The Homecoming by Alison Stuart. (2023).
**4 out of 5 stars**
**Thank you to Harlequin Australia for sending me a free copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review; published 4 January 2023**
1892. Charlie left Maiden’s Creek almost 20 years ago, the town where she knew injustice and fear. Now she’s back as acting matron of the hospital, determined to prove her worth and escape a man. Despite his wealth and busy career as a criminal lawyer, Danny has never found contentment as he is haunted by memories of his childhood in Maiden’s Creek. When he is threatened after a court case, he returns to his hometown with a friend whose sister is a nurse and rejected Danny’s proposal. When a nurse is violently murdered just as a devastating storm hits the town, Danny and Charlie are thrown together in a desperate bid to prove the innocence of a friend. They make the perfect team but Charlie has a secret she can’t tell…
I really enjoyed this Australian historical fiction with a big mystery and a budding romance between the two leads. If you’ve read the author’s previous novels, ‘The Goldminer’s Sister’ and ‘The Postmistress’, quite a few of the characters will be familiar; if you haven’t read them fear not as this can absolutely be read and enjoyed as a standalone. I love that this author does such an excellent job transporting readers back in time and it feels so authentic. The perspectives alternate between Danny and Charlie who are both intelligent and likeable. Their time appropriate flirtation is a nice complement to the mystery of deaths at the hospital Charlie works at – a bit of lightness between the darker themes.
Overall: happily and highly recommend for fans of Australian historical fiction that features both romance and mystery.
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