The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox

The intense and breathtakingly accomplished novel from the bestselling author of HAMNET and THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT *440,000 copies sold* 'Seductive in style, prickly, disturbing and delicious' Olivia Laing _____ Edinburgh in the 1930s. The Lennox family is having trouble with its youngest daughter. Esme is outspoken, unconventional, and repeatedly embarrasses them in polite society. Something will have to be done. Years later, a young woman named Iris Lockhart receives a letter informing her that she has a great-aunt in a psychiatric unit who is about to be released. Iris has never heard of Esme Lennox and the one person who should know more, her grandmother Kitty, seems unable to answer Iris's questions. What could Esme have done to warrant a lifetime in an institution? And how is it possible for a person to be so completely erased from a family's history? _____ 'Actually unputdownable' Ali Smith 'Compulsively readable' Daily Telegraph 'O'Farrell's subtlety and delicate touch have never been so finely demonstrated' Independent on Sunday _____ What readers are saying; 'A gripping page turner and easily the best book i've read this year' 'Truly stunning... the way she writes is just exquisite' 'I wanted it to go on and on' ⭐

The intense and breathtakingly accomplished novel from the bestselling author of HAMNET and THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT *440,000 copies sold* 'Seductive in style, prickly, disturbing and delicious' Olivia Laing _____ Edinburgh in the 1930s. The Lennox family is having trouble with its youngest daughter. Esme is outspoken, unconventional, and repeatedly embarrasses them in polite society. Something will have to be done. Years later, a young woman named Iris Lockhart receives a letter informing her that she has a great-aunt in a psychiatric unit who is about to be released. Iris has never heard of Esme Lennox and the one person who should know more, her grandmother Kitty, seems unable to answer Iris's questions. What could Esme have done to warrant a lifetime in an institution? And how is it possible for a person to be so completely erased from a family's history? _____ 'Actually unputdownable' Ali Smith 'Compulsively readable' Daily Telegraph 'O'Farrell's subtlety and delicate touch have never been so finely demonstrated' Independent on Sunday _____ What readers are saying; 'A gripping page turner and easily the best book i've read this year' 'Truly stunning... the way she writes is just exquisite' 'I wanted it to go on and on' ⭐

From the New York Times best-selling author of Hamnet comes a gothic, intricate tale of family secrets, lost lives, and the freedom brought by truth... In the middle of tending to the everyday business at her vintage-clothing shop and sidestepping her married boyfirend's attempts at commitment, Iris Lockhart receives a stunning phone call: Her great-aunt Esme, whom she never knew existed, is being released from Cauldstone Hospital--where she has been locked away for more than 61 years. Iris's grandmother Kitty always claimed to be an only child. But Esme's papers prove she is Kitty's sister, and Iris can see the shadow of her dead father in Esme's face. Esme has been labeled harmless--sane enough to coexist with the rest of the world. But she's still basically a stranger, a family member never mentioned by the family, and one who is sure to bring life-altering secrets with her when she leaves the ward. If Iris takes her in, what dangerous truths might she inherit? Exposing the seedy past of Victorian asylums, the oppression of family secrets, and the way truth can change everything, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox will haunt you long past its final page...

From the New York Times best-selling author of Hamnet comes a gothic, intricate tale of family secrets, lost lives, and the freedom brought by truth... In the middle of tending to the everyday business at her vintage-clothing shop and sidestepping her married boyfirend's attempts at commitment, Iris Lockhart receives a stunning phone call: Her great-aunt Esme, whom she never knew existed, is being released from Cauldstone Hospital--where she has been locked away for more than 61 years. Iris's grandmother Kitty always claimed to be an only child. But Esme's papers prove she is Kitty's sister, and Iris can see the shadow of her dead father in Esme's face. Esme has been labeled harmless--sane enough to coexist with the rest of the world. But she's still basically a stranger, a family member never mentioned by the family, and one who is sure to bring life-altering secrets with her when she leaves the ward. If Iris takes her in, what dangerous truths might she inherit? Exposing the seedy past of Victorian asylums, the oppression of family secrets, and the way truth can change everything, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox will haunt you long past its final page...