A perfectly placed wingback chair in a book-lined Texas coffee shop unites two wounded hearts in Take Me Home, a refreshing first novel by Melanie Sweeney. This simple set-up unspools into a tender rom-com--an enemies to friends to lovers story--that will entice readers to tag along eagerly on an armchair journey of their own with these likable, 20-something protagonists.
The wingback chair in the Living Room Café is the "regular spot" of laidback architecture student Ash Campbell; it's situated next to an electrical outlet, which Hazel Elliot--a dramatic, frazzled psychology Ph.D. student--urgently needs for her laptop. The two lock horns over the chair, and their inflexibility is magnified by the fact they've had a contentious yet flirty relationship with each other since high school.
With December holidays looming, Ash is desperate to get home to see his family, but his car is on the fritz. Hazel offers to give him a lift as she, too, has been summoned home--she is reluctant to attend the second wedding of her rather estranged father. Quelling their shared angst, Hazel and Ash set off on a road trip and, in the process of the long ride, realize the friction of their former animosity is deepening their budding romantic relationship--a relationship tested by secrets kept and emotional dilemmas each faces with their respective families once they return home.
Readers will be held rapt by these two fully drawn characters who struggle with distinct familial dynamics. The clear delineation allows Sweeney sensitively to probe the meaning of love and the many facets of "home." -- Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines