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Fifty years later, Jesse is desperate to move her family out of their London home, where signs of her widower husband's previous wife are around every corner. Beautiful Applecote Manor, nestled in the English countryside, seems the perfect solution. But Jesse finds herself increasingly isolated in their new sprawling home, at odds with her sixteen-year-old stepdaughter, and haunted by the strange rumors that surround the estate. Jessie and Will believe that Applecote Manor will be “a gentler, more benign” place than London, a city that “forces girls to grow up too fast, strips them of their innocence”. Do you agree with their decision to move the girls? How does the house prove their expectations wrong? Have you ever moved somewhere in hopes of achieving a different lifestyle? The first story is told by fifteen year-old Margot Wilde, the third of four sisters who live a happy, bohemian life in fifties London. When their widowed mother is presented with the chance of a summer in Morocco she seizes it, and sends her girls to stay with their Aunt Sibyl and Uncle Perry at Applegate Manor in the Cotswolds. It would be their first visit since their cousin Audrey had disappeared five years earlier.
The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde by Eve Chase | Goodreads The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde by Eve Chase | Goodreads
From the beginning of the novel we are aware of a terrible tragedy that has befallen the Harrington family. How do you think this event changed each of the characters involved? Do you think the story would have taken a different turn had this tragedy not happened? Margot misses Audrey terribly at the beginning of the novel, but as the summer progresses her relationship to Audrey seems to change as well. What does Audrey’s friendship mean to Margot? Why do you think Margot goes along with Sybil’s fantasy? How does pretending to be Audrey change Margot? Margot notices as the summer goes on that Sybil and Perry “really [are] one system, redistributing their appetites, that the marriage that once looked so dead may actually be alive at the roots”. How does the novel portray marriage? How is marriage different for Sybil and Perry than it is for Jessie and Will, or for Will and Mandy? However, trouble starts almost immediately. Her stepdaughter becomes increasingly difficult to handle, her husband is always away at work, and disturbing rumors about the house finally reach her ears. As her stepdaughter becomes nearly obsessed with the strange disappearance of a former resident, Jesse feels her life is slowly unraveling.
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Applecote Manor in 1959 was home for Perry, Sylvia, and Audrey as well as the summer vacation place for the Wildling sisters Margot, Flora, Pam, and Dot until the summer Audrey disappeared. In a way, the Finches’ remote Cornish summer home feels like another character in the novel. If the Victorian villa were real, do you think you would choose to live there? Why or why not? A stunning new writer has arrived - gripping and heart rending, this novel is full of original characters which don't let you forget them -- Katie Fforde Fifty years later, with the memory of her widower husband’s wife constantly surrounding her, Jesse is ready to escape the city. Not only that, her stepdaughter was involved in an ugly incident, which figured into her desire to move. Applecote Manor felt like the perfect place in the perfect setting at the perfect time. The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde is a haunting, richly evocative dream of a novel, filled with suspense and secrets. I’d definitely recommend a visit to Applecote Manor.
The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde / The Wildling Sisters The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde / The Wildling Sisters
Meanwhile, in 1959, the four Wildling sisters have been uprooted from London to spend the summer with their aunt and uncle at Applecote Manor, where their cousin disappeared. Soon, dark secrets begin to unwind in the hazy summer days, families are tested and there are twists at every turn. The four sisters move to Applecote Manor to live with their Aunt Sybil and Uncle Peregrine when their mother goes abroad. Aunt Sybil has imprisoned herself in the home since the disappearance of her daughter, Audrey, five years earlier. She went down to the river one day and was never seen again. This summer wasn't the best for anyone, though. The close knit sisters drew apart, and Margot was obsessed with finding out what really happened to Audrey. Along with everything else, Aunt Sylvia did a few odd things and kept things from the girls. They find their uncle and aunt still reeling from the disappearance of their only daughter, five years before. An undercurrent of dread runs through the house. Why did Audrey vanish? Who is keeping her fate secret?
