I love the way Graham writes. His books aren’t my normal thing but I always really enjoy them.
Quite quaint characters I feel and not a fast paced book but I just loved it from start to finish

1987 and in a small town in the Irish countryside there is a terrible car accident, three young people are killed, one left paralysed and two walk away. Connor, the driver, is sent for trial and given a suspended sentence but the shame makes his parents send him to England to escape. His sister marries the other survivor, the local doctor's son, and settles into domestic frustration. Over time Connor loses touch with his family and lives his own life first in London and then New York. However when a chance remark decades later puts a new complexion on the crash it is time for family secrets to be shared.
This is such a gentle and heartwarming book despite the very adult themes and I loved it. Norton is turning out to be a solid author and his books go from strength to strength. Here the shame of the crash is actually turned into a view on Irish society's changing attitudes to homosexuality and that moves the book from being merely entertaining to having something of substance behind it.

Another character driven excellent book from Graham Norton. a great storyline, and something we have probably always wondered “ what happens to the survivors “ after a tragedy.
Highly recommend
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

Another book I enjoyed from Norton. I really like his smart prose, the characters, and how he moved the plot effortlessly. The Keeper is still my favourite, but I certainly enjoyed this one too.

Thanks a lot to NG nad the publisher for this copy.

Home Stretch is an interesting, touching and sweet novel about family, secrets and the way one moment – and one person – can change someone’s life forever.

I found the writing in Home Stretch to be really powerful – the characters are convincing and feel like they could be real people. I don’t have any Irish family but I know a lot of people who do, and the descriptions of Ireland and family life there really conjured up a real picture in my mind.

The story starts with a fateful night where a group of young people – and their families’ – lives change forever. A car accident the day before a young couple are due to be married results in their death and the shame on Connor, who was driving, and his family. He escapes (or more accurately, is driven out of) the small town of Mullinmore and we follow his life in Liverpool, London and New York – and also see the aftereffects of the accident on his family and the rest of their small community. I loved reading about these places during the 80s and found this really interesting.

I don’t want to give too much away about the storyline but sexuality and the idea of how important it is to truly be yourself is a key theme in Home Stretch. The difficulties of being gay during the 80s in a small Irish community is laid bare. Secrets and surprises come out as we learn more about what really happened all those years ago, but this book isn’t really about the ‘big reveal’ but rather the way the characters deal with them – or don’t…

The story is mainly focused on Connor but we also follow various other characters and because we see so many years of their lives it really feels like we get to know them. By the end I didn’t really want want to finish reading about them. The ending felt right to me (although I admit i wanted a certain character to be punished more obviously than he was!)

Home Stretch is a charming and also thought-provoking read. It’s a bit of a slow burner in some ways but it never feels dull or boring – I enjoyed every word. Graham Norton is a great storyteller and there’s plenty to discuss in here. Now I’d like to read his other novels as well!

I am notusually a fan of Irish family drama type literature, having read lots of it as a teenager. However I heard great things about Graham Norton’s writing, I’m a fan of his show and his wine so why not read a book! I was not disappointed. This story begins with a tragic car crash in 1987 that impacts several families in a small town near Cork. We follow the lives of Connor and Ellen before and after the crash.
There is plenty of humour amongst the tragedy and Norton really explores stigma and guilt in Irish life in the 80s and the regret and reflection that comes from this upbringing.
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys family drama, and the likes of Sally Rooney’s Normal People, in fact this story would make a great TV series.
Many thanks to #netgalley for gifting an ARC of #Thehomestretch in exchange for an honest review.

Another good one from Graham Norton. Perhaps not the same impact as "A Keeper" and being honest, not one to pass on to your mum - it gets a bit explicit at the end - but a set of believable characters with their own individual tragedies and stories, that twist together, move apart, but never totally escape the central event of the story and are drawn back to the small town they came from. A very satisfactory conclusion and the writing is deft and light. There is an intelligence to the prose, without it becoming the slightest bit purple!

The characters, plot and natural prose drew me in immediately and I was able to easily see the family, attitude and values of those living in the. Village where the tragedy takes place. The attitudes, manner and lifestyle depicted are true to IRELAND a few decades ago, and the contrast to life and changes in values is well illustrated. Being estranged from his family for several decades impacts on him, yet he feels he will never be able to return since the accident, and that as gay man, he will never be accepted by his parents.
A chance meeting with his nephew turns his world upside down.

#HomeStretch #NetGalley Having not read any of the other two books by Graham Norton I was unsure what to expect but the storyline intrigued me. Set in small town Ireland from 1987 to (almost) present day it told the story of how a family torn apart by an accident have moved on..... or not! This was well written with plenty of action and I found I couldn't put it down. I guessed the twist at some point but it did not detract from the story at all. The added bonus was that I could 'hear' the story being told in Graham's accent! I will definitely look out for more of his books. a well deserved 5 stars!

I have read Graham Norton’s previous 2 novels and loved them both so I was really excited to receive a review copy of Home Stretch from NetGalley.
Home Stretch is very different from Holding and A Keeper but it still has interesting, well developed characters and is partially set in small town Ireland which could almost be described as one of the main characters of the book. It is because of what happened at home in their small Irish village that a group of teenagers lives are changed forever.
Connor and his friends are on a day out to the beach one sunny day when the car they are travelling in crashes and this has a profound effect on the 6 young people in the car.
Connor is forced to leave his home and family to live abroad and discovers something about himself which means he will not return to Ireland for a long time. He fears no one in his village will want to see him, because of the crash and also because of who he is and his lifestyle. He rarely contacts his family and they live their lives without him but ironically desperate for him to return home, something he is unaware of.
This is also the story of discrimination and prejudice in a small town and it depicts the claustrophobia of living in such circumstances in the 1980s but it also points to change happening in the present day.
As well as describing Connor’s coming of age, Graham Norton also describes beautifully a loveless marriage based on a lie when he examines’s Connor’s sister Ellen’s life.
There are a few surprises along the way but this is mainly a character driven novel. The great “twist” when revealed, I had already guessed but this did not detract from my enjoyment of the book.
Graham Norton is a wonderful author, capable of writing some beautiful prose and a talent for developing some very believable characters.

I loved this book, it is an interesting story that kept me hooked and turn pages as fast as I could.
I loved the great characters, their stories and the style of writing.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
It was an excellent read, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

A car crash in 1987 leads Connor to flee his small Irish home town, away from the sadness, anger and blame. From Liverpool to London, London to New York he learns a sort of acceptance that he is gay but not of his past. A chance meeting makes him realise he'll have to go home sooner or later, and face his demons.

Graham Norton has really proved himself to be a fantastic writer. This is his third novel and each one has been fantastic. He is a born storyteller. Each word and phrase evokes emotion, whether it be sadness, laughter or nostalgia. An easy five stars. I wish I could give more.

I read this ARC for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mine

I must admit I saved reading this to coincide with some time off from work so I could really immerse myself
I'm so glad I did - I was totally engrossed by this

I really liked the story telling and writing style - it just seem to flow naturally for me
Enjoyed the characters - development was very believable

This was absolutely fantastic! Graham Norton’s books just keep getting stronger. After reading A Keeper by this author a few years back, I highly anticipated this new release. He did not disappoint!

Set in a small Irish town just outside of Cork, this story follows the aftermath of a tragic car accident in the town in the 1980s . This results in the death of three of the local teenagers and leaves one completely paralysed and wheelchair bound for the rest of her life. When Connor takes the blame for the car accident, he is outcast from his community and runs away. The rest of the novel follows the fall out of Connor’s exile on the community in Ireland, the relatives he leaves behind, Connor himself and the next generation to follow.

