The Temple House Vanishing

By: Rachel Donohue

Narrated by: Jennifer Fitzgerald, Clodagh Duggan

Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

The New York Times Best Thrillers of 2021

"Steamily atmospheric . . . A twisted Gothic tale, emotional in its language and febrile in its atmosphere, and it will appeal to readers who love to hear about obsession, repression . . . and poetic justice.”—The New York Times Book Review

Louisa is the new scholarship student at Temple House, a drafty, imposing cliffside boarding school full of girls as chilly as the mansion itself. There is one other outsider, an intense and compelling student provocateur named Victoria, and the two girls form a fierce bond. But their friendship is soon unsettled by a young art teacher, Mr. Lavelle, whose charismatic presence ignites tension and obsession in the cloistered world of the school.

Then one day, Louisa and Mr. Lavelle vanish without a trace, never to be found. Now, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the disappearance, one journalist—a woman who grew up on the same street as Louisa—delves into the past, determined to uncover the truth. She finds stories of jealousy and revenge, power and class. But might she find Louisa and Mr. Lavelle, too?

Told in alternating points of view, The Temple House Vanishing is tense, atmospheric, and gripping . . . with a shocking, ingenious conclusion.

An Irish best seller and finalist for the Irish Book Awards Newcomer of the Year

©2021 Rachel Donohue (P)2022 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

“With shades of everything from The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Frost in May to Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Secret History, this is subtle, intriguing and very well written.”—The Guardian

“The creeping pace, melancholic tone, and full-bodied characters create a perfect snapshot of desperate youth amid oppressive tradition. This stands among the best of the current modern gothic trend.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Donohue is a master of clean, sharp prose and has a hugely impressive ability to create layers of atmosphere or ratchet up tension in a couple of beguilingly simple sentences."—The Irish Times

Brilliant

Initially I was put off a bit by the narration, it takes a minute to sort of level off at an even pace. At first it’s too fast, then too slow, but please be patient! Because you will find that if you are and you get through the initial 3 or 4 chapters, you will fall in love with this book.
The story is gothic, brutally and beautifully written. The characters are well developed, the atmosphere is so beautifully described that you feel as if you are standing right next the characters in some of these scenes.
It’s a true mystery, it’s exceptionally detailed, full of real insight into the human condition, struggle, the pain, the wonder, the darkness, the light we all carry in some way or another.
It is a thoroughly original story too, which I found refreshing. The location itself was just so completely intriguing and creepy, I just wanted to know as much as I possibly could about this school, the girls Louisa and Victoria, as well as Mr LaVelle, I hungered for more of this story and could not put it down.
I literally finished it in one and a half sittings, I stayed up all night because I couldn’t sleep without knowing what happened to these very interesting and empathetic characters.
The narration was good, like I said initially a bit manic, and then a bit slow but when things even out it becomes very easy to listen to.
I highly recommend this incredibly unique and beautiful, creepy book.
You won’t regret spending a credit here.
I wish Rachel Donohue had more titles on offer as I would gladly read those as well.
If this was her first novel I can only imagine that she’s going to be writing some incredible books in the coming years.
Five Stars across the board ☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️

liked this one

Lots to like: strong plot, interesting characters, mystery, seduction, ghosts, poetry, moody landscape. The narrator tells it well.

Gothic love story

The mystery of a disappeared student a d tea her at a remote cliffside parochial school is an excellent setup for this gothic love story. Charlotte Bronte would be proud.

Not great

This is a long journey to nowhere. It is overly wordy and not much happens. The narration is not great, and the resolution is confusing and ultimately unsatisfying. It felt like a waste of time.

So much potential

The premise for this story had so much potential to be creepy, compelling and emotional, but it wasn’t any of them. The characters were not well developed, either too exaggerated-Helen-or too weak-Louisa. Maybe a brutal editor and some serious rewrites could have made it better.