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Water Signs: A Story of Love and Renewal
Madeline Rose is a beautiful woman of 25-the daughter of a prominent Philadelphia neurosurgeon. Despite her family's support, she battles formidable insecurities, thanks to a recent, bitter break-up and a turbulent adolescence. Unsure of her future, she struggles to live up to her potential and her highly educated pedigree. Adjusting to civilian life after four years in the United States Navy, handsome, affable and ambitious Ken Lockheart has two major goals: to rise above his blue-collar, Shore town roots and to marry his true love. Though the epitome of the all-American male, he retains a basic humility borne of a relentless work ethic and an inner drive to succeed. When a chance encounter in a Somers Point nightclub initiates an unexpected relationship, neither one of them is prepared for the ensuing odyssey of heartbreak, personal growth and spiritual development that leads them full-circle to a Divinely guided conclusion.
435 pages, Paperback
First published September 15, 2008
5 people want to read
About the author
Daria DiGiovanni
3 books4 followersDaria DiGiovanni was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and raised in the nearby suburb of Media. The youngest of five children in a close-knit family, she graduated from Villanova University with a B.A. in English. At age 27 she relocated to South Florida, where she actively pursued her goal of becoming a published writer, contributing feature stories and articles for publications including The Happy Herald, On the Inside and Boca Kidz Magazine.
With the advent of the "blogosphere," she channeled her passion for the USA, cultural issues and traditional values into two successful blogs, Muzz Musings and Freedom Bright, infusing keen insight and thoughtful consideration into such topics as radical Islamic terrorism, Military heroism and national security. In 2004, Daria's efforts led to an appearance on FOX News Channel to discuss politics and dating. She was also featured as a weekly columnist for the online magazine, The Martini Lounge, where she eloquently and oftentimes humorously opined on everything from her lifelong love of professional football to her "haunted" vacation in Savannah, Georgia.
DiGiovanni has also worked as a content writer for a Boca Raton-based company specializing in online marketing for the hospitality industry, as well as a copywriter for a textbook publishing firm. An avid reader and gifted wordsmith from a very young age, Water Signs embodies the accomplishment of Daria's childhood dream of becoming a novelist-something she's been promising her supportive, patient parents for many years! She's thrilled to finally bring that desire to fruition and even more excited by the prospect of touching many lives with a heartfelt story of familial bonds, first love, faith, personal growth and forgiveness.
When not reading or writing, she enjoys going to the beach, swimming, biking, walking, ballroom dancing and spending time with family and friends. Oh, and she's still a devoted Eagles fan who never misses a game during football season!
With the advent of the "blogosphere," she channeled her passion for the USA, cultural issues and traditional values into two successful blogs, Muzz Musings and Freedom Bright, infusing keen insight and thoughtful consideration into such topics as radical Islamic terrorism, Military heroism and national security. In 2004, Daria's efforts led to an appearance on FOX News Channel to discuss politics and dating. She was also featured as a weekly columnist for the online magazine, The Martini Lounge, where she eloquently and oftentimes humorously opined on everything from her lifelong love of professional football to her "haunted" vacation in Savannah, Georgia.
DiGiovanni has also worked as a content writer for a Boca Raton-based company specializing in online marketing for the hospitality industry, as well as a copywriter for a textbook publishing firm. An avid reader and gifted wordsmith from a very young age, Water Signs embodies the accomplishment of Daria's childhood dream of becoming a novelist-something she's been promising her supportive, patient parents for many years! She's thrilled to finally bring that desire to fruition and even more excited by the prospect of touching many lives with a heartfelt story of familial bonds, first love, faith, personal growth and forgiveness.
When not reading or writing, she enjoys going to the beach, swimming, biking, walking, ballroom dancing and spending time with family and friends. Oh, and she's still a devoted Eagles fan who never misses a game during football season!
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 28, 2014
This is a beautifully written book about a good woman in a confused time in her life. Her wholesome gentleness is both attractive and at times, a little irritating. Her male counterpart is the man every woman dreams of, strong, straight, true and a rugged handsomeness that fulfills the role of a Bodice Ripping protagonist.He still maintains enough imperfection that she can fix him or, does he fix her? You'll have to read to find out. This is as gentle a love story as they come. It's an Earl Gray and fireplace book, enjoy.
June 20, 2017
Hmmm, how do I say this kindly and tactfully...
My husband gifted me this book because we are acquainted with the author and her family. What I enjoyed the most was recognizing the characters as the real people I know. The story's main character was raised in the town where I currently live, and many of the place names are actual locations. All that familiarity made the read fun. However, the actual telling of the story was another matter. It was not a polished work that flowed easily, and I even spotted several typographical/proofreading errors. It was often tedious and repetitive. In one chapter, the established style of describing minutia suddenly shifted to the story's jumping ahead by years, subsequently covering months and months of possibly pertinent action in only a sweeping few sentences. I wanted to like the book because the author's family is lovely, but the truth is that I couldn't wait to be done with it.
