The Search for Claire Holowitz

Helen Hansen’s debut novel is a must read for anyone who believes in serendipity, friendship, marriages that last, and the promise of love even when it has once been lost. Scenes media executive Leen MacLeen, lawyer Sarah Calder, university professor Dr.Amy Keiffers, and psychiatrist Dr. Becky Sutherland have been best friends for over twenty-five years. When Amy purchases a home outside the city of Ottawa, the four friends are amused and intrigued by Amy’s neighbour Anna Wright and her quaint mannerisms; so much so, that they invite Anna into their circle of friendship. But Anna has secrets of her own and although willing to get to know the four women, she is wary of them learning too much about her past. When Leen is hired to organize a New York Gala to honour famed author, playwright, and photographer Claire Holowitz, she has no idea that her search for Claire will not only change her life but the lives of her best friends and that of Anna Wright. Leen’s search for Claire Holowitz will challenge each woman’s ethics, friendship, and love.

Helen Hansen’s debut fiction novel is a must read story for people who believe in the possibility of new friendships and love. Media executive Leen MacLeen, lawyer Sarah Calder, university professor Dr. Amy Keiffers, and psychiatrist Dr. Becky Sutherland have been best friends for over twenty-five years. When Leen is given the task of organizing a New York Gala to honour famed but reclusive author / playwright / photographer Claire Holowitz, she has no idea how her life and the lives of her friends will be changed. If Leen can find Claire Holowitz and convince her to attend the Gala, she will achieve what no one in the media world has been able to accomplish – Claire Holowitz has not made any public appearances or granted any media interviews since the tragic deaths of her husband and daughter forty years ago. But, is Leen willing to pay the price for achieving her goals? Is she willing to risk making a hard choice between betrayal and friendship? To complicate matters, lawyer Marc Andre Aumount finds himself drawn to Leen but owes his first loyalty to his client, Claire Holowitz. Without his cooperation and ability to gain Leen access to directors, artists, and people who have known Claire or owned her works, the Gala will not be a success. When Leen discovers that Amy’s quaint senior neighbour, Anna Wright, knows a great deal about Claire Holowitz’s novels and contributions to the Arts, she asks for Anna’s help. Reluctant but curious, Anna agrees. But Anna has secrets of her own and she too will have to make choices. Leen’s Search for Claire Holowitz will challenge the importance of friendship, test the meaning of forgiveness, and question the courage it takes to right a wrong. All five women will learn that sometimes in life it is necessary to take a chance on what she knows to be true.

Helen Hansen, a first-time novelist, lives in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She has one daughter who lives in Vancouver, British Columbia.