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Light, Coming Back: A Novel
"This is lyrical writing at its finest . . . breathtaking and beautiful, showing us the fullness of a life captured." -Foreword Magazine
For decades, Mercedes Medina has carefully navigated life's turbulent currents, and although her irascibly good-humored husband of 25 years is dying, she fully expects her elegantly ordered existence to carry on. But when a passionate affair hits her head-on--and desire collides with responsibility--she is forced to redefine her life in ways authentically her own. She knows peace will never find her here. But she might not miss it. . . .
For decades, Mercedes Medina has carefully navigated life's turbulent currents, and although her irascibly good-humored husband of 25 years is dying, she fully expects her elegantly ordered existence to carry on. But when a passionate affair hits her head-on--and desire collides with responsibility--she is forced to redefine her life in ways authentically her own. She knows peace will never find her here. But she might not miss it. . . .
332 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2000
4 people are currently reading
188 people want to read
About the author
Ann Wadsworth
4 books3 followersAnn Wadsworth was born and raised in St. Louis, and now lives in Boston. She has degrees in English from Berea College, the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and a certificate of proficiency in Italian language and literature from the Italian University for Foreigners in Perugia, Italy.
Her first novel, Light, Coming Back, was shortlisted for the Ferro-Grumley Prize, the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, and the Stephen Crane First Fiction Award, and was a Book of the Month Club selection. Her most recent novel, Ferragosto, was supported by the MacDowell Colony and the Boston Athenaeum. Her short stories have appeared in Christopher Street Magazine (including its anthology Aphrodisiac), and Blithe House Quarterly. She currently lives in Boston.
Her first novel, Light, Coming Back, was shortlisted for the Ferro-Grumley Prize, the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction, and the Stephen Crane First Fiction Award, and was a Book of the Month Club selection. Her most recent novel, Ferragosto, was supported by the MacDowell Colony and the Boston Athenaeum. Her short stories have appeared in Christopher Street Magazine (including its anthology Aphrodisiac), and Blithe House Quarterly. She currently lives in Boston.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
May 21, 2013
Can't praise this book enough. So beautifully written that I had to stop at times just to catch my breath. An improbable plot involving an older (she is 59) woman's self discovery as a lesbian with a much younger woman is tenderly rendered. The characters had depth and the main character, Mrs. Mercedes Medina appealed to me the most-so much so I found myself falling for her-a testimony to the author's skill. After being happily married (more or less) to her much older husband Patrick (he's 85 and getting ill) for 25 years, a retired classical musician, she meets a 30 year old woman named Lennie. She is in her own mind inexplicably attracted to this Lennie and without a lot of introspection pursues what she tells herself is a casual friendship. Her feelings for Lennie develops quickly and Lennie appears to be equally smitten but is she really? I have but one observation and I won't call it a criticism but the author Ann Wadsworth, refers to her as Mrs. Medina throughout the book and after a time I found this annoying and an unnecessary contrivance. I am reading this novel a second time to be sure I didn't miss anything and it is a uniquely satisfying read, an above average (way above average) lesbian romance novel in a class by itself.
October 31, 2020
This is a book which I wanted to get my hands on for the longest time. The story does not flow in accordance to the usual FF formula, but story is alluring in its own unique way. Writing is fantastic, author has real talent but this seems to be her only published work.
March 1, 2008
In one word... intoxicating. Will reverberate indefinitely through my mind.
May 18, 2018
I’ve been blowing through a book a day because it’s summer and I’m temporarily free of the wrath of the United States education system. But this one... this one requires some savoring. Everything about it is exquisite. The vocabulary, the pacing, the landscapes, the visuals, the tone, the characters - everything is done with smooth, melancholy grace. It focuses on the details while still creating a meaningful whole. Mercedes Mendina’s evolution and depth of discovery of her sexuality and sense of identity is impeccably rendered and an experience to read. This is one of few books I’ve read that knows how to talk about LGBTQ identity in a smart, unique manner. It knows how to show the magnitude of exploring or discovering a new facet of one’s sexuality without making romance the sole focus of the story. Mercedes’ questions about her sexuality feel natural and are both intelligently handled and integrated. She’s a wonderfully engaging character: she knows who she is, but she also has questions about how to carry herself as she evolves. She’s strong, but anguished. She’s trapped, but has every opportunity in the world. She’s a formidable presence on the page. Every choice the author makes leads the story in a more authentic direction, and the book as a whole is elegant and faintly sorrowful without being maudlin.
August 21, 2013
From the cover:
Elegant, cultured Mercedes Medina is nearing 60 and preparing for the imminent death of her husband, Patrick. An acclaimed cellist twenty five years her senior, Patrick approaches the end of his life with gusto, but for Mrs. Medina, the journey is not so simple. Finding herself drawn to an impetuous woman nearly half her age, she struggles for balance as passion collides with responsibility, desire with loyalty, lust with love, and the present with the future. When Patrick dies and the woman, Lennie, disappears, Mrs. Medina is left alone, facing a future that will not allow her to continue living in the way she has.
In the hospital, at the beginning, I used to sit and watch out the window. Sometimes I did this for entire days, or great parts of them. Thus starts the best segment of this novel – In hospital – where we are told in first person narrative about Mercedes Medina's depression, the result of both her husband’s death and her lover's disappearance. Light, coming back has a non-linear narrative, and in the second and larger segment - In love – the past is unraveled, whereas in the last section – In transit – the story at the end of the first section goes forward. I became quite interested in the book while reading the first section, since the prose is quite good and the author managed to pique my interest in Mercedes Medina's past story. However, the last two parts of the book don't measure up to the first, and halfway through the book I became uninterested and had to force myself to read it in order to finish it. The third person narrative in the last two parts may have helped to create a certain distance and helped me become completely unmoved by what was happening with the characters. But mostly I would say that the problem lies in the characters themselves and the lack of moving forward in terms of the plot. Mercedes Medina muses on page 5 of the book about the word dull which she thinks may apply to her. Actually, that is true. I don't think that it is an accident that she is referred throughout the novel as Mrs. Medina, as if she has no identity of her own and exists only through her husband Patrick. However, Patrick, besides the redeeming quality of being a star classical musician, is portrayed mostly as a self-centered homophobic bigot. He is slowly entering into dementia and dying, and a lot of the scenes in the second half of the book revolve around the Medina couple constantly bickering with each other. Then there is Lennie, who is another non-defined shallow character, and no wonder Mrs. Medina and Lennie have difficulty talking to each other, keeping their relationship mostly sexual. In the last part Diana, probably the most interesting character in the book because she doesn't let herself just drift and has some ideas about what to do with her life, is introduced. However, at the same time, the plot enters the realm of complete improbability. Ann Wadsworth has clearly some talent, but this book hasn't delivered what it promised at the beginning.
Elegant, cultured Mercedes Medina is nearing 60 and preparing for the imminent death of her husband, Patrick. An acclaimed cellist twenty five years her senior, Patrick approaches the end of his life with gusto, but for Mrs. Medina, the journey is not so simple. Finding herself drawn to an impetuous woman nearly half her age, she struggles for balance as passion collides with responsibility, desire with loyalty, lust with love, and the present with the future. When Patrick dies and the woman, Lennie, disappears, Mrs. Medina is left alone, facing a future that will not allow her to continue living in the way she has.
In the hospital, at the beginning, I used to sit and watch out the window. Sometimes I did this for entire days, or great parts of them. Thus starts the best segment of this novel – In hospital – where we are told in first person narrative about Mercedes Medina's depression, the result of both her husband’s death and her lover's disappearance. Light, coming back has a non-linear narrative, and in the second and larger segment - In love – the past is unraveled, whereas in the last section – In transit – the story at the end of the first section goes forward. I became quite interested in the book while reading the first section, since the prose is quite good and the author managed to pique my interest in Mercedes Medina's past story. However, the last two parts of the book don't measure up to the first, and halfway through the book I became uninterested and had to force myself to read it in order to finish it. The third person narrative in the last two parts may have helped to create a certain distance and helped me become completely unmoved by what was happening with the characters. But mostly I would say that the problem lies in the characters themselves and the lack of moving forward in terms of the plot. Mercedes Medina muses on page 5 of the book about the word dull which she thinks may apply to her. Actually, that is true. I don't think that it is an accident that she is referred throughout the novel as Mrs. Medina, as if she has no identity of her own and exists only through her husband Patrick. However, Patrick, besides the redeeming quality of being a star classical musician, is portrayed mostly as a self-centered homophobic bigot. He is slowly entering into dementia and dying, and a lot of the scenes in the second half of the book revolve around the Medina couple constantly bickering with each other. Then there is Lennie, who is another non-defined shallow character, and no wonder Mrs. Medina and Lennie have difficulty talking to each other, keeping their relationship mostly sexual. In the last part Diana, probably the most interesting character in the book because she doesn't let herself just drift and has some ideas about what to do with her life, is introduced. However, at the same time, the plot enters the realm of complete improbability. Ann Wadsworth has clearly some talent, but this book hasn't delivered what it promised at the beginning.
November 19, 2014
For once, I was glad that the font was too small for me. It meant that I had to savor my moments with the story. This was like the fine wine, dark chocolate, aged cheese kind of book. I cherished every moment with it. It wasn't the kind of book that left you tense or anxious in any way. In fact, I felt very little tension in the book. That goes against what I have been taught about writing.
The main character, Mrs. Mercedes Medina, is in her sixties. Her husband is 20 years her senior. I love the depth of relationship they have. The author, Ann Wadsworth, did a wonderful job creating the couple and each individual. They were wonderfully human characters with faults and follies of their own and a comfortable chemistry between them. But as life is changing and Patrick, the husband, starts failing in health, Mercedes, is trying to figure out her own life.
Since I am in my sixties, I found her life to be interesting. It is far from my own life. I felt like I moved in with this couple and lived a different life for a while. Isn't that the best part about books? You can step into someone else's life, their cities, their adventures, their music. Mrs. Medina's life is rich while she is searching.
I have been thinking about what I would write about this book since I started it. There are no words I can come up with to do it justice. I wish everyone could read it. I don't want to let it go. That's how much I loved it. I regisgtered it with BookCrossing. BCID: 718-13027955 Please read it if you get the chance.
The main character, Mrs. Mercedes Medina, is in her sixties. Her husband is 20 years her senior. I love the depth of relationship they have. The author, Ann Wadsworth, did a wonderful job creating the couple and each individual. They were wonderfully human characters with faults and follies of their own and a comfortable chemistry between them. But as life is changing and Patrick, the husband, starts failing in health, Mercedes, is trying to figure out her own life.
Since I am in my sixties, I found her life to be interesting. It is far from my own life. I felt like I moved in with this couple and lived a different life for a while. Isn't that the best part about books? You can step into someone else's life, their cities, their adventures, their music. Mrs. Medina's life is rich while she is searching.
I have been thinking about what I would write about this book since I started it. There are no words I can come up with to do it justice. I wish everyone could read it. I don't want to let it go. That's how much I loved it. I regisgtered it with BookCrossing. BCID: 718-13027955 Please read it if you get the chance.
May 11, 2019
Couldn’t put this one down. Not as salacious as my usual reads, but this was beautifully written. I’d love to write more about this, but I can’t stop thinking about how well done it is. I know it won’t be for everyone as a large part of the book is spent with the main character taking care of her aging husband, but the writing and plot sort of transcends my dislike for the way heterosexual relationships are usually poised in lesfic. Might write more later, but you can get the gist.
January 22, 2020
It hit a bit too close to home ...age+husband relationship not the attraction to women bit... so was an uncomfortable read. and then use of "Mrs" Medina really started to irk me by the end. Otherwise, not a bad read,
January 29, 2008
Super great read! This book took me through an extensive range of emotions and I LOVE it for that!
June 29, 2024
I feel so conflicted about this book. On one hand, I love the premise - a woman in her late 50s in a dysfunctional relationship with her dying older partner is swept off her feet by a much younger woman. However, I don't think the execution really lived up to the plot outline. There simply was not enough time spent on the leads together - they are apart for about 80% of the novel, and since it's written in the first person, we end up knowing very little about Lennie or her motivations toward Mercedes. I was a bit disappointed since it had such good reviews, but oh well.
August 28, 2024
Came for the lesbian representation, stayed for the rich writing. It was interesting reading from the perspective of an older woman as this character is not often written into romance novels that deal with sexuality. Loved it.
March 29, 2014
Loved it!! I like books which differ from the "crowd", and this one certainly does!
You are 59 years old, your 85-year-old husband, a musical genius whom you have loved for a long long time, is dying, and you fall in love with a 29-year-old woman. What to do????
What is also different here is that the author is not offering Mrs. Medina any easy solutions; the pace is kind of slow and the reader is given time to think about her own life and her own solutions.
It is beautifully written. Would love to read something else by Ann Wadsworth. Has she written anything else?
You are 59 years old, your 85-year-old husband, a musical genius whom you have loved for a long long time, is dying, and you fall in love with a 29-year-old woman. What to do????
What is also different here is that the author is not offering Mrs. Medina any easy solutions; the pace is kind of slow and the reader is given time to think about her own life and her own solutions.
It is beautifully written. Would love to read something else by Ann Wadsworth. Has she written anything else?
August 29, 2007
I picked this up from a bargain bin and it was certainly well worth the purchase. An intriguing look into what you might feel when at the autumn of your life you begin to wonder if you've ever really lived or loved at all …
November 11, 2008
While I didn't particularly believe in the relationship between the protagonist and her husband (there didn't seem to be any love between them anymore) - I was compelled by Mrs. Medina's struggle to come to terms with her sexuality.
May 19, 2016
A beautifully written book about facing a dramatically changed life at a time when most of your peers seem to have it all locked up. I liked the varied lesbian characters and message that life never stops surprising us.
January 20, 2014
beautifully written. reminded me of "Mrs Dalloway" at times.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews