A Place in Time

by C.A. Hocking

Librarian Note: Alternate Cover Edition for B0047742DS.

C. A. Hocking’s debut novel, A Place In Time, explores the theme of what good people are driven to do in order to survive when pushed beyond human endurance.

Dan Campbell is a troubled man who sinks into depression as each birthday approaches. Thirty years earlier, on his 11th birthday, he’d witnessed his father's murder and saved his mother from a deranged stranger, but something is wrong with the memory of that terrible day. Something he can't quite see, something just out of focus.

When his annual depression threatens his family’s wellbeing, he takes his mother back to his childhood home to confront his memories and find closure. Going back is never easy, but what Dan discovers there will turn his world upside down, for no-one and nothing is as he remembered and he fears for his life …

Genres: Mystery, Time Travel, Thriller, Horror, Fiction, Science Fiction, Suspense

150 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 28, 2006

About the author

I am a Bestselling Independent Author and have been writing since I was six years old. It's what I do and how I define myself. My works range from powerful family sagas and dark dramatic fiction to light hearted romance, children's fiction, short stories and poetry, with an occasional foray into screenwriting. My books sell all over the world, with three translated into Mandarin and now selling in China.

I was born in South Australia and have lived both rural and city lifestyles in many parts of Australia, which is reflected in the various settings of my work. I've had some good times, some bad times, made some wrong turns and some right turns, had some awful jobs in order to keep the money coming in whilst writing in my spare time, raised a family and become a grandmother. I am now living the blissful writer's life (at last) with my husband and laptop in Canberra, Australia.

Reviews

[JB Rowley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every year on his birthday Dan Campbell’s secret creates a chasm between himself and his wife, Trish, and the domestic bliss he has created for himself in England. All Trish knows is that on his eleventh birthday, Dan witnessed the murder or his father and the killer was never caught. She senses Dan knows a lot more about what happened that day but neither Dan nor his mother Connie, who was also witness to the shooting, will talk about it. Frustrated at being stonewalled and treated like an outsider for the past eighteen years, the feisty Trish demands that Dan confront his demons. She sends him and his mother packing to return to the scene of the murder: the family farm in Australia.

And so the mystery begins, for Dan and his mother and for the reader. Back in Australia, Dan recalls, scene by scene, the day of his eleventh birthday and the events leading up to the killing of his father. The story creates a web of intrigue that lures Dan toward the truth and keeps the reader turning pages.

When the final piece of the jigsaw falls into place to reveal the depth of Dan’s secret, the reader is seized by astonished fascination. It’s as if we have opened the door to a room anticipating a surprise to be waiting there for us and having some expectation about what the surprise might be but then we are confronted by something so far from what we were anticipating that we stand at the open door, mouth gaping, frozen to the spot.

I love a good mystery and I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It is well written and original. The author deserves the honour of being shortlisted for the Australian 2007 ACT Writing and Publishing Awards and the 5 stars I am giving 'A Place in Time'.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by an Australian writer, this little crime novel surprised me to be much more than I had expected. A 40-year-old man suffers depression every year on his birthday since he witnessed his father's murder by a stranger when he was 11 years old. Now living in England, after much therapy and having the financial means he and his mum go back to Australia, to the scene to either jog his memory or at least put the past to rest. A well-written and engrossing read. Not what I had expected as it ventures off into a realm of magical realism which must be worked out as the story progresses. If you like your crimes to take place fully in the real world, this won't be for you. Otherwise, it is an intriguing look at when powerful emtions collide in space and time. Whether the story involves time travel or something more mystical it is a lovely story of a family, mother and son, rescued from a life of abuse. Lovely writing. I'd certainly try the author again.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really a novel, more of a novella. It explores time travel in a different way. I found the story disturbing on one level and very heartwarming on another. If you’re a time travel purist, you might find flaws in the story’s premise. That said, I enjoyed it. I think the story accurately portrays how children remember things not exactly as they were. It's not a great read, but it's a good one. I loved how the little details all came together.

[Connie N. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating time-travel book with mind-bending implications, kind of a mirror-looking into a mirror-looking into a mirror type of story. The basic story is about a man who holes up every year on his birthday because of the murder of his father on that day when he was 11-years-old. He has had a hard time coping, even 30 years later, so much so that his wife finally blows up and insists that he go back to his old family home and face his fears. He and his mother go from England back to Australia to the farm. Dan decides to go to the house by himself and falls into a time warp where he is back in time to his childhood. He faces some uncomfortable and shocking revelations which affect his and his mother's lives profoundly. Totally interesting. Although it was a short book, I became engrossed in the story. Well written, because it focused on the main characters and the actual story, without going off on any tangents. I'll definitely be looking for more by this author.

