Critical Praise

"Compellingly and compulsively told . . . [North's] obsessive self-awareness, like a mirror, catches our attention and holds it fast."

——Merle Rubin, Los Angeles Times

"Fascinating . . . Absolutely riveting . . . The suspense . . . swells like a tsunami . . . A first-rate read."

——Joyce Cohen, People (three stars out of four)

"Mesmerizing . . . Hypnotic . . . Intensely readable and even soul-shaking . . . Shipwreck is at once a classic, even Jamesian novel of character and a highly erotic, very grown-up modern thriller-in other words, another triumph for Louis Begley."

——Michael Dirda, Washington Post Book World

"Begley is a major talent . . . He is totally in command here, and we can only marvel at his portraiture . . . Shipwreck is a novel of skill, insight, and authority."

——Roger Harris, Sunday Star-Ledger (Newark)

"Dazzling . . . So enthralling that the temptation is to let a thousand glowing adjectives bloom . . . Will pin readers to their chair right up to the final page . . . The ending is a tour de force."

——Mameve Medwed, Boston Globe