Rarely have I read a novel that captured my interest as powerfully as Sanctuary. The lyrical prose and excellent characterization intrigued me and kept me turning each page eager for the next. In this medieval tale, an abandoned baby girl is given shelter by 13 monks who live in a remote monastery high on the cliffs of Meteora Greece. They name her Catherine and they raise her with fatherly love and wisdom. When she comes of age, a nobleman and his son discover her and soon she is set free to discover the world. But treachery is afoot and Catherine soon grows to appreciate the love and the world she left behind.

In this moving novel, Inez brings to life religious life in medieval times and tells of a powerful love between fathers and daughters. A must read for everyone who enjoys historical fiction!

You grab the book… read a little… read a little more… and you're hooked – one, to the character of the young damsel Catherine, promising and beautiful, as she flits through life with innocence and gracefulness amidst the rough tumbles; and two, to the plot that keeps you dreaming with the characters plus a couple of twists and turns that catch you off guard! Whoa!

The author has a way of vividly bringing the characters into reality through the words, the pace, the setting, and just about everything. For me, SANCTUARY is about pursuing one's dreams. It's about taking risks. It's all about sacrifice. About bliss. Sorrow. Pain. Love. It's simply about LIFE. And for all the dreamers and risk-takers, this is definitely a must-read!

Sanctuary is definitely a gem. You rarely find a book with that kind of power to spellbind the reader nowadays. The story itself draws you in like a magic lure and keeps you hooked until the very last word. If you haven't read this, you've missed at most half of your life.

Sanctuary is a dramatic tale of a young woman who had loved and trusted despite the tragedy that would eventually befall her. Her incessant determination and courageous spirit made Sanctuary readers admire her even more as they went on leafing through the pages.

I really find it amazing that novel authors could create characters more than the fingers of my two hands and give life to them. Not just mere descriptions, but a character that a reader could associate with. But what I really liked about this book is another well-worded quote about life and choices.
"...you must choose a life and live it for the right reasons - not to forget, not to escape, and never to sin."
- Brother Battista

Sanctuary is a beautifully crafted tale so enthralling that not even the rising sun and the perils of an irate boss at work can stop the reader from reading until a satisfying conclusion (if not the actual end of the book) is reached. Inez Ponce de Leon’s prose is so vividly descriptive that it’s hard to put down the book once you’ve grown attached to Meteora and its diverse cast of characters. Strangely familiar yet still incredibly moving, Sanctuary should be highly recommended to every reader of the historical novel genre.

Definitely a book for your collection. Sanctuary is a classically simple yet entrancing tale with unpretentious charm that keeps you turning the pages. Author Inez Ponce de Leon shows great writing talent as she created a wondrous tale of love and sorrow set in an enchanting location and time in the past.

As one who enjoys reading novels in historical settings, "Sanctuary" was satisfying, if short for the genre. But then again, not everyone likes reading lengthy books. The style was a little jarring at first, what with the going forward and back in time, but once you figure out the pattern, it makes sense. When the heroine, Catherine is all grown-up, this smooths out and the usual progression asserts itself. As a reader of Ellis Peters Brother Cadfael books and of course Umberto Eco's "Name of the Rose", I was completely taken by the descriptions of life on Meteora. Because of the length, I could not help but wonder what other adventures Catherine had up on the heights of Meteora with her adoptive father monks. Maybe in the future, the story can be expanded, as many authors do with their older works these days. The story catches you up and sweeps you along with the characters' joys, fears and sorrows, and you let it, because despite everything, it needs to be seen to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed it, although perhaps that's not the right word to describe what I felt, but it's the closest convention. Now I feel like travelling to Greece to see the monasteries of Meteora myself.