Coming Home to You

by Cheri Ritz

222 pages, Paperback

Published March 17, 2026

About the author

Cheri Ritz loves a good romance novel so much that she decided to write one of her own! She enjoys attending her sons’ many activities, volunteering with a local LGBT film festival, and spending cozy weekends marathoning TV shows. She lives in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her wife, three sons, and the sweetest cat in the world.

Reviews

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable story about Nicole a writer with one successful published book, she inherits a house from her great aunt and moves back to her small home town to sell it. She lives in NYC now and hasn't been back in 10 years, she's now divorced and 48 years old with an adult son. She meets her ex best friend, Roxy, at a local bar and it turns out that Roxy is the new owner. Nic and Roxy had a falling out at the end of high school and haven't spoken in 30 years.

I have read a few of Cheri Ritz's books and I have enjoyed them. This on was on par with her earlier work, enjoyable but predictable. The best part was the mystery of her great aunt and the cleaning out of the old house. I also liked her three sisters and their relationships. The book was a lot like real life and easy to read and relate to.

Thanks to Bella Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

[Sue Plant · Rating 4 out of 5]

would like to thank bella books for letting me read this book in exchange for a fair review

have to say i do love this authors books and this one was up there

nic was coming home after years of living in new york .....its not as if she hadnt been home before but they had been quick visits

nic had been left something by her aunt and her mother had insisted she come home what she hadnt expected was her car getting a puncture and then if that wasnt all when she went into her favourite waterhole she bumped into the very person she hadnt wanted to ever see again ...her childhood crush in charge and if that wasnt enough she hadnt got a good vibe of her either... but roxy had filled out nicely

but nic was also nursing a secret.... she had writers block and was behind in her latest book... and she wasnt admitting it to herself

but with the extended time she now had thanks to her car and with her family around her maybe her luck and her writing slump would end....

and seeing roxy again they might get their friendship back

but first things first that inheritance...

this was a pleasant feel good storyline no real angst have to say i really enjoyed roxy character in this

[Fiona Sawyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Coming Home to You is a beautiful return-to-hometown, second chance story full of family love, long held family secrets, and a solid dose of family craziness.

Nicola Dickenson grew up in the small town of Fishers Creek Pennsylvania but fled immediately following her high school graduation after being humiliated by her schoolmates in front of her crush, Roxy Fitzpatrick. In the subsequent thirty years she has moved on to become a successful author, married, had a child and gone through an ugly divorce. In that time, she has barely given a thought about Fishers Creek, let alone visited. Drawn back to the small town following the death of her great aunt and learning about the inheritance that was left to her, Nic is determined to make it a fleeting visit, 3 days at most just to get things squared away and then get out of there again. However, it seems that life has other plans courtesy of car troubles.

What follows is an unintended reconnection with Roxy, mad-capped adventures with the rest of the quirky Dickenson sisters, and the unveiling of the great family secret. Not least amongst these is the resurfacing of old feelings for Roxy, feelings that Nic is determined to squash back down. As life conspires to keep Nic in Fishers Creek for longer, suddenly she is starting to see her old hometown in a new light. However, Nic has her life back in New York which she is determined to get back to, particularly given the constant reminders form her publishing agent that she has commitments back home. The question is whether Nic can recognise her growing re-connection to Roxy, her family and the Fishers Creek community and find a way to let go of past hurts without failing to deliver on her commitments back in New York.

I loved the balance of the two main characters, Nic and Roxy and the push-pull dynamic between them as they got reacquainted with one another and learned to overcome past misunderstandings. With a raft of other wonderful side characters including Nic’s family and her great aunt’s next-door neighbours it was easy for me to fall in love with this small-town community and start rooting for Nic and Roxy to recognise the potential for a future together. If you’re looking for a relatively low-angst romance, full of community connection and a good dash of humour, Coming Home to You is a great place to start.

I am grateful to Cheri Ritz and Bella Books for providing me with an ARC copy of this book and am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Shannon Luchies · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the first time in years Nic has come back to her home town, due to a mysterious inheritance. After banging up her Tesla (Really? Driving a Tesla? After how shitty Musk showed himself to be?) she stops into the local bar only to see Roxy tending bar.

Roxy, whom her accidental coming out to led Nic to flee town for roughly twenty years. And is NOT happy to see her, so Nic orders a beer, drinks it, then decides to walk.

Her sisters Janie, Bella, and Maggie welcome her back, Mom scolds her a bit. She also finally finds out what's going on.

It turns out her Aunt left her a house, and her family convinces her to have it renovated before selling it. She get to the house only to learn all her Aunt's stuff is still there needing to be sorted, AND the trades person her sister hired is Roxy.

(One wonders if the sisters are trying to get Nic and Roxy together?)

Also, parts to repair the car are going to take at least a week. NIc is also suffering writer's block, but gets inspired to do a small-town mystery, loosely based on the town.

Roxy helps Nic empty the house and they start talking and even flirting a bit. They finally talk about high-school, and she reveals she was into Nicole's back then, but terrified.

Going through her Aunt's papers, Nic realizes she was a lesbian, too.

They dare, high-school reunion, but work and other issues seperare them.

I did find it a bit unrealistic that Roxy showed up in the city just as Nic decided to move back.

3 stars out of 5.

[This · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a solid second chance romance that involves going back to your home town and meeting up with your past best friend from high school.
Nic, newly divorced, has to go back to claim an inheritance. Her family still live in the town so she has somewhere to stay - but doesn't understand why her mum has insisted she has to come back for the inheritance. Only to find out her grumpy old great aunt has left her house and contents to her. And her old best friend owns the bar and wants to make up (or is that out?).
She has to stick around to get it ready to sell as she wants to leave town with it all sorted as quickly as she can.
She runs smack bang into her past - and what (who) she had run from. And lo and behold, she got a lot of it wrong when a teenager - she misinterpreted stuff and ran.
Now she's back and by staying around for a bit is able to find out all that she missed.

It's a nice story - especially the reimagining of Aunt Aggie.

So if you like a revisiting past mistakes and making them right, and everything turning out well in life, then this book will not disappoint.

Thanks to Bella Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very nice story. well written and natural dialog.
But nothing new here. Girl comes home after many years and finds true love with the old girlfriend that she left behind.
Nice characters, nice story, nice ending.
But nothing new.
I was given this ARC in exchange for an honest review