Sliding Home by Pina Bruni.....Review by Kathy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Blurb-
Their relationship begins on the playground at the tender age of seven. Love grows from an innocent friendship for Terri Marino and her pal Vinny Coletti. A mutual crush naturally matures into a loving bond. One is drawn to the other until a union is an unstoppable force.

Time passes and happiness is in abundance for the young couple. Their adolescent years are filled with fun and adventure as they explore their boundaries. As the early stages of adulthood creep up, both have similar ideas for their future together, although not necessarily in the same time frame. While one is in a rush to get there, the other is searching for direction.

In a whirlwind of immature and insecure decision making, a very young Terri finds herself far from home with a picture of life that looks nothing like her dreams of only a short time earlier. Vinny too is nowhere near his dreams, but he hasn’t much of a choice. His dreams up and left with little explanation. Life goes on as each one learns to live without the other while silently hoping for the best.

So what happens when your happily ever after isn't what or when you expect it. Can you ever really go home? Can you go back to that one special person that was "meant to be" no matter what you have done in the past? That's what I was asking myself while reading the blurb. Then I decided to just try the sample to see if it was something I could get into......

I rang the bell and waited. No one answered. I tried again and turned the knob. It was locked. Her car was parked out front. She couldn’t have gone far. I gave thought to dragging my butt uptown to Heavenly Hair, my friend Annie’s salon, before Mrs. Dempsky came to mind. Mom’s next-door neighbor held a spare key for emergencies. I moseyed over and explained my predicament. After unlocking the door, I returned the key with my gratitude. Bringing my bags into the foyer, I kicked off my sneakers and collapsed onto the couch. My eyelids lowered and sleep came automatically. Within minutes, I heard voices.

“No, no, stop that Harry! I’ve tried it and I didn’t much care for it,” she said giggling.

“Oh come now Jo, you’ve never tried it with me. Give me a chance. Let’s get you up on that kitchen counter,” he said eagerly.

My eyelids lifted as I tried to focus. Where was I ... and who the hell was Harry? I raised my head to see a woman backing out of the hall that led to the bedrooms. She wore high heels, fishnet stockings, and a black teddy. Her hair was a golden brown and styled in a bob. For several seconds my mind was dormant, but in the blink of an eye, I comprehended the embarrassing situation I unknowingly stumbled upon. I jerked straight up into a seated position. My mother!

Suddenly a man came into view. He was short and pudgy with graying hair and not much of it. He hadn’t a stitch of clothing on and was extremely excited. Harry, I presumed.

A high-pitched screeching sound came from my voice box right before I cried out, “Mom!”

Yes, the second page into the book and I was already cracking up. I mean can you imagine catching your mother...... OH MY GOD....

Terri has been gone from home for 7 years. She has only come home occasionally or for family emergencies. She didn't want to see Vinny. He was her one true love and she ran away from him and married someone else. How could she come home when Vinny was there? She needed to be home. Her best friend Annie finally talked her into coming back.

Vinny loved Terri. He wanted to be her one and only. Just not so soon. He needed to do some other things. Like join the Army. Do his duty. She promised she would wait...She lied...She married someone else. Now their friend Wild(Annie) had got her to come home. Can he convince her that he still loves and wants her. Can they finally have their happily ever after?

I cracked up over the things Wild did and said in this book. She stole some scenes for me. What can I say about Jo, Terri's mom.... Oh lord thankfully she isn't my mother... The things this lady was doing....Poor Terri...I mean really how many men can you meet that your mom is sleeping with...The things that Terri does to avoid seeing/hearing things..Had me laughing out loud and my husband asking me what was so funny... This is Pina's first book and I think it was excellent. She is writing the sequel "Sliding Home ll: Safe at Home". I am giving the book 4 clocks. Looking forward to book 2.