Would suggest that potential readers to "Stargazey Point: A Novel" read this novella since this will help introduce readers to characters in that novel.

This novella's main protagonist is Cabot Reynolds. Cabot dealing with a fractured family growing up, and a father who just didn't seem to care, spent his summers at Stargazey Point in South Carolina with his Uncle Ned. In Stargazey, Cabot felt loved and happy and helped his Uncle Ned run his carousel. Decades later, Cabot receives a phone call that brings him back to Stargazey where he ends up deciding between staying on his current path or trying something new and risky.

Ms. Noble writes Cabot very well and his voice was very distinct from the other characters that appeared in this short story.

I was honestly surprised how well Ms. Cabot wrote about South Carolina, I was also very interested in the Gullah culture she discusses in this novel and hope we get more details in the full length novel.

Also I thought that Ms. Noble manages to write well and touches upon the slow death of the small town that seems to be ever spreading in the United States. It was great to read how often forward progress can lead other people to be left behind. I didn't feel preached at while I was reading and it was great to just read another perspective and through Cab's story we get to see how an entire way of life is disappearing.

I really loved Beach Colors and was happy to see that Stargazey Point is another must read for me. ( )

So glad I read this novella, Stargazey Nights prior to buying Stargazey Point. Have already purchased and will begin reading it next. I love Shelly Noble -- she knows how to set this mood for a beautiful story (You get a full 98 pages so a good length novella), set in a quaint historic town south of South Carolina. (Since I am a native, love stories set in the Carolinas).

Cabot (Cab) Reynolds, III is a successful architect in Atlanta, living the high life with a brat society hungry fiancé, currently working on a real estate project in Myrtle Beach, SC.
This all changes when he receives the call about his favorite uncle Ned which has died and his funeral is the following day in Stargazey Point, SC. His finance never even gave him the message the week prior and only sent flowers. (She is a real B) and shallow is being kind!

Needless to say, the guilt set in –Cab's begins recalling all of those wonderful summers in this back woods little town (when he was home from boarding school) and everything which went along with magical summers –including a famous carousel ran by Ned.

When approaching the town he is astonished how run down the town is and questions himself as to why he never visited his uncle when he had the opportunity to help him. His fiancé does not want to attend the funeral with him.

His short visit pulls him in as he visits some eccentric characters from his past and those close to his Uncle. He then visits his upcoming project in Myrtle Beach and realizes the new development will wipe out a lot of homes of poor families and begins thinking about Stargazey Point and the part of his past and the famous carousel now stuffed in crates, ready to be revived.
A beautiful story about how we forgot our roots and live in a materialist world and forgot how to use our hearts and our hands. I look forward to reading Stargazey Point to continue the story of Cab and what he will do for this quaint town to change his life (and possibly a new woman in his future.).

From Coke, country stores, Carolina BBQ, to at risk teens, historic architecture, charming Charleston southern belles, B&B Inn, Tea shops, community centers, nosy small town neighbors-- to eccentric colorful characters living the simple life and trying to hold on to what this town represented in its thriving years.
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Stargazey Nights is a novella serving as the prequel for Stargazey Point which will come out in July 2013. Cabot (Cab) Reynolds III is living the high life in Atlanta with a beautiful fiancé, a great job and a fancy condo to live in. He is on the way out the door to dinner when his phone rings and a voice from the past speaks to him. His Uncle Ned has died and the funeral is the next day. Cab is surprised at the short notice until the caller tells him that Cab’s secretary has the information and has sent a flower arrangement. He realizes that his fiancé took the original message and didn’t even tell him because it would disrupt her plans for the both of them.
Cab ends up going down to Stargazey Point for the funeral and realizing how much he has missed the place where he spent his summers as a child working at Ned’s carousel and hanging out with the townsfolk. Stargazey Point is a sad and faded town and it will soon go the way of so many neighborhoods that are demolished in the name of urban renewal by developers such as the ones Cab is working with. The once proud carousel is now falling down with the amazing animals packed away in crates.
What I liked about this book was the realization that Cab had about the real effect his lovely but sterile plans for a Myrtle Beach gated community would have on the people already living there. He takes a look at how much he has lost by losing contact with his Uncle and where his life is really headed. Then, Cab makes a big decision, one that will change his life. I can’t wait to read Stargazey Point to see how it will all work out for Cab and the town. ( )