Turning for Home

by Caren J. Werlinger

Like her mother before her, Jules Calhoon couldn’t wait to escape her small Ohio town. Unlike her mother, though, Jules couldn’t disappear forever. When she’s called back for her grandfather’s funeral, the visit unleashes a flood of memories and starts her on a lonely—and familiar—path.

Her partner, Kelli, feels Jules slipping away but can’t figure out how to pull her back. In desperation, she turns to Jules’s oldest friend—and her ex—Donna. The problem is, Donna never could figure out why her relationship with Jules ended so long ago, and she never stopped loving Jules.

When a lonely, confused teenager reaches out to Jules for help, the past and present are set on a collision course, igniting a chain of events that will leave none of them unscathed.

Genres: Romance, Lesbian, LGBT

366 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2015

About the author

From the author's website: Bestselling author Caren Werlinger published her first award-winning novel, Looking Through Windows, in 2008. Since then, she has published fifteen more novels, winning several more awards. Influenced by a diverse array of authors, including Rumer Godden, J.R.R. Tolkein, Ursula LeGuin, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Willa Cather and the Brontë sisters, Caren writes literary fiction that features the struggles and joys of characters readers can identify with. Her stories cover a wide range of genres: historical fiction, contemporary drama, and fantasy, including the award-winning Dragonmage Saga, a fantasy trilogy set in ancient Ireland. Most recently, she created the magical setting of Little Sister Island (a place she and her readers wish were real) in When the Stars Sang and Face the Wind.

She lives in Virginia with her wife and their canine fur-children.

Reviews

[Lex Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 Stars. I read this book like there was no tomorrow. I was not stopping until it was done. It had the potential of a 5 star book, but than a problem here, a problem there and the bomb of an ending happened, and my opinion of this book lowered to 3 1/2 stars.
The first major hurdle was the writing. While Werlinger is a talented author, the way she switched between past and present, was confusing to say the least. There was nothing to tell you when the book was flashing back or forward. I found myself having to re-read certain parts over and over to figure out when the change happened and what was going on. I must admit, I did get the hang of it about a 1/3 of the way in, so it was much easier to understand after a while. I believe this will happen to just about anyone who reads this. It will take you a little while to get use to the writing.
Another problem I had, was with the main character Jules. She was just not likeable. She had all these people pining after her, and I just did not get it. What was her appeal? She was closed off, uncommunicative, and treated her girlfriends like crap. Oh yeah, that's someone I would want to date.
Even with the issues above, I was still into this book, then the end happened. I don't want to get into too much because of spoilers, but I wished Jules would have ended up alone. What she did was such a jerk move, that I did not wish for her to have a HEA.
Now, I just sort of dumped on this book, but I still enjoyed plenty in it. I could not put this book down. So I find myself still considering recommending it, with the warning that you may pull your hair out more than once.

[Jude Silberfeld-Grimaud · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book by Caren J. Werlinger is never just a book. You know, going in, that it will get into you, move you, change you. I wasn’t in the right headspace to tackle it when this second edition was released in April, complete with a short story, Just a Normal Christmas, that was initially published in the Ylva anthology Do You Feel What I Feel. Which is why it took me so long to read it.

Jules fled her small town in Ohio as soon as she could and has come back as seldom as she could get away with since. She can’t avoid her grandfather’s funeral however, and as with each visit back home, memories take over, memories she usually feels better off ignoring. Unable to stop Jules from slowly pulling away, her partner Kelli turns for help to Jules’s oldest friend and ex, Donna, who never stopped loving her. As she retreats from her own life, Jules gets caught into Ronnie’s, a teenager from her hometown.

There is so much more to this story, from the sweet childhood friend to the stern grandmother, the absentee mother to the elusive neighbour, the ex’s partner, the new colleague. The secrets, the unspoken, the fears and hopes.

I can see why some readers were disconcerted with the flashbacks and the flashbacks within the flashbacks. I had trouble here and there to keep up with the timeline of the story. I didn’t mind, however. It added to the sense of being lost and tossed around, which made me feel closer to what Jules was going through. While as a person Jules seems very lovable – two kind and smart women appear to love her deeply –, she’s not the most likeable character. She comes off as insensitive at times, but I don’t think any of her actions, however misguided, stems from selfishness. She’s pushing so hard against the pain that she has no energy left for others, even those who would love nothing better than to help.

