by one of my favourite authors.