Life Sentences

By Alice Blanchard

Book Overview

Daisy Hubbard, a genetic researcher in a prestigious Boston lab, is driven to find a cure for the rare genetic disease that claimed the life of her younger brother. Her progress is halted, however, when her mentally unstable sister Anna is discovered missing from her California home. Daisy, fearing the worst, drops everything and flies across the country to find Anna. Once there, she is informed by the LAPD that known serial killer Roy Gaines has confessed to Anna's murder, but he will only reveal where he has hidden the body if he can lead Daisy to it himself. Daisy, teaming up with a handsome detective named Jack Makowski, follows Roy to a number of dead bodies, but none of them are Anna's. As Daisy realizes that Roy knows too much about her research, she begins to fear that Anna is a pawn in a game with much larger stakes. It will take all of Daisy's cunning and resolve to stop the killer in his tracks and to uncover his obsession with the disease she has been trying to unravel for her entire life.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0446576727
• ISBN13: 9780446576727
• Release Date: August 2005
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.4" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

Not to be missed

Life Sentences is a wonderfully eerie and utterly engrossing thriller about a Boston geneticist who drops everything, and travels across the country to investigate the disappearance of her schizophrenic sister. Alice Blanchard brings many skills to the table here--extensive research into gene therapy, a rich plot with compelling characters and beautiful narrative description. This is a great book-- not to be missed.

great idea again

Blanchard keeps coming up with great ideas for her books. The "debris killer" in Breathtaker, and this genetics angle in Life Sentences. Love the powerul literary writing. Fantastic characters, and dense story. I find this author to be highly unusual, and thank God. Different is better in this over-played genre. Great book.

a cut above

I usually don't write these things. But the "Ugh. Crap." comment below is not only ridiculous, but ignorant. Life Sentences is a touching, disturbing and beautiful novel that is way, way, way better than most of the books passing for thrillers these days. It's not an "airplane read." It's a book to be savored. This writer should be on the best-seller list if there's any justice in the universe.

I didn't want this book to end.

LIFE SENTENCES really got under my skin. It's a suspense thriller involving two sisters whose lives have taken radically different paths. Daisy Hubbard is a professional on a fast-track and her little sister Anna has a history of mental illness and is spinning out of control. When her big sister tries to help, a fascinating mystery unfolds. The story is utterly compelling from first page to last. Blanchard is great at creating three-dimensional characters with tremendous heart. The story is loaded with atmosphere. The action is swift and surprising. The genetics research is beautifully handled. The ideas are fresh and interesting. All these elements are woven together so successfully that LIFE SENTENCES is an impressive tapestry. The great thing about Blanchard is that each one of her books takes a different kind of risk. Take the risk with LIFE SENTENCES--Blanchard's storytelling is masterful.

terrific medical thriller

Boston based research neurogeneticist Daisy Hubbard is obsessed with her work on gene therapy for brain disorders because of family illnesses. Her brother died at six years old of Stier-Zellar's disease; her mother has depression; and her sister Anna suffers from schizophrenia. When her mom goes over the edge because Anna vanishes, Daisy thinks nothing of this because her sibling has disappeared before. However, mom makes a persuasive case that this time the vanishing act is different so reluctantly Daisy leaves her laboratory haven to travel to California. LAPD Detective Jack Makowski convinces Daisy to help him with her sibling's missing person's case that includes other females that seem linked to a serial killer. Starting with visiting Anna's friends in De Campo Beach, last known place that she apparently was before falling off the map, the duo investigates unaware that the culprit is taking genetic engineering to the extreme by eradicating those with specific diseases. LIFE SENTENCES is a terrific medical thriller that provides readers with a deep look at the full impact on families by degenerative diseases to include members without any illnesses as there is a psychological impact as well as physical and financial factors. The exhilarating story line is action-packed yet insures the two key players, Daisy and the killer come across as similar yet opposites. Anyone who reads Alice Blanchard's strong tale will wonder why we bushwhack stem cell research. Harriet Klausner