The Sanctuary: the gripping must-read thriller by the Sunday Times bestselling author

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We travel with Ben mentally as he unravels the darker side of the utopia and how it is shaped by John's origin story. His writing style is articulate and educated, whilst remaining easy to read (and easy to lose yourself in).

Whitfield’s 2006 debut, Bareback, was an original take on werewolves; In Great Waters, an alternate history of Europe, featured mer-people.His fiancée Cara has been living on the remote island of Sanctuary Rock, the property of millionaire philanthropist Sir John Pemberley, and now she has decided to break off their engagement and stay there for good. In Pemberley’s case, he has decided that if humanity is about to bring about its own extinction, he will use the Sanctuary as a kind of Noah's Ark, but one where he is the supreme and sole ruler and where the normal rules of morality and ethics don't necessarily apply. But Ben has a feeling some terrible secret lies beneath the idyll, and sneaks around looking for clues. Ben is a painter and has just finished work on his latest commission - the portrait of a well-to-do family in one of the hundreds of Villages created by Sir John Pemberley.

When dealing with complex issues, having the ability to empathise with characters on all sides gives a story so many more dimensions. The place is also not specified, but feels very like Britain, with Ben living in what seems like it's probably London, and the Sanctuary being set in the north, probably off the coast of Scotland. This, and the origins of the terrifying figures who try to destroy the “Talents”, are questions gradually answered in this ambitious dark fantasy, the first in a projected series. For six months his fiancée Cara has been living on the remote island of Sanctuary Rock, the property of millionaire philanthropist Sir John Pemberley. A young artist makes his way their to find the woman he loves who has become one of the leading figures there.You start the book knowing there’s something bad happening on the island which, I think, is the books downfall. I live in London, in a small flat with large bookshelves, and I'm already working away on the next novel idea. stars, but I can definitely see how it's a matter of Increasingly concerned at the hold this place seems to have on Cara, Ben takes himself on a journey fraught with danger to make his way to the island.

And when he arrives in Sir John’s idyllic paradise, things spiral into a series of even more sinister twists and turns. As the time passes, Cara isn’t to be seen, and Ben, along with the billionaire’s daughter start to become suspicious about the almost cult-like atmosphere present on the island. The lead character is one of the dullest characters I've ever read and the plot is an absolute snoozer. Her ultimate fate is something most readers will agree on during a read, however, Hunter Murray does just enough to keep things ambiguous enough so that we’re never fully convinced. Tim Harford_____________________________In a disintegrating and increasingly lawless Britain, a young man is travelling north.

By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Andrew Hunter Murray has a very cool, detached, almost period writing style - combined with the dismal setting (it's never really explained how we get from where we are now to this miserable future) made the first act difficult to engage with - but the whole feel of the book changes with the second act when the action moves to a private island - the sanctuary of the book's title. I'm a fan of this authors imaginative plotting and depth of character and would recommend to any fan of intelligent speculative fiction.