There are sisters in the modern-day section too, which contrasts nicely with the sibling relationship of the Wildlings that is tested that summer of 1959. It’s not clear how close their more contemporary counterparts are in reality until they, too, are put to the test but factors such as their age gap, being part of a blended family and some worrying sleepwalking all have a part to play, as does the core mystery.
The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde (Audio Download): Eve Chase The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde (Audio Download): Eve Chase
Firstly I loved the setting of Applecote Manor. The description of those seemingly endless summer days of childhood, discovering new friends and creating mysteries everywhere was brilliant. It definitely had me feeling nostalgic for my own childhood and the adventures I had with my sister in the woods behind our house. The house almost seemed alive at times as it seemed to change depending on the moods of the occupants and seemed to help them discover clues to solve the mystery. This helped contribute to the spooky atmosphere that is present throughout the book. If you like mysteries and family drama, the WILDLING SISTERS is for you. It has a hint of Gothic and an undertone of foreboding. Jessie, our protagonist in the present day, was highly likeable and roused my sympathies instantly. Trying to carve out her own identity as a new mother and wife, she increasingly compares herself to her predecessor, always selling herself short. Moving to Applecote Manor is not only a new start for the whole family, but also a late in life coming of age for Jessie. She’s a character who shines throughout, honest in her introspection, and I admired her tenacity, particularly when it came to interacting with her step-daughter. I felt the author depicted this precarious relationship t If Lauren, Flora, and Kat had been connected by a different father figure, do you think their lives would have been different? If so, in what ways? Oh how I loved these characters! The Wilde sisters (or “Wildlings”) make for a very colourful and compelling bunch to lead you into their world, and paired with the atmospheric setting of Applecote Manor, it contained everything I love in a book.The characters were all very well imagined and developed throughout the book, seeming very realistic and true to life. I especially liked Margot who reminded me of me from my childhood slightly geeky (OK I was very geeky!), misunderstood and suffering from eczema. She was definitely was a character I felt I could get behind and I found myself hoping she would have the happy ending I felt she deserved. I also felt sorry for Jessie as I felt she was a women trying her best against a very angry and obstructive step daughter. Her attempts to make a better, happier life for her new family was very poignant at times. I never really warmed to Ben though. I wanted to shake him for his casual attitude towards His daughters obvious grief for her late mother and for letting her drive a wedge between him and Jessie. I don’t think I would have been as patient and understanding as Jessie was. When the four wilde sisters come to stay with their Aunt and Uncle at Applecote Manor, they find that the vanishing of their young cousin Audrey 5 years earlier still remains a mystery and the hot summer of 1959 becomes one they will remember for some time. Were you surprised by Harry’s confession to Margot? Why or why not? How do you feel about the way Audrey’s story ends?
The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde By Eve Chase | Used - Wob The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde By Eve Chase | Used - Wob
A haunting mystery about the secrets of the past, the bonds within families, and the hidden ties that connect people across time. A story to be savored, The Vanishing of Audrey Wilde is a book I'll be recommending to everyone I know -- Megan Miranda * New York Times bestselling author of All the Missing Girls * The novel asks us to consider how far we would go to protect those we love. Were you surprised by the decisions the Wilde sisters make? Margot thinks they are “bonded by blood”. Do you think the sisters committed a crime? If so, are the sisters all equally guilty? Read the opening extract from the Booker-Prize shortlisted novel about an island where outsiders in flight from society have built their home Beautifully written with a gripping plot, I couldn't stop reading this -- Katie Fforde * Number One Sunday Times bestselling author of A Secret Garden * In the earlier time period, I found the relationships among the four Wilde sisters, affectionately dubbed the Wildlings by their Uncle Perry, interesting, especially seeing how the dynamic between them shifts over the course of the book. They’re certainly plunged in to a difficult situation. That this is likely to be the last summer which the sisters spend together before their futures start diverging, only adds to its poignancy.An enthralling story of secrets, sisters and an unsolved mystery Kate Morton, Number One Sunday Times bestselling author of The Lake House
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