This was an easy read, but hard to put down, and with a few surprises and twists. Told both in the past (when the three protagonists were children) and alternating with today when they’ve grown up, this is Emma’s story of searching for home. Emma learns that, as Leo tells her, “Home is the life you create for yourself, not an actual place. Home is the people you want to be with, the ones you come back to at the end of a long day.”

At the conclusion of the novel, the author explains her fascination with actress Audrey Hepburn, why she was inspired to write this novel and incorporate so much of Hepburn’s life into the story. I knew some of the facts but not all, and appreciated how she cleverly melded fiction and fact to produce a poignant, entertaining story of family and finding yourself. ( )

The Audrey Hepburn Estate is one of those books I thought I would like as I love Audrey Hepburn as well as the original Sabrina movie, but man, was this a difficult book to get through. In hindsight, I should have just called it a day about halfway through as Emma, the main character, just grew more annoying as the book progressed and the plot was one hot mess. I guess that teaches me to read a romance novel when I typically read thrillers, fantasy, and horror novels.

Unfortunately, no matter how much I tried, I just could not connect with the main character, Emma. I felt she had little character development as she still behaved exactly the same way she did at thirty that she did at eight years old. Her decision-making skills just made me want to scream and I was constantly shaking my head at her choices. Personally, I couldn't care less which man she chose (as they had not personality either), but it was her reasoning behind it that bothered me to the nth degree. Maybe I am being too tough on this character, but I am getting increasingly frustrated by authors who write female MC who are...pathetic. Of course we all make dumb choices in our lives, but Emma lives in a fairy-tale world, and because there is some supposed loose connection between this estate and Audrey Hepburn, we are supposed to accept her decisions based on this world? No way. Open your eyes and see what is in front of you. Also, get off your high horse and be gracious when someone does something nice for you. That one scene where Emma walks out on Henry when he takes her out for dinner, but it's not a high-end one so she takes it personally? I just wanted to slap her. Yes, he did some stupid things as a teenager, but you are now ADULTS!!!

So, now we come to Henry and Leo. I was supposed to root for Leo, I think? The author went out of her way to make us feel like Henry was the awful person when the whole time I was thinking, drop her ass Henry and find someone else. And Leo has his own long-time girlfriend, someone who was supposedly really nice? I should have counted to number of times I rolled my eyes.

The plot was actually interesting in the beginning, but the execution deteriorated from about the twenty-five percent mark. The timeline threw me off as well as Emma's father was supposedly a cook in a concentration camp so the math just didn't seem to work for me, especially as she mentioned technology that has only existed in the past ten years. Using Emma's failed relationships with both men to propel the story was weak at best, and the way she treats these men as a grown-up, using what she suffered as a child as her excuse, was annoying to say the least. There were so many themes that were left unexplored in this book, but to ignore Henry and Emma's relationship as teenagers, the exploration of that, was wrong on many levels.

Verdict
The Audrey Hepburn House was disappointing, to say the least. The title is deceptive as it has nothing to do with Audrey Hepburn other than inspiring a house from one her movies, Sabrina. Emma was such a weak character that I could not connect to her at all and I thought her behaviour was childish and immature. She was taken advantage of by Henry as a teenager and I wish the author had explored that theme in this book rather than overlook it, but most themes went unexplored in this book and you were just supposed to accept that Emma wanted this fairy-tale world no matter her behaviour. Unfortunately, I struggled throughout this book, hoping it would get better, but it never did. ( )

Audrey Hepburn is grace, beauty, talented actress with a philanthropic heart. The estate in question is named after the actress due to its resemblance to the estate in Hepburn’s hit, Sabrina. Many nods to Hepburn and her career and life in this story. Unfortunate for me, who hasn’t seen many of Hepburn’s movies, I didn’t realize these nods till I read the Author’s note at the end. But, it diminish my feelings on the book, but might just trigger a movie marathon.

Dual timeline. Emma grew up with her parents and has two best friends who also live on the estate. Many memories both good and bad. Fast forward to current day and trying to save the place she loves while being confronted with sins of the past. Can she forgive, forget? She finds more secrets than she knew existed and tries to find out the truth. Introduced me to Operation Paperclip, which I found intriguing and yes, I had to goggle it. Ironically, my next read delves into this little know (at least to me) part of our history on a deeper level.

Enjoyable, great story and writing. Loved the characters and it was great to watch their development. So much more than I expected.

Thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC. Opinion is mine alone. ( )