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Sanctuary
As in her last thriller, Ms.Appignanesi has a way of torquing up the tension..Just like the proverbial shoe waiting to drop―on whom and when is the question.―The Ottawa Citizen
493 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2000
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About the author
Lisa Appignanesi
59 books97 followersaka Jessica Ayre
Elżbieta Borensztejn was born on 4 January 1946 in Łódź, Poland, the daughter of Hena and Aaron Borensztejn with Jewish origin. Following her birth, her parents moved to Paris, France, and in 1951 they emigrating to Canada. She grew up in the province of Quebec - first in a small Laurentian town, subsequently in Montreal.
She graduated from McGill University with a B.A. degree in 1966 and her M.A. the following year. During 1970-71 she was a staff writer for the Centre for Community Research in New York City and is a former University of Essex lecturer in European Studies. She was a founding member and editorial director of the Writers and Readers Publishing Cooperative. Through the eighties she was a Deputy Director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, UK, for whom she also edited the seminal Documents Series and established ICA television and the video Writers in Conversation series.
She produced several made for television films and had written a number of books before devoting herself to writing fulltime in 1990. In recognition of her contribution to literature, Lisa Appignanesi has been honoured with a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French government. In 2004, she became Deputy President of English PEN and has run its highly successful 'Free Expression is No Offence Campaign' against the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill. In 2008 she became President of English PEN. She writes for The Guardian, The Independent and has made several series for BBC Radio 4, as well as frequently appearing as a cultural commentator.
In 1967, she married Richard Appignanesi, another writer, with whom she had one son in 1975, Josh Appignanesi, a film director. They divorced in 1984. With her life partner John Forrester, she had a daugther, Katrina Forrester, a Research Fellow in the history of modern political thought at St John's College, Cambridge. She lives in London.
Elżbieta Borensztejn was born on 4 January 1946 in Łódź, Poland, the daughter of Hena and Aaron Borensztejn with Jewish origin. Following her birth, her parents moved to Paris, France, and in 1951 they emigrating to Canada. She grew up in the province of Quebec - first in a small Laurentian town, subsequently in Montreal.
She graduated from McGill University with a B.A. degree in 1966 and her M.A. the following year. During 1970-71 she was a staff writer for the Centre for Community Research in New York City and is a former University of Essex lecturer in European Studies. She was a founding member and editorial director of the Writers and Readers Publishing Cooperative. Through the eighties she was a Deputy Director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, UK, for whom she also edited the seminal Documents Series and established ICA television and the video Writers in Conversation series.
She produced several made for television films and had written a number of books before devoting herself to writing fulltime in 1990. In recognition of her contribution to literature, Lisa Appignanesi has been honoured with a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French government. In 2004, she became Deputy President of English PEN and has run its highly successful 'Free Expression is No Offence Campaign' against the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill. In 2008 she became President of English PEN. She writes for The Guardian, The Independent and has made several series for BBC Radio 4, as well as frequently appearing as a cultural commentator.
In 1967, she married Richard Appignanesi, another writer, with whom she had one son in 1975, Josh Appignanesi, a film director. They divorced in 1984. With her life partner John Forrester, she had a daugther, Katrina Forrester, a Research Fellow in the history of modern political thought at St John's College, Cambridge. She lives in London.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 11, 2009
This murder mystery tells the gripping story of Leo Holland, a Manhattan cartoonist who is filled with the sense of dread. She has a premonition that something terrible has happened to her best friend Isabel Morgan, an investigative journalist from London who was scheduled to meet her in New York.
The pace of the story picks up when Leo desperate, flies to London to trace Isabel's last steps. She is convinced that her friend's disappearance is linked to her latest research on genetically modified organisms and that her analyst may be holding the key to her whereabouts. Leo uses her anonymity and masquerades as a patient to find the truth and in the process discovers more that she could ever have imagined... The novel hinges extensively on psychoanalytical techniques.
"Sanctuary" is a profound psychological thriller that reflects on how little we actually know our best friends, not to mention ourselves and how deeply events in our past affect us. Ms Appignanesi has given us a novel that is also enchanting in its own way with a large cast of memorable and well developed characters, settings that are trendy and nicely painted and a plot that is complex and poignant.
The pace of the story picks up when Leo desperate, flies to London to trace Isabel's last steps. She is convinced that her friend's disappearance is linked to her latest research on genetically modified organisms and that her analyst may be holding the key to her whereabouts. Leo uses her anonymity and masquerades as a patient to find the truth and in the process discovers more that she could ever have imagined... The novel hinges extensively on psychoanalytical techniques.
"Sanctuary" is a profound psychological thriller that reflects on how little we actually know our best friends, not to mention ourselves and how deeply events in our past affect us. Ms Appignanesi has given us a novel that is also enchanting in its own way with a large cast of memorable and well developed characters, settings that are trendy and nicely painted and a plot that is complex and poignant.
February 25, 2016
This was really different to what the cover portrayed. I was expecting something a bit artsy-fartsy? I know that's not a word but you get my meaning. It was a library find so I picked it up without a huge amount of interest thinking it might be something a bit unusual at the very least.
