The Last Homecoming

A generation-spanning homecoming is at the heart of this captivating novel from Chabot (Godspeed: A Love Story). More than just a venerable landmark in Haviland, Mich., the grand old house at 401 Barnhill Road has been the cherished home of four families over the course of the last 90 years. With the house set to be demolished soon to make way for a new highway and bridge, the home’s current owner, Nettie Tannehill, sends out invitations to the surviving members of the other three families for a final Christmas Eve homecoming. On Christmas Eve, newspaper owner Willow Summerhaven, former baseball player Nick MacAlinden, and 90-year-old Sister Theresa Renwick—all troubled by pressing financial woes—reunite one last time in the house that had once provided them with shelter and security, little realizing that the answer to their problems lies within the house’s walls and under its floorboards. Although Chabot lovingly depicts a Rockwell-esque image of small town Americana, his memorable characters are shaped by less rosy issues like alcoholism and suicide. Though the pacing is a little slow, the detailed prose and dynamics between the characters makes this a worthy, inspiring novel. (BookLife)