As the author wrote on her blog, “this isn’t a happy or light story”, yet, strangely enough, despite some truly dramatic and hard parts, the feeling I am left with after reading isn’t one of sadness. It reminds me of the sensation you get when, after being overwhelmed by a wave, you get your head out of the water and breathe. That first breath is hard, it hurts, but it’s also full of life and triumphant.

[Corporate Slave · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh god I'm so happy I'm done with this book. The most confusing book I've read. The flashbacks were so confusing and so uninteresting! And sorry but why would u hide something like ur best friend passing away in high school and why would it affect you so much that it makes u such an unlikeable person 20+ years after ! I've read the reviews and the high rating makes me come to the conclusion that maybe this book is good but definitely not for me!

[Bib · Rating 5 out of 5]

Werlinger is really good, she would create flawed characters in her books and make me can't help, but stick by and root for the character. Enjoyable read, author never fails to deliver.

[Nikki · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the story of Jules, a brooding uncommunicative woman that has left a trail of unsatisfied exes due to her self-sabotaging ways. Jules receives a note from a young girl named Ronnie, who is trying to deal with living as a lesbian in a small town and is seeking guidance from Jules. Ronnie is basically the catalyst for Jules devolving and becoming much more secretive than normal (which is an impressive feat). It is told in a series of flashbacks to the time when Jules was growing up with many of the same issues Ronnie is dealing with now, focusing primarily on her good friend Hobie. However, it is done in a way which is disjointed, leaving me confused as to when in time and space I was on a regular basis. I read this author’s Year of the Monsoon last year and had the same problem with that. Although it was overall clearer when time jumps happened with some annotation signifying it, the structure of the narrative was still underwhelming to me. I found Jules to be highly unlikable and I had no idea why so many women held such strong feelings for her after being treated quite poorly by her for a long period of time.

Basically, the flashbacks and flash forwards (sometimes a couple within the same sentence!) very, very slowly gave me insight into why Jules is so broody and emotionally stunted. Once you finally find out WHY she has such emotional issues, I continued to lack the ability to sympathize with the protagonist. I felt so much time was spent repetitively showing how uncommunicative she was that I never stopped being frustrated, and failed to see the appeal. There are aspects of a love triangle (at one point a love quadrangle?) where Jules is forced to choose, and by the end I was yelling at my book “omg please no one choose HER, let her be alone and miserable!” I’m wondering if the love triangles were there to show how emotionally unavailable Jules was due to her past, but by the end it was so overdone that any more focus on this was overkill. At one point you start to think "oh look she's becoming self-aware and maybe that means she'll stop treating these very nice women so poorly!" But she doesn't. She does it again. And she just sits there waiting for another woman to decide if she wants to put up with it. It doesn't feel like she grows at all, aside from finally talking about her past, but she only does that when she's forced to. In addition, I don’t think there was nearly enough narrative dedicated to the relationship between Jules and Mae, which could have been such a beautiful development if given it’s due.

Another big problem I had with the story was that so many of the scenes felt unfinished. I’ll try to describe what I mean with an example. When Jules and Kelli are planning to go visit Mae (Jules’ emotionally unavailable mother figure, I’m sensing a theme here) and this is kind of a BIG DEAL. Jules is so secretive about her past and her family that you know “ok wow Kelli’s going with her, so this should be interesting.” Except it’s not. There are basically two lines of dialogue with Mae before Jules and Kelli try to find Ronnie at the diner. Then they’re right back home and anything that happened back with Mae is treated as an aside and in short flashbacks. But why? Why not have those scenes grow organically and let the reader watch it happen? Why do we have to hear about it later without the emotional weight and nuance that could have been given to their interactions? It just didn’t make any sense when scenes were given that treatment, and it happened fairly regularly. Overall, I did like it better than Year of the Monsoon, but the main problems I had with that book is what still bothered me with this one. Just to a lesser degree.

[F. · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you find yourself cheerful and with a positive and fun outlook on life - never fear - this book will fix it....

The story is told through the depressing current time and the even more depressing growing up of one of the MCs. The love sort is two people trying to hold on to their relationship. It’s utterly sad.

This reads more like an attempt at a great American novel and lacks every element of what makes romance - for me - fun to read.