I was right in a sense. At its core it is basically a thriller. But in reality it was so much more. A woman goes missing and her friend goes on a mission to save her and so ensues some exciting, par-for-the-course thrilling escapades. However it delves deep into the world of psychology and people's minds and that's what I found the most interesting.
The main character of Leonora wasn't immediately likeable and often came across as quite weak but she grew as a person throughout the book and as she grew I grew to like her. The other characters were little more than accessorys for the story and for Leonora to have someone to interact with and with that in mind she really did well to carry the book as well as any character can hope to.
All in all I found it exciting and interesting which is always a great combination!
I was right in a sense. At its core it is basically a thriller. But in reality it was so much more. A woman goes missing and her friend goes on a mission to save her and so ensues some exciting, par-for-the-course thrilling escapades. However it delves deep into the world of psychology and people's minds and that's what I found the most interesting.
The main character of Leonora wasn't immediately likeable and often came across as quite weak but she grew as a person throughout the book and as she grew I grew to like her. The other characters were little more than accessorys for the story and for Leonora to have someone to interact with and with that in mind she really did well to carry the book as well as any character can hope to.
All in all I found it exciting and interesting which is always a great combination!
October 3, 2015
At first I was confused by the American's oh so very British accent.....but I chose to quiet that irk and read on. Leo's friend Isabel, a journalist, goes missing from London. Leo crosses the pond to try to hunt her down and uncovers a full cast if characters. A series of Isabel's lovers, psychiatrists, Victorianesque innkeepers, henchmen and murdered innocents keep Leo guessing at who Isobel really is. Teaming up with one of Isobel's former lovers from Australia, Leo tries to infiltrate the life of her mysterious friend while journeying ever deeper into her own psyche. Interesting book in spite of the Ameribrit.
The ending took far too long to arrive. It was okay but could have easily been cut back and made better.
The ending took far too long to arrive. It was okay but could have easily been cut back and made better.
April 15, 2021
I'm surprised at the low rating this book garnered. It was competent work in the suspense genre though more cerebral than most, set in Britain with dueling pychoanalysts i.e. mind games more than action scenes. The American heroine Leo (for Leonora) was a bit boring, an everyday Jane at loose ends after being left by her husband and her only child going off to college. She turns into sleuth when a close friend goes missing. The friendship with the missing woman seems relatively one-sided but perhaps that's inevitable when it's described by only the one participant. One off-note is the discovery that her husband and friend had a brief fling but at this point, divorced from her husband who had other affairs, she's pretty forgiving, being someone "who doesn't blame the other woman" and excusing her as just an acquaintance at the time. Well, what kind of woman embarks on a deeper friendship with a woman whose husband she's boinked? Isn't that a time bomb that could go off any moment? It was played as just a damp fizzle.
The author writes description well and leads a clear trail through the thickets of psychoanalysis, therapy for the rich. Maybe the low rating is because everything's rather subdued, few fireworks. I would give it 3 and 1/2 stars, rounding up for good 'word pictures".
The author writes description well and leads a clear trail through the thickets of psychoanalysis, therapy for the rich. Maybe the low rating is because everything's rather subdued, few fireworks. I would give it 3 and 1/2 stars, rounding up for good 'word pictures".
March 17, 2019
My inner poet loved the author's clever expressions and the lyrical sound of her words. The story itself was multifaceted and gripping, though I found it a very slow read.
Throughout the last 100 pages I was waiting for Isabel to turn up alive, which kept me from mourning her death and didn't give it the weight it should have held. The end seemed fast and random. Many connections remained unclear and incoherent.
Throughout the last 100 pages I was waiting for Isabel to turn up alive, which kept me from mourning her death and didn't give it the weight it should have held. The end seemed fast and random. Many connections remained unclear and incoherent.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2018
at times I was confused as where we were in the story. But totally fascinated too. Lots of insight to Psychology
June 25, 2024
Not terribly convincing - not thrilling, but ok. Not quite exciting enough.
November 27, 2015
The book had a seemingly riveting plot. Leo is in New York awaiting her friend to arrive from London for a road trip but she never shows so Leo goes to England only to find her friend is missing and no one seems to care.
Then 300 pages later you're introduced to some characters, you learn a bit more about Isabelle but nothing really happens. For a murder mystery it was incredibly hard to read. Nothing kept me turning the pages. Finally in the last 80 or so pages things get interesting again.
As I said, the end does get interesting but the book as a whole falls flat. I feel like a good majority of the book was pointless and doesn't entirely go with the ending. The whole time no one really wants to help Leo investigate her friend's disappearance then all of a sudden at the end everyone's concerned?
This is not a book I would recommend.
Then 300 pages later you're introduced to some characters, you learn a bit more about Isabelle but nothing really happens. For a murder mystery it was incredibly hard to read. Nothing kept me turning the pages. Finally in the last 80 or so pages things get interesting again.
As I said, the end does get interesting but the book as a whole falls flat. I feel like a good majority of the book was pointless and doesn't entirely go with the ending. The whole time no one really wants to help Leo investigate her friend's disappearance then all of a sudden at the end everyone's concerned?
This is not a book I would recommend.
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June 25, 2016Quite good plot but a bit too complicated
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews