The Enchanted Isle

by D.E. Stevenson

Charlotte Fairlie, while still under 30, had been appointed headmistress of St. Elizabeth's, a fine school with great traditions. Charlotte soon learned, however, that a headmistress' life is the loneliest of all - a long round of coping with the hidden tensions of the staff room, the handling of over 300 girls and - worse still - their parents. Yet it was one of those parents, Colonel MacRynne, father of young Tessa whose early days at the school had been very unsettled, who was to be the means of her escape from a setting that was satisfying professionally but lonely on a personal level. Miss Stevenson's novel, set in the rolling West Country of England to Targ, one of the remoter of the Western Isles, introduces us to a fascinating new set of characters in a story as warm and human and delightful as any she has yet given us.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Scotland, Historical Fiction, British Literature, Classics, Historical Romance

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1954

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Dorothy Emily Stevenson was a best-selling Scottish author. She published more than 40 romantic novels over a period of more than 40 years. Her father was a cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson.

D.E. Stevenson had an enormously successful writing career: between 1923 and 1970, four million copies of her books were sold in Britain and three million in the States. Like E.F. Benson, Ann Bridge, O. Douglas or Dorothy L. Sayers (to name but a few) her books are funny, intensely readable, engaging and dependable.

Reviews

[K.J. Charles]

DE Stevenson writes the most warm-bath romances about sensible women handling their lives pretty well and finding men who respect them (but the woman remaining very much the centre of the story). There's very rarely unpleasantness, she doesn't put her heroines through misery, we've got plenty of people to root for, kindness and thought win the day. It's incredibly stress-free reading. This one has the head of a girls' school finding love on a Scottish island, and everything is great.

[Alisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fans of D.E. Stevenson's gentle fiction will be ecstatic to get their hands on the new editions of eleven of her novels, reprinted by Dean Street Press in January 2022. Some of the reprints, like this particular gem, Charlotte Fairlie, have been incredibly difficult to find in recent years. And since Charlotte Fairlie is one of my absolute favorites, I was thrilled to be able to read this new edition, complete with an autobiographical sketch from DE Stevenson herself.

Charlotte Fairlie is a lovable, wistful character. There are shades of Jane Eyre about her. She is alone, and she is lonely, but she gets on with life and has found what she imagines is her proper place in the world: headmistress of the very school she used to attend. Charlotte adroitly navigates the headaches of institutional life: the dissatisfied parents, the jealous colleague, and the expectations of the Board. But what she tries not to dwell on is the loneliness. A neighboring schoolmaster befriends her, and he's a very nice sort of chap, prompting Charlotte to consider whether she could ever accept a marriage of convenience.

The second half of the book takes an entirely different turn when her pupil Tessa MacRynne invites Charlotte to visit Targ, an island off the west coast of Scotland. There Charlotte meets Tessa's father, the companionable and steadfast Rory MacRynne. The time on the island is a literal and figurative breath of fresh air, opening up confusing new possibilities to Charlotte.

The writing is beautiful, especially descriptions of land and sea around Scotland. The characters are vivid and real and relatable, which is a large part of DE Stevenson's charm. The pages fly by, even though they're lovely enough to be savored.

The theme of finding a home is central to this book. At times it can be sad, as Charlotte and some of her pupils have troubled histories with a parent. But in her gentle, hopeful way, D.E. Stevenson makes a path forward from even the hardest of situations. This is a story that touches the heart.


Trigger warning: discussion of attempted suicide by one of the characters

Many thanks to Dean Street Press for this digital review copy!

[Bookworman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sigh... I just loved this story. What a gift to discover another wonderful book by this author.

[Abigail Bok · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would give this book five stars except for a certain lack of depth in the characterizations, for I enjoyed it enormously. D. E. Stevenson doesn’t follow traditional romance tropes but on the other hand, she shies away from profundity, preferring to tell straightforward stories. Published in the 1950s in England (I can’t seem to get away from books written in that decade), it is a lighthearted tale with an undertow of sadness, my favorite type of novel.

