Almost Home

Luesse (Missing Isaac) creates an engrossing ensemble cast in this historical romance about the strength of new friendship during times of war. As WWII rages, a small band of strangers deal with home front hardships in Blackberry Springs, Ala. Dolly Chandler takes in boarders to pay the bills. First come a couple of quiet, unemployed professors from Chicago, then an obnoxious couple from Reno, and soon the house is filled as workers come to work in munitions plants. Arriving from a small farming town in Illinois, Jesse and Anna Williams are having a hard time with their marriage when they move into the house and meet Army medic Reed Ingram, who has just returned from the war. Having grown up nearby, Reed hopes returning to the place of happier memories will heal his emotional and physical scars. Dolly, a deeply faithful woman, offers prayers and her own guidance to help him. Anna also bonds with a young widow from Mississippi and an elderly boarder after they discover old journals left by Charlotte Chauvin, the wife of a local Robin Hood character who built Dolly’s house. The mysterious disappearance of the couple decades earlier fostered rumors, including the possibility of undiscovered treasure. Luesse presents a heartwarming story of the power of relationships, and how the most inopportune circumstances can yield unexpectedly rewarding results. (Mar.)