I’ve read two other Werlinger books that were great. I’m hoping this one is the odd one out.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Profoundly Moving Journey Through Past and Present

Our past shapes our present, and our present influences our reflection of the past. For most of us, this is not problematic. However, if you feel that your past will forever pull you back into a dark place, but you can never seem to confront it, how can you ever move forward? I felt that these issues were the key aspects of Jules Calhoon’s story in Turning for Home. The book is a profoundly moving journey through Jules’s past and present that is sometimes heartbreaking, but always hopeful.

At the outset of Turning for Home, Jules and Kelli’s life together seems ideal. They have good jobs, are comfortable, and share a nice home together. However, we soon find out that Jules cannot escape the shadows of her past. Jules seems to follow a recurring pattern in her life, and in her relationships, that is detrimental to herself and to others, but from which she cannot break free. The important people in her life – her partner, Kelli and her friend (and ex-girlfriend) Donna – cannot understand why Jules keeps repeating this destructive pattern.

Jules is a flawed individual in many ways, and one cringes at the secrets she keeps and the way in which she distances herself from Kelli. Jules keeps her emotions tightly ensconced behind a barrier through which no one can pass. But one can also deeply sympathize with how she feels, understand the ways in which she’s been emotionally damaged, and relate to and really understand the issues that she faces. Jules is also very likeable, and has a lot of depth - she’s sarcastic, and sometimes has to hold back retorts, introverted, caring, and tries really hard to be a good partner to Kelli. Jules is confident in many aspects of her life, such as her job as a school psychologist. However, despite her professional training, she is not able to address and process her own feelings about certain past events.

Turning for Home is primarily Jules’s journey, but a focus on her relationship with Kelli, and what their relationship can or cannot overcome, is integral to the story. The relationship between Jules and Kelli is well fleshed-out. However, the aftermath of Jules’s past relationship with Donna is an important element as well. The story considers dynamics of how these two important connections in Jules’s life - with a current partner, and with an ex who has remained a friend - can endure in the face of all the emotional obstacles that are put in their way.

I thought that the two elements of the story, the present day and the flashbacks, were linked almost seamlessly. As is usually the case in life, Jules’s flashbacks to her childhood and youth are often connected to the time of year in the present, or a similar experience sparks a recollection. Key individuals in Jules’s life, past and present, are linked in certain ways in terms of their situations and interests, and act as another trigger that causes Jules to relive her memories. At a key point in the narrative, the reader feels, as does Jules, that the events of the past and the present are overlapping and intertwined.

Caren J. Werlinger has a distinctive writer’s voice, and uses a wonderful, lucid style of writing in Turning for Home. She employs symbolism and imagery beautifully. These elements envelop the characters and are interwoven throughout the narrative. They prompt the reader to immerse themselves deeper in the story as well as reflect more deeply on its different aspects. I don’t want to spell everything out, because it’s such a delight to uncover the symbolism on your own, and everyone will have their own interpretation. However, I will say that from Jules’s night-light that depicts a number of scenes of nature and the outdoors, to Kelli’s creation and firing process of clay pots and vases, readers will find that different objects reflect or foreshadow the emotional state or experiences of different characters at various points in the story, or link the past and present in Jules’s mind. There is even beauty and symbolism to be found in the scenes of Jules and her friend Hobie as children, outcasts among their peers, but unique individuals, playing in the town dump and uncovering unexpected treasures.

One thing that I always find with Caren J. Werlinger’s work is that while each of her characters are so different from one another, they each have elements that I can relate to or identify with. These elements include not only the characters’ emotions, but also various aspects of their personalities, and they ways in which they perceive the world and their place within it.

Jules, Kelli, and their friends and families are not rich or glamorous. Kelli and Jules come from middle- and working-class backgrounds, respectively. They have regular, although interesting, jobs, they exercise, and they deal with the everyday routines of life, such as cooking dinner and doing household chores. However, in the ordinary aspects of their lives we also see the extraordinary and the unique. The simple beauty of life, love and creativity is apparent, although it is sometimes tinged by heartbreaking experiences.

The characters in Turning for Home suffer loss in various forms. However, I wouldn’t say that the book is pessimistic in its outlook. It includes a strong element of overcoming burdens and moving beyond past pain. It ultimately leaves you very hopeful about the human spirit, and the strength we can find in ourselves and in our relationships, friendships, and families.

