MWSA Review

The Return, an incredible story of one woman’s search for love, by Carole Brungar is book five in her Nam book series. Author Brungar draws the reader into the life of dynamic business woman Jackie Coles, an orphan saved during the fall of Saigon. Jackie is adopted by veterans Terry and Evelyn even though she was told that fellow veteran Jack Coles was her birthfather.

When Jackie’s stepfather Terry falls ill, she fears losing the only father she has known. During his illness, the two talk and reminisce. Terry encourages Jackie to return to Vietnam and seek out her mother’s family. “It will help you discover who you are,” Terry insists. Jackie promises she will go to Vietnam and meet the family who abandoned her as a baby. Will she discover a truth she never knew she was searching for? As Jackie approaches age 40, she is overwhelmed by the feeling that something is missing from her life. Will leaving a new and budding relationship with rescue pilot Jeff Hunter be compromised by her traveling to Vietnam?

After Terry’s death, Jackie convinces Frankie to accompany her to the country of her birth. While in Vietnam, Frankie divulges that Jack Coles is not Jackie’s birth father, but the man who saved her, raised her, and loved her, Terry, is her birth father. He loved her, she loved him, and they spoke of their love for each other. If only she had known the truth.

Jackie's trip to Vietnam brings changes to her life in unanticipated ways. She makes a major decision that may affect both her future, and her future with Jeff.

Well-developed characters and a great story line draw the reader into the life of Jackie Coles.

Review by Nancy Panko (March 2023)

 

Author's Synopsis

They say love will set you free, but do the orphans of war ever really experience that freedom?

Ambitious and dedicated, Jackie Coles is the shining success story of a once abandoned child.

But as her 40th year approaches, the realization that something is missing in her life is overwhelming. How can someone who has everything lead such an empty life?

Rescue pilot, Jeff Hunter, fell in love with Jackie the first time they met. Years later, a chance meeting brings all those same feelings flooding back.

When Jackie’s stepfather falls ill, she makes him a promise that she will return to the country of her birth and meet the family who abandoned her as a baby. But what will she find in Vietnam? The answer to her loneliness? A truth she never knew she was searching for?

And what about Jeff? He’s more than perfect and falling in love with him is far too easy.

But what if Jackie’s trip back to Vietnam threatens to destroy every chance at happiness with Jeff? Will she have to choose who she can love and who she can’t? Or will Jeff make that choice for her?

Format(s) for review: Kindle Only

Review Genre: Fiction—Romance

Number of Pages: 336

Word Count: 93279