Beneath the shearling of her favourite lambskin jacket, in a 1970s-style that suits these rough-hewn surroundings, Jessie’s heart quickens. Present-day Jessie is aborting the chaos of London life and transporting her family to gorgeous Applecote Manor.

The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde: Chase, Eve: 9780718180096 The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde: Chase, Eve: 9780718180096

The Gothic overtones of this novel were heightened by the setting, which remained a constant link, along with the spirit of Audrey, between the narratives. I found the present family to be a little boring, maybe if they had been related to the sisters, it might have been more engaging. I always love stories about sisters and I loved that these sisters were both distinctive and alike, and that the relationships between them were so very well drawn. Her face soft, opening, Jessie tracks the paned glass as it climbs to its geometrical peak, a feat of Victorian engineering that promises tangy Mediterranean fruit in the English climate among the woolly pippins. The story has a lot of familial touches, bringing the characters to life in a vivid and emotional way, drawing the reader into their world with lush writing, dialogue, and descriptions.The mystery really grabbed me and I was easily transported to the lazy, idyllic teen summer full of secrets - also a summer of creepy/sad mystery, sisters, crushes and coming of age. The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde is a haunting, interwoven mystery that flips back and forth between the 1950s, and the present. Of course the house is a bit reluctant to give up its secrets, revealing them slowly and gradually, until we finally find out what happened to Audrey all those years ago. I ask myself, what would Audrey do right now if she were me, and I her, and our fates had been swapped, like straw boaters, as they so easily might have been in the jumble of the last days of summer? The characters of step-mother and step-daughter in the present day were just as well done, and I was very impressed by the way that the relationship between the two was drawn and the way that it evolved.

Loading interface - Goodreads

The writing makes the book feel haunted and alive, it brings an atmosphere to you that you cannot shake. Maar hun oom en tante blijken nog steeds bezeten van de verdwijning van hun dochter Audrey, nu vijf jaar geleden. Though I was afraid that I would not love the present timeline as much as the sisters’, I was soon won over by this young family, who were (almost) as compelling and interesting as the Wilde sisters.

From the girl who appeared to have everything to her impoverished cousins, it would appear on the surface which family was to be envied, but life is full of twists and turns and the house remains constant, looking on. The atmosphere in this country retreat is suffocating as Audrey’s parents cannot move on from this terrible event. From the first chapter, which completely grabs your attention, there is a fascinating atmosphere of mystery. Something about that optimism – control through enclosure, a sort of forced nurturing – whispers in her ear: isn’t she trying to do something similar, only with a family?