The secondary characters are also multifaceted and interesting. The portrayal of Jules’s complicated relationship with her grandmother, Mae – a relationship that we see from Jules’s perspective from a very young age through to adulthood – is touching in many ways. The character of Mae is very nuanced, and lying behind her harshness is a true sense of caring for Jules. Throughout the flashbacks in the story, we see many key influences (people, as well as events) in Jules’s childhood, which, while difficult, is also joyful. Jules’s relationship with her childhood best friend, Hobie, is very poignant, well developed, and integral to the story. Her bond with her grandfather, one of the warmest figures in her childhood, is significant over the course of her young life and continues to influence her in the present.

Aldie, Ohio, Jules’s hometown, is a small mill town in which not much has changed since Jules’s childhood. In many respects, the attitudes of its inhabitants remain the same, at least in terms of how LGBTQ kids are often treated. Lesbian and gay teenagers remain at the periphery of town life, both physically, with respect to their gathering places, as well as in terms of their place in society.

An important issue addressed in Turing for Home is that of being a kid who is different, specifically, growing up as a gay or lesbian teenager in a small town. Several characters share this identity, and while each has a different experience, isolation is common, as is bullying. The story also demonstrates that even though the legal protections for LGBTQ adults and legal recognition of same-sex marriage are progressing, life can still be really difficult for lesbian and gay teenagers, especially in small towns. It does, however, point out some of the positive steps that can be taken and the importance of coming together and developing a network of individuals as a support system for teenagers in difficult situations.

The book also includes a few insightful (and sometimes funny!) observations on the lesbian community, and the interactions and relationships within it, especially as it exists in smaller locales. The dynamics and complexities of staying friends with an ex-girlfriend are addressed throughout the story in the form of Jules’s continued friendship with Donna.

The plot is so deftly woven, with lots of twists and turns and emotional reactions, that readers will find it impossible to predict how the story and the characters’ different relationships will play out in the final scenes.

Turning for Home is a book that I think will appeal more broadly outside the lesbian fiction niche. For all the reasons I’ve discussed thus far, this story has a lot to offer readers of mainstream literary fiction.

The story is significant in the sense that it might influence your understanding of yourself or others, or alter your view of the world in a small way. Its characters and their experiences are not ones that will slip away, but will stay at the back of your mind and tug at you occasionally. This is is a book that will change you a little, as all the very best books do.
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For the sake of full disclosure, I feel that I should state here that I beta read the manuscript.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intense! Not your typical romance. Lots of twists and turns. It's a story you will think about after you finish it. Trying to get all the pieces in place in your mind. I know, I will need some time to let it all absorb.

[Elizabeth Tanner · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome read that took me on an a family and personal advetnture. The author, Caren Werlinger, did a great job of unpredictable. This book is anything but predictable. Ever wonder what would have happened if? This author does just that. Thank you for sharing your "what if."

[Addison Conley · Rating 5 out of 5]

An emotional read. Thank you, Caren, for writing this novel.

[Dorothy Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

TURNING FOR HOME is a beautifully-written and touching story about one lesbian woman's moment of truth about her past and how it has affected her life and her relationships. Raised by her grandparents in a small town in Ohio, Jules knew loneliness and isolation and made one good friend in her neighbor Hobie, a boy who lived with his mother but was also an isolate. The two navigated their childhoods together, best friends and buds. Now an adult and a professional educational psychologist, Jules returns to Aldie for her grandfather's funeral and is confronted by unwelcome memories of her childhood, memories of events and feelings that have scarred her as a person, a woman, and a lover. Before she can get out of town and return to her partner, Kelli, Jules encounters another challenge--a note from an unhappy teenager slipped under the restroom stall door. Knowing she should just walk away from the note but unable to do so, Jules begins a new round of complex happenings and complex relationships in a life already filled with conflicts and secrets. Before Jules can help herself or deal with anyone else, she must first face her past. A great story, wonderfully and movingly written with lots of twists and turns.

[Ameliah Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serious Awww Factor
This beautifully written story revolves around Jules Calhoon, her partner Kelli, their friends and how she copes with the major stressors in her life. This time it is the death of her Grandfather and very young lesbian trapped in her very small home town. The memories she relives threaten to tear her world apart.

