44 Charles Street

by Danielle Steel

What makes a house...a home? Everything is falling to pieces for Francesca Thayer. Her beautiful, old house is full of leaks and in need of total restoration. Then her relationship with lawyer Todd collapses and he moves out. As the owner of a struggling art gallery she can't possibly manage the mortgage alone, so she is fo

Genres: Romance, Fiction, Chick Lit, Audiobook, Ebooks, Contemporary, Adult

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Danielle Steel has been hailed as one of the world's bestselling authors, with almost a billion copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include All That Glitters, Royal, Daddy's Girls, The Wedding Dress, The Numbers Game, Moral Compass, Spy, and other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina's life and death; A Gift of Hope, a memoir of her work with the homeless; Expect a Miracle, a book of her favorite quotations for inspiration and comfort; Pure Joy, about the dogs she and her family have loved; and the children's books Pretty Minnie in Paris and Pretty Minnie in Hollywood.

Facebook.com/DanielleSteelOfficial
Instagram: @officialdaniellesteel

Reviews

[Stephanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

So far....this is the most poorly written book I have EVER read! I would love to edit with a red pen as I have already found so many errors. I love the stories DS creates but how she has sustained through the years is beyond me! Why am I reading it? Who knows! It is almost a compulsion. I started reading DS as a teenager and cannot stop. I guess it is a fascination to me to see how my critical reading skills have increased. The good news, the story is interesting. So far I am about half way through the story. The 150+ pages I have read could have been told in less than 50 pages as the repeating contents has gone on excessively! Will I finish? Sure.

[Suz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really do like a good dose of DS when I’m on holidays. 44 Charles Street is typical of this author, lots and lots of repetition and a bit of contradiction with characters’ thoughts, but what I enjoy is the simpleness of the plot and ease of reading. It never fails to serve their purpose for me. The story was not serious and I liked all of the characters. I love to read about New York, and as Danielle Steel is French (isn’t she? I probably should look it up), she has a nice way of weaving that country into her story lines, too.

Francesca is a sensible 35-year-old woman who owns a lovely 4 story house in New York, but is unable to maintain her payments and also maintain her burgeoning art gallery business that she loves, due to her relationship break up. She takes in an eclectic set of roommates, all with a story of their own. They were a great bunch of people to read about and the group came together nicely in a family way all of their own. The cooking theme was a nice way to bring them all together in the kitchen to create nice homely scenes. I think fans of the author will like this one, just like I did. A little bit of indulgence? Yep.

[Kay · Rating 2 out of 5]

Let me begin by saying I have been reading Danielle Steel for 30+ years and have read all her books. Why you ask? Hell if I know, but I am the type that always finishes what I start!! Her plots are certainly not thick and her characters are interchangeable from one book to the other. She repeats herself so much that I do believe if I read every fourth page I wouldn't miss a thing. And I still keep reading them! [what does that say about me?] But they are so quick to get through and once in awhile she gets a winner [such as Legacy] that appeals to me.

Everything is going as normal in this book until I get to page 238 and read these sentences:
You're related to two presidents, for chrisssake. And I don't mean Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson. I mean recent ones.

Oh dear, does Steel think Benjamin Franklin was a president????? And her proofreader and her editor???? And where did chrissake come from? Is that Steel talk?

And here I thought Stuart Woods cornered the market on mistakes in a book!!! Yeah, I'll probably give in and read Happy Birthday next.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit repetitive, not one of her best books which is a shame as Danielle Steel is a bit of nostalgia for me, I clearly remember as a teen taking these books from mum's bookshelf to read.

Two stars.

[Jennifer Didik · Rating 1 out of 5]

Here is a small sampling of things I learned while reading this novel:

- When young women meet men via online dating websites, they have tattoos, piercings, and drive motorcycles. They also rape, strangle and kill young women
- The above scenario is the woman's fault. Women experience "Internet insanity" and when they are trapped in abusive relationships, the only way out is death
- People look for rooms to rent in the newspaper
- People refer to brownstones in the West Village as "houses"
- 65 year olds have wonderful sex
- Some conflicts in a novel don't actually need resolution, you can just forget about them and not acknowledge them in the "happily ever after" ending

Two stars is generous.

[Destiny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a pretty typical Danielle Steel novel, sweet, sad, and an emotional roller coaster. We follow four roommates as they navigate life and learn to live under one roof together.

Danielle Steel is notoriously repetitive in her writing, but I still can't seem to put her books down. The repetition can get a little tiresome, but it makes it easy to follow as you always get reminded what's going on.

Again, it's not a great piece of literature, but it will grab your attention and tug at your heartstrings many times. My ultimate guilty pleasure author gets another 5 stars on this one!

[Suzzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this read to be interesting and it held a really good pace throughout the book. It would actually say this would be a great afternoon and evening read that could easily be read in one sitting if people didn’t distract. I liked the characters and it was a little more dramatic and more intense than a lot of Danielle Steel books but it was a nice change of pace. Overall, a good book with a nice moving plot.

[Kari · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was pleasant enough but nothing exciting. I liked the theme of second chances, learning to let go of the past and moving ahead with your life. The characters were pretty well written, however, they were a bit frustrating. I felt that Francesca was incredibly naive for a 35 YO who owns her own art studio. With parents like hers, I would have thought she would be a little more worldly. I was disturbed by the way the roommates handled the situation of domestic abuse of one of their own. They claim to care about Eileen, yet don't really do anything to help her. I couldn't see how they were really shocked at the outcome of her situation. I felt that part of the book was unnecessary and didn't really add anything to the story. Also, I kept waiting for something to happen. Nothing ever really does.

It think the idea for the book was good, but the writing just didn't hold up for me. I think this story would have worked better in an anthology. It just didn't have enough to sustain a full novel. I was surprised at all of the repetition in the writing. The same ideas were repeated over and over. For example, how many times do I need to be told that Francesca doesn't like Internet dating or think it is a good idea? Cut out a lot of the repetition and you have a nice novella.

This is my first Danielle Steele novel. I'm not sure if this is her usual way of writing. If it is, I'm not sure I would read another by her.

[Revere · Rating 1 out of 5]

I enjoyed some of Danielle Steele's novels a few decades ago. I stopped reading them when they started to be too predictable. I read somewhere that she had written a few good books lately, so I decided to give her another try. I found this story to be horribly written. My guess is that Ms. Steele was committed to churn out a certain number of words by a deadline. There was so much repetition from page to page, even sentence to sentence, that it was ridiculous. Buried under the poor writing / editing was a decent story. I finished it, but it will be the last Danielle Steele I read.

I hate to toot my own horn, but if you are considering reading this novel, try On a Dime: Senseless in Lewes by Revere Reed, instead. I can almost guarantee you will like it. If not, at least you will have supported a new, unknown author instead of an famous, rich one. Check out my novel on Amazon. if you don't like the sound of it, please try some other independent author... or some other famous one, but do yourself a favor and avoid this one.

I am embarrassed to admit that I read it:-(

[Jennifer (Jaye) (I was on a roll, now struggling to add comments - why???) · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Rocky Road to Love*

Francesca Thayer was brought up by a mother who is addicted to marriage whilst her father is addicted to women. With her parents divorced and living separately her father now settled with a woman called Avery who Francesca finds more relatable than her drama queen mother, who is on the hunt for husband number 6. All this has made Francesca wary of marriage. She feels she is settled with Todd a man that she loves and a old house with lots of features but is a money pit. This takes a toll on their relationship and she cannot afford to keep the house on her own but wants to keep the house.

With Todd now gone she decides to reluctantly take in 3 tenants.

Eileen is a young teacher with a troubled past due to physical abuse via her father, her Sunny demeanour covers a multitude of problems

Chris is a newly divorced father who shares custody with his drug addict wife and has an adorable son.

Marya is a famous cookery writer who makes the most exquisite dishes, she is trying to start her life again after the death of her husband.

As cautious as Francesca is she finds she is making firm friends with her tenants bit by bit as she is getting to know them.

In time we see the evidence that one of her tenants has gone from one abuse to another which ends in tragedy

One tenant is going through torture trying to fight a custody battle that highlights the total denial that a drug addict with parents of influence think it’s right to keep a child in an unsafe environment

One tenant who is finding her feet as she navigates dipping her toe into a possible relationship with a French chef who has been after her for years

And a possible future for Francesca with a new love who has been right in front of her for months.

The story is mostly predictable but easy to read/listen, but enjoyable

[Bluetiful Hadeel · Rating 2 out of 5]

So this is Danielle Steel?
I have heard so much about her and that her novels are page turners. That wasn't the case for this novel.
I took a WHOLE week to finish this one. Sometimes, it takes me longer if I was busy or something. But this time I really couldn't go through the pages. So boring. Repetitive. Even the emotional parts are not emotional at all.
I don't recommend reading it at all.

