Home Stretch audiobook

3.5 starsA serious car crash occurs in the village of Mullinmore near Cork in 1987. On the eve of a wedding, three young people are tragically killed including the bride and groom. The driver, Connor Hayes is relatively physically unscathed and the book explores the devastating effect it has on him, his parents and sister Ellen among others. The novel covers the years 1987 to 2015 and includes many of the far reaching changes to Irish society. I so wanted to love this latest novel from the excellent Irish talk show host although it’s fair to say that I loved two thirds of it. Initially there are so many characters to get your head around it’s bamboozling! This does thankfully slim down as the book progresses with the main focus on Connor and Ellen. It also jumps about in time which makes continuity hard although in fairness I can totally see why Graham Norton does this. So, what are the positives? The differing effects of the crash on a small community are portrayed extremely well as are the attitudes of the time. A number of characters lives are totally shattered and they are never the same again. It does a really good job on demonstrating the liberalising of Irish law and attitudes towards the gay community - this is a key part of the storytelling. With the exception of the beginning which deals with the crash the pace is quite slow and uneven until about a third of the way through and then it most definitely ramps up. There are some jaw dropping shocks especially for Ellen and the reader! Her life and marriage to Martin Coulter who becomes the local doctor is very compelling reading and makes you feel a whole range of emotions for her. Ellen, like her brother is very likeable, Martin is not. I don’t think it’s unfair to describe him as a total jerk but I must admit I do like to have a character to loathe! Connors life makes for interesting reading especially in the USA and there are moments when his story becomes very moving and poignant. There is a really good ‘coup de grace’ when one character (mostly) gets what they deserve. This is a novel that examines grief and the different ways it effects people, it looks at how a multitude of secrets and lies can be extremely destructive and one of the main messages is acceptance of who or what you are. It’s easy to read and becomes very absorbing after a while. Its easy to read and becomes an absorbing story. It’s maybe predictable but that is not necessarily a bad thing. With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC for an honest review.

4.5 Stars for Home Stretch (audiobook) by Graham Norton read by the author. Another wonderful novel by my favorite UK TV host. This book feels like it’s a story that the author knows well. I would really like to hear an interview of Graham to see what events inspired this story.

Graham Norton is a wonderful storyteller..... yes it is that Graham Norton. His characters are so real that you feel everything that they feel. You feel as if you are living it with them. This was a heartwarming but powerful story of family, friendships, lies and secrets. One fateful day in 1987 will change the lives of so many in an instant. The small Irish village is preparing for a wedding he next day. But tragedy strikes when an accident on the way home from a day at the beach kills 3 of their own. The 3 survivors have to live with the guilt and shame. The village will never be the same again. The families and friends of the deceased changed forever. It is too much for the driver, Connor, to beat and he leaves the country for a new life, a fresh start where nobody knows what happened. There is a lot more to it than that bu you will need to read it to find out. The 80s was a different, less tolerant time for many. This book is so cleverly written with all the characters playing their role in what happened and what is to happen in the future. A great afternoons read.Thank you NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for my advanced copy of this book to read.

Ireland 1987: A small Irish community is preparing for the wedding of two of it's inhabitants. As the friends head home the night before the wedding, there is a car accident. Thee survive the crash but three are killed. Connor. the driver of the car, survives. But staying among the angry and mourning is almost as hard as living with the shame. He decides to go travelling. He eventually settles down in New York. But secrets and regrets have come to haunt those left behind and will not be silenced. Before long, Connor will have to face his past. Graham Norton is a comedian, a TV chat show host and this is his third novel. The story takes us from 1987 through to the noughties. We don't know the full story when the book begins but it slowly unfolds whilst reading. This is quite an emotional read. There is quite a lot of characters but they all have their part to play. The book is written that well that you go through the emotions of the characters. I found this a thought provoking and enjoyable read. This is Graham Norton's best book so far.

The story of a group of young friends in a small town in Cork Ireland. Set in the late 80s, the friends who are in their late teens/early 20s are involved in a car crash. Three of them lose their lives and the apparent young driver of the car Connor has to leave Ireland for Liverpool to work on a building site as he is blamed for the huge tragedy that has befallen the small town. He eventually moves to London where he becomes comfortable in his own skin for the first time, as an open gay man. Something he wouldn’t dream of making public back home in 80s Ireland. As time goes by, Connor has no contact with his family, trying to forget the events of that tragic day and the way that everyone blamed him and brought shame on his family. Fast forward and Connor has moved to New York. 25 years have passed and Conor has never returned home or contacted his family except for one brief postcard, but a chance meeting will bring back all those memories and force him to decide whether to face up to the aftermath of that day and return home to see his family. We also have the characters in the towns story through the years. Connors family, the families of the deceased, the survivors. I know Graham Norton as a tv presenter, an actor and a talk show host. I’m aware that he has published some novels in the last few years but this is the first one I have read and it was enjoyable overall. Not quite a slow burner but the more I read it the more I enjoyed it. I did find the first few chapters nearly unreadable as the author tries to introduce a huge cast of characters in a very short space of time. I mean, maybe just a page to introduce someone and then onto someone else. It wasn’t a good start for me and I really didn’t enjoy the first few chapters at all. However as the book went on it found its feet and rhythm and I was eventually all in. It hops back and forward a lot from character to character and back and forth in time. It worked well for the most part, although I did find the odd time that you were reading a very important part of the book that needed some time to develop but was cut short and we moved onto someone else. Minor criticisms aside, this is a very well written book and a very enjoyable read. Some really meaty characters to get you teeth into and some minor ones that are more of a distraction than adding anything really to the story. It is essentially the story of a small town tragedy and the deceit and lies around it. A story about a young mans sexuality and finding himself. A story of that hidden acceptance we sometimes let creep up on us in life and how time can pass in the blink of an eye. As I said I was unsure about it at the start but by the end I had thoroughly enjoyed it. If you start this and done take to it in the beginning, stick with it and it will pay off. Many thanks to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Graham Norton for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoy the writing of Graham Norton both his autobiographies and more recently his excellent novels. His writing is so good and I have read all three of his novels and can highly recommend them.The story begins in 1987 when a small Irish community is preparing for a wedding. The day before the wedding tragedy strikes when a group of young friends, including bride and groom, drive out to the beach. There is an accident. Three survive, but three are killed. All the lives of the families are hit by the tragedy but non more than Connor. Connor is one of the survivors but now must live the shame of having been the driver. He leaves Ireland , taking his secrets with him to try and forget his past and start again. But these secrets cannot be left unspoken and sooner or later the truth will come out.Graham Norton has the gift of making his characters so real and the more you read this book the more you feel you are sitting in the same room listening and watching the story unfold. Another excellent read and I can highly recommend reading all three of his novels.I would like to thank both Netgalley and Hodder Stoughton for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I always struggle to describe my favourite book genre but if I had to give an example of it, then this book would be it. A very real depiction of very real lives & told in a very relatable way. On the eve of a ‘locals’ wedding in a small southern Irish town 6 of the wedding party are involved in a car accident. 3 die & 3 survive. What follows is the story of what happens next & the ramifications of the accident for the characters involved, their families & their town. I enjoyed Graham Norton’s first two books but I didn’t love them. This one feels as if he’s really come in to his own. He’s a born writer & I hope in the future he does a lot more writing & a bit less telly ;)

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com‘But there was no going back, no changing what had happened, and so his whole life was ruined.’Graham Norton is a UK based entertainer, who is best known for his television work. In 2016, the comedian released his debut fiction title, Holding, to great acclaim. Norton has followed up the success of this release with A Keeper in 2018 and Home Stretch in 2020. Home Stretch is a story of loss, desire, identity, belonging, tragedy and family ties. Graham Norton’s latest is an affective slice of fiction.Long held secrets and issues from the past unfold in Graham Norton’s latest release Home Stretch. Taking the reader back to a small Irish town in 1987, we are swept up in the exciting preparations of an upcoming wedding. When a small group from the wedding party decide to take a relaxing trip to the beach the day before the wedding to settle their nerves, they do not expect a life altering tragedy to occur. On the trip home from the beach, a life shattering car accident occurs. In an instant, the families directly involved in the accident are irrevocably changed. The wider community also feels the weight of the accident, as blame and scorn is cast on the driver. It sends Connor, the driver of the car that fateful day away from his only home to the shores of England. Connor’s new life takes him from Liverpool, to London and eventually to the United States in search of a place to call home. But Connor is a man unsure of his identity and he continues to encounter a sense of regret for his past mistakes, no matter where he travels. Connor realises in a chance twist of fate decades after the car accident that he cannot bury the past forever.Deemed a ‘magnificent writer’ by John Boyne, I have to nod my head in pure agreement of this worthy and correct statement. I completely underestimated Graham’s Norton as a writer. I approached his work with a sense of trepidation as I am not a viewer of his well-known television variety show. However, I am beyond impressed with his writing prowess. Graham Norton is an author I now hold in very high regard thanks to his 2020 release, Home Stretch.In terms of suspense and mystery, Norton sure has a strong handle on things in this department. Norton manages to suspend the full truth as to the defining car accident that carries this narrative over from start to finish. The way that Norton teases out the details little by little in regards to the complete picture of this awful tragedy ensured that I turned page after page at breakneck speed. I know that while I had this book on my hands, real life had to wait! Home Stretch was an utterly absorbing read, that I consumed in less than twelve hours. I couldn’t pull myself away from Norton’s compelling tale.There is so much more to this story than the life changing accident that ultimately propels the narrative in a forward motion. We are faced with a number of issues related to small, tight knit Irish communities of three decades ago. Norton teases out the politics, community scorn, harsh judgment and lack of acceptance of those who differ from the norm at this time. We are also privy to family issues, privacy, expectations and unconditional love. Norton uses Home Stretch as a vehicle to highlight changes in society’s norms, rules, morals and prejudice levels in terms of sexual preferences. I appreciated the sensitive and authentic exploration of this particular conflict in the novel. Readers will find themselves lost in a tale of mystery, past secrets, shock revelations that just keep coming until the final defining moment of retribution. I was completely amazed and seduced by the weight on this moving story, I know I won’t forget Home Stretch in a hurry.

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4.A moving story of loss, guilt, blame, tolerance, acceptance, and how every choice (bad or good) can have long reaching consequences and affect many lives. RTC.

Ireland 1987: A small Irish community is preparing for the wedding of two of it's inhabitants. As the friends head home the night before the wedding, there is a car accident. Thee survive the crash but three are killed. Connor, the driver of the car survives. But staying among the angry and mourning is almost as bad as living with the shame. He decides to go travelling. He eventually settles down in New York. But secrets and regrets have have come to haunt those left behind and will not be silenced. Before long, Connor will have to face his past. Graham Norton is a comedian, a TV chat show host and this is his third novel. The story takes us from 1987 through to the noughties. We don't know the full story when the book begins but it slowly unfolds whilst reading. This is quite an emotional read. There is quite a lot of characters but they all have their part to play. The book is written that well that you go through the emotions of the characters. I found this a thought provoking and enjoyable read. This is Graham Norton's best book so far. I loved it.I would like to thank #NetGalley, #Panmacmillian and the author #GrahamNorton for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love The Graham Norton Show and ever since he released his first novel, I’ve been meaning to see if he writes as well as he performs. He does. He really does.‘None of us are just the worst thing we ever did. We’re more than that.’Home Stretch is a brilliant novel, layered and carefully arranged, rich in setting and intensity of emotion. The characters are flawed, crafted with an honesty that at times left me breathless. Graham knows how to tease out his story, breaking the narrative and shifting between eras with precision. He is a truly magnificent writer, far more so than I anticipated. There is wit within his work, but nothing comic, just a deep understanding of human nature and a love of all that is Irish.‘This is what homecoming meant. Arriving in a place to discover you’re fluent in a language you’d forgotten you ever knew.’This novel is a story about finding yourself and your place within this world, where you can exist easily within your own skin, without shame, regret, or longing. By the same token, it’s also a story about Ireland’s journey from intolerance through to progressive change and acceptance. This is done gently, alongside the main story, but reveals itself with significance. Home Stretch is a literary achievement that will appeal to fans of Irish fiction, both historical and contemporary. I loved it and will highly recommend it to all readers.Thanks is extended to Hachette Australia for providing me with a copy of Home Stretch for review.

An enjoyable read, a kind of coming of age story filled with drama and heartache. I like how it is set over a long period of years as you can see the community changes and the cultural shifts of acceptance. I liked the tone and overall message that the book was trying to convey.

Right, firstly yes it’s a bold statement to give 5* but I loved this book. Secondly I listened to this on audio and had I read it In real format then I may only have given 4*. GN brings this book alive on audio he’s bloody brilliant! Seriously good at accents and this had me laughing out loud Typical Norton it’s based in Ireland and follows the lives of some people in a village over several decades. Connor leaves his village under a cloud after three people die in a car he was in with 5 others. We follow his life over the next 35 years and what happens for gay men in the 80s to present day. Honestly loved this and made me she’s a year near the end. It’s wonderful despite no dramatic cliff hangers

Home Stretch is the third novel from Graham Norton. I have read his previous two fiction novels and I think this is the best one yet.It’s 1987 in small town in Cork in Ireland. Six friends going on a trip to the beach. When on the way home there is a fatal car crash and 3 of them return home. The repercussions of that fatal day effect the friends and their families in the small community for the rest of their lives. Connor has been blamed for that fatal day is shunned by the local community, so he leaves the small town and goes to Liverpool to start a new life. He decides that his family is best off without him, so he decides not to contact them again. Until years later when he is sitting in a bar in America, he meets Finbarr, who turns out to be his nephew he has never met. Graham Norton is a great storyteller as like his previous novels I really enjoyed it. This stories like his others are always heartfelt and warming and found realistic set in Ireland. But this time we learn how prejudice people can be especially in 80’s Ireland where they think that if you are gay you will burn in hell. Being gay is not natural. They did not understand that love can come in many sources. The story is also about reflection and life doesn’t have one straight path in life. This an uptown able story that everyone will love. Five stars from me.

Graham Norton spannt in seinem Roman Heimweh einen Bogen von den 80er Jahren bis heute. Er erzählt wie ein Tag und ein schicksalhafter Unfall das Leben von mehreren Familien verändert und auch zerstört. Sechs junge Menschen haben einen Autounfall, 3 überleben, 3 sterben. Der Autor begleitet das Leben der Überlebenden und das Leben der Familien nach dem Unfall. Connor, schuldig gesprochen am Unfall , verlässt seine Heimat, Martin bleibt im irischen Städtchen Mullinmore. In vielen Ortswechseln und Zeitsprüngen begleiten wir hauptsächlich das Leben dieser beiden Männer und ihr Schicksal, ihr Streben nach Glück und das Unglück dass sie finden. Die Geschichte wird sehr langsam und unaufgeregt erzählt, manchmal verliert der Autor sich ein bisschen in der Geschichte und mich als Leser damit ein wenig. Aber die starken Charaktere, die Geheimnisse die im Hintergrund lauern, die Dramaturgie der Geschichte haben mich durchs ganze Buch begleitet und auch sehr begeistert. Nicht alles hat mich am Ende überrascht aber toll erzählt und sehr rund am Ende ohne zuviel Drama oder Kitsch. Ein tolles Buch für alle Leser die besondere Persönlichkeiten mögen, die sowohl Schwäche als auch Stärke zeigen können.

4.5 starsI was thoroughly engrossed in this story. The tragedy at the start of the book, completely changed Connor’s life. He left Ireland and all his parent’s hopes and dreams for him and seeked out places that would accept him as a gay man. He drifted, always a bit lost until he finally faced up to his past.Poignant, full of life and vividly told, my heart pounded with sorrow for Connor. Thank goodness times have changed.

Norton has firmly established himself as a writer of the interiors of rural Irish lives and the sadness that can seep out of that which goes unsaid. His third novel is contemplative, melancholic and searingly honest, but there are also uplifting and affirming moments. I found the portrait of homosexuality in conservative Ireland deeply affecting, particularly given the personal resonance for Norton himself, and the layered characterisation and satisfyingly descriptive prose indicates an author who is continuing to hone his skills.

very enjoyable read - a moving read about the aftermath of a tragedy and how certain lives were forever changed.