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Coming Home #6
Homefront
Welcome back to the tiny military community where the men are strong and the women who dare to love them.
To everyone who knows him, Gale Sorren is a grumpy first sergeant who, despite his gruff exterior, cares deeply about protecting those around him. What no one can see is that he’s been running from his mistakes his entire life. He’s never forgiven himself for letting his wife walk out of his life with their infant daughter but because of the war, he’s never had a second chance.
Mel was too young to be an Army wife and when everything became too overwhelming, she ran, thinking it would be easier to keep her heart from breaking every time she thought about her husband leaving on another deployment. Raising their daughter along hasn’t been easy but Mel is wracked with guilt, wondering how much her choices have lead to hear daughter’s struggles. The last thing she’s planning on is bringing Gale back into her life so when he shows up at a company party, she’s completely blindsided with the realization that she’s never stopped loving him.
But now that he’s living in the same small town, he’s forced to make a choice: keep running or face the fact that he’s always loved her. And together, they have to find a way to convince their daughter that she’s worthy of the love she’s always deserved but he hasn’t been around to give.
To everyone who knows him, Gale Sorren is a grumpy first sergeant who, despite his gruff exterior, cares deeply about protecting those around him. What no one can see is that he’s been running from his mistakes his entire life. He’s never forgiven himself for letting his wife walk out of his life with their infant daughter but because of the war, he’s never had a second chance.
Mel was too young to be an Army wife and when everything became too overwhelming, she ran, thinking it would be easier to keep her heart from breaking every time she thought about her husband leaving on another deployment. Raising their daughter along hasn’t been easy but Mel is wracked with guilt, wondering how much her choices have lead to hear daughter’s struggles. The last thing she’s planning on is bringing Gale back into her life so when he shows up at a company party, she’s completely blindsided with the realization that she’s never stopped loving him.
But now that he’s living in the same small town, he’s forced to make a choice: keep running or face the fact that he’s always loved her. And together, they have to find a way to convince their daughter that she’s worthy of the love she’s always deserved but he hasn’t been around to give.
250 pages, Paperback
First published April 3, 2015
About the author
Jessica Scott
42 books1,266 followersSign up for Jessica’s newsletter https://jessicascott.net/subscribe/
Jessica Scott is the USA Today bestselling author of novels set in the heart of America’s Army. She is an active duty army officer, a veteran of the Iraq war, is the mother of two daughters, a small zoo consisting of too many cats, dogs and the occasional domesticated rodent, and wife to a retired NCO.
Follow Jessica
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessicaScott09
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaScottAuthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicadscott09/
Her stories are centered on soldiers returning from the nation's wars and their struggles and triumphs and come from her personal experiences as a soldier, a mother and a military wife. She and her family are currently wherever the army has sent her. For more information, visit www.jessicascott.net
She's also written for the New York Times At War Blog, PBS Point of View Regarding War, and IAVA. She deployed to Iraq in 2009 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)/New Dawn and has had the honor of serving as a company commander at Fort Hood, Texas twice.
She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology and she's been featured as one of Esquire Magazine's Americans of the Year for 2012.
Author photo courtesy of Buzz Covington Photography
Learn more at http://jessicascott.net
Jessica Scott is the USA Today bestselling author of novels set in the heart of America’s Army. She is an active duty army officer, a veteran of the Iraq war, is the mother of two daughters, a small zoo consisting of too many cats, dogs and the occasional domesticated rodent, and wife to a retired NCO.
Follow Jessica
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessicaScott09
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JessicaScottAuthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicadscott09/
Her stories are centered on soldiers returning from the nation's wars and their struggles and triumphs and come from her personal experiences as a soldier, a mother and a military wife. She and her family are currently wherever the army has sent her. For more information, visit www.jessicascott.net
She's also written for the New York Times At War Blog, PBS Point of View Regarding War, and IAVA. She deployed to Iraq in 2009 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF)/New Dawn and has had the honor of serving as a company commander at Fort Hood, Texas twice.
She holds a Ph.D. in Sociology and she's been featured as one of Esquire Magazine's Americans of the Year for 2012.
Author photo courtesy of Buzz Covington Photography
Learn more at http://jessicascott.net
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
April 10, 2015
4.5 Second Chances Stars!
Homefront by Jessica Scott caught my interest the minute I'd seen a fellow friend read it. Married to an American veteran myself, I've always gravitated towards military romance. Couple that with a second chance love story, an angsty sounding book blurb, and I didn't hesitate to sign up. I'm happily impressed!
Army First Sergeant Gale Sorren has served his country well. Multiple tours of duty, deployments into warzones has rendered him a somewhat broken man, suffering from panic attacks, and most importantly, has left him alone. Finding himself married and a father at a young age, the military was the only way for him to provide for his struggling wife and daughter. He knew it was a price he'd pay, leaving Melanie behind for months, years at a time, but he had little choice. Until his absence results in him receiving divorce papers. His Mel left him, packed up Jamie, and moved back home with her parents.
Over the years, Gale achieves his degree and continues to serve in the Army. He keeps up with his daughter via Skype and occasional visits when he's stateside. He's anything but a hands-on father. He knows it's not right but for some reason he can't find the solution otherwise. Army is his life. And apparently it wasn't for Mel. The longer he's away, the harder it is to come back. Until he gets a letter stating his Jamie is in the hospital, but, per his commander, "his presence wasn't requested." So he's left in Iraq, terrified his daughter is dying and there's not a damn thing he can do about it. Something has to chance. HE has to change. Before it's too late. Or is it already too late?
I really enjoyed this cast of characters. The plot is fairly angsty but not overly so. Just realistic to what happens when one decision, right or wrong, can effect the rest of your life and those most connected to you. Gale knew he failed Mel. But why did she give up so fast? Pack up and leave? And why didn't he fight harder for his daughter, missing all the years he'll never get back?
The book primarily takes place in current day. Gale managed to get stationed close to where his ex-wife and daughter now reside. He wants to rebuild his relationship with his daughter Jamie. He just doesn't know how. She's now 16-years old and clearly in that rebellious stage. When he simply stops by one night, he's quick to find out Mel needs all parental and emotional help she can get. She's at her wits end.
I LOVED the family aspect of this book. It's believable. Gale doesn't just step in the door, and the 16 lost years melt away. There's anger and resentment but beneath it all, a flame still burns between he and Mel. So as they work together gradually helping a troubled teen gain some ground in this world, their relationship begins to also heal.
Probably my only issue in the book was the overuse of military jargon. I'm guessing I know more jargon than the avaerage reader and many abbreviations I myself had to Google. This is an arc copy and I did request to the author to maybe add a glossary of terms at the preface of the book. Or remove them completely. They didn't add anything to the story and I felt non-military readers may be distracted by it. Also, there's quite a few secondary military characters and tiny side plots. The plots didn't bother me but I did have a bit of a hard time keeping up with their names and who they were.
An all-around enjoyable read I'd highly recommend for fans of slightly older MCs (late thirties), family struggles, and military plot. It delivers a decent dose of steam and the angst was perfect for me. But most important, I just loved the realistic nature of the book. Not overly dramatized and real life issues were presented. This is my first book by this author but not the last!
Advanced reader's copy received by author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
For more reviews, follow us at...
Homefront by Jessica Scott caught my interest the minute I'd seen a fellow friend read it. Married to an American veteran myself, I've always gravitated towards military romance. Couple that with a second chance love story, an angsty sounding book blurb, and I didn't hesitate to sign up. I'm happily impressed!
Army First Sergeant Gale Sorren has served his country well. Multiple tours of duty, deployments into warzones has rendered him a somewhat broken man, suffering from panic attacks, and most importantly, has left him alone. Finding himself married and a father at a young age, the military was the only way for him to provide for his struggling wife and daughter. He knew it was a price he'd pay, leaving Melanie behind for months, years at a time, but he had little choice. Until his absence results in him receiving divorce papers. His Mel left him, packed up Jamie, and moved back home with her parents.
Over the years, Gale achieves his degree and continues to serve in the Army. He keeps up with his daughter via Skype and occasional visits when he's stateside. He's anything but a hands-on father. He knows it's not right but for some reason he can't find the solution otherwise. Army is his life. And apparently it wasn't for Mel. The longer he's away, the harder it is to come back. Until he gets a letter stating his Jamie is in the hospital, but, per his commander, "his presence wasn't requested." So he's left in Iraq, terrified his daughter is dying and there's not a damn thing he can do about it. Something has to chance. HE has to change. Before it's too late. Or is it already too late?
I really enjoyed this cast of characters. The plot is fairly angsty but not overly so. Just realistic to what happens when one decision, right or wrong, can effect the rest of your life and those most connected to you. Gale knew he failed Mel. But why did she give up so fast? Pack up and leave? And why didn't he fight harder for his daughter, missing all the years he'll never get back?
The book primarily takes place in current day. Gale managed to get stationed close to where his ex-wife and daughter now reside. He wants to rebuild his relationship with his daughter Jamie. He just doesn't know how. She's now 16-years old and clearly in that rebellious stage. When he simply stops by one night, he's quick to find out Mel needs all parental and emotional help she can get. She's at her wits end.
I LOVED the family aspect of this book. It's believable. Gale doesn't just step in the door, and the 16 lost years melt away. There's anger and resentment but beneath it all, a flame still burns between he and Mel. So as they work together gradually helping a troubled teen gain some ground in this world, their relationship begins to also heal.
Probably my only issue in the book was the overuse of military jargon. I'm guessing I know more jargon than the avaerage reader and many abbreviations I myself had to Google. This is an arc copy and I did request to the author to maybe add a glossary of terms at the preface of the book. Or remove them completely. They didn't add anything to the story and I felt non-military readers may be distracted by it. Also, there's quite a few secondary military characters and tiny side plots. The plots didn't bother me but I did have a bit of a hard time keeping up with their names and who they were.
An all-around enjoyable read I'd highly recommend for fans of slightly older MCs (late thirties), family struggles, and military plot. It delivers a decent dose of steam and the angst was perfect for me. But most important, I just loved the realistic nature of the book. Not overly dramatized and real life issues were presented. This is my first book by this author but not the last!
Advanced reader's copy received by author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
For more reviews, follow us at...
March 21, 2015
OH GOD... THE FEELS... I am a SUCKER for second chance romances, and this to me was that at its most emotional... Jessica Scott, BRAVO for writing such a beautiful, heartbreaking, emotional yet hopeful story and I CAN'T WAIT to read the other books in this series!!!
*ARC courtesy of Netgalley and Jessica Scott*
*ARC courtesy of Netgalley and Jessica Scott*
April 9, 2015
3.5 second chance stars
Gale Sorren is a soldier returning from years of deployments overseas to serve at Fort Hood, Texas. His assignment places him near his ex-wife and 16 year old daughter for the first time since they divorced 15 years ago, and he is hoping to be there for his family in a way that he has never been able to be before – existing only with short visits.
Gale’s ex-wife Melanie has raised their daughter, Jamie on her own, and is struggling with the headstrong teenager. When Gale walks back into her life she is more than happy to see him – not only because she needs help with Jamie, but because she’s never been able to forget him, and he makes no secret of the fact that he wants the same.
It’s no secret how things are going to progress. Gale and Melanie have never gotten over each other, and the love between them is still there (as is their intense passion for each other), and their reconnection happens quickly with neither of them hiding the way they feel, both very keen to explore the feeling that is still very much alive.
I love a second chance romance story, and as much as I enjoyed this one, I didn’t feel it as much as I wanted to. Parts of it felt a little disjointed and, to be honest, it moved a bit too quickly for me to become fully invested. . And even though neither of them really let go, their coming back together seems almost too easy after all of those years apart, not matter how much they regret the past.
But with all that Gale dealt with while fighting a war, he never expected the challenges he would face on his homecoming – despite his romantic dramas with Melanie, he is also coming home right in time for him to step in with his troubled daughter who is starting to explore boys and sex, and I loved seeing him as the protective father.
And then there is all that is going on at the base, with Gale being responsible for a squad of soldiers with all sorts of issues for him to solve, and he becomes personally involved in a potentially bad situation brewing with a colleague which starts to form an important part of the story.
The book has a strong military theme, with details included about happenings on the base. This is a spin off to the Coming Home series. I didn’t know that going in, and while some of the characters carry over (obviously with detailed backstories that aren’t elaborated on in this book) you can go straight into this one and easily follow what’s going on.
The book is written in dual POV, and I enjoyed getting both Gale and Melanie’s POVs. It’s a quick read which is fast paced, and although it doesn’t give me the depth and detail that I personally prefer in my stories, it was still an enjoyable read.
3.5 stars.
An Advanced Reader Copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.
Gale Sorren is a soldier returning from years of deployments overseas to serve at Fort Hood, Texas. His assignment places him near his ex-wife and 16 year old daughter for the first time since they divorced 15 years ago, and he is hoping to be there for his family in a way that he has never been able to be before – existing only with short visits.
Gale’s ex-wife Melanie has raised their daughter, Jamie on her own, and is struggling with the headstrong teenager. When Gale walks back into her life she is more than happy to see him – not only because she needs help with Jamie, but because she’s never been able to forget him, and he makes no secret of the fact that he wants the same.
“I’m here now … For as long as you’ll let me, I’m here … I know I haven’t been someone you can count on … But I’d like to be.”
It’s no secret how things are going to progress. Gale and Melanie have never gotten over each other, and the love between them is still there (as is their intense passion for each other), and their reconnection happens quickly with neither of them hiding the way they feel, both very keen to explore the feeling that is still very much alive.
“I’ve missed you. My whole life I’ve missed you, Melanie.”
I love a second chance romance story, and as much as I enjoyed this one, I didn’t feel it as much as I wanted to. Parts of it felt a little disjointed and, to be honest, it moved a bit too quickly for me to become fully invested. . And even though neither of them really let go, their coming back together seems almost too easy after all of those years apart, not matter how much they regret the past.
“Regret is a motherfucker, isn’t it?”
But with all that Gale dealt with while fighting a war, he never expected the challenges he would face on his homecoming – despite his romantic dramas with Melanie, he is also coming home right in time for him to step in with his troubled daughter who is starting to explore boys and sex, and I loved seeing him as the protective father.
“Your father is going to be quite interested in this little tale. Does he know where you are right now?”
“None of your business, gramps,” the kid sneered.
Gale briefly wondered how long the prison sentence would be for throwing a sixteen-year-old walking hard-on down the stairs of his ex-wife’s house.
And then there is all that is going on at the base, with Gale being responsible for a squad of soldiers with all sorts of issues for him to solve, and he becomes personally involved in a potentially bad situation brewing with a colleague which starts to form an important part of the story.
The book has a strong military theme, with details included about happenings on the base. This is a spin off to the Coming Home series. I didn’t know that going in, and while some of the characters carry over (obviously with detailed backstories that aren’t elaborated on in this book) you can go straight into this one and easily follow what’s going on.
The book is written in dual POV, and I enjoyed getting both Gale and Melanie’s POVs. It’s a quick read which is fast paced, and although it doesn’t give me the depth and detail that I personally prefer in my stories, it was still an enjoyable read.
3.5 stars.
An Advanced Reader Copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest opinion.
May 16, 2015
3 - "You never struck me as a coward." Stars.
Every book I have read so far by Jessica Scott has grabbed me from the beginning and kept me in its hold until the end. Homefront was no different in that it’s beginning grabbed me, but sadly its grip loosened as the book progressed, I was pulled back in towards the 70-75% mark, but there was a little too much going on in the middle for me, and it diluted the parts of the story that I wanted more depth and attention spent on. I would say now though that my review is solely for the ARC version that I received through Netgalley, and it is my understanding that the author has since released an amended version of the book, so my issues may not actually have relevance with the version currently available.
Second chance love stories are one of my favorites, and Gale and Mel’s had all the makings of an epic one, married and divorced young, although they have not really spent much time in each other’s lives of the intervening years, the fact they have a daughter together means their connection has never been severed, but with Gale on deployment more often than not, being a father to his troubled daughter has been just as much of a struggle as being a husband to his ex-wife was, and failure is not something Gale deals with well, being stationed in Fort Hood, near his estranged family gives him hope that he can rectify some of those issues.
The army would always take him away again. Or give him an excuse to leave. He had never been there.
The elements of this story are good, and I expect drama with Jessica’s books, the subject matter, the relationships she explores and the people she writes about are generally complex and multi-faceted in their lives, personalities and back stories, but I felt like there was a little too much added into this one, I wanted focus on Mel, Jamie and Gale’s story, the rebuilding of trust, the development of parental, familial and long lost relationships, everything else that went on detracted from that for me.
She remembered him for the boy he’d been. The boy she’d loved. The boy she’d left.
Mel and Gale have a long past between them, but you aren’t given massive insight into that, I liked the small glimpses that the author gave, I would have liked more. Jamie and her issues… the author portrayed a troubled teen extremely well, I found her behavior a real struggle, even for a teenager and with the problems she was dealing with, I think there was potential to offer a little POV from her perspective to give the reader more of a connection to her actions and reactions.
This isn’t a bad book, I will certainly be looking to read the next book in the Homefront series, After the War I suppose I just have extremely high standards when it comes to Jessica Scott’s books, and this one just felt a little busy in the wrong areas for my liking.
”You make me want things I can’t have… things I don’t deserve.”
As advised, ARC generously provided via Netgalley, it was my pleasure to provide the above honest review.
Every book I have read so far by Jessica Scott has grabbed me from the beginning and kept me in its hold until the end. Homefront was no different in that it’s beginning grabbed me, but sadly its grip loosened as the book progressed, I was pulled back in towards the 70-75% mark, but there was a little too much going on in the middle for me, and it diluted the parts of the story that I wanted more depth and attention spent on. I would say now though that my review is solely for the ARC version that I received through Netgalley, and it is my understanding that the author has since released an amended version of the book, so my issues may not actually have relevance with the version currently available.
Second chance love stories are one of my favorites, and Gale and Mel’s had all the makings of an epic one, married and divorced young, although they have not really spent much time in each other’s lives of the intervening years, the fact they have a daughter together means their connection has never been severed, but with Gale on deployment more often than not, being a father to his troubled daughter has been just as much of a struggle as being a husband to his ex-wife was, and failure is not something Gale deals with well, being stationed in Fort Hood, near his estranged family gives him hope that he can rectify some of those issues.
The army would always take him away again. Or give him an excuse to leave. He had never been there.
The elements of this story are good, and I expect drama with Jessica’s books, the subject matter, the relationships she explores and the people she writes about are generally complex and multi-faceted in their lives, personalities and back stories, but I felt like there was a little too much added into this one, I wanted focus on Mel, Jamie and Gale’s story, the rebuilding of trust, the development of parental, familial and long lost relationships, everything else that went on detracted from that for me.
She remembered him for the boy he’d been. The boy she’d loved. The boy she’d left.
Mel and Gale have a long past between them, but you aren’t given massive insight into that, I liked the small glimpses that the author gave, I would have liked more. Jamie and her issues… the author portrayed a troubled teen extremely well, I found her behavior a real struggle, even for a teenager and with the problems she was dealing with, I think there was potential to offer a little POV from her perspective to give the reader more of a connection to her actions and reactions.
This isn’t a bad book, I will certainly be looking to read the next book in the Homefront series, After the War I suppose I just have extremely high standards when it comes to Jessica Scott’s books, and this one just felt a little busy in the wrong areas for my liking.
”You make me want things I can’t have… things I don’t deserve.”
As advised, ARC generously provided via Netgalley, it was my pleasure to provide the above honest review.
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April 25, 2015
04/01/2015
Well, let me first say, I’m a Jessica Scott fan – tried and true. However, saying this, Homefront isn’t my favorite book by this fantastic author.
Not sure why. Not sure what. Just know, it didn’t suck me in like most of her others have done. The majority have been 5 Star reads for me.
Let’s start with what I liked about this book:
1 -- I liked Gale and to some degree Melanie. I think their parenting skills sucked. They are basically held captive by their monster teenager. I know this can happen, but hate to see it when it does and really hate reading about this. I’ve had teenagers. They had attitudes, but believe strongly in strong parenting and acceptable behavior. So, these characters are a plus / minus for me.
2 – The backdrop of the war and Gale’s role in it. As with most of Ms. Scott's other books, she immerses us in the everyday of active military life. I really like this. So, saying this, I felt we actually received a light dose here.
3 – The cover, title and price for this book are all good.
Now, for a few things that I didn’t like so much:
1 – I never understood how Tellhouse changed into the asshat monster he is. He goes from saving Sorren’s ass in the beginning of the book to being an abusive asshole. How does that happen? The Commanders explanation of “shit happens .. some men go to war and come back monsters” is just disturbing. Seriously, how does this happen?
2 – The kid – Jamie. Mentioned earlier. I understand we can have hormonal teenagers with attitudes. Attitudes they act upon, but for these two to tolerate it and just cower when it happens .. cowards. Parents have to be courageous. Sure, there are times you have the conversation and you don’t win the argument, but these two just didn’t seem to have very productive conversations with this girl. Or, I didn’t think so.
3 – For me, this story didn’t engage me. Not sure why when most of her other books grabbed me in the beginning and didn’t let go. Really don’t know, but I felt like I was looking down at me reading a story that was just meh. Not what I expected at all and I feel very disappointed. Maybe it was the characters? Or, maybe the story itself? I really think it was a combination of the two. For me, this was not Jessica Scott’s best work. However, she is a autobuy author. I’ll read, or try to read, anything she writes. A fan for life.
This is a good story. Not terrible, but not great either. I am glad I read it and appreciate the ARC copy so I could get a head start on other readers!
Happy Reading!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Overall Rating = 2.5 Stars
Book Cover / Book Blurb / Book Title = 4 / 3 / 4 = 3.8 Stars
Writer’s Voice = 2 Stars
Character / Secondary Character Development = 3 / 2 = 2.5 Stars
“Did I like” Hero / Heroine = 3 / 2 = 2.5 Stars
Story / Background Story Development = 3 / 3 = 3 Stars
“Did I like the Damned Thing” = 3 Stars
Ending = 2 Stars
Worth the Chili = 5 Stars -- [$3.99 on Amazon]
Smexy [HEAT] Rating = Mild
~250 pages
First sentence: Shit days were nothing new.
Last sentence: And he would spend the rest of his life showing her just that.
ARC provided by the author via Rock Star PR in exchange for an honest review.
Well, let me first say, I’m a Jessica Scott fan – tried and true. However, saying this, Homefront isn’t my favorite book by this fantastic author.
Not sure why. Not sure what. Just know, it didn’t suck me in like most of her others have done. The majority have been 5 Star reads for me.
Let’s start with what I liked about this book:
1 -- I liked Gale and to some degree Melanie. I think their parenting skills sucked. They are basically held captive by their monster teenager. I know this can happen, but hate to see it when it does and really hate reading about this. I’ve had teenagers. They had attitudes, but believe strongly in strong parenting and acceptable behavior. So, these characters are a plus / minus for me.
2 – The backdrop of the war and Gale’s role in it. As with most of Ms. Scott's other books, she immerses us in the everyday of active military life. I really like this. So, saying this, I felt we actually received a light dose here.
3 – The cover, title and price for this book are all good.
Now, for a few things that I didn’t like so much:
1 – I never understood how Tellhouse changed into the asshat monster he is. He goes from saving Sorren’s ass in the beginning of the book to being an abusive asshole. How does that happen? The Commanders explanation of “shit happens .. some men go to war and come back monsters” is just disturbing. Seriously, how does this happen?
2 – The kid – Jamie. Mentioned earlier. I understand we can have hormonal teenagers with attitudes. Attitudes they act upon, but for these two to tolerate it and just cower when it happens .. cowards. Parents have to be courageous. Sure, there are times you have the conversation and you don’t win the argument, but these two just didn’t seem to have very productive conversations with this girl. Or, I didn’t think so.
3 – For me, this story didn’t engage me. Not sure why when most of her other books grabbed me in the beginning and didn’t let go. Really don’t know, but I felt like I was looking down at me reading a story that was just meh. Not what I expected at all and I feel very disappointed. Maybe it was the characters? Or, maybe the story itself? I really think it was a combination of the two. For me, this was not Jessica Scott’s best work. However, she is a autobuy author. I’ll read, or try to read, anything she writes. A fan for life.
This is a good story. Not terrible, but not great either. I am glad I read it and appreciate the ARC copy so I could get a head start on other readers!
Happy Reading!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Overall Rating = 2.5 Stars
Book Cover / Book Blurb / Book Title = 4 / 3 / 4 = 3.8 Stars
Writer’s Voice = 2 Stars
Character / Secondary Character Development = 3 / 2 = 2.5 Stars
“Did I like” Hero / Heroine = 3 / 2 = 2.5 Stars
Story / Background Story Development = 3 / 3 = 3 Stars
“Did I like the Damned Thing” = 3 Stars
Ending = 2 Stars
Worth the Chili = 5 Stars -- [$3.99 on Amazon]
Smexy [HEAT] Rating = Mild
~250 pages
First sentence: Shit days were nothing new.
Last sentence: And he would spend the rest of his life showing her just that.
ARC provided by the author via Rock Star PR in exchange for an honest review.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 30, 2015
This was such a good second-chance romance. Gale and his wife Melanie have been divorced for 15 years. Gale has been in the military and away for most of those years but has never gotten over his ex-wife. They share a 16 year old daughter together who is going through some challenges. When Gale gets stationed close to his family, it's the perfect opportunity for him to get back what he lost all those years ago. I really enjoyed this story. There was so much going on and some really difficult situations such as mental illness and child abuse. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a second chance romance.
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
June 22, 2016
A good book - so why 3 stars? For 46% of the book we hear about how the H was never there for h and daughter, the Army was his demanding mistress, etc. h takes him back immediately - he didn't have to say 10 words. It pissed me off. After he knew she was "receptive" he put forth some effort - but by then I was pissed off at him for the rest of the book.
April 14, 2015
It was easy to look at him sitting across from her at her kitchen table and embrace the fantasy man in uniform that so many pined for. But the reality of loving a man in uniform was so much harder. It was long nights without phone calls; it was missed births and birthdays.
It was acceptance of being alone and sharing this man with the army. And the army was a demanding mistress.
Rarely do I get to read such a real story as this, Homefront is the first in its series and readers are going to need to strap in because it packs quite an emotional punch. As the title suggests this story is about the home front, no terrorists, bombs, or adrenaline pumping chase scenes but rather dark, deep, and in the trenches emotional toil. Melanie is a character that women married to military members are going to deeply connect with. The fear, frustration, and loneliness she feels had me wanting to reach through the pages and hold her hand. In the military there are a set of clearly defined rules, regulations, and operations for how to do things, not so in civilian life and what makes Gale slowly but surely escape into his job. Homefront, is a deeply moving look into a military family's life.
Full review can be read at: Reading Between the Wines book club
It was acceptance of being alone and sharing this man with the army. And the army was a demanding mistress.
Rarely do I get to read such a real story as this, Homefront is the first in its series and readers are going to need to strap in because it packs quite an emotional punch. As the title suggests this story is about the home front, no terrorists, bombs, or adrenaline pumping chase scenes but rather dark, deep, and in the trenches emotional toil. Melanie is a character that women married to military members are going to deeply connect with. The fear, frustration, and loneliness she feels had me wanting to reach through the pages and hold her hand. In the military there are a set of clearly defined rules, regulations, and operations for how to do things, not so in civilian life and what makes Gale slowly but surely escape into his job. Homefront, is a deeply moving look into a military family's life.
Full review can be read at: Reading Between the Wines book club
January 30, 2017
It's books like this that make me so happy that I sign up for blog tours and review such fantastic books. When I finished this I went to Amazon and was super happy to see this author has other books out. I'll certainly be reading some more of hers.
This was a brilliant read. I thoroughly enjoyed every word of it. I do love a good second chance story and this was a really good one. The author did a great job of portraying the characters as real and the storyline was believable.
I'm not gonna repeat the synopsis or give anything else away. I will say this is a beautifully written story that I inhaled. When I wasn't reading I was thinking about it. Yes it's that kinda read. Loved it.
This was a brilliant read. I thoroughly enjoyed every word of it. I do love a good second chance story and this was a really good one. The author did a great job of portraying the characters as real and the storyline was believable.
I'm not gonna repeat the synopsis or give anything else away. I will say this is a beautifully written story that I inhaled. When I wasn't reading I was thinking about it. Yes it's that kinda read. Loved it.
April 12, 2015
I love Jessica Scott's Coming Home series so I was really excited to find out she was writing a spin off and couldn't wait to read Homefront. Although you'll spot some familiar faces if you've read the previous stories each full length novel focuses on a different couple and works really well as a stand alone. I've loved all of the books I've read by this author though and would happily recommend any of them!
Homefront is a story about second chances, it's about reconnecting with old loves, letting go of past mistakes and forgiving people for the hurt they've caused. It's about rebuilding trust and focusing on the future you always wanted but never expected to have. Mel and Gale were young when they fell in love and married, they were crazy about each other but the pressures of a new baby and Gale's long deployments overseas tore them apart. Mel felt that Gale was never there for her when she needed him and decided she would be better off alone but she never stopped loving him and was never able to move on and start a new relationship. Gale never meant to let Mel leave him without a fight but spending so much time downrange didn't give him much of a chance to talk her around. He never felt worthy of her anyway and came to the conclusion that she was better off without him.
Now, 15 years later, Gale has been assigned to Fort Hood and is living near his wife and daughter for the first time in years. He is determined to take the opportunity to reconnect with the woman he never forgot and to build a relationship with his daughter but it's not going to be easy to convince them that he is home for good and that he wants to be a solid presence in their lives. Things haven't been easy for Mel and her daughter, Jamie is a troubled teen with a lot of issues to deal with and their mother/daughter relationship is very strained. I actually found this side of the story quite hard to read at times because it reminded me so much of the issues my mother and I had when I was Jamie's age but that just shows how realistic the writing is and how much I connected with the characters.
Mel isn't used to Gale being someone she can rely on, in the past whenever she has needed him the army has got in the way but now Gale is making a determined effort to be there to support her and she realises how much she enjoys having him around. I absolutely loved seeing them reconnect, they obviously had a deep and long lasting love between them but they realised that they had both made mistakes in the past. They were able to talk through their issues though and find ways to get past previous hurt and disappointment. They are a great couple with fantastic chemistry and a deep respect for each other. Seeing them working as a united front against Jamie was great and I enjoyed the added emotional pull of seeing Jamie's relationship with each of her parents slowly improve throughout the story.
Homefront was a great start to this series, it was great to catch up with a few familiar faces but what I enjoyed most was spending time with this little family and watching them put their lives back together so I hope we get to see more of them in the next few books. After the War is definitely at the top of my wish list.
Homefront is a story about second chances, it's about reconnecting with old loves, letting go of past mistakes and forgiving people for the hurt they've caused. It's about rebuilding trust and focusing on the future you always wanted but never expected to have. Mel and Gale were young when they fell in love and married, they were crazy about each other but the pressures of a new baby and Gale's long deployments overseas tore them apart. Mel felt that Gale was never there for her when she needed him and decided she would be better off alone but she never stopped loving him and was never able to move on and start a new relationship. Gale never meant to let Mel leave him without a fight but spending so much time downrange didn't give him much of a chance to talk her around. He never felt worthy of her anyway and came to the conclusion that she was better off without him.
Now, 15 years later, Gale has been assigned to Fort Hood and is living near his wife and daughter for the first time in years. He is determined to take the opportunity to reconnect with the woman he never forgot and to build a relationship with his daughter but it's not going to be easy to convince them that he is home for good and that he wants to be a solid presence in their lives. Things haven't been easy for Mel and her daughter, Jamie is a troubled teen with a lot of issues to deal with and their mother/daughter relationship is very strained. I actually found this side of the story quite hard to read at times because it reminded me so much of the issues my mother and I had when I was Jamie's age but that just shows how realistic the writing is and how much I connected with the characters.
Mel isn't used to Gale being someone she can rely on, in the past whenever she has needed him the army has got in the way but now Gale is making a determined effort to be there to support her and she realises how much she enjoys having him around. I absolutely loved seeing them reconnect, they obviously had a deep and long lasting love between them but they realised that they had both made mistakes in the past. They were able to talk through their issues though and find ways to get past previous hurt and disappointment. They are a great couple with fantastic chemistry and a deep respect for each other. Seeing them working as a united front against Jamie was great and I enjoyed the added emotional pull of seeing Jamie's relationship with each of her parents slowly improve throughout the story.
Homefront was a great start to this series, it was great to catch up with a few familiar faces but what I enjoyed most was spending time with this little family and watching them put their lives back together so I hope we get to see more of them in the next few books. After the War is definitely at the top of my wish list.
December 30, 2015
Review Copy Provided by Publicist via NetGalley
Homefront – oh where to start…(and no that’s not a bad thing)! This is the first book in Jessica Scott’s new series (also aptly named Homefront) and is a spin-off of her popular Coming Home series. I wanted to point this out up front, because a) if you haven’t read her coming home series, you need to high tail yourself to your nearest book dealer and purchase them and b) because you may encounter spoilers for couples in those books (so you have been warned!).
In Homefront, we meet FSG Gale Sorren (First Sergeant for those of you who don’t speak military) – who is returning to Ft Hood (the basis of most of Jessica’s books) as part of a Battalion reorganization/replacement that occurred in a previous book (It’s Always Been You – Ben/Olivia). I’ll admit that I fell for Gale the minute he was introduced – he reminded me a lot of several of the senior enlisted personnel I’ve worked with over the years – the ones who care more about their men/woman, than playing the political game. But you could also tell that he had demons (for lack of a better word in his background) which were soon revealed. I think one of my favorite things about Jessica’s writing is the amount of realism she brings to the stories – based on her experiences as an Army officer.
One of my other favorite things about Jessica’s writing is that her females, be they military or not, are kick-ass – one of the biggest issues I have with many romances is that the females need to guy to step in and save them, but that is not present in Jessica’s books – in fact, her heroine’s prove in every book that saying, anything you can do, I can do better – it is always a pleasure to read her books because of this and Homefront was no different. The heroine in Homefront, Melanie, is Gale’s estranged wife and I’ll admit that I ended up bawling as they reconnected through his daughter (who he has really never gotten to know all that well). So Homefront hit my happy reader button on some many things – a well-written military romance, a second chance/rekindled love romance, and where the child (or should I say young-adult) in the book was key to the storyline moving forward and not just in the story for added drama.
Homefront had Jessica’s typically witty humor that I love, and yet manages to tackle one of the issues of military life. I gave Homefront 4 stars and hope that some of you will pick it up and read it soon.
Homefront – oh where to start…(and no that’s not a bad thing)! This is the first book in Jessica Scott’s new series (also aptly named Homefront) and is a spin-off of her popular Coming Home series. I wanted to point this out up front, because a) if you haven’t read her coming home series, you need to high tail yourself to your nearest book dealer and purchase them and b) because you may encounter spoilers for couples in those books (so you have been warned!).
In Homefront, we meet FSG Gale Sorren (First Sergeant for those of you who don’t speak military) – who is returning to Ft Hood (the basis of most of Jessica’s books) as part of a Battalion reorganization/replacement that occurred in a previous book (It’s Always Been You – Ben/Olivia). I’ll admit that I fell for Gale the minute he was introduced – he reminded me a lot of several of the senior enlisted personnel I’ve worked with over the years – the ones who care more about their men/woman, than playing the political game. But you could also tell that he had demons (for lack of a better word in his background) which were soon revealed. I think one of my favorite things about Jessica’s writing is the amount of realism she brings to the stories – based on her experiences as an Army officer.
One of my other favorite things about Jessica’s writing is that her females, be they military or not, are kick-ass – one of the biggest issues I have with many romances is that the females need to guy to step in and save them, but that is not present in Jessica’s books – in fact, her heroine’s prove in every book that saying, anything you can do, I can do better – it is always a pleasure to read her books because of this and Homefront was no different. The heroine in Homefront, Melanie, is Gale’s estranged wife and I’ll admit that I ended up bawling as they reconnected through his daughter (who he has really never gotten to know all that well). So Homefront hit my happy reader button on some many things – a well-written military romance, a second chance/rekindled love romance, and where the child (or should I say young-adult) in the book was key to the storyline moving forward and not just in the story for added drama.