Norton has perfected beautifully his stitching together of remote Irish sub culture with its emphasis on community ties and the importance of social status. He also wonderfully illustrates in this novel through Connor and his nephew Finbarr’s experiences, the fraught history of homosexuality in Ireland. Norton as a proud gay Irish man, welcomes us warmly as the reader into the struggles of his own adolescent sexual identity in Ireland through the character of Connor and his confusion and fear of rejection from his family.

The characters in this novel were wonderfully nuanced and vivid, seeming to walk right off the page. I have also come to admire deeply Norton’s unique composition of his plots. He effortlessly weaves together family saga, historical drama and contemporary romance all into one compulsive and propelling read. Bravo Norton. I can say with pleasure, I am a firm fan. I cannot wait to read more from this author.

Thanks to the author, Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

The fabulous Graham Norton has written another wonderful book. I've read all three of his novels now (I bought A Keeper just before reading Home Stretch) and each time as I read, I can hear Graham's voice. He has a wonderful way with words.

The story starts in 1987. The day before a wedding in the small town of Mullinmore, there is a dreadful car accident. Three of the young people in the car survive, but three are killed, including the bride and groom. The whole town is in mourning but for their families life will never be the same again

The driver, young Connor Hayes, is one of the survivors but he struggles with the guilt and the shame following the tragedy He locks himself away as he can't face people in the small town where everyone knows you. He also harbours another secret which in 1980s Ireland would be seen as a terrible sin. He can't see any future for himself in Mullinmore and it's decided he should go to Liverpool where a job has been arranged for him to work on building sites. This is just the start of a long exile for Connor. He's forced to flee from Liverpool to London after one of his housemates throws him out.

In London things are better. He can live as openly gay and makes a life for himself. That life takes him to New York but he has still never returned to his family.

I love how Graham Norton switches from Connor's story to the story of those back in Mullinmore. The people seem very real. Their lives go on. Still Connor never felt he could go back to see his parents and sister.

That is until a chance encounter with a young gay Irish man in New York in 2012, 25 years after the accident. From there he is persuaded to get in touch with his sister …

When he eventually returns to Ireland to see his parents he finds some attitudes have changed over 25 years and it might not be quite as bad as he had feared but there are surprises along the way.

I just loved the book. There are a lot of names mentioned in the first few chapters and I had to turn back to remember who was who but it soon becomes clear who the main characters are and the others fit around them. I really felt as if I got to know the characters.

I've enjoyed all three of Graham Norton's books. I think this might be my favourite.

An involving tale of shame, secrets and acceptance. 4/5 stars.

This is Graham Norton's third novel and I was really pleased to get approved for an eARC after having read and enjoyed his previous two books: Holding and A Keeper.

As in his first two books, the action in Home Stretch mostly revolves around a small community in Ireland. However this time Norton has been more ambitious as the characters' stories grow to span over 30 years and 2 continents.

I have to admit I got a bit lost in the first two chapters as all the main characters are introduced in a sequence of short scenes as the initial tragedy unfolds. This is highly effective in building up the horror of the event, but not very helpful in giving you your bearings as a reader.

But stick with it because it doesn't take long for everything to fall into place (including who's who) as we start to spend longer chunks of time with individual characters. I didn't feel lost again, even though the story hops between different character viewpoints and locations and skips big chunks of time.

The story is incredibly involving. I was soon gripped and wanted to know how things turned out for Connor and his sister, who suffer the consequences of the fateful day in 1987 for decades afterwards.

I did see the final "twist" coming a million miles off, but it's still shocking stuff. And, without giving anything away, I had to conclude that Norton is a far more generous person that I am as I think I'd have dropped the villain of the piece off a fictional cliff!

I won't say more as spoilers would detract from your enjoyment of the book. And, although this is a story about the harm that secrets can do and there is darkness and sorrow at the centre of the narrative, overall it's an uplifting tale about social progress and an encouragement to live without fear of what others may think, to be yourself and be happy.