Charlotte Fairlie is a young woman who has lucked into a position as headmistress of a country girls’ school she attended as a child. She has the educational background but not perhaps the maturity for the job, though life has made her mature for her age. Charlotte’s mother died when she was little and she was raised by a loving father till she reached her teens, when he married a woman who wasted no time in shoving Charlotte out of the nest. Sent away to school and to an uncle’s house for holidays, she never saw her father again. This experience has filled Charlotte’s heart with a profound sense of loneliness and desire to belong, as well as an abiding respect for unwanted children.

Early on the book seems to be about her time as headmistress and the challenges she faces at the school, but slowly it takes a turn. She is wooed by a perfectly nice young man whom she doesn’t take particularly seriously, and adored by a teenage student who invites her to spend the summer on her father’s island off the western coast of Scotland. Charlotte has her doubts about the propriety of this offer, but the student is very hard to resist and she goes along with the plan—a decision that changes her life in a number of ways.

I liked the focus on children in the story. They are treated like human beings—intelligent but inexperienced, adventurous but vulnerable. I also liked Charlotte’s core of faith: I am not myself a religious person but I appreciate books that don’t shy away from the religiosity of their characters. It made sense for Charlotte to feel out of place among noisy Christmas festivities, longing for a holiday that focused on the spiritual aspects of the season.

Charlotte is a person who doesn’t chatter or dump her feelings all over others; she is serious and outward-focused, kind and thoughtful. It was a pleasure to read about her struggles, her conscience, and her grit in remaining true to herself at all costs. I deeply admired her and rooted for her happy ending—knowing all the while that D. E. Stevenson would find a way to give it to her.

[Julie Durnell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another helping of DES comfort food-delightful!

[Mela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely, I liked it. A well-written story. A wise look at the upbringing children, about being a parent (in three different points of view). With a bit of romance and Scotish touch. Very predictable - but in such stories, one doesn't mind it.

See these three quotes:

"Love isn't warmth and coiness; it's fire and glory!"

everybody had to find their own way of bearing things

It was an eye-opener to Charlotte that she could love somebody in this mad way with a wild sweet tenerness that made everything he touched precious to her.

But it lacked the wit of Miss Buncle's Book (although ther was a humor in it too) and the philosophical/psychological depth of The English Air (it was here too, but let's say, on the lower level).

Nonetheless, the charm of the atmoshepre of classic British novel was keeping my attention completely.

[Mo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love novels that are peopled with gracious and delightful characters. The only problem with this book was that it ended much too soon.

[Alisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this was my favorite D.E. Stevenson so far.
Charlotte thinks that her greatest dream has come true when she is appointed headmistress of the school she attended as a girl. The first half of the book is how she deals with students, teachers, directors, etc. Among her pupils is Tessa, who raves about the island where she lives with her father. During the semester, Tessa's mother leaves her father to marry someone else. Charlotte comforts Tessa and befriends her. During the summer holiday Tessa invites Charlotte and 3 young friends to visit her on the island where she lives with her father. Charlotte loves the life they lead there. Near the end of the book something awful happens to one of the children. Truly awful. No one dies, and things are looking up for the kid by the end of the book, but it is still awful that it had to happen that way. In spite of that I still rate this book highly. It really pulled me in.
I listened to the Audible version of this book, and the narrator was really good. She utilized a couple of different accents but didn't strain herself too much to come up with different voices. I preferred it that way. For me it is distracting when a reader tries to distinguish between the different voices, unless it can be done in an extremely believable way, which is rare. This narrator read more naturally, and it was enjoyable.

[CLM · Rating 4 out of 5]

My review: https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...

This is a school story told from the point of view of the headmistress. She is gifted at her job in terms of dealing with faculty and administrators and likes and deals well with the children, but is lonely and craves contact with the world outside the school. Finally, one girl who misses her Scotland home and the girl's father team up to show Charlotte what she is missing.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. Charlotte is such a lovable character. I love that she gets to belong as the story progresses. DES combines all the things that make a story so wonderful with such apparent ease: great characters, good dialogue, beautiful settings, an engaging plot, and a wonderful wisdom about human nature. The description of Targ especially is incredible, and I love that it has a healing effect on the Eastwoods and Charlotte.

[Gina House · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charming and cozy! I'm so happy to have add another title to my favorite books by D.E. Stevenson—yay!

D.E. Stevenson never disappoints with her lively, domestic and wonderful novels, especially in this case. I had no idea that this book was republished under the titles, 'The Enchanted Isle' and 'Charlotte Fairlie', so I originally thought that I had found a new book I'd never heard of online. The newer titles are much more appealing than 'Blow the Wind Southerly', but I'm very excited that I have a vintage hardcover copy of this fantastic story set in England and Scotland.

There are so many characters to love in this novel, including Charlotte herself, Tessa and Rory MacRynne. At first, I was very annoyed, outraged and disgusted by the character of Miss Pinkerton. She is a character that I'm sure people love to hate, but I almost had to stop reading the book for a while because her actions upset me so much.

Thankfully, I kept going and I'm so glad that I did. I love the settings of St. Elizabeth's School for Girls and Targ, a remote island in Scotland. There is so much to love about this book that it's hard to put into words. D.E. Stevenson's descriptions of home, school, nature and food are incredibly cozy, which is not surprising. The conversations between characters are interesting and feel so real and natural.

I don't want to spoil the ending, so I won't say much about it. But, I cannot wait to reread this book in the future. Highly, highly recommended!

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

As much as I enjoy D.E. Stevenson's writings, settings, and stories, there is always a little fly in the ointment. For one, most of the time her endings are way too abrupt and often leave an unresolved problem and a lack of closure. I can live with that if it is the first of a trilogy or there is a sequel. She avoids drama like the plague. Exciting and longed-for confrontations and comeuppances often happen behind the scenes and the reader is told about what happened later. And sometimes her heroines do everything in their power to avoid happiness. They make decisions that sacrifice their happiness for the sake of others. Again, this would be OK if the greater good was served by the sacrifice, but often it is based on a lack of self-esteem. Sometimes they are wet noodles and won’t stand up for themselves often to the detriment of others. This book features three of these plot elements. Thankfully, being a wet noodle is not Charlotte Fairlie’s problem.

We meet our heroine as the new headmistress of an elite girls' school, St. Elizabeths. Although young for the job, being in her late twenties, she is eminently qualified. She is an Oxford graduate and former student, who was boarded there when she was thrown out of her beloved father’s life by her new stepmother. Her sad past has only made her strong and empathetic. She proves to be very popular and respected by the staff and students but one long-tenured teacher, Miss Pinkerton, becomes her nemesis. The older woman is wracked with hatred and jealousy towards Charlotte. She feels sure that the longed-for post of headmistress would have been hers but for the young upstart. I loved the way Charlotte navigated all of Miss Pinkerton’s machinations with wisdom, tact, and sense. She won me over completely early in the book when faced with a malignant threat from Miss Pinkerton, she gets out in front of the problem with aplomb. Thus, what could have resulted in scandal and calamity for both her and a young student turned into a powerful friendship with the head of St. Elizabeth’s board of directors and a strong bond with the student.

That unusual young student, Tessa, is a charming and fearless young girl who obviously hero-worships and loves Charlotte. When she invites her headmistress to spend her vacation at Targ, her beloved island home in the highlands of Scotland, Charlotte decides to throw caution to the winds and accepts. She and Tessa’s divorced father, the laird, fall deeply in love with each other. He proposes marriage and here comes the fly in the ointment. She refuses him for a couple of cockamamie reasons when all of her objections could have been easily overcome by some honest communication. It flies in the face of what we have come to know about Charlotte and how she always handles her business. Of course, all ends happily with one of D.E. Stevenson’s trademark rushed endings, but I was still disappointed in Charlotte, whom I had come to trust and admire.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and esteemed Charlotte Fairlie up until the point when she did her darndest to break her own heart and the hearts of the two people who have come to mean the world to her. In addition to the love problems, there is a side story of Tessa’s best friend at school, Donny, and her two brothers. The three siblings are the victims of a toxic parent and their story almost ends in the worst tragedy imaginable. It was shocking.

The large and small joys, dramas, and adventures at the school and on Targ were as involving as I have come to expect from D.E. Stevenson. It is almost magical the way she makes outwardly ordinary characters and their journeys fascinating and gripping. She makes small things seem big. And when big things really do happen it’s jaw-dropping.
**3 1/2 stars**
https://rebekahsreadingsandwatchings....

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a lovely, gentle and kind book. Even when addressing somewhat darker subject matters (such as the effects of an emotionally abusive parent) it never strays into tragic or intentionally depressing. I appreciated the subtle message that if you are willing to think about the wellbeing of others you can still be a caring and thoughtful person despite having been treated unfairly. And in contrast, if you only focus on yourself you can be bitter and hurtful even if there is no real cause for it.

[Chautona Havig · Rating 5 out of 5]

In her signature style, D.E. Stevenson takes us from a girl's school to Scotland and down to a quiet village. It sounds rather sedate put like that, but I have to say there was a surprising amount of drama (never over-the-top), tension, and conflict. The characterization, for which Stevenson excels, however, is what made me love it so much. Charlotte was a dear, Tessa was WONDERFUL, and the situations Stevenson put them all in kept me turning pages when I'd passed my allotted chapters for the night. *gulp*

Add to all that some beautiful Christian truths brought up, examined, then dropped (without the slightest attempt to drive them home), as well as the sort of romance I love (look! it's here! that's enough! We don't need all the sappy details!), and this book couldn't have been more tailor-made for me if the author had tried.

[Barb in Maryland · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars for this somewhat uneven outing from mid-20th century popular author Stevenson.

Stevenson weaves a gentle story with some very serious subjects: loneliness, child abandonment, abusive parenting. To balance the serious parts there's a bit of romance, and a lot of gorgeous descriptions. I found a good deal of enjoyment in the school related scenes, especially those involving planning the school pageant (though I'm not sure we needed to actually see the whole pageant)
My quibble with the book concerns the romance in the second half of the book. The conflict that separates our lovers involves a Big Misunderstanding. Not a misunderstanding between them, but a failure to talk to the third party involved. So we have some very tiresome bits to get through before all is cleared up, and the story abruptly ends. [Abrupt endings seem to be the norm for Stevenson--as she trusts the reader to carry the story forward in their own imagination.]
I'm not sorry I read it, but it is not one of my favorites.

[Claude · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another delightful novel by D. E. Stevenson. A bi too short to my taste. I just wish I had more to read by the same author.

[Savannah Knepp · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had wonderfully endearing characters and the worst plot.

[Rachel Hyland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Educator Charlotte Fairlie isn’t yet thirty, and yet has been engaged at headmistress of the elite St. Elizabeth’s–much to the displeasure of the hateful, hopeful aspirant to the title. In between the petty staff room politics, her pursuit by the local boys’ school headmaster, troublesome new girl Tessa, the school board, the local gossips, and the trauma of the upcoming school play to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, it isn’t quite the dream job Charlotte had imagined.

Then there is the actual trauma experienced by one of Charlotte’s students — and her brother — at the hands of an emotionally abusive father. That part of the book is strangely upsetting fare for a Stevenson book (at least, on my new acquaintanceship with her), and it is very well handled, and also a somewhat surprising inclusion to the story, given the seen-and-not-heard times in which it was written.

Charlotte’s incipient happy ending is very predictable from very early on in this piece (which is fine; I even like that in a book, sometimes) but the inclusion of the tortured-kids subplot overcomes the book’s twee cuteness and makes it very much a School Book for Grownups. Which I also very much like in a book.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte Fairlie is headmistress of a girls school in England, a very lonely job. She cleverly wears older clothing at her interview so as not to appear too young and inexperienced, and with the help of one of the Board members, secures the job, but not without having to deal with the resentment of Miss Pinkerton. Miss Pinkerton knows that had it not been for Charlotte applying for the position, she herself would have been chosen, and she treats the new headmistress accordingly.

When one of the students, Tessa, reaches out and invites Charlotte for a summer holiday to her home in Scotland, it only seems reasonable to accept. Sometimes an escape and a vacation is all one needs...however, Charlotte finds her troubles are just beginning.

I thoroughly enjoyed this newest reprint of D.E. Stevenson's, a favorite author!

"It was true. Christmas without children was meaningless.... and then she raised her eyes and saw the little church with its lights shining through the stained glass windows and she realised that there was one chlid who belonged to everybody... or at least belogned to everytbody who would let Him come in. The cloud upon her spirits lifted and quite suddenly she was happy and at peace.'

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aaaah! That was so nice. Except that I wanted it to go on and on. Reading (or listening to) D.E. Stevenson is a real pleasure every time. Even when something bad happens, you just know everything will turn out fine in the end. You can see the romantic conclusion coming from a hundred miles away, but who cares? It's so well written and the characters are so charming that it's all positively enchanting, in a quaint old fashioned way. The audio narration by Hilary Neville was fresh and delightful.

[Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stevenson is literary comfort food. This is the first book of hers that I can remember with an emphasis on Christmas (in the last few chapters); I loved that she emphasized its true meaning, but it seemed odd considering earlier chapters that had emphasized the comfort Charlotte found in acquiring a little statue of buddha.

Nevertheless, it was a story that kept me engaged from start to finish.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-read as audiobook.

[Trin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like a cozy blanket and a hot cup of tea.

[Andrea]

A quiet story slightly marred by our characters parting for Reasons that were not very strong Reasons.

[Oolookitty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wavered between three and four stars for this one; it's as charming as anything Stevenson has written, but some really weird swerving into railing against "pagan" Christmas traditions like mistletoe and paper hats had a strange kind of FOX News War On Christmas feel to it and was quite jarring. If it had only happened once, that would have been one thing, but it happened twice, and with the formerly levelheaded protagonist lecturing a village vicar for having mistletoe in his church -- and his reaction being "yeah, you're right, PAGAN, going to tear it down and preach a sermon about it!" -- well, weird.

Otherwise a typical very enjoyable Stevenson, and actually delves into some dark areas: the ill-treatment of stepchildren and even deals with a child whose family situation has left (will say "them" as to avoid spoilers) suicidal.

Enjoyed this, but would have enjoyed it more without the sudden swerve into ChristLit.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! I loved all the characters and the story. A warning though...there is a son that attempts suicide (he is unsuccessful). I haven't seen something that serious in a DES book before and usually recommend her books to others for escape. Even though it's a small part of the book, if that topic hits close to home, you might want to skip this particular book. Other than that, it's an absolutely wonderful book and I highly recommend it.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet story but not much of a page turner. It read like two different books - the first half was on Charlotte's life at the school and the second half of her time at Tag. The second half was far more interesting than the first and I felt like the book ended a bit abruptly.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my very favorite DE Stevenson books. Really loved the character of Charlotte--so independent, almost to a fault. She deserved her happy ending!

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best D.E. Stevenson I've read yet, and I loved Miss Buncle's book. This book is a small jewel. Very grateful to archive.org for making it available to borrow online.

[Seawitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who wouldn’t be enchanted by Targ? I am more and more astonished by the treatment of children as discardable in many of DE Stevenson’s books.