The Long Road Home (Harper Monogram) (2024)

3,5

Mary Alice Monroe is my all-time favorite author (followed closely by Charles Martin). She first wrote this book in 1995 and re-released it in 2010. Interestingly, she re-read the book and decided it didn't need to be changed in any way.

I was certainly blessed by her decision to re-release because I only found her as an author a few years ago and this book was out of print.

I just love the way she weaves a story and her obvious gift of using words. Not only do you always get a really good, unpredictable, story line but you learn a lot - about parts of the country and their particular cultures, about wildlife or other causes that the story addresses.

I love her books and this one is no exception to that.

The Long Road Home is the first book that I have had the pleasure of reading by Mary Alice Monroe. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth at which Ms. Monroe goes to paint the whole picture. While I enjoyed the story and the characters, there were several times that I thought 400+ pages was 150 pages longer than it really needed to be. I enjoyed the character development of CW & Nora, but some of the subplots just caused my eyes to glaze over and were unnecessary. Overall The Long Road Home was a good read & I look forward to reading more by this author, but honestly, I would not be surprised to see the book turned into a Lifetime Movie. One I might even watch!

I've loved every Mary Alice Monroe book I've read so I'm on a mission to read them all. I didn't think anything would top the summer girls series or beach house series, but I believe this was my favorite so far. Just so well written. The characters are described so well that you almost feel as though you know them.

A long read, but well worth all the pages. I absolutely loved all the twists turns and plotlines. There was a wealth of characters, but each unique and added a little piece to the story.

I was captivated to the very end hoping that it would all work out like I assumed. I loved how a part of the story was sort of predictable, but there were still a few spots where I was completely surprised. For the life of me, I can't think of anything critical that I would say to improve the book. There may have been a few descriptions that I would have ommitted, but nothing was excessive. I felt that the characters were real and the situation could honestly happen to any widow.

As for those I would recommend this read to - definitely a read for the women folk. I would not pass this onto the younger crowd, they would not relate well to Nora and the trials that she endures, but most women would enjoy the drama and romance of the book.

Mary Alice Monroe has a lovely way of taking her readers into a world they may not know and making them feel as if they have lived there their while lives. This book is no exception, even though this world is a Vermont sheep farm rather than the low country of the south. Nora and C.W.'s story is captivating.

Wow! This book was great, I couldn't put it down. The main male character in this book was brilliant, meaning the author is brilliant! I wish I could think of plans like the one in this book. Wow, just wow. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes a good novel. Sure, there were parts that were cliched and predictable, but overall the book had a great storyline that was unpredictable and the writing style was one that made me not care that it was a little predictable here and there.

As I continue reading Mary Alice Monroe in this stay-at-home world, I just finished The Long Road Home that displays life in New York City and in the state of Vermont. Nora MacKenzie’s husband, Mike commits suicide in front of banker Charles Walker Blair and Nora’s world plummets out of control. In the flash of a gun, the glitzy life of a pampered society lady turns to a life of hardship in the wild, chilly mountains of Vermont. Nora has only this primitive and unfinished house and acres of pasture and sheep to keep the wolves at bay. This is a story of new friendships forged and trust restored, and love awakened. The story is beautifully written, but the events and outcomes of the story are predictable.

3.5 stars

The introduction gave me what a scare. It was hard to imagine what was beyond the first few pages. Nora, a recent widow, a high society lady with money to spare, was ruined. To pay off her deceased husband's debts, all her belongings went to auction. She had one place, a house in the mountains, that could become her future home unless it, too, had to pay the debt.

On her land, she met a farm hand (was he a worker?)who trained and assisted with the farm animals. Could he be trusted?

This being the author’s first novel was fabulous!!! It is a must read as all of Mary Alice Monroe’s stories are. I could not put this read down!!!

Really good book. This author is amazing. Love all her books. Quick reads hard to put down!

This is a re-release of a book written before Monroe’s Beach House series. Some stilted dialogue and a pretty predictable story make it just ok. Her writing has gotten so much better since this book.

