Christine Nolfi has a way of taking a problem such as the family strife in this story and making it something to which anyone can relate. The Road She Left Behind brought me into the life of Darcy and how her past shaped and guided the different directions she chose. This was a story that wouldn’t let me leave and left me wanting more at the end. I cheered and I cried as I read. Sometimes I did both at the same time.
This is another must read story by a very talented author.

I was a BETA reader and really enjoyed the early version of this book. Last night, I read an ARC of the final book and am thoroughly impressed! This is a story about love, family, mistakes, forgiveness, and hope. It is beautifully written and I highly recommend it!

The Road She Left Behind is full of complex characters, emotions, and secrets. After an eight year absence, Darcy comes home and faces all that she was running from. I was drawn into her life immediately and was wanting more at the end. I hope that we readers will get another book to see what happens next. Another great book by Christine Nolfi.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book. This is my honest review.

Another intriguing novel by Christine Nolfi. Set in beautiful Northeast Ohio, Nolfi shares the tale of a daughter made to feel less than others and used as a pawn by her parents to justify their own bad decisions and wrongful actions. Through the friendship of a foster care graduate and devotion of a longtime family employee, Darcy Goodridge finds the courage to return where she has never felt truly loved or wanted. In forcing herself to face her mother's wrath, Darcy begins to forge a relationship with her young nephew and rekindle a romance with the boy nextdoor. She also starts to question and accept that her sister wasn't as perfect as she always let herself believe and that her parents' marriage was unhealthy for the entire family in ways that lead to events which burdened her heart and soul. In finally questioning the life she convinced herself she deserved, Darcy finally finds herself on the road to a life she is entitled to embrace.

Christine Nolfi has written an intelligent, well-thought out story filled with honest emotions. The small details that bring the characters to life is brilliant…life swirls around each one, closing in until they must deal with the past in order to face the future. Darcy deals with a guilt that has her running from life. Emerson is a little boy who is thrown into an adult world before his time. Michael is the stable rock of down-to-earth sensibility that we all need from time to time. You will meet Rosalind, Latrice, Nella, and Tippy. Tippy is more of a secondary character but she will live on in my heart. She always made me laugh. As a writer, Christine Nolfi has a gift of creating a background so unique to her stories that as a reader I can feel the ground beneath my feet, the wind or rain whipping around my face. I can smell the turkey in the oven and taste the cookies. She brilliantly brings out the emotions of not only her characters, but is able to let her readers feel the emotions as well. Yes, I had tears from time to time, as well as laughter, and a bit of sighing.

"We've all got a star in the heavens. one made special just for us."
This novel portrays love, family, friendship, heartache and a lot of guilt.
The main character, Darcy returns to Ohio to find her eight year old nephew, Emerson. She also will find herself in this process after feeling lost for years.
Messages have been missed, misconstrued and hidden deep under the carpet over the years.
The Goodridge family need to iron them out before time runs out.
A wonderful story with characters I will not forget anytime soon.
These people are so real that you feel as though they are friends.
If I have to pick a favorite, it would be Emerson. A young boy with insight, sensitivity and a heart filled with love looking for his star!
A delightful novel as are all of Christine Nolfi's books!

I seem to be in the minority of readers on this one and that may be due to the genre. This was much more of a romance novel than I expected, the "secrets" were too obvious to me to early in the story and I found the ending too predictable as well. Unfortunately this one wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an early release in exchange for an honest and fair review.

The Road She Left Behind is a beautifully told story of complicated family dynamics. A perfect summer read!
Darcy left home years ago and never staying in one place long enough to form attachments. When a family emergency calls her home she must face the grief she has been running from.
Once again Christine Nolfi creates an endearing cast of characters, including Darcy’s harsh/overbearing mother, her cheeky nephew and her childhood best friend. As the story unfolds Darcy uncovers some long kept family secrets and finds a stronger version of herself who is worthy of love.

This is my first read by this author. I loved the writing from the off. The Goodridge family are damaged by tragedy and secrets. This damage has seeped into all aspects of family life. When little Emerson goes missing Darcy Goodridge returns home to face the past.
Darcy’s mother doesn’t want to know her and she has to face the boy whose love she still remembers.
Darcy hopes to improve family life and relationships by unpicking the tragic night of long ago.
As the book progresses we see the effects of time on forgiveness and personal healing. I really felt part of the story and loved it all. I was so sorry when this ended and would recommend it.

Three women. Two families torn apart by secrets.

Crushed by guilt over the car accident that killed her father and sister, and torn apart by her mother’s resentment, Darcy Goodridge fled her family estate eight years ago and hasn’t looked back. Now an unexpected phone call threatens to upend what little serenity she’s found. Her nephew, Emerson, who was just a baby when his mother died, has gone missing. Darcy must return home and face her past in order to save him.

Once back in Ohio, Darcy realizes there’s more to Emerson’s disappearance—and to the sudden retirement of her mother, Rosalind—than meets the eye. As she works to make inroads with Rosalind, Darcy begins to unravel a decades-old secret that devastated her family and forced a wedge between her and Michael Varano, the man she left heartbroken when she vanished after the funeral. After carrying the scars of that fateful night for almost a decade, Darcy is determined to find closure, healing, and maybe even love where she lost them all in the first place—right back home where she belongs.

The Road She Left Behind, was an excellent book. Each character I was so connected too. A book of lessons of love, humanity: forgiveness, healing, and letting go, I felt myself smiling quite a bit as well felt a tear I had to wipe away. All of the characters were people I wish I knew.


Thank you, NetGalley for the advance copy for a review.

Christine Nolfi has written an engaging family story about love and betrayal. The characters are delightful, even the mean ones. They are real in how they act and think. The setting is very familiar and accurate, especially since I have been to all these spots. In places the book is humorous, sad, and fraught with angst. Once started, it is a page turner. I couldn't put it down and as usual, wished the book took you through birth to old age. I never want any of this authors books to end. It is a must read.

Really enjoyed this. Refreshing read, great job. Full review on the blog coming shortly. . Really great job!