Sanctuary

by Nora Roberts

Book Overview

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts comes a seductive and suspenseful novel of dangerous liaisons and family betrayals... Photographer Jo Ellen Hathaway thought she'd escaped the house called Sanctuary long ago. She'd spent her loneliest years there, after the sudden, unexplained disappearance of her mother. Yet the sprawling inn on an island off the Georgia coast continues to haunt her dreams. And now, even more haunting are the...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0515122734
• ISBN13: 9780515122732
• Release Date: May 1998
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 528 Pages
• Weight: 0.58 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.3" x 7.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Good read

I almost couldn't read! I want to know who?? Took all I had to read fast,now I'll go back and read slower

A Story that Draws the Reader into It!

SANCTUARY is a story about Jo Ellen Hathaway, a New York photographer. Jo Ellen had grown up off of the Georgia coast in a resort called Sanctuary (actually they call it a resort, but it's more of a Bed and Breakfast Victorian style house and there are campgrounds around the island - not a true resort, but it does sound wonderful). Jo Ellen's memories of Sanctuary were not happy ones after her mother disappeared when she was a child, 20 years previously. Jo Ellen starts receiving pictures of herself in the mail and realizes she's being stalked. Then she has a nervous breakdown when she's sent one of her beautiful mother, lying naked and dead. That shocks her and sends her back to her family and Sanctuary. Has that synopsis intrigued you enough to want to read this book? Ok, let me help captivate you some more with my story of reading this book: I took this hardback with me on vacation when it first came out. What a huge mistake! My vacation wasn't restful and relaxed until I finished this story! SANCTUARY refused to let me put it down and would call my name until I picked it up and began reading again. As I was sitting on the beach supervising my daughters build the world's best sandcastle; I could hear that book in my bag. As we were getting ready for bed in preparation for a full day of adventure the next day, SANCTUARY would call out to me. Ok, so maybe the book didn't speak, but the story sure did - I was so engrossed with the tale that I couldn't put it down. I'd stay up late at night reading "just one more chapter". I was at that resort with Jo Ellen while she was trying to mend the family relationships with her siblings, Lexy and Brian, and as she tried to break through the wall her father had erected around himself after his wife had disappeared. I felt like I was there when she met Nathan Delaney, whose family had stayed on the island the summer of her mother's disappearance. I had goose bumps when the eerie pictures arrived in the mail and the stalker followed Jo Ellen back to Sanctuary. SANCTUARY has to be one of Nora Roberts's best books. It grabs the reader from the beginning and doesn't let go. Roberts draws the reader so far into the story that you are breathing hard as Jo Ellen is racing through the trees to find the stalker. You don't' feel safe until you know what happened to Jo Ellen's mother (did she just abandon her family as was the speculation or something worse). You absolutely must know the identity of the person behind sending those awful pictures. I've always felt that Roberts is a master manipulator who draws the reader into the lives of her characters, but she has out done herself with this one. She has made it an interaction between the story line and the reader, one the reader won't soon forget! One word to describe SANCTUARY: EXCELLENT.

Perfect mix of Romance and Suspense

"Sanctuary" by Nora Roberts is a truly enjoyable and worth-while read. The story is absorbing and well-written and contains a mix of fabulous, complex characters. "Sanctuary" is the story of three siblings, Jo Ellen, Brian and Lexy Hathaway. Jo Ellen is a successful photographer and a workaholic. She suffers a nervous breakdown when she receives a photo from an anonymous sender of her mother, thought to have abandoned her family and run away with another man 20 years ago, looking young and beautiful, naked, and unmistakably dead. When Jo Ellen is released from hospital she returns to Sanctuary Inn, her family home on an island off the coast of Georgia. Jo Ellen sets about rebuilding her relationships with her brother Brian, the inn's chef, and her ever-jealous sister Lexy, an aspiring actress working as Sanctuary's waitress. She is also looking for some stability and a place to regain her sanity.Enter Nathan Delaney, who was with his family on the island the summer that Jo Ellen's mother disappeared. Jo Ellen and Nathan are drawn to each other and develop a relationship. But Nathan is tormented by a dark secret that has attracted a killer to the island and has put Jo Ellen in more danger than anyone suspects.Add to the mix a romance between Brian and the pretty island doctor, Kirby, and a romance between Lexy and her long-time friend Griff, and you have the recipe for a highly entertaining book. The suspense builds effectively and the clues provided will keep the reader guessing. Jo Ellen and Nathan's romance, which is the main focus, is by turns sexy and moving. I have noticed some complaints from reviewers who thought there were too many characters and storylines, but I personally never felt this was a problem. Each storyline is fully developed and all of the characters have their motivations well explained. I really enjoyed watching all three of the Hathaway siblings finding someone to love and depend on in the midst of the disturbing events taking place on their island."Sanctuary" is a fabulous, fun read, containing well-written romances and an exciting and suspenseful mystery. So pick this book up today and enjoy!

Great characters; gorgeous locale

I loved this book and appreciated the way Ms. Roberts is pushing the envelope of romantic suspense. This is the first time I've read a romantic suspense thriller where the author has portrayed the hero as a plausible suspect -- in fact, I had to check the back of the book to make sure the hero was actually the hero... I wasn't going to make the mistake of caring about a hero who turned out to be a sadistic murderer! And I'm pleased that he was indeed a one-in-a-million hero.Ms. Roberts is truly a gifted descriptive writer. The island came to vivid life and it was as if I could feel the grit of the sand as I walked the beach with the characters. And the storm! Ms. Roberts' descriptive power put me there with the screaming winds lashing my hair about my face and the rains pelting mercilessly. I've never been in a hurricane before, but it felt as if I'd been through one after reading about Hurricane Carla!Bravo, Nora! I hesitated reading this book because it didn't seem like my type, but I'm glad I gave it a try. In fact, I got it from the library and enjoyed it so much that, after I finished it, I went out and bought my own copy for future re-reading!

Indiana reader rates Sanctuary 5 stars...

Sanctuary is one of NR's most enticing, romantic and mysterious novels yet! I have not yet finished the book (I've had it for two days) but I plan on finishing the last few chapters this afternoon on my way home from work. I have read at least 12 books by Nora Roberts and every single one of them has been fantastic. I suppose you could say I'm a NR addict!In Sanctuary, Nora Roberts develops at least four hot and steamy romances along with a very suspenseful murder mystery. I can't wait to find out who it is! Nora Roberts writes stories that stay with you forever. I have not read a book that I have not thought about since and I will read them all again!Thank you Nora for the most entertaining, suspenseful and romantic times I've had over the last several months! And congratulations on your success!