There are so many complex sides to Jules. Ms Werlinger gives us a really good feel for all of them and to see what makes her tick. All of the characters seem pretty realistic, some easy to love, some easy to hate and some you just cant be real sure of...

I loved the everyday feel of this tale. These women have real jobs, real joys and real problems. The story is very believable and relatable. The words and the emotions Ms Werlinger wove, encased me in a cocoon of her making and I was unable to see past the drama she was painting. Simply wonderful and I highly recommend it!

[Bernice Pardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Caren's books are always full of deep, complicated emotions. Turning for Home is no exception, keeping the reader guessing right until the end for the outcome. Caren's characters are always so full on, complicated people with such colourful past lives that give the story its many twists and turns, just looked a roller coaster. Looking forward to reading more of Caren's

[Eva · Rating 2 out of 5]

The foundation of the story (the hidden secrets of the main character) is just too weak to make the main characters reactions and life choices realistic. However, the love triangle was by far the more interesting part of the book. Although it was a bit unsettling, it was also thrilling and surprisingly fresh, and I am so frustrated that the author did not go deeper into it. A pity..

[terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. It’s a heart tugging and tears will come, but it is a great story of friendship, love, trust, and sometimes misunderstandings. Jules goes home for her Grandfather’s funeral and it triggers old memories for her. She is also approached by a young woman who wants helping getting out of the small town because she fears living in the closet there. The book goes back and forth between the present and the past as Jules remembers her past that she had thought that she left behind. Jules’s partner and friends try to figure out what’s going on with her and think she may be cheating because she seems to be falling into to a pattern from her past. There’s lots of tears, well at least for me while I read this story. Don’t get me wrong I loved it but at times it was gut wrenching. You definitely take a journey with Jules, Kelli ,Donna and Jules's Grandmother through the past. I definitely recommend this book, it’s excellent.

[Francis Guenette · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story that shouldn’t be missed – humanizing – filled with empathy, courage and hope

Every now and then, one gets the opportunity to sit, undisturbed for the hours it takes to read an entire novel, to enter fully into the world created by the author. I am very grateful that this chance happened for me when Turning for Home by Caren Welinger came to hand.

The novel’s main character, Jules, is a successful, professional woman. She’s in a fulfilling relationship with Kelli, she has a rewarding career. Going back to the town she grew up in to attend her grandfather’s funeral triggers memories from the past that Jules’ has never been able to face. Echoes reverberate into every area of her life. The scene is set. The reader knows long before Jules does that she now faces a crucial choice – deal with the past or be doomed to repeat the same mistakes over and over.

The author masterfully weaves the story of Jules’ growing up years, living with her grandparents in the small town of Aldie and her friendship with Hobie – the boy next door who is every bit as much a misfit as Jules, into her current life. We go backwards and forwards with Jules’ and never once do the transitions become tiresome or the text confusing. In this type of a book, readers can often find themselves longing to get back to one or the other story. But in this case, the author makes both narratives so gripping, the reader wants to be exactly where she dictates.

This is a coming of age story that makes one ache with memories of the painful paths many have walked from adolescence to adulthood. But the struggle for acceptance faced by Jules and Hobie and Ronnie, a teenage girl who reaches out in desperation to Jules, are intensified by issues related to sexual orientation.

Ultimately, Turning for Home, opens an insight into the twists and turns of relationships – with parents and grandparents, friends, lovers, and those we mentor along the way. The story provides a roadmap for finding a way back to home – the place where the answers to how we have become the people we are hidden as surely and as carefully as Hobie hid his stories. Just waiting to be discovered.

[Sandy Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll be thinking about this story for a long time

