Zoe is still grief stricken after suddenly losing her fiance Paul, so her best friend Kate suggests it may be time to move out of the flat they shared. Ray, from the local coffee shop, has an army friend, Neil, who is looking for a house sitter while he is stationed overseas. So Zoe moves into Neil’s home and finds herself desperate to know more about him. After exchanging some emails, she feels a connection with this stranger. I was expecting a moving story about surviving the death of the one you love. It did start out like this but eventually the storyline dragged a bit before getting completely ridiculous. Bits that should have be fleshed out, such as her new business, weren’t. Overall, it was half a good book, half not.
Coming Home to You, the debut novel by Liesel Schmidt, shows that when one door closes, another one opens. The summary says: "Zoe and her fiance Paul had everything ahead of them. So when Paul dies suddenly, Zoe doesn't recognise the life she's left with. Helping a friend by housesitting for a stranger is the last thing she wants to do - but she can't deny that she needs time away from the memories which crowd her flat. So, collecting the keys, Zoe lets herself into her temporary home. Surrounded by a stranger's belongings - his toothbrush, his favourite records, the pictures on his walls - Zoe begins to build a picture of the flat's owner, Neil, who is away in the military. Driven by a need to know more, Zoe begins writing to Neil and finds herself feeling an unlikely connection with him. But while some people are destined to share our lives forever, others are sent simply to help us on the way. And for Zoe, a new life is just beginning..." Coming Home to You is out in October 2014.