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The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox
 
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The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Paperback)

by Maggie O'Farrell (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (80 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
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Product details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Headline Review; Reprint edition (17 May 2007)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0755308441
  • ISBN-13: 978-0755308446
  • Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 12.2 x 2.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (80 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,526 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #1 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > O > O'Farrell, Maggie

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Product Description

Amanda Craig, The Times
'O'Farrell's imaginative territory is one you return to with delight' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

‘Actually unputdownable, written with charge and energy and a kind of compelling drive, a clarity and a gripping dramatic insidiousness reminiscent of classic Daphne du Maurier’

(Ali Smith )

'O’Farrell’s subtlety and delicate touch have never been so finely demonstrated'

(Independent on Sunday )

'Mesmerisingly good’

(Daily Mail )

'O’Farrell’s story-telling skills ensure that this novel is compulsively readable, and delivers strong emotional punch’

(Telegraph )

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Customer Reviews

80 Reviews
5 star:
 (35)
4 star:
 (31)
3 star:
 (11)
2 star:
 (3)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (80 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written page turner, 11 Jun 2007
By K. French (Oxfordshire) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I have previously read another Maggie O'Farrell, and loved her gentle narrative, so thought "The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox" would be the perfect holiday read. The book contains a bit of everything, intrigue, love, sadness and even some humour, and tells of the huge betrayal of Esme Lennox by her sister, and the susbsequent consequences. I loved the portrayal of Esme as a quirky, rebellious character fighting against the typical expectations of her family, and enjoyed hearing the story from several different angels, that of Esme herself, her sister, and her newly found relative. The whole tale builds up to a climatic finale, which left a slightly disturbing flavour, but is befitting and not out of line with the rest of the book. Overall, a highly recommended read.
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26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended, 8 Jun 2007
By gerty guinea (Yorkshire) - See all my reviews
Maggie O'Farrell is a fantastic writer, with the ability to weave various strands of stories together in such a seamless manner. The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox was a moving, at times shocking book. I found Kitty's jumbled recollections particularly effective, and I felt angry and frustrated by Esme's plight - her only crime was to be a spirited child who was reluctant to follow the conventional path expected of her. The words just flowed off the pages. I loved this book.
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43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars My New Favourite Novel, 7 Feb 2007
By Lucy Sampson (Keswick, Cumbria) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox (Hardcover)
I have to start this review with a warning: if you pick up this book you won't be able to put it down until you've finished. Nothing else will get done - you won't be able to answer the phone, cook a meal, pick up your emails, anything. You'll just have to sit there, stuck to your chair, and keep on reading.

This is the story of a woman put into an asylum for doing nothing more than trying on some of her mother's clothes and refusing to cut her hair. Not the behaviour of an insane person but the normal things a teenager does. But Esme has been born into a repressive, pre-Second-Worl-War society and so any slight rebellion is seen as a sign of an unsound mind.

It is a brilliant, evocative, moving book. I cried about four times, especially towards the end. It moves back and forth from the 1930s to the present-day Edinburgh. Esme's niece, Iris, is called to the asylum to meet the great-aunt she never knew she had. At first she's reluctant to have anything to do with her but then she gets caught up in the mystery that is Esme Lennox...

I can't find the words to recommend this book enough. BUY IT. IT'S GREAT!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars well written ended up buying all her other books and buying this book for friends
I rarely find a book where I want to read the whole thing. Every single word.

Maggie O'Farrell is talented. Read more
Published 3 days ago by Sofia Says

3.0 out of 5 stars A tale of betrayal and deceit.....
Iris is a single woman with her own business living in Edinburgh. She has a lover and also a married step-brother who continually makes a play for her. Read more
Published 28 days ago by Wynne Kelly

4.0 out of 5 stars A compelling read but a slightly disappointing ending
This was the first book I've read by O' Farrell but I will read more for definite. I was so addicted to this book that when I realised I'd left it out in the garden I found myself... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Sophie A. Jones

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous!
Really enjoyed, and was moved by, Esme's story! Highly recommended, great book club choice, lots of discussion about this story. Read more
Published 1 month ago by S. Evans

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost, but not quite
This is Maggie O'Farrell's most enjoyable book since 'After You'd Gone' (but I don't think anything she'll ever write will live up to her debut). Read more
Published 2 months ago by Adrienne Storme

5.0 out of 5 stars FAB!
GREAT BOOK - TRUE WHAT THEY SAY - NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY IT'S COVER!!
Published 2 months ago by C. PAYNE

3.0 out of 5 stars Compelling...
I found this very readable and finished it within 24 hours. The horror story of Esme's incarceration is shocking because it is something that really happened to thousands of... Read more
Published 3 months ago by M. C. Holliman

5.0 out of 5 stars Shocking, evocative and un-put-downable
Not my usual cup of tea - too 'modern' and pseudo-feminist a topic for my taste. BUT - what a revelation! Read more
Published 5 months ago by DaisyBelle

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting subject, themes could have been better developed..
I was really looking forward to reading this for my book group. Maggie O'Farrel writes in a very readable style and I have to say that you cannot help being moved by the story of... Read more
Published 7 months ago by H. Rose

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous, chilling read
I heard of this book some time ago, when a lot of people were raving about it, but I'd tried Maggie O'Farrell's After You'd Gone and not got on very well with it, so had held off... Read more
Published 7 months ago by hat

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