A cottage by the sea: it’s a dream come true for Jane Drew. Too bad it comes with a ghost — and a soulfully seductive neighbor who’d just as soon boot Jane off the island.
When you’re seriously unattached and recently unemployed, the inheritance of a cottage on Nantucket Island might seem like a really Good Thing. The fact that the house is ramshackle and possibly haunted? Mere details. Jane … details. Jane Drew never actually believed the neighbors’ murmurs about her great-aunt being either a psychic or a witch, much less a psychic witch. Still, a series of eerie events soon has her convinced that the spirit of a beautiful Quaker is roaming the place, and it seems clear that it will take more than a smile and a wave goodbye to make the spirit leave. If Jane is to move things along, she’s going to have to think like an islander. But she’s a Boston graphic designer with no experience of the island or its history, and she could use a little local knowledge in her quest.
There is no one more local than the aloof, wary, and impossibly seductive Mac McKenzie. Descended from generations of hard-working islanders, Mac has very clear opinions of off-islanders, and he’s not afraid to express them. He has little patience for New Age types, moneyed types, and those for whom “antiquing” is a verb. He regards spaghetti as noodles, not pasta, and he drinks water from a tap, not a bottle. He’s suspicious of people who design graphics, whatever those are. And he doesn’t believe in ghosts. Period. When he finds himself up against the insistent, persistent, infinitely irritating Jane Drew with her knack for complicating his life, he does what any self-respecting islander would and shrugs her off — for a while, anyway. But Mac understands, as Jane does not, that not every force is benign… and not every force is otherworldly.
“BELOVED has charm, romance, and a delicious hint of the supernatural. If you loved the film ‘Somewhere in Time,’ don’t miss this book.”
–LaVyrle Spencer
“BELOVED is great … a lively, engaging, thoroughly enchanting tale. Ms. Stockenberg is an exciting voice in the romance genre. Her writing is delicious; I savored every morsel of BELOVED.”
–Jayne Ann Krentz
“Antoinette Stockenberg is pure magic! She does a wonderful job of evoking mood out of setting. The love story between the hero and heroine was complex and moving; what appealing characters!”
–Susan Elizabeth Phillips
“A delightfully different romance with a ghost story — a great combination that was impossible to put down.”
–Johanna Lindsey
“Antoinette Stockenberg continues to demonstrate her talent for delivering unique tales of romance and danger with tantalizing supernatural overtones.”
–ROMANTIC TIMES
“Antoinette Stockenberg’s BELOVED will transport readers to a remote island world filled with humor, vivid life experiences, glimpses of the supernatural, and characters that sparkle … [it] will inspire the reader to cheer and look forward to this author’s next gem.”
–GOTHIC JOURNAL
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Antoinette Stockenberg’s book ‘Beloved’ is full of charm, romance, and a ghost story as well.
Jane Drew, who is unattached and recently unemployed, inherits a cottage on Nantucket Island. This might seem like a really Good Thing. The fact that the house is ramshackle and possibly haunted? . Jane Drew never actually believed the neighbors’ murmurs …
The characters are fun to watch develop. I love the ghost that interferes with the heroine’s peace. This is an enjoyable story from start to finish.
I finished reading the book late one night. The next evening I had the occasion of being alone . . . In a crowd of people. I realized then that Beloved and many of her books wake up the senses and encourage the reader to observe, digest, and react to circumstances. The reader is reminded to look at the big picture and take it all in.
It was pretty predictable.
This is an enjoyable, but fairly standard romance with a ghost element. I liked it while I was reading it, but forgot the plot very quickly. Jane, typical city girl, inherits her great-aunt’s ramshackle cottage on Nantucket, and decides to move in and restore the cottage to original condition before selling. Along the way she is irritated by a …
This book is well written. The pace is fairly boring boring for most of the way thru the book. I’m certainly not going to pick up another of these romance type books. This is so typical… good looking rich incredibly handsome suitor, good looking brooding scowling protagonist, a supporting cast of suspicious characters. The usual “someone dies …