Going Home [Paperback]

Harriet Evans (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 7, 2005

They say love feels like going home . . .

but what if your home is no longer there?

Leaving her tiny flat in London -- and a whole host of headaches behind -- Lizzy Walter is making the familiar journey back home to spend Christmas with her chaotic but big-hear ted family. In an ever-changing world, her parents' country home, Keeper House, is the one constant. But behind the mistletoe and mince pies, family secrets and rivalries lurk. And when David, the Love of Her Life -- or so she thought -- makes an unexpected reappearance, this one ranks as a Christmas she would definitely rather forget.

As winter slowly turns to spring, all the things that Lizzy has taken for granted begin to shift. Keeper House is in jeopardy and might have to be sold for reasons Lizzy doesn't understand. Her family seems fractured like never before. And, with a new man in her life, she may finally have to kiss her dream of a reunion with David good-bye. By the time the Walters gather at Keeper House for a summer wedding, the stakes have never been higher -- for Lizzy, for her family, and for love.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This debut novel from Evans (a former editorial director at Penguin UK) opens with a late-twentysomething female British narrator and a crazy family holiday dinner, but quickly distinguishes itself from the usual Bridget Jones-esque fare. At the Walters' cozy Christmas in their crumbling countryside manor, trouble starts when Uncle Mike shows up with a blonde, buxom American wife, and normally affable Tom gets stinking drunk and declares his homosexuality. But then the big news hits: Kepper House-the aforementioned cozy manor-will have to be sold to fund one family member's shady dealings. So protagonist Lizzy Walter-a plucky Londoner nursing a broken heart and contemplating a move to L.A. as a way to leave behind painful memories-sets off on a mission to save the family home. Lizzy juggles her house-saving schemes with her romantic entanglements-she's dating the younger brother of the boy who broke her heart-but it's the familial characters like eccentric Aunt Chin and Chin's younger Australian fiancé, and a mother and father ever-eager to hit the sauce that give the book life and depth. Charts (one rates the "level of weird behavior" of family members, another lists fundraising possibilities) and hyperactive capitalization (Lizzy washes "the Things that Are Too Big to Go in the Dishwasher") skew cutesy, but otherwise the story is set in solid writing that manages to be fun without dipping into dumbed-down frivolity.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From Booklist

Twentysomething Lizzy Walter is living the good life, working in London at a film--production company and visiting her family's manor in the country whenever she wants a change. Until, still stung over her boyfriend's betrayal, she arrives home for Christmas with her sister Jess and cousin Tom to discover that Keeper House must be sold to pay her adored, but unreliable, Uncle Mike's debts. Her family seems to have accepted the loss of their ancestral home, but she is in denial, so that while they are planning her aunt Chin's wedding and packing up the house, she sequesters herself in her London apartment and broods, using sex as a panacea but refusing to commit to any relationships. In spite of a confusing use of American slang and pop-culture references in a British milieu, Evans' chick-lit debut is an engaging first-person recounting of a watershed six months in one young woman's life. Lynne Welch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins Pb (November 7, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0007225245
• ISBN-13: 978-0007225248
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Hi amazon.com readers! If you've stopped by because you're interested in buying one of my books, welcome! If you've stopped by because you thought you'd typed Harry Potter, I'm sorry, and have a nice day. If you hate me and all my works I don't know what to say... So I might just focus on the 1st of these options.

I live in London, and I write full time, having given up my job (working in publishing) last year to do so. I write romantic comedy-style books, books that are about love and life and good times and bad - basically I want to tell a story that transports you to a different place, with characters you really believe in. I like the kind of books you can curl up on the couch with and get really lost in. That's my aim, anyway, so I hope it's true!

My latest book, I REMEMBER YOU, came out in the US in June 2010, and it's about going back to the town you come from, about memories and first loves and the people you leave behind. It's got a big love story in it and a holiday in Rome, because Gregory Peck is my hero and Roman Holiday is one of my favourite films. Which mean I *had* to go to Rome for research and I *had* to eat lots of spaghetti alle vongole and drink lots of prosecco.

I've had four books published in the States now, I can't believe how lucky I am. I visited New York around launch time and had me a blast, a BLAST I tell you. I went to a Broadway show (Promises, Promises). I ate brunch (we don't do brunch so much in the UK). I drank a Manhattan - woah, watch out for them, they are bad. And I visited a Target, which is one of my favourite things to do in the US. I saw my lovely publishers at Downtown Press, and they told me to come to Amazon and update my page, because there was nothing here and how could people know they didn't like me or my books if I wouldn't let them find out? So there you go, people. If you do take a chance on one of my books, THANKS a million and I really hope you enjoy it. Find me on twitter or www.harriet-evans.com and
love
Harriet x

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as good as "Hopeless Romantic", March 26, 2008

By 

M.S.F. (Boston) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Going Home (Paperback)

I kept passing this book because of the reviews about it being too long. But after reading "A Hopeless Romantic" by the same auther (and equally long), I had to give it a shot. While "Hopeless Romantic" captured my attention because of its fairy-tale romance and sideline stories, I was very disappointed reading Going Home because Lizzy was shallow and the fact that she had men so devoted to her was perplexing...you just didn't care. While it was still an easy enough read and it followed a similar pattern as her next book, it didn't entertain and was easy to put down. Nonetheless, I would say this was a solid first book effort and given her second book was so much better, I look forward to seeing more from Harriet Evans.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars interesting English character study, October 4, 2006

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Going Home (Paperback)

When London becomes to overbearing or her troubles overwhelming, sensitive Lizzy Walters enjoys the respite of her rustic home Keeper House where her family has always been welcoming. Lizzy needs the warmth and hugs of her kin after she has lost her "big love" so she plans to go back as soon as she can escape from the hustle and bustle of London.

However, this time Keeper House seems more foreboding than hospitable as family secrets begin to surface that shake Lizzy. Even more shocking and making Lizzy feel dizzy, he who abandoned her has arrived at her haven. She is not sure she wants to deal with him as his arrival and her family's behavior since her return make GOING HOME seem a mistake.

This is an interesting English character study starring a fascinating female who decides a bit of family love is just the cure for her broken heart, but instead receives a horde of woes tossed like grenades from those she expected comfort from. The absorbing story line is somewhat amusing as the Walters seem harmlessly eccentric, but throughout readers will wonder why there is the lack of communication from anyone with Lizzy; neither her family members nor her "big love" who dumped her appear able to simply talk to Lizzy though this reviewer is not sure whey. Still she is an intriguing protagonist struggling with the down side of love.

Harriet Klausner

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Never Wanted it to End!, April 13, 2007

By 

Quinn Wyatt "qthereader" (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Going Home (Paperback)

A friend loaned me this book because she thoroughly enjoyed it. I did too! It is a wonderful story, and Harriet Evans's style of writing is engrossing. Her attention to detail and ability to capture and hold the reader's attention is phenominal. Some parts were laugh out loud funny, while other parts were simply fine storytelling mixed with light drama. If you love British "chick lit" I would highly recommend this book, which operates on a slightly higher plane of intelligence than most "chick lit", yet is still entertaining and down to earth.