Coming Home
Mariah Stewart
Ballantine, Mar 23 2010, $7.99
ISBN: 9780345520333

In St. Dennis on Chesapeake Bay, Vanessa Keaton feels she has finally found a home as the townsfolk have welcomed her and her boutique Bling is a success. Her half-brother town Police Chief Gabriel Beck is always there for her; unlike her mother whom she is estranged from and her father who she does not even know who he is. She is especially ecstatic for Gabriel as he will shortly marry Mia Shields.

Widower and former FBI agent Grady Shield shocks everyone when he leaves his Montana reclusive hideaway where he ran to after his wife was murdered to attend Mia's wedding as no one expected him to come. Even more stunning is the attraction between the hermit and the shopkeeper. As they fall in love, their pasts keep both from committing. However when someone vandalizes Bling, Grady realizes this was not a teenage prankster, but instead a person angrily targeting Vanessa. He vows to keep her safe.

Coming Home is a very entertaining and compelling romantic suspense second chance at love thriller. The lead couple is a fascinating pairing as each brings tons of baggage into their relationship while the townsfolk add eccentricity into the mix. More romance than suspense, fans will enjoy the opening Chesapeake Diaries tale as two people learn the meaning of Coming Home is love.

Harriet Klausner