Home stretch by Graham Norton is an engrossing read. The storyline, based on an accident and its after-effects on many lives, spans generations, lifestyles and continents. If I’m being very honest I feel that Graham uses his own back story to focus the laser on homosexuality and this in my view limits the exploration of other aspects of Ellen, Connor and Linda’s lives. My perception was that there was a village with a potentially disproportionate preponderance of gay men. The gay men all seemed to be focussed on hooking up with other gay men, gravitating to live in gay neighbourhoods and work in gay bars no matter where in the world they lived. Perhaps that’s more about the societal attitudes and discrimination than the men? Overall, however, I enjoyed the story development and the characters were well rounded and credible. Four stars

It is 1987 and a small Irish community is preparing for a wedding. The day before the ceremony a group of young friends, including bride and groom, drive out to the beach. There is an accident. Three survive, but three are killed. The lives of the families are shattered and the rifts between them are felt throughout the small town. Connor is one of the survivors. But staying among the angry and the mourning is almost as hard as living with the shame of having been the driver. He leaves the only place he knows for another life, taking his secrets with him. Travelling first to Liverpool, then London, he makes a home - of sorts - for himself in New York. The city provides shelter and possibility for the displaced, somewhere Connor can forget his past and forge a new life. But the secrets, the unspoken longings and regrets that have come to haunt those left behind will not be silenced. And before long, Connor will have to confront his past.

Norton has written another stunning read that has family firmly at its heart. We begin with a devastating accident in a small Irish town that has ramifications for everyone who lives there. This is written sensitively and powerful and the emotion shines through. Norton then takes us on a journey over time and to multiple places as Connor attempts to live with the consequences and pick up the pieces of his life. As the read progresses, Norton reveals home truths about the characters and past events that will leave the town reeling.

This plot is incredibly powerful and enjoyable despite the upsetting events at the beginning. As usual, Norton's depiction of Irish life feels very realistic and powerful and his comments around views and values have a large impact. My main negative around the plot is it felt a little rushed and I thought more time could have been dedicated to certain events. However, I did still love the read and it is definitely fast paced and never dull.

A book such as this needs to have strong characters and Norton has created another realistic, likeable cast for this read. All of them are unique and had their role to play in the story. I enjoyed getting to know them and they were a great cast to spend time with.

'Home Stretch' is a beautiful, powerful read about family, love and home ties. I absolutely loved reading this and the characters will remain with me for a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advance copy.

When you are young, you try to live in the moment and so you don’t realise what misery your reckless actions can bring. Everyone knows Connor is guilty and that guilt seeps through the years and fractures families. But holding onto secrets can harm people just as much as rash decisions.

Unlike Norton’s previous novels, I found this book took awhile to hook me into the lives of the characters. But it was worth sticking with as the past was unravelled it became a much more satisfying read and made me feel quite emotional near the end.

An intriguing story of cause & effect and the secrets that can haunt us no matter how far you go.

This was a very enjoyable read.

A group of 6 youngster go for a drive to the beach the day before two of them are getting married, and the resulting crash has serious repercussions for all. Three are killed; Connor is one of the survivors, but he cannot remain in his beloved village as everyone blames him for the crash. He leaves, and most of the book covers his journey to find a new life and accept his sexuality and believe in himself. However, his parents and sister Ellen are also badly affected, and the events, particularly within her life, are really heartbreaking.

A pacy tale, told very well. One is always doubtful if a 'celebrity' brings out a book - is it just puffing to boost sales with a high profile name or can they actually write? Norton can write, and very well indeed about topics with which he is clearly very familiar. I did wonder if some of Connor's experiences were autobiographical?

Set in Ireland, all the petty prejudices came through very clearly - the great concerns about 'what the neighbours would think', as well as the general prejudice against gays prevalent at that time. Its like a Maeve Binchy for grownups in modern times! (Which is not intended as derogatory - I love Binchy).

Thoroughly enjoyable, I would recommend it to all.

Thank you to NetGalley and for allowing me access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.