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Summary
Summary
As a teenager, Hannah Benson ran away from home in order to save herself. Now, twenty years later,the past comes calling and delivers life-changing news: her mother and sister have passed away, leaving Hannah the guardian of her fifteen-year-old niece.
Returning home to bitter memories and devastating secrets, Hannah must overcome her painful past to pave a future with her niece, the last best chance at a family for both of them. She begins to create a new, happier life with her niece and rekindles a relationship with Grady Steadman, one of the few people she's ever called a friend.
But she can't forget what she cannot forgive, or lay to rest those ghosts that will not die. Will love and trust--and the truth--give her the strength to stand her ground and fight for what she deserves
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
When Hannah Benson was 17, she fled her brutal father, who had discovered her kissing local boy Grady Steadman. Later that night, her father was found dead, bludgeoned with a frying pan. Twenty years on, Grady, now the Clearfield, Va., sheriff, tracks Hannah down to deliver more bad news: her mother has died, making Hannah the only living relation of her niece Anna, a 15-year-old girl she didn't know her sister, dead five years, had even had. Though a long-held secret about the night she left makes Hannah reluctant to return home, she does, meeting Anna. As Hannah becomes overwhelmed by the past, Grady knows she's never told him the truth, and threatens a custody battle over Anna unless Hannah comes clean. As Hannah and Grady navigate reigniting their old attraction, the truth proves difficult to pin down. In delivering a touching tale of trauma, healing, and family, McComas doesn't shy away from violence, likely disturbing to some readers, but she wields it carefully. Hannah's understandable inability to trust is more than just a roadblock to her relationship with the unfortunately stereotypical Grady, who's far too good to be true. Despite some of the conflicts feeling contrived and easily surmountable, McComas builds the relationship between Hannah and Anna deftly, showing how hard it can be for strangers who happen to be family to know each other. Agent: Denise Marcil Literary Agency. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Necessary Changes, 2001, etc.) gives Hannah Benson an intriguing past to uncover. After her mother and sister have passed away, leaving her teenaged niece, Anna, in need of a guardian, Hannah gets a call out of the blue from Grady Steadman, her childhood sweetheart. Now sheriff of Clearfield, Va., Grady must persuade Hannah to come back for Anna. It could be a tough sell: Hannah has spent the last 20 years making a very safe life for herself, avoiding romance and even building a career in insurance. Little does Grady suspect that coming home will force Hannah to face the demons of her past: an abusive father, a dysfunctional family and a town that let it all happen. Of course, the reader can guess all this within the first few pages. Despite her misgivings, Hannah will do the right thing and return to Clearfield to take care of her family's loose ends. Despite the emotional damage inflicted by her abusive father, she will easily come to love again. With a last name like "Steadman," of course, Grady will become the steady man in Hannah's life as she confronts her demons. Her niece will eventually come to bond with her Aunt Hannah. And "what happened to Hannah" will be revealed over the course of the novel. Yet "what happened to Hannah" is so heavily hinted at that when it is revealed it comes as little surprise. McComas has written a pleasing fairy tale that will satisfy many readers. But those looking for a more nuanced handling of the repercussions of childhood trauma should look elsewhere.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Hannah escaped a childhood of abuse when she ran away from home as a teen, and she thought nothing could ever bring her back. Then she receives a call from her childhood sweetheart, Grady, now the town sheriff, letting her know her mother and sister are dead, leaving behind her 15-year-old niece, Anna. Now Hannah must return home and take care of this girl she didn't know existed. There, Hannah is confronted both with past demons and with more welcome memories of her romance with Grady. Although the happy ending is telegraphed early on, the journey Hannah takes to accept that she is worthy of her niece's trust and Grady's love is compelling. The flashback scenes of the horrific abuse Hannah suffered at the hands of her father are affecting and will linger with readers. McComas, best known for her Loveswept novels and contributions to four J. D. Robb anthologies, writes a bittersweet tale of homecoming.--Walker, Aleksandra Copyright 2010 Booklist
Library Journal Review
Hannah Benson has been hiding in plain sight at her Baltimore insurance firm since she ran away from home 20 years ago, the night her mother finally killed Hannah's abusive father. Most of Hannah's Clearfield, VA, neighbors, including old boyfriend Grady Steadman, assumed her father had killed his oldest daughter as a swan song. Still, Hannah is surprised when Grady, having learned the truth several years ago, calls with the news that her mother has died, leaving behind Hannah's 15-year-old niece, Anna, whom Hannah didn't know existed. She didn't even know her sister, Ruth, had died five years earlier. Track star Anna needs her family, and the now-divorced Grady, father of two teens of his own and Clearfield's sheriff, thinks Hannah is the answer. Despite her lack of maternal instincts, Hannah is captivated by the lovely and graceful Anna. Maybe she can manage until her niece turns 18, just not in Clearfield and not in proximity to Grady. VERDICT McComas (coauthor, The Unquiet) delivers a soulful examination of how children survive brutality by developing a hard shell of distrust. Can patience and love from Grady and Anna help to make the past recede for Hannah? A satisfying and well-written read. [Online reading group guide.]-Bette-Lee Fox, Library Journal (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
