Book Review: Turn for Home by Lara Zielinsky

Brenna Lanigan and Cassidy Hyland are actresses in a television series. Both women are married to men and both have sons, Brenna has two teenagers, Cassidy has a five-year-old. When they become lovers, they decide to remain deeply closeted, although Brenna tells her two sons, who, while not wild about the idea that their mom is a lesbian, don’t totally reject her either. The women’s affair sets off a chain of events that ends in violence when Cassidy’s abusive husband attacks her. Of course, the media has a feeding frenzy on the events and the fact that the two stars are lesbian.

The author, Lara Zielinsky, starts off slowly setting the scene, giving the reader background on both women, and bringing readers of her first book in this series up to speed. The pace picks up when Cassidy’s husband manages to get by the studio’s security and lures her into an empty trailer and attacks her first with his fists and then a baseball bat. Brenna and other members of the cast of their show arrive on the scene before the husband kills Cassidy. From this point, the reader will have to suspend belief when Cassidy not only survives the severe beating, but leaves the ICU mere days after the attack despite the author’s description of her injuries as being life threatening, including two heart attacks. Her recovery is remarkably fast and little emotional trauma results. The author gives us a good picture of the outward manifestations of the beating- a cast on a wrist and protection for broken ribs - but next to nothing of the emotional scars other than the angst by Brenna of being outed.

If the reader is looking for a quick read about first love, regardless of the age of the women, this book may satisfy. Reading the first book in this series is not necessary to enjoy this book, although the characters are introduced there and it might explain why Breena didn’t care for Cassidy when they first met and it is referred to several times in this outing.