What a beautiful, tragic and terrifying imagination Caren Werlinger must possess to have written a story so raw and real. I don’t think I can express how deeply it touched me. If you have ever felt so happy to be alive, or scared of who you really are, or so alone you don’t know if you can go on, this book gives you friends and family who have been there too. If you can read this book without feeling the truth in it, you need to fight harder for it. You deserve better.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was hard to rate for me... I liked the story but I had trouble with the writing and the characters. The main character Jules was just not like able in my opinion - I’m not sure if she was meant to be unlikeable or if it is just a personal preference. I liked Kelly, Donna Ronny and some other characters, which made it ok. The writing was a bit confusing for me - it switched between past and present without a clear indicator and scenes just changed. The end of one sentence for example is Jules being at home with Kelly and without any indicator of change, the next sentence is her in the office. There were also some scenes that stayed unfinished in my opinion like the one were Kelly thinks about talking with Donna and Jules about their relationship- she just sits them down and then the next sentence is about something completely different and it stays unresolved. I wondered till the end what happened there. I also didn’t like the ending - after Jules pretty much told her she would have gone with Donna if she would have said yes but she stills loves Kelly and would have gone with her out of guilt even though she loves Donna too and Kelly still stayed with her? Why would she stay with her?
As I said I liked the concept of the book but I had a few problems with it.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although I felt the story jumped around a fair bit at the beginning which felt a little confusing to start off with, I stuck with it and very glad I did. It was a beautiful story, that had me in tears on more than one occasion. I enjoyed the fact I didn't know how the story would end which is nice as many books in this genre I find I can guess the ending half way through. Another huge reason why I enjoyed this book was the extra chapter at the end. All too often the books can end so quickly I feel I am wanting more, this extra chapter was a real treat and I left the book with a warm feeling.
I would defiantly recommend this book to other readers.

[Elke Lakey · Rating 4 out of 5]

It appears to be one of Caren Werlinger's talents to make her readers finish a book despite disliking the protagonist. While a bit confusing at times because of the many flashbacks, I still enjoyed 'Turning for Home', except I just couldn't root for Jules. She simply doesn't deserve the happy end she gets. But that's life for you.

So, no, I would not say this is one of my most favorite stories by Caren Werlinger. But if you are game for a complex and troubled main character who struggles with past and present relationships, heck, relationships in general, Jules' story makes for an interesting read. Recommend.

[Sandi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everytime I start to read a book by this author I know I'll be in for a treat. Werlinger has an amazing ability to weave the story and MC's into an eloquent seamless marriage that forces the reader to become emotionally invested. This book follows Jules's current relationships while delving into the childhood factors that have forged in her the inability to fully invest herself with those she loves. Through retrospection and a series of events that force her to finally face her past, she finally finds the peace she was searching for. Strong support characters give a sense of depth and a quality of realism to the story that makes you feel fully invested in Jules struggles. A must read!

[Carol Douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like all of Werlinger's books that I've read, this novel is excellent. The characters are complex. Both the lesbian love and friendship relationships and the family relationships are well-developed. This is the story of women in the middle of their lives and their careers who are still learning more about themselves and the people they know.

[Penelope Mabie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another rich offering from Caren Werlinger

Such a good story - about the complexity of love and loss. And the heartaches of growing up gay in a small town. Caren’s stories don’t just entertain - they compel you to take up residence with the main characters and live their experiences with them.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rec'd a copy from Ylva for review.
A deep, emotional romance that is beautifully written by Ms. Werlinger. I read through the night to a satisfying end. The author never disappoints !!
Recommended with 4.5 stars.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nothing is ever what it seems, and none of us know what is in another’s heart. I enjoyed this book,particularly the character development. Another good read from Caren. Real characters, true emotions... it’s what she does best.

[Nancy Manahan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Profound plot and complex, likeable, fallible characters

I love Werlinger's complex characters and her gripping story, exploring through skillful flashbacks childhood experiences of homophobia and the resulting PTSD that casts a long shadow into adulthood.

[Marilyn Langlois · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of a wounded woman breaking hearts. I loved how the healing felt real and messy. Characters that stayed with me afterwards and a reread in the future!

[Millari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was excellent. I read it in order to review it, but it was an absolute pleasure to read. I fell in love with main character Jules Calhoon. Favorite secondary characters included Jules' ex, Donna, and her childhood best friend Hobie. But really, practically everyone in this book is fleshed out and feels pretty real.

With deft storytelling, the novel interlaces four connected storylines: The first is of the main character Jules in the present, who visits her hometown for a family funeral and, while in a diner, gets a note from a desperate lesbian teen who begs her to help get her out of Jules' narrow-minded hometown, where being openly LGBT (or even being suspected of being LGBT) is an open license to school bullies, gay conversion therapists, and possibly even murderers. While Jules debates about whether getting involved in this girl's situation could lead to her being outed and fired at her own job as a school psychologist (the novel takes place in the 1990s, when this was a real possibility even in more liberal places), the whole thing triggers memories of her childhood traumatic experiences and the unfinished business of a mother who abandoned her to be raised by a reserved grandmother who always seemed to resent Jules.

Then we get storyline 2, with extensive flashbacks to Jules's childhood and her relationship with her smart, quirky best friend Hobie, whose weight and love of writing science fiction makes him the target of bullies, until Jules befriends him. That story is about Jules figuring out that she's a lesbian as she grows into puberty, and about a mysterious and tragic event that happens to Jules and Hobie.

Meanwhile, the third storyline is about how all this affects Jules as an adult, told mostly from the perspective of her girlfriend Kelli, who bears the brunt of Jules' latent dysfunctional relationship behaviors triggered by her return home and the encounter with this lesbian teen. Kelli tries to understand the reserved Jules, who has learned from her life experiences to keep her mouth shut and not talk about her feelings. Can Kelli persuade Jules to open and save their relationship?

All three storylines collapse together by the end in a really smart, page-turning way that I really enjoyed. I would recommend this book to anyone, not just people interested in fiction with lesbians, because the story we are told, while not possible without lesbians, in many ways is about stuff even wider in scope. It's about the unique mix of beauty, innocence, cruelty and helplessness of childhood and the enduring effect it has on people into adulthood. It's a beautiful, uplifting book that stayed with me for a long time.

[John Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Those of who escape our home towns leave something behind. Sometimes it's a broken love story, sometimes it's parental disappointment, sometimes it's just something we cannot really identify or admit to ourselves. Whatever it might be, the emotional memory seldom lets go. For most, it fades, but sometimes it holds on with steel claws that are so powerful they cripple our daily lives. This is such a story.
Jules grew up in the small Ohio town of Aldie Ohio. Her mother dumped her off with her grandparents and she never knew who her father was. Pappy, as she called her grandfather was the best, letting her be herself and teaching her all sorts of stuff. Mae, her grandfather, loved her, but was unable to show much in the way of warmth. When Hobie, a boy her age, moved in next door with his mother, Jules found her best friend. She and Hobie spent almost every free moment together. There was a good reason for that. Both kids were gay/lesbian in a town and a time when it was just about the worst thing that could happen to you. In fact, Jules found herself beating up the boys she used to play baseball with because they tormented Hobie.
Something terrible happened before Jules graduated and was able to escape Aldie. As you read the book, pieces of the past are revealed in alternating chapters with the crises she's experiencing some twenty years later. She's now a school psychologist in her third relationship with another woman. Neither of the first two ended well and she's never been able to talk about what's inside that makes her build walls. On her last visit to Aldie, a high school girl, working in a local eatery, slips her a note. In it she asks for help because she's a lesbian and things haven't gotten any better for teens like her.
The plea for help sets in motion a series of events that force Jules to finally take a good look at why she's emotionally frozen. How that happens and what the result is make for a satisfying ending. I liked this book a lot and can say that the situations and emotions they generated for the characters make this a book that should have wider appeal than one might expect.

[J.A. Ironside · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copy given by author in exchange for an honest review.


This was at once an unusual and beautiful love story, a novel about self-examination and self honesty and an intricate family drama. The characters were well drawn and fully rounded, and even if you disliked some of them you couldn't help rooting for them nevertheless. Jules is a flawed and intensely conflicted individual - a lot of her problems stem from an inability to extend the same kind of compassion and forgiveness to herself that she extends to others. There were times when I felt irritated by her but I never stopped caring what happened to her.

The story itself is one that ends on a surprising message of hope, on an uplifting note. We're taken on a journey through the extreme difficulties of fitting in - an impossible task when you have to pretend to be something you're not to achieve it - of the pain of isolation when you succeed and the humiliating ostracism when you fail, through the attitudes of a small minded micro-society where change and difference are often subjected to out right persecution, and somehow Werlinger has us emerging on the other side of this journey stronger and more pure of purpose. None of the hardship or degradation touches us, just as in the end, when her characters are true to themselves, it doesn't touch them. This is a deep seated and deftly woven message that is well worth perpetuating.

Turning for Home is a story about the past shaping the future and the present; about returning to confront your fears and secrets, and above all about trusting yourself. It's not all hearts and flowers and happy endings, but its prevailing message is one of hope. I really enjoyed this lovely book and highly recommend it to others.