Tidewater
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4.3 • 28 Ratings
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- $3.99
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- $3.99
Publisher Description
SHE HAD EVERYTHING A WOMAN COULD WANT ....
Newly married to a man of wealth and reputation who's willing to be stepfather to her daughter Abigail, Sara Bonniface would seem to have all she's ever wanted for Abby: a beautiful home, a man to be there for her, and the assurance of a top education for the bright if headstrong child. But twelve-year-old Abby has other ideas, embarking on a crusade to learn more about her birth father. Relentless and computer-savvy, Abby manages to track down and then drag Ben McElwyn, ex-cop and now a P.I., back into Sara's life.
It's the last thing that Sara needs. She's already under assault from a series of mystifying events that have her dreading the possibility that she's suffering from schizophrenia, the affliction that destroyed her own mother.
It's the last thing that Ben needs. He's a lone wolf and determined to stay that way. Him, the father of a twelve-year-old daughter? He refuses to believe it.
It's the last thing that Rodger Bonniface, Abby's stepfather, needs. Headmaster of a prestigious prep school in Massachusetts, Rodger's reputation is pristine. Rich, confident, and cooly charming, Rodger has surprised everyone by marrying a woman with neither his background nor his sophistication. Still, Sara has great beauty, so they understand. And before her marriage she was a respectable widow, a sympathetic figure-- everyone, including Rodger, believes.
Until twelve-year-old Abby lobs that hand grenade into the elegant quarters of the house called Tidewater.
Editorial Reviews
"A spellbinding thriller that is both intense and riveting."
--Romantic Times
"With a flare matching Hitchcock, Antoinette Stockenberg delivers a wonderfully twisted story that is all too typical of what goes on today."
--The Romance Reader's Connection
"This book has it all! It satisfied me on many levels. It has a touching romantic reunion, gut-twisting suspense, and wrenching emotional impact. Ms. Stockenberg excels at novels that explore the mother/daughter relationship, and this one is no exception. If you like suspense, romance, and family relationships, all wrapped up in a credible story, Tidewater should make you very happy."
--Teresa Medeiros, New York Times bestselling author
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A contrived plot and a predictable villain mar Stockenberg's latest tale of romantic intrigue (following Safe Harbor). Sarann Bonniface, whose mother suffered from schizophrenia, wonders if she too is degenerating into madness when she begins experiencing increasingly bizarre instances of forgetfulness. She receives little emotional support from her rich, controlling new husband, Rodger who is chiefly concerned with maintaining his pristine reputation as the headmaster of one of New England's most prestigious boarding schools or from her rebellious 12-year-old daughter, Abby. Barely aware of her mother's distress, Abby is solely concerned with uncovering the identity of her birth father, and through diligent Internet probing, she discovers that her father is a defrocked police officer, now a private investigator, named Ben McElwyne. Ben's reappearance and his growing affection for Sarann and his daughter is the primary strength of this story, and Rodger's heavy-handed ploy to alienate Sarann from her daughter for his own devious means merely detracts from this more compelling plot thread. Although Stockenberg is skilled at portraying complex family relationships, this novel's weak characterizations and predictable plot will do little to earn her a wider readership.
