Love's Journey Home

By: Gabi Coatsworth

Narrated by: Gabi Coatsworth

Decades after falling passionately in love, alcoholism has finally torn Gabi and Jay apart. Then a drastic diagnosis forces them both to make decisions. Without love, this final journey would be lonely and hard. But when Jay’s illness forces him to stop drinking, they find themselves at a second chance at love.

This romantic memoir doesn’t shy away from the realities of life, but the relationship between these two lovers, tested to its ultimate limit by pancreatic cancer, proves that love—and a sense of humor—can conquer anything, even death.

©2022 Gabi Coatsworth (P)2022 Gabi Coatsworth

A Lifelong Love Story

I was very touched by Gabi Coatsworth's narration of her own memoir, Love's Journey Home. I prefer to listen to memoirs rather than read them. There are pros and cons to this approach. One pro was listening to Gabi's very charming British voice relate a love story that extended from her experiences as a young single mother until her days as a septuagenarian grandmother. One con to listening is being unable to flip pages back and forth to retrieve a forgotten detail. Another con -- for me anyway -- is I tend to listen at bedtime and often fall asleep mid-chapter, resulting in a chopped-up recollection of the story.

But this time I was so pulled into her complicated story -- a young single London mom falling in love with her American (and married) boss Jay and the affair's on-again off-again nature, a career move to Chicago, Jay's divorce, followed by their happy-ever-after marriage (not), extended family complications, disagreements about where to live, family illnesses, adoptions and that's not even including the two most important and life-altering episodes -- that I ended up spending hours during the day catching up on all the details I missed the night before.

Gabi's writing style is so smooth and effortless I felt as if i were listening to a fascinating conversation extended over several evenings. And though I'm rarely sympathetic to the woes of a home-wrecker (as you can imagine why) I found myself repressing any negative feelings toward her because I was so intrigued by the love story itself. I'm referring to the Part One love story. The real love story springs to life, so to speak, in Part Three. I was mesmerized by the couple's ups and downs and found myself full of admiration for both lovers. This is a memoir I'm happy to recommend to anyone who cares to immerse him or herself into the not always romantic details of a real love story.