My husband gifted me this book because we are acquainted with the author and her family. What I enjoyed the most was recognizing the characters as the real people I know. The story's main character was raised in the town where I currently live, and many of the place names are actual locations. All that familiarity made the read fun. However, the actual telling of the story was another matter. It was not a polished work that flowed easily, and I even spotted several typographical/proofreading errors. It was often tedious and repetitive. In one chapter, the established style of describing minutia suddenly shifted to the story's jumping ahead by years, subsequently covering months and months of possibly pertinent action in only a sweeping few sentences. I wanted to like the book because the author's family is lovely, but the truth is that I couldn't wait to be done with it.
August 3, 2013
Maddie Rose is a true heroine of modern, realistic life.
I'll start with a disclaimer: I am a friend of the author, who I first met as a guest on her excellent radio show, WriteStream. (Great show for aspiring authors, fyi). I am so glad to have met Daria because otherwise I would never have known this book existed. I am a huge fan of the protagonist, Madeline Rose. Like all of us, she has trials and tests throughout her life, sometimes heart breaking, sometimes just irritating, but kudos to the author for not overdoing it with the drama. (A refreshing lack of untimely deaths, violence, and so forth is one of the things I love about this book.) The result is a very believable and true-sounding tale. The best part of Water Signs is the way Maddy lives her life; with optimism, faith, class, and a wholesome, positive attitude. She has a lovely spirit. I wish there were more characters like her in contemporary literature. It's inspirational to see a positive model of attitude and behavior when we have our own ups and downs.
As a twenty-something, Maddy meets Kenny unexpectedly and they are bonded immediately. Indeed, they turn into the annoying couple we all know who are too cutesy-in-love. I laughed when Maddy herself says the same thing about her boyfriend's touchy-feely attentions. Obviously, they both have some maturing to do. The result is a sometimes-wrenching tale of love found, foolishly thrown away, painfully thwarted, sacrificed to pride, and finally, when both partners are truly ready, resolved. I admit that I was sometimes frustrated with the decisions people make in this book but when I sit back and think about it, I know plenty of real-life examples of the same sort of thing. The conclusion of the story is all the more satisfying because of the history this couple shares.
I loved DiGiovanni's descriptive style of writing. Since this story takes place over a period of nearly 20 years, times change and styles and attitudes change along with them. Through the detailed descriptions in the book, I could easily picture every scene. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the dramas that play out within all families, even those as apparently privileged as the Roses. Again, so relatable. I found the dialogue to be a little trite at times but mostly it worked. Overall, the story arc is strong, cohesive and relevant. I think I heard that the author is working on a sequel and I really hope so. The characters in Water Signs have become dear to me. I wish I knew them in real life but since I don't, a sequel would be much appreciated.
I'll start with a disclaimer: I am a friend of the author, who I first met as a guest on her excellent radio show, WriteStream. (Great show for aspiring authors, fyi). I am so glad to have met Daria because otherwise I would never have known this book existed. I am a huge fan of the protagonist, Madeline Rose. Like all of us, she has trials and tests throughout her life, sometimes heart breaking, sometimes just irritating, but kudos to the author for not overdoing it with the drama. (A refreshing lack of untimely deaths, violence, and so forth is one of the things I love about this book.) The result is a very believable and true-sounding tale. The best part of Water Signs is the way Maddy lives her life; with optimism, faith, class, and a wholesome, positive attitude. She has a lovely spirit. I wish there were more characters like her in contemporary literature. It's inspirational to see a positive model of attitude and behavior when we have our own ups and downs.
As a twenty-something, Maddy meets Kenny unexpectedly and they are bonded immediately. Indeed, they turn into the annoying couple we all know who are too cutesy-in-love. I laughed when Maddy herself says the same thing about her boyfriend's touchy-feely attentions. Obviously, they both have some maturing to do. The result is a sometimes-wrenching tale of love found, foolishly thrown away, painfully thwarted, sacrificed to pride, and finally, when both partners are truly ready, resolved. I admit that I was sometimes frustrated with the decisions people make in this book but when I sit back and think about it, I know plenty of real-life examples of the same sort of thing. The conclusion of the story is all the more satisfying because of the history this couple shares.
I loved DiGiovanni's descriptive style of writing. Since this story takes place over a period of nearly 20 years, times change and styles and attitudes change along with them. Through the detailed descriptions in the book, I could easily picture every scene. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the dramas that play out within all families, even those as apparently privileged as the Roses. Again, so relatable. I found the dialogue to be a little trite at times but mostly it worked. Overall, the story arc is strong, cohesive and relevant. I think I heard that the author is working on a sequel and I really hope so. The characters in Water Signs have become dear to me. I wish I knew them in real life but since I don't, a sequel would be much appreciated.
December 16, 2013
This is a pleasant read by a first-time author. While not my usual genre, it was well-written and engaging.
Water Signs website
Water Signs website
May 20, 2009
This was a darn good book! I really liked it alot! In fact check out my review at Temeritymagazine.com
February 4, 2015
Good book but too many repetitive statement
March 17, 2015
What a rollercoaster ride...
March 31, 2017
Review to follow!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews