Customer Reviews
recommended read - By: teddy, 20 Nov 2008 
I absolutely loved this book, didn't take me long to read as i just couldn't put it down. Great read highly recommended.
Beautifully Written - By: Miss Jessica, 16 Oct 2008 
After reading After You'd Gone by Maggie O'Farrell & enjoying it immensely I was eager to read The Vanishing Act Of Esme Lennox after hearing rave reviews about it.Like After You'd Gone this book is beautifully written.The time jumps make it abit hard to get into but once you get the hang of the way O'Farrell writes your left with a fantastic read.This book is fascinating & horrifying at the same time & has a great twist at the end.The tale of a wasted life through ignorance on mental illnessin the 1920's & 1930's fully recommended.
The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox by Maggie O'Farrell - By: Ms. K. Marsh, 08 Sep 2008 This is a bookring that I joined & I am so glad I did
Synopsis:
Set between the 1930s,and the present, Maggie O'Farrell's new novel is the story of Esme, a woman edited out of her family's history, & of the secrets that come to light when, sixty years later, she is released from care, & a young woman, Iris, discovers the great aunt she never knew she had. The mystery that unfolds is the heartbreaking tale of two sistersin colonial India & 1930s Edinburgh - of the loneliness that binds them together & the rivalries that drive them apart, & lead one of them to a shocking betrayal - but above all it is the story of Esme, a fiercely intelligent, unconventional young woman, & of the terrible price she is made to pay for her family's unhappiness.
I read this bookin a matter of hours, it was gripping, exciting & impossible to put down. This book caused a whole host of emotions as I read. I laughed & nearly cried at several parts of the book. My heart broke when I read what happened to Esme & I was disgusted & angry at her family.
My favourite characters where Iris & Esme, very similar characters I thought. I loved their passion & how they did as they pleased. Esme was so unconventional, not a typical 1930s girl & I admired her for taking a stand & being herself.
I enjoyed this book from page 1. The ending confused me a little but once I thought about it it made sense. It isn't how I would have ended the book but I still liked it.
I have never read Maggie O'Farrell before but I will definitely read more of her work. She dealt with issues of mental health, family, society & love delicately & extremely well.
10/10
Gripping read - By: Ms. Nadine L. Doyle, 13 Aug 2008 I read this book because I had nothing else to read & loved it. I couldn't put it down & when I did, I couldn't stop thinking about it. It's well written, sad, shockingin parts & thought provoking. i recommend it & I shall read more of Maggie O'Farrell books.
abit of a let down - By: Ms. J. L. Hughes, 06 Jul 2008 
I had heard that this book was a brilliant read, this is true. However, it is quite difficult to determine which character is speaking sometimes & found that the relationship between Iris, Alex & Luke was completely pointless, it has no effect on the story whatsoever. I guessed the twistin the story very early on & was on the edge of my seat waiting for another - it never came. I found the ending hurried & abit vague. I was left dissapointed, with a sense of not understanding what had happened. Nevertheless it is a very good read, that will have you reading page after page. It is a moving & poignant read.