One star for the cover.
One star for Marya & Charles-Edouard.

[Sandra Koziol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried. I made it almost halfway through this one before I decided that my available reading time was too precious to waste it on this novel. Perhaps a part of me hopes and wishes that Danielle Steel would write good romances again, but starting with Wanderlust, I haven't really enjoyed anything "new." As others have commented, there is far too much repetition in this novel. Yeah yeah, I get it. No need to remind me again and again. I also find that the novels cruise through time with inane details that don't really contribute to the plot. But what really caused me to stop reading was the repeated theme of one character being "addicted to abuse." As a survivor of domestic abuse, I have trouble with the concept of it being an addiction that the victim of abuse needs to "overcome," as if being a subjected to abuse was somehow her fault. It is only when victims understand that it is NOT their fault, and that abuse is more rooted to the abuser's need for power and control, that the cycle will stop. After the fifth or sixth time DS reiterated that the character was "addicted to abuse," I'd had enough.
If you are someone who has never read Danielle Steel and want to get a sense of what she can write, read one of her earlier books, like Palomino or Remembrance. I wouldn't recommend this one, for sure.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, I know I'm being knitpicky, but as an animal lover, why does Francesca's mom have to show up wearing a fur coat? (big sigh...)

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Francesca Thayer lived at 44 Charles Street with her lawyer boyfriend Todd. They had been together for some time, but the relationship was falling apart. Francesca ran an art gallery, and Todd was sick of the lifestyle and wanted to return to the world of lawyers. Francesca’s father was an artist who, after a struggling start, was now famous, and his second wife Avery was a great support to him, as well as a wonderful woman. Francesca’s mother was a different story. Thalia was a society snob, currently searching for her sixth husband. She was only interested in herself and put Francesca down whenever she could.

When Todd moved out of their beautiful, but old home, Francesca knew she couldn’t make the mortgage payments on her own, so decided to divide the house and take lodgers. She thought three more people would fit well, with four of them the payments would not be a struggle. It worked out to be very difficult to find the right house-mates, and when she finally decided on her first one, she was happy. Eileen was a young woman of twenty-three, a primary school teacher who had just moved from Los Angeles, and she checked out well. Then there came Chris, newly divorced, quiet and sad, with a seven year old son, Ian, who visited every second weekend. And finally, famous chef Marya, who was trying to rebuild her life after the death of her husband of over thirty years.

The story of their lives in the year following Francesca’s break-up with Todd, the relationships, the happiness, sadness, laughter and tragedy all intermingle to make a light, easily read novel.

I have read Danielle Steel for a lot of years, but I’m afraid I find now that they are all pretty much the same, not a great deal of substance, and very repetitive.

[Patty · Rating 1 out of 5]

I can't believe this book was written by Danielle Steel. It was poorly written, redundant, repetitive, head hopped all the way through it and it didn't hold my interest. I had to struggle to finish it. The story had a good plot line, but the immature writing took away from the story.

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

uhg I don't know why I did this to myself. I said no more Danielle steel, but it was a stressful week and I wanted a guaranteed easy read. But once again, the repetitiveness was nauseating, and I can't even comment on anything else.

[Piyumi · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've never been a fan of Steel, and what possessed me to read this, I hardly can recall. Maybe I was ill and saw it in the book shelf and thought it would help to pass the time. Big mistake. This is because it turned out to be exactly like the few other of her work I had read so far. Badly written, ridiculously plot and weak character development. How is this author still able to write is truly beyond me

[Francesca · Rating 4 out of 5]

You definitely know what you read with Danielle Steel. She never disappoints. Her books reflect the reality. Ì loved the story and the characters.

[Liz Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a friend she thought that I would be able to relate to it. She was right ... At 38 with my 15.5 year marriage ending I find myself house sharing for the first time. For me it seemed quite a traumatic thing at times. My first house share with 5 others in Brighton being a bit of an eye opener. My second house share a much more peaceful affair. I read the book from cover to cover and my heart was comforted life does indeed go on. People find love again when they least expect it. I found Eileen's character affected me deeply I could relate to her pain and was horrified at her murder. I nearly stopped reading at this point but my heart was already tied to the other characters and I so wanted to see that they came through this tragic time. Addiction was a theme that ran through the story Eileen's addiction to manipulative and bullying behaviour, Chris's ex wife and Ian's mum to drugs and Francesco's mum to being married. I found this very thought provoking and challenging how much do we value ourselves and fight against the things that potentially could destroy us. Little Ian my heart went out to a child wise before his time, yet so together and wise. I fell in love with all the characters that lived in 44 Charles street my heart was warmed and felt hope for a better tomorrow. Weirdly this is the first Danielle steel book I have ever read. Where has she been all my life. I'm hooked I can't wait for my next fix :0)

[Denise Ballentine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really hate giving a book one star, but by the end of this I disliked it...strongly. I read this on someone else's recommendation. Now I remember why I don't read Danielle Steele books. First, I really don't usually like pop-romance stories. And this book reminded me why. One dimensional characters, all pretty much stereotypes, simplistic, and predictable. The writer just tells you all about each person. Then they act accordingly. There is no discovery, no surprises, no depth. This is a creative writing teacher's worst nightmare. (No, I'm not one, but I did take a course in it.) Listen, I enjoy some flings with popular fiction here and there, and it's nice to take a break from heavier, literary stuff and deeply emotional,searching reads. But this is NOT a good read. The morals here stink..."it's ok to sleep with someone outside of marriage as long as you make a good choice...or if you are still in the process of getting a divorce." Ugh. The message: if you are a single woman, you need a man. Some nonsense about every pot having a lid that fits. Really. When one of the characters sums up things by saying,"I'm loving it!" I thought yes, this book is like the McDonalds of literature. Yuk.

[reehbeeh {fŕęe Pălésťinè}☪️ · Rating 1 out of 5]

nothing just poorly written and of course my love if You're reading this fuck off....

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've read quite a few Danielle Steel books through the years, mostly on audio CD's, and this was no exception. She is great to take when driving on vacation, because she is easy to follow. This book, is not one of her best. She seems like a preacher, in that she tells you many, many times, which of her characters you should like, and which you shouldn't. She tells you at least a hundred times, that internet dating is dangerous. This book would be a guilty pleasure, beach read. The book follows her same formula, where something tragic happens in the first 20 pages, and how the heroine overcomes the obstacles,only now she has changed the venue to New York City, instead of her usual California background. One of her characters was sort of a Julia Child/Martha Stewart type. Another was a loosely based on a grandchild of a Kennedy. Hard to believe that these type people would want to rent a room in a NYC apartment. Anyway, I did enjoy the book, but I didn't like being "preached" at about her system of values.

[Melissa Borsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic Danielle Steel with great characters and all the feels! Really enjoyed this heartwarming book.

[prag ♻ · Rating 1 out of 5]

always heard about danielle steel and see about 20 different books by her at the library so i was curious.... boy was that a mistake! much to be horrified by here, with the repetitive writing, underdeveloped characters and moralistic preaching, but none of that holds a candle to the pages and pages of discussion about how a character that was raped and murdered got what she asked for because she liked to wear short skirts and was too naïve

[Trish at Between My Lines · Rating 3 out of 5]

My current audiobook read, and it’s my first time reading a Danielle Steel book in about 20 years. It’s ok, I’m not jumping up and down with excitement, or racing out to buy another one. It’s an easy read, and I do like the characters, I suppose it’s just that bit too predictable for me, and very far removed from my life.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars. 1) good idea for a story. 2) very appealing cover = 2 stars . This book was a shameful waste of limited reading time! Repeat repeat repeat repeat repeat repeat

[Bookish Indulgenges with b00k r3vi3ws · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have wanted to read this book for quite some time… ever since I saw this book at somebody’s house and the cover had this catch line –“What makes a house… Home?” I have to admit that it was that one line that kept playing on my mind and when I received my review copy, I directly plunged into it without even reading the back cover.

Francesca Thayer is the owner of a struggling art gallery and 44, Charles Street. When her relationship falls apart and she is left with a mortgage that she is struggling to pay. As a desperate attempt to regain control of her life, Francesca decides to take in boarders to supplement her income and help pay the mortgage. Soon she realises that her tenants have become more than just tenants as she gets involved in their lives just as they get involved in hers. Eileen, a schoolteacher decides to try the precarious world of online dating. Chris is continuously juggling between his job, parenting and the custody battle of his seven year old son. And then there is Marya, a cookbook author looking for a fresh start after the death of her husband. From chaos to peace, from heartbreak to laughter – 44, Charles Street makes a transition from being a house to a home.

