A review by thebooktrail88
The Vanishing by Sophia Tobin

4.0

Visit the locations in the novel


Sophia Tobin writes a darn good gothic tale! If you read this on the Yorkshire moors where the book is set, in the middle of winter, you will chill yourself and you might even see White Windows, the house, as it seems so real.

It put me in mind of Wuthering Heights and Jane Eyre as it has that kind of chilling, remote, raw, wild feel to it all. Annaleigh comes from London to work at the gothic house there and to become its housekeeper. There’s the lonesome master and a sister there but they’re not what she is expecting and there’s something odd and strange about them and the house. Chill factor alert!

The moors and the gothic house really are the star of the show but the characters…oh let’s not forget them…so vividly drawn and dark…Annaleigh faces one challenge after another and has to decide how she will live at the house and how she will deal with those already there. But how will they deal with her? This is claustrophobic and ominous, with a sense of foreboding wrapping and whistling around the moors like the wind itself. The mysterious Twentymans are some of the most deliciously gothic creations I’ve read in some time.

Sophia Tobin weaves an intricate spell in these pages and it’s a delight to read although I may avoid a visit to the Yorkshire moors until the memories fade…..