Homefront had Jessica’s typically witty humor that I love, and yet manages to tackle one of the issues of military life. I gave Homefront 4 stars and hope that some of you will pick it up and read it soon.
March 20, 2015
Homefront brings the war home in this new series from Jessica Scott. Some tough issues are tackled throughout this book of the men and women who return home with anger issues, drug addiction, anxiety attacks and even child abuse.
As with most of the books this author writes she doesn’t pull any punches in showing us the darker side of military life. Each man or woman comes back with their demons and its up to them on how hard they are going to work on them or not. Its taken First Sergeant Gale Sorren over 16 years to finally try and right the wrong he did in putting his military career above his wife and daughter. During that time his wife divorced him and daughter took a trip to self mutilation land which landed her in the hospital. Now he is finally stationed in the same town that they live in and hopes to be able to repair his relationship with both of them.
Melanie and Gale were teenage lovers who got married so young and then she got pregnant right away but ended up having to raise her daughter on her own. She divorced Gale but it wasn’t because she didn’t love him it was because he loved Army more than he did his family. She has done her best to raise her daughter but now that she is a teenager and with the past scare of her cutting mother and daughter are at constant odds. So when Gale first shows up and suddenly wants to be a father she has a little bit of resentment to work through first. Its not long though before she sees that two parents carrying the load is far better than one.
Along with the family drama the Sorren family and Gale and Melanie trying to work at a second chance we get plenty of time at Fort Hood and Teague and Iaconelli (from previous books) are also stationed here. There is a side plot that interwoven that involves another soldier and his son that heartbreaking.
I really enjoyed this first book of the series and looking forward to Sarah and Holly’s story, who we briefly meet in this book.
As with most of the books this author writes she doesn’t pull any punches in showing us the darker side of military life. Each man or woman comes back with their demons and its up to them on how hard they are going to work on them or not. Its taken First Sergeant Gale Sorren over 16 years to finally try and right the wrong he did in putting his military career above his wife and daughter. During that time his wife divorced him and daughter took a trip to self mutilation land which landed her in the hospital. Now he is finally stationed in the same town that they live in and hopes to be able to repair his relationship with both of them.
Melanie and Gale were teenage lovers who got married so young and then she got pregnant right away but ended up having to raise her daughter on her own. She divorced Gale but it wasn’t because she didn’t love him it was because he loved Army more than he did his family. She has done her best to raise her daughter but now that she is a teenager and with the past scare of her cutting mother and daughter are at constant odds. So when Gale first shows up and suddenly wants to be a father she has a little bit of resentment to work through first. Its not long though before she sees that two parents carrying the load is far better than one.
Along with the family drama the Sorren family and Gale and Melanie trying to work at a second chance we get plenty of time at Fort Hood and Teague and Iaconelli (from previous books) are also stationed here. There is a side plot that interwoven that involves another soldier and his son that heartbreaking.
I really enjoyed this first book of the series and looking forward to Sarah and Holly’s story, who we briefly meet in this book.
April 7, 2015
Review also posted at My Book Snack
4.5 Stars
Jessica Scott always gets me with her military hero romances, and reading Homefront did not disappoint!
Gale Sorren has waited years to come home. His wife divorced him when their daughter was a baby, but he’s always wanted to get the chance to fix his broken family…to get a second chance. He was never expecting the amount of tension he would walk into when he finally connects with his family again.
Parts of this story absolutely broke my heart! Melanie has spent years making a life for her and her daughter, Jamie. Things aren’t perfect, and Jamie is dealing with some major issues. Combine that with teenage hormones, and, well, Mel desperately could use Gale’s help in that department, but could she trust him? He’s never been there for them before.
I love second-chance romances. While reading Homefront, I wanted Melanie and Gale to get their well-deserved second chance right from the beginning. Jessica Scott tackles some pretty serious issues in this story. She makes the parenting problems Mel and Gale deal with seem so realistic and raw, and I liked how she handled these situations. I don’t think one even has to be a parent to relate to these things. I think anyone who has ever regretted something in the past and learns from mistakes moving forward will understand the heart of this story. Thank you, Ms. Scott, for another captivating read!
4.5 Stars
Jessica Scott always gets me with her military hero romances, and reading Homefront did not disappoint!
Gale Sorren has waited years to come home. His wife divorced him when their daughter was a baby, but he’s always wanted to get the chance to fix his broken family…to get a second chance. He was never expecting the amount of tension he would walk into when he finally connects with his family again.
Parts of this story absolutely broke my heart! Melanie has spent years making a life for her and her daughter, Jamie. Things aren’t perfect, and Jamie is dealing with some major issues. Combine that with teenage hormones, and, well, Mel desperately could use Gale’s help in that department, but could she trust him? He’s never been there for them before.
I love second-chance romances. While reading Homefront, I wanted Melanie and Gale to get their well-deserved second chance right from the beginning. Jessica Scott tackles some pretty serious issues in this story. She makes the parenting problems Mel and Gale deal with seem so realistic and raw, and I liked how she handled these situations. I don’t think one even has to be a parent to relate to these things. I think anyone who has ever regretted something in the past and learns from mistakes moving forward will understand the heart of this story. Thank you, Ms. Scott, for another captivating read!
April 11, 2015
This was a nice read and it's totally my fault that I didn't like it as much as I could and would in other circumstances. You see, I wanted a romance story and while this book included romance, the main point was a man trying to get his family back. A great premise to be sure, but something I would read in a time where I didn't mind my books not having romance as a main theme. Still, it was well written and a little bit sad so I recommend you read it...
September 4, 2015
No one writes military romance like Jessica Scott. It's not panty-dropping hot, but it's raw and it's real and the woman CLEARLY knows what she writes.
That being said, this book missed the mark for me. The reunion took place too quickly for my taste, Gale's "dark moment" didn't move me and the sub-plot frequently overshadowed the romance. Not a bad read, but certainly not as good as I'd expected.
That being said, this book missed the mark for me. The reunion took place too quickly for my taste, Gale's "dark moment" didn't move me and the sub-plot frequently overshadowed the romance. Not a bad read, but certainly not as good as I'd expected.
March 27, 2015
review to come...
April 14, 2015
Originally posted at Smexybooks
http://smexybooks.com/2015/04/review-...
Favorite Quote: She doesn’t have a lot of tolerance for stupidity and well, I’m an infantryman. I’ve got a lot of stupidity I’m still working out of my system.
First Sergeant Gale Sorren lost more than he gained when he joined the military. His wife divorced him and left, taking his daughter with her. But after fifteen years, he has a chance to make things right when he is finally stationed close to his family. Now all he he needs to figure out is how to be the man he should have been from the beginning.
Melanie Sorren never stopped loving or caring for her ex husband but she couldn’t handle being essentially a single parent. She divorces him after one too many deploys and tries to put her life back together. When Gale appears back in her life and informs her he’s stationed near by, she is shocked and dismayed to find their chemistry is still as potent as ever.
Can Mel forgive Gale for breaking her heart so many times? And more importantly…can Gale forgive himself?
Jessica Scott has an astute and empathic voice for military life and the romantic problems that can accompany it. As a career officer married to a career NCO, I can imagine that she has not only seen it all but possibly lived some of it. My first husband was in the military and I can honestly say, being a military wife is not easy. The military is often an unwanted bed partner whose needs and desires will override your own. Add in kids and years of separation, and the stress and pressure can become unbearable. It takes a lot for a person to accept someone who comes with a million plus at their back and a commitment to duty that will take them from you at the blink of an eye.
Homefront is an emotionally bittersweet second chance love story that focuses on such a relationship. Well written with a flowing steady pace and well developed characters. Scott addresses the pain of war and not only the casualties wounded in service but also those who remain at home. Heavily character driven, Scott chooses to focus more on the couple and their issues in here then her usual MOD of balancing complicated romance with a strong defining conflict.
Gale and Melanie (Mel) married young when Mel became pregnant. If that wasn’t hard enough, Gale had already enlisted into the Army when they found out. He had to go and Mel knew that thought she felt abandoned all the same. Jamie, Mel and Gale’s daughter, was a fretful baby and miserable toddler. Mel’s anger over having to deal with Jamie’s needs by herself caused her to become bitter towards Gale and she gave up on him and the marriage after a few years; serving him with divorce papers and moving back home with her parents.
Your heart will hurt for this couple as you get an intimate look at their marriage and the emotional state they were in then and now. The love they have for one another is still a potent blend but time and bad decisions on both their parts has made the gulf between them seem uncrossable. Gale readily admits he wasn’t a good husband or father. Over a decade of his life has been spent skyping with his daughter and seeing her on the rare occasions he was stateside. Not a derelict dad but more that the career he chose left him with little in the way of choices when it came to his personal life. And he accepts the blame for that.
“He’d given the Army everything he’d had. And he could never get that back. The war, work, all of it was a convenient excuse for being a shitty father and a terrible ex husband.”
Mel never wanted to leave Gale but she was young and just couldn’t deal with it all alone anymore. Too many tears and broken promises left her with little choice. After the divorce, she valiantly accepts it’s just her and Jamie with Gale popping in when he can. Though he offers financial support, he is unable to offer the physical and emotional support she and Jamie need from him. When he shows up out of the blue, offering to Shock, anger, and more distressing…longing and attraction.
“She needed a few minutes to put everything back in the box marked “Gale” and did her best to ignore. Because she’d damned if she was going to cry over this man one more time.”
A slow and sensual romance builds; a tentative dance between two people who are still suffering from the guilt, sorrow, resentment, and anger over their shared past. The attraction is strong but the trust is at a bare minimum. Gale goes above and beyond to show Mel that he truly means to take an active part in his family’s life. His daughter is suffering from some serious issues and Gale sees that Mel needs him more than ever to be a hands on father and take some of the responsibility off her shoulders. Erotically charged love scenes add a punch to the storyline; showing readers that this was one area that never needed fixing for them.
“I think I want to skip dinner.”
“I think I want you for dinner.”
A pair of subplots intertwine, introducing some low-key conflict to the story and a way for Gale to finally exercise the demons that have been haunting him for years. Old friends make multiple appearances, giving us hints to how their lives are doing since reading their story. We also meet some new ones and gain hints to future stories. If I any qualms, I would have liked to go more in-depth on Jamie’s issues and hear her reasons behind her actions. Scott does a wonderful job of bringing Jamie to life with realistic behavior and dialogue for a teenager.
Homefront gives readers the perfect blend of romance and emotional entanglements as Scott once again divulges into the real time problems facing the military and their families. I look forward to reading the next in the series, After The War, which releases May 5, 2015 from Forever.
RATING: B
http://smexybooks.com/2015/04/review-...
Favorite Quote: She doesn’t have a lot of tolerance for stupidity and well, I’m an infantryman. I’ve got a lot of stupidity I’m still working out of my system.
First Sergeant Gale Sorren lost more than he gained when he joined the military. His wife divorced him and left, taking his daughter with her. But after fifteen years, he has a chance to make things right when he is finally stationed close to his family. Now all he he needs to figure out is how to be the man he should have been from the beginning.
Melanie Sorren never stopped loving or caring for her ex husband but she couldn’t handle being essentially a single parent. She divorces him after one too many deploys and tries to put her life back together. When Gale appears back in her life and informs her he’s stationed near by, she is shocked and dismayed to find their chemistry is still as potent as ever.
Can Mel forgive Gale for breaking her heart so many times? And more importantly…can Gale forgive himself?
Jessica Scott has an astute and empathic voice for military life and the romantic problems that can accompany it. As a career officer married to a career NCO, I can imagine that she has not only seen it all but possibly lived some of it. My first husband was in the military and I can honestly say, being a military wife is not easy. The military is often an unwanted bed partner whose needs and desires will override your own. Add in kids and years of separation, and the stress and pressure can become unbearable. It takes a lot for a person to accept someone who comes with a million plus at their back and a commitment to duty that will take them from you at the blink of an eye.
Homefront is an emotionally bittersweet second chance love story that focuses on such a relationship. Well written with a flowing steady pace and well developed characters. Scott addresses the pain of war and not only the casualties wounded in service but also those who remain at home. Heavily character driven, Scott chooses to focus more on the couple and their issues in here then her usual MOD of balancing complicated romance with a strong defining conflict.
Gale and Melanie (Mel) married young when Mel became pregnant. If that wasn’t hard enough, Gale had already enlisted into the Army when they found out. He had to go and Mel knew that thought she felt abandoned all the same. Jamie, Mel and Gale’s daughter, was a fretful baby and miserable toddler. Mel’s anger over having to deal with Jamie’s needs by herself caused her to become bitter towards Gale and she gave up on him and the marriage after a few years; serving him with divorce papers and moving back home with her parents.
Your heart will hurt for this couple as you get an intimate look at their marriage and the emotional state they were in then and now. The love they have for one another is still a potent blend but time and bad decisions on both their parts has made the gulf between them seem uncrossable. Gale readily admits he wasn’t a good husband or father. Over a decade of his life has been spent skyping with his daughter and seeing her on the rare occasions he was stateside. Not a derelict dad but more that the career he chose left him with little in the way of choices when it came to his personal life. And he accepts the blame for that.
“He’d given the Army everything he’d had. And he could never get that back. The war, work, all of it was a convenient excuse for being a shitty father and a terrible ex husband.”
Mel never wanted to leave Gale but she was young and just couldn’t deal with it all alone anymore. Too many tears and broken promises left her with little choice. After the divorce, she valiantly accepts it’s just her and Jamie with Gale popping in when he can. Though he offers financial support, he is unable to offer the physical and emotional support she and Jamie need from him. When he shows up out of the blue, offering to Shock, anger, and more distressing…longing and attraction.
“She needed a few minutes to put everything back in the box marked “Gale” and did her best to ignore. Because she’d damned if she was going to cry over this man one more time.”
A slow and sensual romance builds; a tentative dance between two people who are still suffering from the guilt, sorrow, resentment, and anger over their shared past. The attraction is strong but the trust is at a bare minimum. Gale goes above and beyond to show Mel that he truly means to take an active part in his family’s life. His daughter is suffering from some serious issues and Gale sees that Mel needs him more than ever to be a hands on father and take some of the responsibility off her shoulders. Erotically charged love scenes add a punch to the storyline; showing readers that this was one area that never needed fixing for them.
“I think I want to skip dinner.”
“I think I want you for dinner.”
A pair of subplots intertwine, introducing some low-key conflict to the story and a way for Gale to finally exercise the demons that have been haunting him for years. Old friends make multiple appearances, giving us hints to how their lives are doing since reading their story. We also meet some new ones and gain hints to future stories. If I any qualms, I would have liked to go more in-depth on Jamie’s issues and hear her reasons behind her actions. Scott does a wonderful job of bringing Jamie to life with realistic behavior and dialogue for a teenager.
Homefront gives readers the perfect blend of romance and emotional entanglements as Scott once again divulges into the real time problems facing the military and their families. I look forward to reading the next in the series, After The War, which releases May 5, 2015 from Forever.
RATING: B
April 23, 2015
The truth was he was a better soldier than a husband or father, and he always had been. Hell, there was a reason why he worked so hard. He was good at the army. It wasn't a job to him. It was who he was. It was what he was good at. He knew how to lead soldiers, how to get their confidence up to be the first man in the stack.
As far as I'm concerned, Ms. Scott always manages to bring something different and interesting to the table. Of the many books she has written where soldiers come back home, she has not tackled this particular subject so thoroughly as she does in Homefront.
Gale screwed up. He knew he was screwing up when he was doing it but he really didn't know what else to do. The army was easy and leading his men was his calling. Being a father and husband is a whole 'nother ball game. Gale and Mel were very young when they married, throw in a baby and being separated from each other and it just made for a very bad combination.
He hadn't been a good enough man to hold on to her. And when he was honest with himself, everything he'd done over the last decade and a half had been to make himself a better man.
Mel has her hands full with a teenage Jamie who has some pretty serious issues of her own on top of just being a teenager. It's a lot for two parents to handle, much less a single parent. Mel is tired and barely holding it together. Enter Gale. He's been wanting to get closer to Mel and Jamie for years, in an effort to be involved in their lives and just maybe heal the rift between he and Mel. Gale TOTALLY loves Mel still. To her credit, she realizes that she may have made some hasty decisions due to her own immaturity. Even though fifteen years have passed, their feelings for each other were very close to the surface, so close that they couldn't keep their hands and lips off of each other!
She wasn't sure where things were going but it was such a departure from the way things had been. A good one. Gale the man not Gale the memory of the boy he'd been. There was power in his hands now, confidence in his touch. A smoothness in the way he stroked her body that left her breathless and shaking and wanting more. So much more.
Gale dealing with a teenage girl was touching and downright hilarious at times. It was like diffusing a bomb. Ha! I loved the way Gale waded in and proceeded to mediate between Jamie and her mom. Jamie really needed her Dad, she needed his love, affection and guidance.
This was a touching and raw depiction of second chance romance and I really enjoyed it. I'm definitely looking forward to more from this series.
Purchase:
This review was originally posted on Straight Shootin' Book Reviews
April 30, 2015
#military #secondchanceromance http://amzn.to/1H4BRMg
This is a powerful second chance romance starring First Sergeant Gale Sorren and his ex-wife, Melanie. Yes, I said ex-wife!
This book is so much more than a second chance romance; it the rebuilding of a family. Yu see Gale (yes an unusual name for a man) and Mel have a daughter, a 15 year old daughter named Jamie.
Ms. Scott does a wonderful job at painting a portrait for the reader of a past gone wrong, of young love with all its naive notions and unsaid words creating a current day neither Gale nor Mel expected.
Gale's desire to take back what he wants; his desire to rebuild the relationships lost, truly pulled at my soul.
Gale is also a male who at times made me laugh This is part of one of my favorite scenes:
“What were you doing in my daughter's room?”
The kid sighed dramatically and looked out the window with a sulk.....
“Son, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. I’ve been to Iraq. There’s no telling when my PTSD is going to act up.”
“I’m not your son.”
“No, you’re not, because if you were my kid, you would have one color hair. Now what’s your name?”
Another dramatic sigh that was like nails on a chalkboard for Gale’s nerves. “Alex.”
“What were you doing in my daughter’s closet?”
Alex shot him a dirty look. “Filming a porno, gramps.” ……… “You better pray for your immortal soul that you��re joking.”
This scene is not only an ear to ear grin kind and engaging, it also lays out the groundwork for the masterful way in which this story weaves this family back together.
Homefront is not about hearts and flowers, or dates and chocolate to make the pain of the past go away. It is resolved around building a life together, working through deep seeded problems and deciding yes consciously deciding to be a family, to build a forever together!
The use of Jamie, the daughter, her struggles and the young man in her life created a plot the pulled Gale and Mel together and proved that these two are in it for the long haul.
Mel and Gale forming a true partnership, building their friendship and the embracing the love and connection that still exist made this a wonderful read!
This is a powerful second chance romance starring First Sergeant Gale Sorren and his ex-wife, Melanie. Yes, I said ex-wife!
This book is so much more than a second chance romance; it the rebuilding of a family. Yu see Gale (yes an unusual name for a man) and Mel have a daughter, a 15 year old daughter named Jamie.
Ms. Scott does a wonderful job at painting a portrait for the reader of a past gone wrong, of young love with all its naive notions and unsaid words creating a current day neither Gale nor Mel expected.
Gale's desire to take back what he wants; his desire to rebuild the relationships lost, truly pulled at my soul.
Gale is also a male who at times made me laugh This is part of one of my favorite scenes:
“What were you doing in my daughter's room?”
The kid sighed dramatically and looked out the window with a sulk.....
“Son, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. I’ve been to Iraq. There’s no telling when my PTSD is going to act up.”
“I’m not your son.”
“No, you’re not, because if you were my kid, you would have one color hair. Now what’s your name?”
Another dramatic sigh that was like nails on a chalkboard for Gale’s nerves. “Alex.”
“What were you doing in my daughter’s closet?”
Alex shot him a dirty look. “Filming a porno, gramps.” ……… “You better pray for your immortal soul that you��re joking.”
This scene is not only an ear to ear grin kind and engaging, it also lays out the groundwork for the masterful way in which this story weaves this family back together.
Homefront is not about hearts and flowers, or dates and chocolate to make the pain of the past go away. It is resolved around building a life together, working through deep seeded problems and deciding yes consciously deciding to be a family, to build a forever together!
The use of Jamie, the daughter, her struggles and the young man in her life created a plot the pulled Gale and Mel together and proved that these two are in it for the long haul.
Mel and Gale forming a true partnership, building their friendship and the embracing the love and connection that still exist made this a wonderful read!
April 2, 2015
Review copy courtesy of the publisher.
I feel like such a failure when I DNF a book. But there are just some books that you can see aren't going to work for you, no matter what happens. That's how I feel about this one.
Individually, the hero and the heroine were just fine. I liked them well enough, I suppose. But they were married, had a child and then divorced and I don't really enjoy stories about divorced couples getting back together. I don't know why. I guess all the excitement and the unknown just isn't there anymore?
To make matters worse, the child they had was now 16 years old. I was once 16 years old and it was rough. I don't want to relive it and I really don't want to relive it through the eyes of my mother. Plus, the daughter has some mental health issues and it was no fun. I usually like a little injection of kids into a story but 1 years old isn't really "kid" aged and she didn't add anything cute or fun to the story as far as I read. In fact, she made the hero and the heroine unlikable.
This book wasn't for me because it was to REAL. I'm a grown-up. I know that life can, and often does, suck. I read to escape the suckiness. I don't want the life sucks motif to bleed into my hobby any more than it has to. I also think I didn't like this book because I'm not divorced and I'm not a mom. I'm not suggesting that a reader has to be either of those things to enjoy this book but I couldn't relate to a mother who is struggling to connect with her kid. To be brutal, I just didn't care. I wanted to read a romance and this was way more on the side of Women's Literature with a dash of romance thrown in.
But don't take my word for it. Anyone who likes the soldiers returning from war to broken homes may enjoy this. Also, readers who like divorced couples getting back together or characters having difficulty raising their family may also like this book. Since I couldn't identify with anyone or with any of the major emotions that were displayed in the first 40% of this book, I just couldn't get into it.
I feel like such a failure when I DNF a book. But there are just some books that you can see aren't going to work for you, no matter what happens. That's how I feel about this one.
Individually, the hero and the heroine were just fine. I liked them well enough, I suppose. But they were married, had a child and then divorced and I don't really enjoy stories about divorced couples getting back together. I don't know why. I guess all the excitement and the unknown just isn't there anymore?
To make matters worse, the child they had was now 16 years old. I was once 16 years old and it was rough. I don't want to relive it and I really don't want to relive it through the eyes of my mother. Plus, the daughter has some mental health issues and it was no fun. I usually like a little injection of kids into a story but 1 years old isn't really "kid" aged and she didn't add anything cute or fun to the story as far as I read. In fact, she made the hero and the heroine unlikable.
This book wasn't for me because it was to REAL. I'm a grown-up. I know that life can, and often does, suck. I read to escape the suckiness. I don't want the life sucks motif to bleed into my hobby any more than it has to. I also think I didn't like this book because I'm not divorced and I'm not a mom. I'm not suggesting that a reader has to be either of those things to enjoy this book but I couldn't relate to a mother who is struggling to connect with her kid. To be brutal, I just didn't care. I wanted to read a romance and this was way more on the side of Women's Literature with a dash of romance thrown in.
But don't take my word for it. Anyone who likes the soldiers returning from war to broken homes may enjoy this. Also, readers who like divorced couples getting back together or characters having difficulty raising their family may also like this book. Since I couldn't identify with anyone or with any of the major emotions that were displayed in the first 40% of this book, I just couldn't get into it.
March 29, 2015
ARC provided by author in exchange for a n honest review.
What I love about Jessica Scott's writing is that she has a way of presenting a very realistic portrayal of the hardships faced for both returning veterans and their families but yet still give hope that there can be a HEA. Her stories have a realism that very few authors can accurately portray and still have a book that will have mass appeal.
Gale has spent the past 16 years trying to garner the courage to be the man that his ex-wife deserves. Melanie has spent the past 16 years at times regretting the fact that she left her husband while still trying to raise their daughter alone. Neither one has ever gotten over the other, but the Army and war have kept the two apart. Now the two have a second chance for their daughter and maybe even for each other.
This book is so much more than just a second-chance romance story. For anyone that has read any of the Coming Home series, there are some familiar faces in this book. And if you haven't you definitely should. I, for one, am looking forward to more in this series and from this author.
What I love about Jessica Scott's writing is that she has a way of presenting a very realistic portrayal of the hardships faced for both returning veterans and their families but yet still give hope that there can be a HEA. Her stories have a realism that very few authors can accurately portray and still have a book that will have mass appeal.
Gale has spent the past 16 years trying to garner the courage to be the man that his ex-wife deserves. Melanie has spent the past 16 years at times regretting the fact that she left her husband while still trying to raise their daughter alone. Neither one has ever gotten over the other, but the Army and war have kept the two apart. Now the two have a second chance for their daughter and maybe even for each other.
This book is so much more than just a second-chance romance story. For anyone that has read any of the Coming Home series, there are some familiar faces in this book. And if you haven't you definitely should. I, for one, am looking forward to more in this series and from this author.
January 4, 2016
3.5 stars.
Although this is only a 3.5 star from me, it was really good!
Love second-chance romance. Loved the characters connection. Their chemistry. Their Passion.
The main characters - to me - felt realistic. I could connect to them and feel. Which is freakin awesome, considering it takes ALOT to reel me into a story.. and stay til the end!
Looking forward to reading more of this series and author :-)
Although this is only a 3.5 star from me, it was really good!
Love second-chance romance. Loved the characters connection. Their chemistry. Their Passion.
The main characters - to me - felt realistic. I could connect to them and feel. Which is freakin awesome, considering it takes ALOT to reel me into a story.. and stay til the end!
Looking forward to reading more of this series and author :-)
May 2, 2015
4.5 stars Review to come but for once I didn't cry! Usually Sott rips my heart out but not this time. And it was still damn good.
April 15, 2015
A man gives his all for his career in the Army, but if he sacrificed so much along the way and his regrets lead him to hope that with this new assignment to Ft. Hood, he may see his hope fulfilled. A woman couldn't handle the rigors of Army life with a young child and a husband gone for long periods of time. Regrets for not sticking it out? Sure. But now he there and he's a whole new man wanting time with his daughter and maybe a chance with his ex-wife. Dare she take the opportunity or should she protect what's left of her heart from when the Army calls him away again?
Gale Sorren's career ended up on rocky ground when he got word that his daughter was hospitalized and he attacked the man who wouldn't give him leave. He has a new assignment and a fresh start right where he begged to be assigned for years. Now that he's in the same town as his ex-wife and daughter, he can't seem to get up the courage to knock on their door. How they must hate him for being AWOL for years? There is the valid excuse that things are a mess in the battalion and they are all tasked to get it back where it needs to be. Captain Ben Teague seems a good sort and Gale doesn't mind being his First Sergeant though there is a storm of issues always. But, he is here for a reason and that's not to throw away this second chance with his daughter and maybe gets some closer with Melanie. He never stopped loving her after she left him.
Melanie can't seem to find her balance after Gale walked back into her life. She's so tired from the daily battles with their daughter and the fears that Jamie will resort to her dangerous habits again. Gale becomes a quiet, steady influence on Jamie and riles up Mel's bitterness and anger even while she appreciates what he is doing. Her guilt over leaving him and her continued love have her raw and scared of this man who is no longer the young soldier, but someone strong and steady. Gale makes her want again even if she just knows that he'll be off again within the year. Meanwhile, Jamie has some secrets that have repercussions for them all, but especially Gale as it forces him to confront a longtime friend who came back broken inside.
This is a poignant and passionate story of a broken family finding there way again and finding what its like to be together at last. A romance, sure, but its the romance of a man toward his family. I was engaged from the beginning and I read it straight through with one break. I feel the connection from the soul of the story right to my heart.
He'd given her up for the army. He'd let her go so that he could maybe grow into the kind of man who deserved her. Instead, all he'd done was grow into a warrior. A leader of men. Not a lover. Not a husband. Not a father. A ringing sense of failure hung around his shoulders, a lead weight dragging his soul down.
"What's wrong?" she asked again.
He turned, looked down into her dark, sad eyes.
"You make me want tings I can't have, Mel. Things I don't deserve...because I thought...I hoped." The words he needed wouldn't come...
She paused. "And Gale?"
"Hmm?"
"Don't tell me you don't deserve happiness ever again."
She kissed him then.
Loc 1652-1662 Gale and Mel from Homefront
This story kicks off a new series, but it is a spin-off of the Coming Home series. While a reader can easily begin with this story, my personal recommendation is to start with the Coming Home series as old familiar faces dot the perimeter of the scenes in this story. I'm just geeked that the author chose Gale Sorren from It Had to Be You for the hero in this one. I said in my review of that book that I wanted Sorren's story and voila, the book fairies heard me and I got it.
While this book could technically be termed a military romance, the theme and setting of this series of books is that of the homefront away from the war action and it tells the stories of the homelife for these Army folk. It's not prettified nor does it get political. Character-driven plots and the natural tension as a result of situation are what propel these along. The stories are all-encompassing with the romance as part of a whole and not an isolated piece. There is humor, passion, anger and everything in between. The humor is just the right touch whether its simple daily life humor like poor Gale having to have The Talk with his daughter or whether it is the snark that comes with people stressed to the max at work and needing an outlet.
"Apparently, her mother wants me to reinforce the fact that all boys are horny perverts and that she should wait until she meets a guy she really cares about."
Teague stared down at the cookies in his lap. "Well, boys are typically horny perverts, so I can see how that would be some sage advice," he said cautiously. He glanced up at Gale. "You look like you're going to have a heart attack."
"I might need to get my blood pressure checked," Gale said, trying and failing to be flippant. "I'm not ready for my little girl to start exploring penises."
Teague choked on his cookie and spewed crumbs across Gale's desk. "Sorry, that caught me off guard," Teague said, wiping his mouth. "I'll clean that up."
"Really sir?" Sorren swiped the crumbs onto the floor. "Just aim for the damn floor next time."
"Next time warn a guy before you say something so funny," Teague said, still laughing.
"My daughter and penises is not funny. Some boy is going to want to do to her what I did with her mother...I'm not ready for this," he said again.
Loc 2473 Gale and Ben of Homefront
I loved the romance and it was great that the couple are middle age folk and parents of a teenager. The mature handling of their feelings, their desires, and actions was a nice extra and I liked that the author gave the parenting good page time since she included Jamie's character. All that being said, these two have some combustible moments. Gale is sexy, smoldering and hot for Mel who can't help admire the hard body under that uniform. They've been apart for so long, but the attraction and need are right there and neither stopped loving the other over the years apart. Loved the slow, but sure steps this romance took to its happy ever after.
So, the new book is a fantastic start to a new series. I appreciated the warm, real and flawed characters, the pacing of the story, the heartwarming tone and the depth of the engaging plot. Contemporary Romance fans who like slower developing yet sensual character-driven romance should give this a look.
My thanks to Rockstar PR and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Gale Sorren's career ended up on rocky ground when he got word that his daughter was hospitalized and he attacked the man who wouldn't give him leave. He has a new assignment and a fresh start right where he begged to be assigned for years. Now that he's in the same town as his ex-wife and daughter, he can't seem to get up the courage to knock on their door. How they must hate him for being AWOL for years? There is the valid excuse that things are a mess in the battalion and they are all tasked to get it back where it needs to be. Captain Ben Teague seems a good sort and Gale doesn't mind being his First Sergeant though there is a storm of issues always. But, he is here for a reason and that's not to throw away this second chance with his daughter and maybe gets some closer with Melanie. He never stopped loving her after she left him.
Melanie can't seem to find her balance after Gale walked back into her life. She's so tired from the daily battles with their daughter and the fears that Jamie will resort to her dangerous habits again. Gale becomes a quiet, steady influence on Jamie and riles up Mel's bitterness and anger even while she appreciates what he is doing. Her guilt over leaving him and her continued love have her raw and scared of this man who is no longer the young soldier, but someone strong and steady. Gale makes her want again even if she just knows that he'll be off again within the year. Meanwhile, Jamie has some secrets that have repercussions for them all, but especially Gale as it forces him to confront a longtime friend who came back broken inside.
This is a poignant and passionate story of a broken family finding there way again and finding what its like to be together at last. A romance, sure, but its the romance of a man toward his family. I was engaged from the beginning and I read it straight through with one break. I feel the connection from the soul of the story right to my heart.
He'd given her up for the army. He'd let her go so that he could maybe grow into the kind of man who deserved her. Instead, all he'd done was grow into a warrior. A leader of men. Not a lover. Not a husband. Not a father. A ringing sense of failure hung around his shoulders, a lead weight dragging his soul down.
"What's wrong?" she asked again.
He turned, looked down into her dark, sad eyes.
"You make me want tings I can't have, Mel. Things I don't deserve...because I thought...I hoped." The words he needed wouldn't come...
She paused. "And Gale?"
"Hmm?"
"Don't tell me you don't deserve happiness ever again."
She kissed him then.
Loc 1652-1662 Gale and Mel from Homefront
This story kicks off a new series, but it is a spin-off of the Coming Home series. While a reader can easily begin with this story, my personal recommendation is to start with the Coming Home series as old familiar faces dot the perimeter of the scenes in this story. I'm just geeked that the author chose Gale Sorren from It Had to Be You for the hero in this one. I said in my review of that book that I wanted Sorren's story and voila, the book fairies heard me and I got it.
While this book could technically be termed a military romance, the theme and setting of this series of books is that of the homefront away from the war action and it tells the stories of the homelife for these Army folk. It's not prettified nor does it get political. Character-driven plots and the natural tension as a result of situation are what propel these along. The stories are all-encompassing with the romance as part of a whole and not an isolated piece. There is humor, passion, anger and everything in between. The humor is just the right touch whether its simple daily life humor like poor Gale having to have The Talk with his daughter or whether it is the snark that comes with people stressed to the max at work and needing an outlet.
"Apparently, her mother wants me to reinforce the fact that all boys are horny perverts and that she should wait until she meets a guy she really cares about."
Teague stared down at the cookies in his lap. "Well, boys are typically horny perverts, so I can see how that would be some sage advice," he said cautiously. He glanced up at Gale. "You look like you're going to have a heart attack."
"I might need to get my blood pressure checked," Gale said, trying and failing to be flippant. "I'm not ready for my little girl to start exploring penises."
Teague choked on his cookie and spewed crumbs across Gale's desk. "Sorry, that caught me off guard," Teague said, wiping his mouth. "I'll clean that up."
"Really sir?" Sorren swiped the crumbs onto the floor. "Just aim for the damn floor next time."
"Next time warn a guy before you say something so funny," Teague said, still laughing.
"My daughter and penises is not funny. Some boy is going to want to do to her what I did with her mother...I'm not ready for this," he said again.
Loc 2473 Gale and Ben of Homefront
I loved the romance and it was great that the couple are middle age folk and parents of a teenager. The mature handling of their feelings, their desires, and actions was a nice extra and I liked that the author gave the parenting good page time since she included Jamie's character. All that being said, these two have some combustible moments. Gale is sexy, smoldering and hot for Mel who can't help admire the hard body under that uniform. They've been apart for so long, but the attraction and need are right there and neither stopped loving the other over the years apart. Loved the slow, but sure steps this romance took to its happy ever after.
So, the new book is a fantastic start to a new series. I appreciated the warm, real and flawed characters, the pacing of the story, the heartwarming tone and the depth of the engaging plot. Contemporary Romance fans who like slower developing yet sensual character-driven romance should give this a look.
My thanks to Rockstar PR and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
April 14, 2015
**BETH'S 4.5 STAR REVIEW**
Homefront is another fabulous read by Jessica Scott that I am so glad I picked up. I am a huge sucker for second chance love romances and I really enjoy military romances so when Jessica Scott decided to put the two together, she’s got me hooked and wanting to read it. And after reading the blurb on this one I knew I had to add it to my TBR. Although I must say my full excitement about this book didn’t really come until I started to read the prologue. Just recently I picked up and loved Jessica Scott’s It’s Always Been You, from another one of her series. I really enjoyed her writing, then saw a posting for this book and decided to check this one out as well. I really loved Ben and Oliva’s story in It’s Always Been you but I really loved all the characters we met and just knew we needed to see more of First Sergeant Gale Sorren. Not connecting the two books at first, when I picked up Homefront and then realized Homefront was actually Gale’s book, I was over the moon estatic.
First Class Sergeant has devoted his life to the army and because of that, he lost him family. He and Melanie were only young when they married and had a new baby. But his devotion to his job and being away more than he was home, Melanie realized she was better off a single mom than a military wife, she just didn’t have it in her to be one. Now 15 years later Gale is transferred to the base nearby where Melanie and Jamie are living and he is determined to get their forgiveness and finally be a dad to Jamie before it’s too late. What he wasn’t expecting was forgiveness to come from them both so easily and to find an ex-wife who was still very much in love with him, as much as he still loved her.
I loved Gale, he was such a great character that we first got to see and know him in a previous book by this author. He was a devoted and hard working soldier but also was also a great and loyal friend. As the story played out we finally go to see him be a great Dad to Jamie and be that caring and loving man Melanie fell in love with all those many years ago. But his time at war and in the army had changed him but changed him so much for the better. From the moment I met Gale, I really like him and couldn’t help but wish he get his HEA, he devoted so much of himself to the army, he now deserved his happiness for all that he has given up.
Melanie was such a great strong character that I really enjoyed. She was young, just married and with a brand new baby and had a husband married to the military. Even though she was young, she recognized that she just wasn’t cut out to be a military wife and decided to go it alone as a single mom. And it was a road that wasn’t easy raising a daughter all by herself and dealing with issues no parent would ever want to deal with, especially as a single parent and when she asked for help, Gale was over seas in the middle of a war and not allowed to come. But she survived it all and every day was a challenge, trying to make a life for her and Jamie but having the constant fear that her daughter would slip into her old ways. She also never stopped loving Gale, and never stopped worrying about him and whether he would return home safe every time he deployed. She was also very forgiving of Gale and I loved that she allowed him to come back into their lives from the first moment she realized he was back, she never lever her anger get in the way of him being a dad to Jamie.
Overall this was a fabulous read that really took me by surprise at how much I loved it. I am not a lover of third person POV but must say that the author did a very good job writing it in third. Third POV normally tends to hold me back from fully connecting with the characters and the story but I didn’t find that at all with the author’s writing. This book is the first book in the Homefront series but is a spinoff of the Coming Home series. And although you don’t have to read It’s Always Been You to read this one, I must say I enjoyed Homefront so much more because I had read that book (which also can be read as a standalone). This book was such a great mixture of funny and some very serious moments (especially when it came to parenting Jamie) but it also has heartbreaking ones, but ones of forgiveness, and last, it truly makes you stop and realize the true effect spending time in War Torn countries has on our bravest soldiers. You get to see so many amazing and loving men who love their families very much go off and fight for their country and the freedom of those that can’t fight for themselves only to come home broken and a shell of the person they used to be. It was such a touching book that really made me realize the effects war has on our military but also their families. This was a fabulous read and I will definitely be following this series but while I wait for those to come out, I will be going back to check out the rest of the Coming Home series.
Homefront is another fabulous read by Jessica Scott that I am so glad I picked up. I am a huge sucker for second chance love romances and I really enjoy military romances so when Jessica Scott decided to put the two together, she’s got me hooked and wanting to read it. And after reading the blurb on this one I knew I had to add it to my TBR. Although I must say my full excitement about this book didn’t really come until I started to read the prologue. Just recently I picked up and loved Jessica Scott’s It’s Always Been You, from another one of her series. I really enjoyed her writing, then saw a posting for this book and decided to check this one out as well. I really loved Ben and Oliva’s story in It’s Always Been you but I really loved all the characters we met and just knew we needed to see more of First Sergeant Gale Sorren. Not connecting the two books at first, when I picked up Homefront and then realized Homefront was actually Gale’s book, I was over the moon estatic.
First Class Sergeant has devoted his life to the army and because of that, he lost him family. He and Melanie were only young when they married and had a new baby. But his devotion to his job and being away more than he was home, Melanie realized she was better off a single mom than a military wife, she just didn’t have it in her to be one. Now 15 years later Gale is transferred to the base nearby where Melanie and Jamie are living and he is determined to get their forgiveness and finally be a dad to Jamie before it’s too late. What he wasn’t expecting was forgiveness to come from them both so easily and to find an ex-wife who was still very much in love with him, as much as he still loved her.
I loved Gale, he was such a great character that we first got to see and know him in a previous book by this author. He was a devoted and hard working soldier but also was also a great and loyal friend. As the story played out we finally go to see him be a great Dad to Jamie and be that caring and loving man Melanie fell in love with all those many years ago. But his time at war and in the army had changed him but changed him so much for the better. From the moment I met Gale, I really like him and couldn’t help but wish he get his HEA, he devoted so much of himself to the army, he now deserved his happiness for all that he has given up.
Melanie was such a great strong character that I really enjoyed. She was young, just married and with a brand new baby and had a husband married to the military. Even though she was young, she recognized that she just wasn’t cut out to be a military wife and decided to go it alone as a single mom. And it was a road that wasn’t easy raising a daughter all by herself and dealing with issues no parent would ever want to deal with, especially as a single parent and when she asked for help, Gale was over seas in the middle of a war and not allowed to come. But she survived it all and every day was a challenge, trying to make a life for her and Jamie but having the constant fear that her daughter would slip into her old ways. She also never stopped loving Gale, and never stopped worrying about him and whether he would return home safe every time he deployed. She was also very forgiving of Gale and I loved that she allowed him to come back into their lives from the first moment she realized he was back, she never lever her anger get in the way of him being a dad to Jamie.
Overall this was a fabulous read that really took me by surprise at how much I loved it. I am not a lover of third person POV but must say that the author did a very good job writing it in third. Third POV normally tends to hold me back from fully connecting with the characters and the story but I didn’t find that at all with the author’s writing. This book is the first book in the Homefront series but is a spinoff of the Coming Home series. And although you don’t have to read It’s Always Been You to read this one, I must say I enjoyed Homefront so much more because I had read that book (which also can be read as a standalone). This book was such a great mixture of funny and some very serious moments (especially when it came to parenting Jamie) but it also has heartbreaking ones, but ones of forgiveness, and last, it truly makes you stop and realize the true effect spending time in War Torn countries has on our bravest soldiers. You get to see so many amazing and loving men who love their families very much go off and fight for their country and the freedom of those that can’t fight for themselves only to come home broken and a shell of the person they used to be. It was such a touching book that really made me realize the effects war has on our military but also their families. This was a fabulous read and I will definitely be following this series but while I wait for those to come out, I will be going back to check out the rest of the Coming Home series.
March 28, 2015
Review by Jen Hagen
Gale and Melanie were young parents when he received orders for his first deployment. After subsequent deployments and never being there for his wife or daughter, it was decided it would be best if they divorced. That was 14 years ago and at the present time it has been almost 3 years since they have seen each other. Melanie is shocked to see him back home, and he has been home for a couple of months! What?! You have a daughter that you haven’t seen for close to 3 years…you have an ex-wife that has faced a medical emergency with your daughter and you can’t make a phone call saying that you have moved to town? This really bothered me and thankfully Gale was starting to see the error of his ways.
After years of hoping to unf*ck things, he’d finally accepted there was nothing he could do to undo the damage he’d done. He’d given the Army everything he’d had. And he could never get that back. The war, work—all of it was a convenient excuse for being a shitty father and a terrible ex-husband.
Melanie has been a single parent raising Jamie, and it has been a constant struggle of wills. Jamie is forever butting heads with her mother and the years have not been easy. Besides being your typical moody teenager, Jamie has some emotional struggles that has Melanie on constant alert. She is leery of Gale wanting to step in and be an instant father, but at this point she will take all the help she can get. However, there are times when Gale can make a connection with Jamie when Melanie can’t and this makes Melanie a little jealous. I would be too!
Gale and Melanie really never had much time to spend together before a baby came and his deployments took him away, and they have never really had any closure on the end of their relationship. There is still an undeniable attraction between the two that never left, but Gale doesn’t know where he fits into her life even if she were to give him the opportunity to try again.
He’d given her up for the army. He’d let her go so that he could maybe grow into the kind of man who deserved her. Instead, all he’d done was grow into a warrior. A leader of men. Not a lover. Not a husband. Not a father.
Gale has come a long ways since he was a teenager. He has seen a lot of horrible things while in battle and he doesn’t let them overcome who he is. He is able to control his anger that used to get the best of him and has shown that he can be a good leader as evidenced by the promotions he’s received in the army. He is a good guy, and he is trying to find his way back into his family.
“I’ve missed you. My whole life, I’ve missed you, Melanie.”
This book felt real…it had a more mature feeling to it than my normal angsty love-gone-bad reads. It featured topics that are normal for any parent including backtalk, earning respect, and finding condoms in your teenager’s belongings. It was a slow-paced read but I found that it was filled with depth. This was my first read by this author and I was very impressed by the amount of detail she incorporated into the story to allow the reader who is not familiar with military procedures to feel comfortable with the setting.
Gale and Melanie were young parents when he received orders for his first deployment. After subsequent deployments and never being there for his wife or daughter, it was decided it would be best if they divorced. That was 14 years ago and at the present time it has been almost 3 years since they have seen each other. Melanie is shocked to see him back home, and he has been home for a couple of months! What?! You have a daughter that you haven’t seen for close to 3 years…you have an ex-wife that has faced a medical emergency with your daughter and you can’t make a phone call saying that you have moved to town? This really bothered me and thankfully Gale was starting to see the error of his ways.
After years of hoping to unf*ck things, he’d finally accepted there was nothing he could do to undo the damage he’d done. He’d given the Army everything he’d had. And he could never get that back. The war, work—all of it was a convenient excuse for being a shitty father and a terrible ex-husband.
Melanie has been a single parent raising Jamie, and it has been a constant struggle of wills. Jamie is forever butting heads with her mother and the years have not been easy. Besides being your typical moody teenager, Jamie has some emotional struggles that has Melanie on constant alert. She is leery of Gale wanting to step in and be an instant father, but at this point she will take all the help she can get. However, there are times when Gale can make a connection with Jamie when Melanie can’t and this makes Melanie a little jealous. I would be too!
Gale and Melanie really never had much time to spend together before a baby came and his deployments took him away, and they have never really had any closure on the end of their relationship. There is still an undeniable attraction between the two that never left, but Gale doesn’t know where he fits into her life even if she were to give him the opportunity to try again.
He’d given her up for the army. He’d let her go so that he could maybe grow into the kind of man who deserved her. Instead, all he’d done was grow into a warrior. A leader of men. Not a lover. Not a husband. Not a father.
Gale has come a long ways since he was a teenager. He has seen a lot of horrible things while in battle and he doesn’t let them overcome who he is. He is able to control his anger that used to get the best of him and has shown that he can be a good leader as evidenced by the promotions he’s received in the army. He is a good guy, and he is trying to find his way back into his family.
“I’ve missed you. My whole life, I’ve missed you, Melanie.”
This book felt real…it had a more mature feeling to it than my normal angsty love-gone-bad reads. It featured topics that are normal for any parent including backtalk, earning respect, and finding condoms in your teenager’s belongings. It was a slow-paced read but I found that it was filled with depth. This was my first read by this author and I was very impressed by the amount of detail she incorporated into the story to allow the reader who is not familiar with military procedures to feel comfortable with the setting.
April 10, 2015
original review at:http://ramblingsfromthischick.blogspo...
I’m convinced Jessica Scott can do no wrong. This book was A-MAZING. I’ve read a few of Scott’s books so I should know by now what to expect but she always has a new trick up her sleeve. She always breaks my heart even though by now I should see it coming. I can’t help but feel for these characters. I constantly have to put her stories down and just breathe! Just like the previous books, once I started reading I could not stop and I quickly grew to love this characters.
Let’s start with the hero. First Sergeant Gale Sorren was such a juxtaposition of emotions for me. I really disliked his past because he basically left his then wife, Melanie, all by herself to raise their daughter. I admired that he was dedicated to his career but I disliked how he rationalized everything in his head because of his upbringing and because he and Melanie were married too young and got pregnant to fast. His big redeeming quality was his raw honesty. I could not help but ache for him. He was very upfront with Melanie about his faults and he took full responsibility. He also was very humble and didn’t just barrage into Melanie and their daughter ,Jaime’s, life. Just like the heroes in her other books Scott does not sugarcoat the effects of war and like her other characters, Gale is dealing with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).
Melanie, Gale’s ex-wife, was also fantastic. She was a mom trying very hard to help her daughter Jaime not only grow as a teenager but also battle her own personal demons. Melanie has held it together for the twelve years since she had Jaime. She has the basic mother and teenage daughter struggles. I thought that their relationship was very real and authentic. When Gale is back Melanie is obviously hesitant to believe in him and let him back into their lives. Although Melanie has had her hearth broken by Gale before she has never stopped loving him and he never stopped loving her. Scott had a lot of work to do with this story, not only did she have to bring a couple back together but also make them a family.
I really loved Gale and Melanie together and Scott didn’t make it one big fairytale. They both had to do a lot of believing and soul searching. I loved how she brought them together and I thought that they both had intense chemistry. I was happy to see characters from previous books show up here because it made it feel like a huge family. I have to admit I was super happy that both Gale and Melanie finally got their HEA but I was disappointed to see the story end. I am looking forward to the upcoming books in the series and can’t wait to see what she has in store for Captain Sarah and Captain Sea!
I’m convinced Jessica Scott can do no wrong. This book was A-MAZING. I’ve read a few of Scott’s books so I should know by now what to expect but she always has a new trick up her sleeve. She always breaks my heart even though by now I should see it coming. I can’t help but feel for these characters. I constantly have to put her stories down and just breathe! Just like the previous books, once I started reading I could not stop and I quickly grew to love this characters.
Let’s start with the hero. First Sergeant Gale Sorren was such a juxtaposition of emotions for me. I really disliked his past because he basically left his then wife, Melanie, all by herself to raise their daughter. I admired that he was dedicated to his career but I disliked how he rationalized everything in his head because of his upbringing and because he and Melanie were married too young and got pregnant to fast. His big redeeming quality was his raw honesty. I could not help but ache for him. He was very upfront with Melanie about his faults and he took full responsibility. He also was very humble and didn’t just barrage into Melanie and their daughter ,Jaime’s, life. Just like the heroes in her other books Scott does not sugarcoat the effects of war and like her other characters, Gale is dealing with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder).
Melanie, Gale’s ex-wife, was also fantastic. She was a mom trying very hard to help her daughter Jaime not only grow as a teenager but also battle her own personal demons. Melanie has held it together for the twelve years since she had Jaime. She has the basic mother and teenage daughter struggles. I thought that their relationship was very real and authentic. When Gale is back Melanie is obviously hesitant to believe in him and let him back into their lives. Although Melanie has had her hearth broken by Gale before she has never stopped loving him and he never stopped loving her. Scott had a lot of work to do with this story, not only did she have to bring a couple back together but also make them a family.
I really loved Gale and Melanie together and Scott didn’t make it one big fairytale. They both had to do a lot of believing and soul searching. I loved how she brought them together and I thought that they both had intense chemistry. I was happy to see characters from previous books show up here because it made it feel like a huge family. I have to admit I was super happy that both Gale and Melanie finally got their HEA but I was disappointed to see the story end. I am looking forward to the upcoming books in the series and can’t wait to see what she has in store for Captain Sarah and Captain Sea!
August 4, 2021
Rediscovering not just the career soldier but the person after the war. Distinctly complicated relationship. Gale alters the landscape of their lives as a career soldier with his daughter and ex-wife paying the ultimate price. Gale and Melanie have been divorced for fifteen years.
He is stationed close by after a fifteen-year absence. In that time, they’ve lived separate lives, him with his ‘army’ family and Melanie going it alone.
Jaime is emotionally disturbed and I do not think it’s revealed the reasons she was crying for help. As Melanie sat alone in a hospital room with a daughter committed for evaluation for self-inflicted pain. She reflected that he’d left her alone. AGAIN.
Gale got off lightly...yes, his life is complicated, leaving your wife to raise a child on her own...without a support system is equally challenging. He pines for a woman that left him in order to survive despite him, not because of him. He never attempted to reconcile and Melanie might have been premature in filing for divorce but she felt as though it was her only option for survival. Military life can be lonely and isolating. Throw in a hormonal, teenage girl and its drama.
Life eventually tapers off after Gale suffers a heart attack and remains at Garrison. Alex tugged at the heartstrings-parent approval from Melanie and Gale to openly date Jaime and in exercising better decisions. They reconcile and get their second chance at discovering what they could have been...a better version.
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Jessica Scott is the author of: The Long Way Home: One Mom's Journey Home
A self-professed, soldier, wife and mother...in 2009, Army second lieutenant Jessica Scott was deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. Depicting her experience, she believed deploying would be the most harrowing struggle of her career. She failed to factor readapting to civilian life.
The long way home depicts the story of returning home from war and the adjustment process. This story includes the empowerment of a lieutenant and becoming a company commander.
This is a journey of a writer persevering. She represents learning to be a woman again. This is the story of a wife waiting for the end of a war.
This is her journey.
He is stationed close by after a fifteen-year absence. In that time, they’ve lived separate lives, him with his ‘army’ family and Melanie going it alone.
Jaime is emotionally disturbed and I do not think it’s revealed the reasons she was crying for help. As Melanie sat alone in a hospital room with a daughter committed for evaluation for self-inflicted pain. She reflected that he’d left her alone. AGAIN.
Gale got off lightly...yes, his life is complicated, leaving your wife to raise a child on her own...without a support system is equally challenging. He pines for a woman that left him in order to survive despite him, not because of him. He never attempted to reconcile and Melanie might have been premature in filing for divorce but she felt as though it was her only option for survival. Military life can be lonely and isolating. Throw in a hormonal, teenage girl and its drama.
Life eventually tapers off after Gale suffers a heart attack and remains at Garrison. Alex tugged at the heartstrings-parent approval from Melanie and Gale to openly date Jaime and in exercising better decisions. They reconcile and get their second chance at discovering what they could have been...a better version.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Jessica Scott is the author of: The Long Way Home: One Mom's Journey Home
A self-professed, soldier, wife and mother...in 2009, Army second lieutenant Jessica Scott was deployed to Iraq as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn. Depicting her experience, she believed deploying would be the most harrowing struggle of her career. She failed to factor readapting to civilian life.
The long way home depicts the story of returning home from war and the adjustment process. This story includes the empowerment of a lieutenant and becoming a company commander.
This is a journey of a writer persevering. She represents learning to be a woman again. This is the story of a wife waiting for the end of a war.
This is her journey.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2015
My Review:
I know going into a Jessica Scott novel at this point that it's going to be an emotional and sometimes very raw read for me. She knows what she's talking about in her books and that presents in an honest, pure way in her writing. And as a military spouse for 20 years, sometimes that can be a bit rough.
The first parts of this book left me in tears, because I could so relate to Melanie's pain about being alone to handle it all. It isn't easy for the spouse...and for Melanie, the heroine in this book, it broke her and her marriage. Again...that is a hard thing to read from someone that's been there.
But even with the sometimes bleak honesty, Jessica Scott manages to find hope in the ruins of her soldiers' personal lives and I love that. She doesn't have a single hero or heroine who hasn't been messed up by their time in the military, but they are good people in difficult situations trying to make the best from the mess they've been dealt with.
In this book we have Melanie and Gale who have been divorced for over a decade, and in that time he's missed out on a lot of his 15 yo daughter's life. But now, they are living in the same place for the first time in a long time and he has a chance to connect. But his daughter is 15...and a girl. Yeah, she has some hormonal issues and isn't going to make it easy on her father or her mother. Something that she's learned how to excel at over the last 15 years of her life while her father was at war for the Army.
There's a lot of emotion and hurt feelings that go into this story, but I still enjoyed it. The side-story with Alex, the boy Jessie likes, worked really well and I liked how it brought them all together with a common goal. It was interesting to see the inside of the workings of this military group and seeing others who have gotten their story through a different viewpoint.
Jessica Scott's books have a raw honesty to them which I love. I highly recommend them. You just need to keep in mind that things may seem bleak at the beginning, but she always manages to create a worthy HEA for her characters.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.
I know going into a Jessica Scott novel at this point that it's going to be an emotional and sometimes very raw read for me. She knows what she's talking about in her books and that presents in an honest, pure way in her writing. And as a military spouse for 20 years, sometimes that can be a bit rough.
The first parts of this book left me in tears, because I could so relate to Melanie's pain about being alone to handle it all. It isn't easy for the spouse...and for Melanie, the heroine in this book, it broke her and her marriage. Again...that is a hard thing to read from someone that's been there.
But even with the sometimes bleak honesty, Jessica Scott manages to find hope in the ruins of her soldiers' personal lives and I love that. She doesn't have a single hero or heroine who hasn't been messed up by their time in the military, but they are good people in difficult situations trying to make the best from the mess they've been dealt with.
In this book we have Melanie and Gale who have been divorced for over a decade, and in that time he's missed out on a lot of his 15 yo daughter's life. But now, they are living in the same place for the first time in a long time and he has a chance to connect. But his daughter is 15...and a girl. Yeah, she has some hormonal issues and isn't going to make it easy on her father or her mother. Something that she's learned how to excel at over the last 15 years of her life while her father was at war for the Army.
There's a lot of emotion and hurt feelings that go into this story, but I still enjoyed it. The side-story with Alex, the boy Jessie likes, worked really well and I liked how it brought them all together with a common goal. It was interesting to see the inside of the workings of this military group and seeing others who have gotten their story through a different viewpoint.
Jessica Scott's books have a raw honesty to them which I love. I highly recommend them. You just need to keep in mind that things may seem bleak at the beginning, but she always manages to create a worthy HEA for her characters.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.
April 23, 2015
Jessica Scott has always written books that keep it real. She tells how military life affects a person and their families, how coming home from deployment can be so difficult, and how finding and keeping romance alive can be so tricky. I get excited every time I find out she has a new book coming out. I look forward to getting my hands on them and devouring them.
Homefront is a story about teenage love that went wrong. Gale joined the military and things fell apart with his wife and young daughter. He left Melanie to raise their daughter on her own. Now he has moved back to Fort Hood and wants to rejoin his family. I cannot imagine how Melanie felt when she opened the door to Gale. The betrayal and loss she felt after the divorce had to weigh heavy on her. I cannot imagine being left to raise a baby alone, although I know a lot of strong women who do that successfully. Melanie is incredibly strong. She doesn’t need Gale, yet she realizes that if Gale is able and willing to rejoin the family and help her raise their daughter she needs to let him have that chance. I definitely related to Melanie more than Gale, probably because she is a mother and her first response is to protect her daughter.
There are characters from her past book that make appearances in Homefront. I love getting to catch up and see what they are up to now and look forward to more about them. That being said, you do not have to read other Jessica Scott books to enjoy Homefront, but I recommend checking them out since they are just as amazing as this one is.
I definitely recommend Homefront. The rest of this series cannot come soon enough.
Homefront is a story about teenage love that went wrong. Gale joined the military and things fell apart with his wife and young daughter. He left Melanie to raise their daughter on her own. Now he has moved back to Fort Hood and wants to rejoin his family. I cannot imagine how Melanie felt when she opened the door to Gale. The betrayal and loss she felt after the divorce had to weigh heavy on her. I cannot imagine being left to raise a baby alone, although I know a lot of strong women who do that successfully. Melanie is incredibly strong. She doesn’t need Gale, yet she realizes that if Gale is able and willing to rejoin the family and help her raise their daughter she needs to let him have that chance. I definitely related to Melanie more than Gale, probably because she is a mother and her first response is to protect her daughter.
There are characters from her past book that make appearances in Homefront. I love getting to catch up and see what they are up to now and look forward to more about them. That being said, you do not have to read other Jessica Scott books to enjoy Homefront, but I recommend checking them out since they are just as amazing as this one is.
I definitely recommend Homefront. The rest of this series cannot come soon enough.
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