This is a sweet story. Certainly no literary masterpiece but then it wasn’t meant to be. I loved the characters and their zest for the good and the simple life. I enjoyed the book.

Not believable, the characters are up, down, and all over the place, but the worst is that the heroine, Nora, is too weak and hystrionic to root for. And speaking of rooting, not advisable to write this about your main female character:

"Nora snuggled deeper into the crook of his arm, rooting for security as eagerly as did the runt." (referring to a runt lamb they'd witnessed earlier, a pathetic baby animal rejected by its mommy.)

Note to future authors: having your pathetic, needy main character in a romance novel rooting in a man's chest/embrace like a runt lamb is not a good look.

Also see highlights.

After Nora MacKenzie's husband Mike's suicide, and the overwhelming debts threaten to turn her world upside down, she escapes to the Vermont sheep farm—the one holding she has managed to salvage—and the promise of a new future.

A mysterious man has taken up residence at the farm as a hired hand. And "C.W." somehow manages to gain her trust over the months that follow, despite her initial resistance, as he teaches her how to run the farm and learn how to navigate this new life.

Back in New York, the attorneys that are in charge of the MacKenzie estate arrange the upcoming auction that will either bring in enough to clear her debts...or not.

Meanwhile, what effect will the secrets C. W. is keeping from Nora have on her plight, and will these doom their budding relationship? Will the trust she has placed in him be her undoing?

The long journey toward love, hope, and a new life can lead to joy or it can turn into another disappointment.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Nora and C. W., and kept turning the pages as the characters made one choice after another that could have turned out well or badly. The characters were very real and likeable, and there was that hint of mystery that kept the story from being just a romance. Themes of right vs. wrong, peace vs. chaos filled the pages and created a tale that will hold the interest of anyone who loves these kinds of issues.

Four stars. Some parts of the story, like the detailed descriptions of farming and financial maneuvering, were a little tedious, but not enough to spoil my enjoyment of "The Long Road Home."

I enjoyed reading "Long Road Home" mainly because of Mary Alice Monroe's writing style. Although there are a lot of characters she introduce them and the continued flow makes for a easy read. Nora was a brave and courageous woman after her husband's suicide she was left holding hims debts which were way up in the Billions. Nora gave up everything except for a sheep farm in Vermont. The courage comes in when she has to learn how to take care of Ewes with no knowledge of farm life coming from New York City. Nora mets the hired hand CW Charles Walker to Nora but to the people that know him he Charles Walker Blair a wealthy banker. Long story short Nora and CW end up falling in love, but CW has secrets of who he is and why he is on the farm that he is holding from Nora. This could destroy there relationship for ever. I enjoyed Seth's character he was the voice of wisdom and his sister May was a funny character. I don't know how a figured that Esther had slept with Nora's husband before it was said, but I knew she was treating her mean for a reason. Poor John Henry he really loved Esther but she never really loved him. Her passion was art she loved to paint and wanted nothing more than to move to New York to live out her dream. Mary brings all of these character's to life and I was truly reading with interest to see what was going to become of them.

I despise when I know what is going to happen in a book but I stilled enjoyed the storyline in this wonderful love story. Nora has been left with nothing when her husband has commited suicide. So she tries to make a go of it on the only thing she has left, the farm. Nora is a city girl but can adapt anywhere. However she will be in for a suprise when she finds out exactly who C.W. is.

All the characters were likeable and easy to read. Mary Alice Monroe always writes with such ease and I enjoy each one of her books I read. I wasn't aware that this book is a different title of one already released but that is ok with me!

I wish there would have been more of a mystery as to who set up Nora's husband, Mike, but still the journey to see how it all unfolded was good. Find out if Nora makes in in the country. You will really want to know how she finds out who C.W. really is, that is one to NOT miss!

I enjoyed this book thoroughly The main characters were interesting and complex, full of human foibles. As a foil to the exciting, hustling and dog-eat-dog nature of New York, a farm in the mountains of Vermont was perfect. The challenges of living in such a remote environment are quickly made clear to the reader. The feeling of community when a freak snowstorm blasts through the area and brings tragedy to one family, is I think, realistic and warms the human spirit.