[Diana Hockley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thirty years previously, Dan's father was murdered by a stranger and his mother assaulted. Now Dan, at the time of his birthday every year, falls into a month long depression and stays in bed for that time. His marriage is under threat and his wife insists that he has to face his demons for the sake of their children. He and his mother travel from the UK back to Australia and there the truth unveils in one devastating night.

Astounding, incredible, well written and a devious plot!

Highly recommended.

This is not a long book - only about 150 pages, but it's all there and I read it in a few hours. In my opinion, this is a keeper.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

If there was one moment in your life that you, as the person you are now, could go back and influence (specifically to ensure that you could still end up as the person you are now), what would that moment be? And what if in that moment you discovered/remembered the very secret you'd buried and forgotten? I completely enjoyed reading this story. I kept wanting to go further; to discover more about that fateful moment in the main character's life. This story does not disappoint with its creativity, originality and imagination.

[Bethany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this story seems to begin in Ireland, it quickly moves to Australia where Dan Campbell searches his past to uncover the truth about his father's death. The story takes the reader into an unknown realm where present seems to mingle with past in a very real and spiritual way. There were clues to put together and stones to turn over, revealing an unsuspected secret. The author, Hocking, won an Australian Writing Award for this book and it is understandable why, a very good read.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick read about Dan, a man who goes back from England to his childhood home in Australia with his mother to try to deal with his annual depression around the time of his birthday and his father's murder. What he discovers changes his memory of his father and all the events surrounding his death. Like all time travel stories trying to figure out the ramifications of the present Dan's actions on his younger self's life kept me confused but engaged.

[Christy King]

A Mother's Love

Sacrifices, lies for the good of the family, when your past isn't what you thought it was, and your present leads you to your real past.

This tale drew me in and gave me a role to play in the drama. Judge, comforter, getaway driver, confessor. I was there and played all those roles.

I loved this story and highly recommend it! What role will you play?

[Ann237 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable

The book was an easy quick read. It grab you're attention right from the beginning which kept you reading and invested long enough, that you finished it even tough you knew were the storyline was heading. Even though predictable it still was a pleasant read, worth the couple hours Read.

[Charmer (+ Vibes Only) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book very interestin, and I will be readin other books by this author.

How did Dan do it, is what I need to know. How? Why was it meant for him to do it? Was it to save them? And if so why?

I love time travel books but they always leave me with lots of questions.

[KJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great story that uses time travel as a tool for the main character to find the truth and heal. I love time travel stories and authors who can say only what they need to to get a point across. This is an author I'll be able to learn from.

[Bec · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting book, a tough topic and a unique way of dealing with it... I really enjoyed it!

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. It made me think of a short version of 11/22/63. I will definitely read CA Hocking again.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story look toward to reading other books written by this author

[Tracy Oliphant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book and the twists were so unexpected

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting time travel book, well thought out and a quick read.

[Jennifer Holloway Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every year without fail, Dan takes to his bed for a month and shuts out his wife and family. He had done this since he was eleven years old after he faced the trauma of seeing the murder of his father. This year his wife suggests he returns to the place that this happened to face the past. He returns to his childhood home with his mother, who was there that day as well. I really liked the time travel element of this book and how he came face to face with the past from another angle. I think that the characters were well written and that that this was a really well written book.

[Veronica Strachan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Time travel and tragedy

A Place in Time is a glimpse into the mysterious and tragic past. Dan travels back from England to Australia in search of his past and finds more than he could have imagined.
A twisted time travel tale that deals with some serious issues and their consequences.

[Alesa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an okay story about rural Australia. But frankly, I didn't remember I had read it, even a few short weeks after finishing it. That's how little an impact it had on me. I went back and opened it in my Kindle to read it, and then kept thinking that it all felt familiar. And I couldn't even remember how it ended. I feel embarrassed...

[Jess · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a time travel book in a sense but there didn't seem to be a rhyme or reason. At the end I just felt indifferent.

[bex]

I chose not to rate this one, because I just can't decide how to rate it. In some ways it was good, but in others just too unbelievable.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

a unique story but short and under developed writing style

[Paul Madsen]

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. It keeps pulling you along. As a time travel plot I kept looking for the mechanism but could it was not really missing. Nice clean story. Finished it in a day.

I first read this in 2014 and just again in September 2018. Worthy of a repeat. 😳😇