Far From Home

by Lyn Andrews

As daughter of the blacksmith in her tiny Irish village, fifteen-year-old Kitty Doyle knows little of the ways of the world, but she has to grow up fast when her widowed father re-marries and she has no choice but to leave the family home.

Luckily there's work to be found over the water in 1920s Liverpool and soon Kitty has a job in a grocer's, where she also catches the eye of the owner.

With Kitty's input the business is soon thriving - but tragedy lies ahead, and she must endure many trials and tribulations before she can find true happiness...

Genres: Fiction, Novels, Romance, Historical Fiction

448 pages, Paperback

First published December 4, 2006

About the author

Lyn Andrews is one of the the UK's top one hundred paper-back bestsellers. Born and brought up in Liverpool, she is the daughter of a policeman who also married a policeman. After becoming the mother of triplets, she took some time off from her writing whilst she raised her children. Shortlisted for the romantic Novelists' Association Award in 1993, she has now written twenty-one hugely successful novels. Lyn Andrews divides her time between Merseyside and Ireland.

Reviews

[Liz Janet]

[Veronica]

I liked the way the main character in the book was written, she was strong and determined. Lyn Andrews takes you on a journey worth reading about. Loved it.

[Mariam]

Last time I decide to go for a light read.

[Miranda Leybourne]

Lackluster in Liverpool

This book was a big let-down. I've enjoyed a title or two from Lyn Andrews before but this entire novel was rushed in places that it shouldn't have been and dragged in places where there was no need for it to. It was hard to care about the characters because Andrews simply tells us things about them, not shows us. I don't think I will read any more of her books in future after picking up two stinkers in a row.

[Aida Youri]

It was an enjoyable read but its far from being a "grand "book .(the main character always uses the word grand),so its ok to read if you are aroud the swimming pool with one eye on the nice guy in front of you and another eye on your read ,but don't go for it if you look for a great litterature or a real good read .

[Lynn Andrews]

Easy read of love and happiness

A story of a young girl. who was neglected by her father went into service and then her world eventually changed ,she found love happiness and a sense of family values

[Jill Robinson]

A really good read. Thoroughly enjoyed this book

The book has some very good characters, who jump off the page. You feel like you know them personally by the time you have read a few chapters.

[S Woodworth]

Excellent

This is a livestock that is not just about a man and a woman. It's about love for "home" and where you belong. It's not mawkish or filled with explicit scenes. Just an excellent story beautifully told.

[Cherrie]

This is not one of my favourites from this author however it was still a good read with great characters. I loved Kitty's determination to succeed especially in her business ventures towards the end of the book. I just found this book a little slow overall but it was still a lovely story.

[Denise]

This was a good quick read. The story was interesting and I liked how Kitty had a strong spirit and never gave up. It was a good read without too much romance or too many bad words.

[Megan]

Didn’t want to put it down. A nice easy going read, with a strong independent main character, who overcomes obstacles and allows herself to grow with them.

[Eva]

Lovely story, easy to get into and and enjoyable to read

[Mrs Daryl Heritage]

Good read

Enjoyable easy read. Loved the characters felt like I knew them from the beginning. Looking to read another of Lynn Andrews books

[Marian Dumigan]

A lovely read

I so enjoyed this book but I thought the ending too abrupt. It would have been nice to have finished on more detail of the house

[Stella Johnson]

A story set in Ireland with Scottish accents

It was a nice story and it was long. But the accents just spoilt it
It should has been set in Scotland.

[Laura Mitir]

I just love all of her books there an easy read for an afternoon

[mrs j p gibson]

Easy read !
Kitty had nothing but by the end she was a very wealthy lady a very enjoyable read

[Angela Wilson]

An ok read for something quick

[Aastha]

At the beginning and middle the story was going really well & I like the FL but at the near ending chapters it disappointed me 🙄🥲
It had great potential but it disappointed me.
and I dropped it.

[Lindy]

Enjoyed reading this book but believe I read it years ago when it was first published.

[Rosie]

I picked this book up in a book sale at my local library. The cover caught my eye and the blurb heightened my interest; I’d never heard of the author but wanted to give this book a chance.

Far From Home focuses on the life of Kitty Doyle, from the age of fifteen when her life changes dramatically when her father re-marries. Forced from her home she’s sent to work for Miss Elizabeth. When tragedy strikes she finds herself across the water in Liverpool where she tries to leave her old life in Ireland behind, and certain people there too.

With this novel there was always something going on in terms of plot. There didn’t seem to be a lot of waiting around. I noticed this more especially at the end which felt more fast paced than the rest of the novel. Due to the time jumps nearer the end of the book I didn’t care much for some of the characters who were introduced - however it got us to the ending much quicker which I liked as I loved the ending.

No matter when a character was introduced or an even happened they were continually referenced. I really appreciated this aspect of the novel; I have read many novels when characters are introduced only to be forgotten about not long later. In Far From Home it felt as though no one was forgotten and everything was revisited to ensure there were no loose ends by the end of the book.

The characters themselves were great, there were a couple who many not have been entirely necessary - but the ones that were remained significant throughout. The protagonist Kitty Doyle was extremely likeable for me. She was a wonderful strong character, she endures many hardships in the book but keeps going and tries not to dwell on them. I loved the relationship she has with her sisters and I enjoyed how bold Annie was (particularly where Hester, the ‘evil stepmother’, was concerned).

Far From Home is a very gentle read, with the occasional tragedy to spice things up a bit. It was a little slow starting, but after around 50 or so pages my interest was kept and didn’t waver often. It’s a lovely little read that will have you smiling by the end, however you may not be left feeling that it made a huge impact on you.

Rating: 3.5/5

[ReaderSP]

This was the first book that I had read by this author and I'm not really sure if it was good or not. The story follows Kitty, a very head strong girl, as she is thrown out of her family home in Ireland and moved to England to survive on her own. I did enjoy reading the story but found it to be unrealistic and very predictable. All the same, it was a pleasant read. I won't rush out to buy another by this author but will be passing this book onto a friend to read.

[Tes]

This was a beautiful story, I loved this book and it was a very enjoyable read. It was amazing. :) Another great book from Lyn. It was nice that Kitty got her happy ending.

[Gizy]

Excellent book! I really enjoyed reading it from the beginning. I felt like I was literally in the book with the different characters!

[Sheila]

Review is on my blog @ http://scifisstrs.blogspot.com/2014/0...

[annette warburton]

Brilliant

A very good read enjoyed every page a typical Lyn Andrews book riveting to the very end thoroughly recommend this book

[Sheila Gumbrell]

Great story as always

[Manjree]

really wonderful read! I couldn't put it down!

[Zizu]

Lives change.. Hope people don't