While the ending might have been a little predictable, the story kept me captured and I enjoyed the clash between the darker characters and our heroes very much. I must confess to being an addict of romances; this one, between Nora and Charles Walker (CW) took a number of interesting turns.

This is a book for warm winter nights by a fire.

This was a good story, it kept me interested, but the anachronisms bothered me. The author originally wrote The Long Road Home in 1995, it was her first novel, but it was re-released in 2010, with that copyright. It's hard for me to read books that are written as happening in the current time in which the characters don't use technology to solve their problems. Many of the plot twists could have been easily solved if the character had just googled the information. Does anyone else get bothered by the lack of technology in "modern" fiction? Even if they have to lose their cell phone in order for the plot to work, at least they HAVE one. Interesting how quickly and deeply technology has infiltrated our lives.

the long road home by mary alice monroe: an author who writes very well about all kinds of problems and how the characters in her books solve them.
I love this author. this book is about a woman who relocates to vermont to the sheep farm after her husband has used all his money and others and
commits suicide leaving her with nothing. the workers at the farm really are her family now and pitch in at any time to help out. she finds out that one
is not who she thought he was and he goes out of his way to change the things that happened in the past to clear her husbands name an the debts.
really great nature scenes that as a northeastern i treasure.

I actually thought I was getting a book from a different author and ended up with this one checked out from my local library and on my Kindle. It was sort of a formulaic romance story with a few twists and turns. The damsel in distress (Nora) was rescued by Dudley Do-Right (C.W.) and they're going to live happily ever after on the sheep farm in Vermont. The villainess, C.W.'s wicked stepmother Agatha, gets her just dues. That being said, it was a quick, kind of light reading, and I did want to see how the reformed C.W. would get his newly beloved Nora out of her financial predicament. So, while I wouldn't rate it as one of my top reads, it was a good read.

Though the plot might be one you've seen before, Mary Alice Monroe's honest and insightful writing draws you into Nora and C.W.'s story. I loved seeing their relationship grow stronger and tighter.

Early on you learn C.W.'s secret that will eventually blow up in his face, but this book is still very compelling as side characters enter the story, friendships are made, love is found, and everyone's lives intersect.

Great book and great characters.

A true jewel that I found at the library! Just became familiar with Mary Alice Monroe a few years ago. I didn't realize this was her first book! I was mesmerized by her books about the Lowcountry in South Carolina. This book did not disappoint and it had a different setting. A great read. It was hard to put down! Felt I was living the story!!!!

The Long Road Home is the first book that I have had the pleasure of reading by Mary Alice Monroe, but hopefully not the last!

A book that can't be put down!!!

Mary Alice Monroe’s first book. Her style has changed somewhat, but she has always been an excellent writer. I can’t help but wonder what brought her from the mountains of Vermont to the shores of the Carolinas where her books are now set, but that’s only for me to enjoy, not really to ponder.

For a book that begins with a suicide in a banker’s office in New York City to travel high to a sheep farm in rural Vermont with a few masterful clicks of the keyboard before you are really sure of all that is happening is a sign that Mary Alice Monroe was going places in a hurry. Nora, the widow of the man who shot himself in the banker’s office, chose to take the land and house in Vermont in her part of the bankruptcy settlement in the financial mess her husband saddled her with, a move that turned out to be very wise indeed.

What Nora found there were Seth, the old farmer and property caretaker who took her under his wing; his several grown children: Frank and Junior; Sarah; and the talented but mysterious Esther; his sister May with all her Ailments; and, AND, C.W. The drifter farmhand who doesn’t quite fit the role and who has an attractive something that she absolutely does not need right now.

Together, the stoic Vermonters, who warm to Nora’s genuineness and lack of big city airs, and C.W. Help her get the sheep farm “bedded down” for the winter. She learns about birthing lambs and bottle-feeding the frail ones who need supplements and learns to think of the sheep as commodities rather than just cute little animals. She owes so much money and there is so much work to be done that it is overwhelming, but C.W. Goes over her books with her day by day and has other plans in mind as to how to save the farm, behind the scenes plans.

Big business, intrigue, a nasty stepmother, and some backcountry love make this book more than interesting. It has a lot going for it, and the pages turn quickly to see what happens next.

Published in 1995 and "updated" in 2010.

American historic context:
President in 1995: Bill Clinton
President in 2010: Barack Obama

I am going to say stereotypical romance novel characters: innocent, naive, fragile, wronged, beautiful woman (Nora) meets brawny "farmhand" (C.W.) that just happens to be a millionaire banker but of course, she doesn't know it. Yes, the ending is predictable but it's quite the ride getting there due to a good compelling plot.

Romance novel? I don't know then again I generally don't read them. This one has a real and compelling plot with a shocking start (warning). The plot is so good, the romance almost takes a back seat to it. Couldn't put it down which is saying a lot since I seem to put down a lot of books I start these days.

It's also very rich because it is detailed. It juxtaposes Vermont against NYC. There is a farm, with details about it, how to run it, which leads me to think the author has experience on a farm, in this case a sheep farm. The farm is set in Vermont. It centers around a particular Vermont family on which the main female character's farm sits. In keeping with Vermont, it sounds very beautiful. It's in the mountains and the main character, Nora, has run away to it, all she has left from being royally screwed-over by her ex-husband, but it's not even necessarily her farm anymore, her entire life hangs by a thread. The author makes every attempt to keep the locals, local, in dialect, habit, body, and personality. This is the 'yocal' family the story centers around that takes Nora in while she helps her antagonist escape this family--TO NYC. This is a story of betrayal and redemption. Big time.

Plot: 4 stars out of 5. Predictable end but compelling enough to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Characters: 4 out of 5. Somewhat stereotypical.
Emotional reaction: 3 out of 5.

Overall, a good read that kept me up till 2 a.m. I recommend this book.

This is the story of a wife, Nora MacKenzie, whose husband has committed suicide but worse than that he took her self-worth, trusting nature, and left her deep in debt. She left her life in New York City to go to a sheep farm in Vermont. The only place left for her to live. When she gets to the farm she meets the hired hand, C.W., (Charles Walker). With his guidance, she learns the workings of the farm and how to fit in this tight community. She has one man she hates and it's Charles Walker Blair and she blames him for her husband's death and for being in debt causing her to lose all her possessions. As you can guess she doesn't know C.W. is her nemesis, Charles Blair. Read the story to see if their friendship develops into something more or when she finds out who he is will she kick him to the curb?

Fairly forgettable plot. You know that they will end up happily living on the sheep farm together. However, this is a Harlequin, so props to the author for having any plot at all.

The salt-o'-the-earth neighbors apparently lived in the 1950's while Nora and CW lived in the 1990's. Probably left behind because they're not "quality."

In 1995, $300,000 and 400 acres of land with [most of] a house and a viable business on it wasn't exactly the poorhouse. Not too shabby in 2018, either.

Some 1995 era sexist tidbits:
-Mike is a total asshole but she loves him and doesn't believe in divorce
-brother-in-law gets the family bank, sister is more qualified to run the bank but doesn't want to be more powerful than her husband so gets the ancestral home
-heroine is standing in the path of a falling tree and has to be rescued by the hero
-[ostensibly adult] hero has a jealous temper tantrum over heroine dancing at a dance with a (gasp) man

Surprises:
-a mouse was in her bed and *ran across her face* and she didn't acquire a dozen cats the next day (there was also no lovable scamp of a dog in the story)
-there was no bit at the end where his fortune pays to complete the 5 story, 6 bedroom "big house" (ew, shades of plantation life)
-there was no bit at the end where his fortune pays for new sheep
-there was no bit at the end where she's pregnant so, you know, we all know she's a "real woman" after all
-she was still driving the Volvo at the end; buy a truck, madam, you need four wheel drive for the damn hill that you persist in thinking is a metaphor for your life
-the ram/ewe mating scene - what was that all about