A Charmed Place [Mass Market Paperback]

Antoinette Stockenberg (Author)

Book Description

Series: Charmed Place | Publication Date: June 15, 1998

In a peaceful seaside town called Sandy Point, Maddie Regan hopes to find solace from a troubled ex-husband and a feisty teenaged daughter. But she never expects the man from her past, Dan Hawke, to take up residence in the local lighthouse. And so a charming cottage and a sleepy town become ignited in long-lost passion, long-buried secrets, and a last chance at love...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A plot line that shifts from the Twilight Zone to Murder, She Wrote to the sit-com Cybill, makes Stockenberg's latest (after Dream a Little Dream) feel as if it's suffering from a bad case of channel-surfing. Summering in the family cottage on Cape Cod with her entourage of goofy friends, Maddie Regan is stunned to learn that Dan Hawke, her first love, has taken up residence in the lighthouse next door. During their college years, Dan had been a principal player in a political rally that nearly killed Maddie's father. The incident had ended their relationship. Now, after serving 14 years as a war correspondent, an out-of-body experience compels him to reenter Maddie's life and take up where they left off. Fortunately for him, Maddie's divorced. Unfortunately for him, everyone in her family hates him, especially Maddie's obsessively jealous ex-husband and Maddie's mother, who blames Dan?in a roundabout way?for her husband's death a few months before. Stockenberg's previous work has shown real promise, but in an attempt to keep the pace fast she has added too many elements and weighed down her story line.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Antoinette Stockenberg is a fresh, exciting voice. Her writing is delicious!"--Jayne Ann Krentz

"[She's] destined to become a major voice in women's fiction."--Publishers Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 359 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks (June 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312965974
• ISBN-13: 978-0312965976
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 3.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,313,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

USA Today bestselling novelist Antoinette Stockenberg grew up wanting be a cowgirl and have her own horse (her great-grandfather bred horses for the carriage trade back in the old country), but the geography just didn't work out: there weren't many ranches in Chicago. Her other, more doable dream was to write books, and after stints as secretary, programmer, teacher, grad student, boatyard hand, office manager and magazine writer (in that order), she achieved that goal, writing over a dozen novels, several of them with paranormal elements. One of them is the RITA award-winning EMILY'S GHOST.

Stockenberg's books have been published in eleven languages and are often set in quaint New England harbor towns, always with a dose of humor. She writes about complex family relationships and the fallout that old, unearthed secrets can have on them. Sometimes there's an old murder. Sometimes there's an old ghost. Sometimes once-lovers find one another after half a lifetime apart.

Her work has been compared to writers as diverse as LaVyrle Spencer, Nora Roberts, and Mary Stewart by critics and authors alike, and her novels have appeared on bestseller lists in USA Today as well as the national bookstore chains. Her website features sample chapters, numerous reviews, and many photos. www.antoinettestockenberg.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Antoinette does it again, only even better, May 8, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Charmed Place (Mass Market Paperback)

I didn't think I could like Antoinette's newest novel, "A Charmed Place" more than I loved "Dream A Little Dream" but I was happily wrong. Antoinette just keeps getting better and better.

In "A Charmed Place," Maddie Regan is still struggling to come to terms with the inexplicable and unsolved murder of her beloved father, when Daniel Hawke, her first and only true love, returns to Sandy Point with an agenda of his own. Family members who are bitter against Daniel, a jealous and volatile ex-husband, and a rebellious fourteen year old daughter stand firmly in the way of reunited love. Toss in a sinking lighthouse, a hurricane, and a goosebumpy touch of Antoinette's trademark mysticalness, and there you have it - a "curl up in your favorite chair and defy anyone to bother you," cover to cover delight.

Antoinette Stockenberg consistently delivers multi-faceted, three dimensional characters with honest, often heartbreaking problems, emotions and reactions. She also delivers a picture of New England that will make you want to pack your bags and hit the road for a visit. You will smell the salt air and honeysuckle, you will envision the lighthouse and Maddie's garden, you will feel as though you would recognize Maddie and Daniel if you passed them on the street. Great characters, snappy dialogue, gifted description, and a clever, satisfying plot all add up to a big A+ for Antoinette Stockenberg and "A Charmed Place."

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a modern romance, May 25, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Charmed Place (Mass Market Paperback)

For a modern romance, it was pretty good. Being in my forties also, I like the idea of a middle life romance instead of the main female character being in early twenties. It has a mature theme and identifies with today's society ( I'm not saying today's society is living right), but the book does reflect issues of today. It is the first Stockenberg novel I've read and I look forward to reading more. I have "Dream a Little Dream" and have heard good things about it. Hopefully, it will further intice me to read more of her novels.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I absolutely loved this book, and the author is the best, June 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Charmed Place (Mass Market Paperback)

A Charmed Place was a wonderful love story, the characters were so real to me. I had not read any of Antoinette's books before and I do not know how I missed her because I am an avid reader. Anyway Dan and Mattie hooked me on their story and hooked me onto a wonderful author. I have since read all of her books and loved them. I also like the stories of people who are not in their twenties and of course I always like a happy ending for people who go through some very difficult times in their lives. I could relate to Maggie because I also went through some very difficult times with a teen age daughter and also a marriage that ended. It was so neat for Dan to have loved her for all of these years and to try and renew and once again refall in love and of course we all like the happy ever after endings. It may not be like that in real life but to me these characters become so real and Antoinette has a way of doing that. I just finished Beyond Midnight and it was so good I could not lay it down. Way to go Antoinette and of course Dan and Mattie will be with us forever.