5 STARS For SUSAN MALLERY'S "ALREADY HOME"

After nearly a decade as a sous-chef in a trendy eatery, Jenna is desperate for a change. She's supported her ex-husband's dreams for so long that she can't even remember her own. Until she sees a for-lease sign near her parents' home and envisions her very own cooking store.Her crash course in business is aided by a streetwise store manager and Jenna's adoptive mother. But just as she's gaining a foothold in her new life, in walk her birth parents--aging hippies on a quest to reconnect with their firstborn.

Now Jenna must figure out how to reconcile the free-spirited Serenity and Tom with her traditional parents, deal with her feelings for a new love interest and decide what to do about her exes latest outrageous request. In the end, Jenna will find that there is no perfect family, only the people we love...

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I'd like to start off my review by telling you how much of a compelling story this is.  I found that once I started reading it I had a hard time to put it down. When I did I was daydreaming about it.  I like the way the book begins and I also enjoyed how it progressed.  It seemed to fall into place at just the right  page all the way throughout.

Susan Mallery is an extremely talented writer who is not afraid of writing about the tough situations that come up in a person's life.  She doesn't hold back and tells the story as it's meant to be told.  I laughed when I was suppose to laugh and I cried when the characters cried.  This book was so well written that I rode the waves of emotions all the way through.

Susan's characters are great, she gives them true qualities like you would find in a real person.  I found Jenna was great when it came to her creative side and her loving ways toward her parents and friends.  I also found some of her other qualities to be quite annoying and self-depreciating.  Jenna often put herself down due to a low self-esteem which is very common, I could relate to her, but at the same time it annoyed me. It made me think that I may be annoying by doing the same thing sometimes.  LOL I learned a lesson from this book.

Not only are the characters realistic but the storyline is amazing.  Jenna is recently divorced from a Chef that she use to work with.  He was a real piece of work, he brought down her self-esteem and made her question herself. She gets smart and leaves the guy and goes back to her hometown and without thinking about consequences buys a store.  Divorce can make you loopy I guess.  She decided to make a kitchen/cooking store and hired a wonderful assistant called Violet, whom I think would make an awesome main character.

They make a go of the store together and during that time many things happen to them.  They have many, many ups and downs that are incredible and definitely worth reading.  From long lost birth parents to abusive boyfriends.  No punches had been held back in this book.

I hope you'll take the time to read this book.  It's not just a book but a true journey through someone's struggles and happiness.  I give this book a 5 because it's an amazing read.