The characters are the bright spot of this book. Though I do not agree with a lot of their actions, I do have to admit that they did grow on me. I also did like the basic concept of the plot. But, reading quite a few Danielle Steele Novels in quick succession, I am starting to see a pattern in her novels – and that is repetition. I find that the ‘repetitive’ aspect of her novels (see my recent review of ‘A Good Woman’) actually slows down the pace of the novel. Sometimes it feel like the author is treating the readers like a child, telling us ‘Remember I told you A is for Apple and it is a fruit? So, A is for Apple, it is a fruit and it is red in colour’.

As a reader, if you can get beyond this pattern, 44 Charles Street can still leave you feeling a bit dazed with its confusing messages. On one hand, the author leaves no doubt in readers’ mind about exactly how dangerous online dating can be. And on the other hand the author also portrays her characters cheating on their partners in some way or the other by giving them some warped logic – that makes you think that hooking up with strangers gotta be less risky.

I am sorry to say that I was deeply disappointed with this book. It had a great premise and great potential – but the end product was not that great.

[Nesha · Rating 3 out of 5]

“There's a lid for every pot... You Just have to find yours."

3 stars. Needs improvement...

Let me start of by saying I loved this book! There were times when I literally couldn't put it down because it has all of the right elements for such a wonderful story.

That being said here are the two reasons why I gave this book a mediocre ranking:

For starters the book was VERY repetitive. That was slightly annoying, but I tolerated it because I liked the story so much. But at the end of the day, the reader shouldn't feel like they're reading a college essay that a student bullshit their way through just to reach the word count goal. Again, I was able to deal with it, but if you're one of those people who loses their shit over irrelevance and grammar errors...DON'T READ THIS BOOK. Hell, don't read my reviews for that matter...lol!

My final complaint is that I felt the ending was very abrupt. I had NO closure at the end - it all just stopped so suddenly! A wham bam thank you ma'am of a novel and you didn't even bother to leave a phone number. Wtf man? You just leave me stranded on a cliffhanger? No solid glimpse into the future for these characters I fell in love with? What a rip-off! I'm always heartbroken when a good book comes to an end anyway, so don't rush me into it. Ease me into the blow of conclusion.

All in all, I would read this book again. Like I said I enjoyed it, but I definitely felt like it could've been better. Reach for the stars Steel! You're one of the vets in this genre! I expect a lot from you!

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received this book as a gift from my husband for Valentines. He hadn't read any reviews on it until after bringing it home to me, if he had I am pretty sure he would have picked up a different book for me.
I say don't read this book unless you are a die hard Daniel Steel reader other than that this book is very poorly written. She repeats herself repeatedly about the mother who is obsessed with getting married and how selfish, and childish she is. There were also more than several repeats about the dangers of dating online. It just got extremely annoying really fast.

The other beef I had was about the 7 year old kid. I don't have any children of my own, but I have been around plenty to know that no 7 year is that well behaved all the time. 7 year old boys are cute yes and can behave but they are also rambunctious. And if a 7 year old went through all that trauma that he was supposed to go through would have some major issues. It didn't come through in any of it. He just rebounded back to laughing and being well behaved.

There are plenty of other issues in this book but these are the main ones that I remember.

Don't waste your money on getting this book or your time reading it.

[Gel · Rating 4 out of 5]

READ MY REVIEW ON MY BLOG
HTTP://THEBOOKISHANGEL.WORDPRESS.COM

ACTUAL RATING: 3.5

I haven’t read a Danielle Steel book for almost two years now because I’ve been so caught up on reading young adult books so I find this book very refreshing from all the teen angst and drama.

What I liked about this book is that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was nice to read an adult book again and just see the story unfold before me and to not have to worry about every single event in the book or character. Because the characters are adult I felt like I’m just this teenager watching them instead of reading a young adult book where I am very invested in the story. It’s nice not to be that invested in a book once in a while.

However, if you haven’t read any Danielle Steel book before I suggest you do not read this one. You will probably not like and enjoy this book. The characters aren’t that intriguing, like there’s no depth to them and in my opinion, this book can be shortened. It didn’t have to be a huge book.

If you’re looking for a DS book to read, I recommend Kaleidoscope, Silent Honour and Crossings and Zoya.

But if you have read and loved other Danielle Steel books and you may want to get away from the young adult genre for a while, you may like and enjoy this one.