The Temple House Vanishing is the story of two teenage friends who meet at a boarding school and are befriended by their young and charismatic art teacher, Mr Lavelle. Louise is a moody cool-kid who doesn’t seem to care what anyone thinks about her, and Victoria is inconspicuous and a likable character.
We learn that Victoria and Mr Lavelle went missing and haven’t been seen in years. In later life, a local journalist manages to interview Victoria, something that many journalists before haven’t been able to do, and the secrets start falling out. The book is very nearly haunting and romantic - at points I really wanted Donohue to get deeper and darker and really take me into the characters anxieties.
I think my favourite part of the plot was when we finally started seeing some answers. I developed a lot of theories in my head about what happened but ashamedly, I didn’t guess the ending! (Must try harder)
If I were a decade younger (21) I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more. The plot would make for an interesting Julia Stiles-type movie but I found the characters quite unrealistic - more aspirational than pragmatic.
I’d recommend the book to teenagers or someone who wants an easy holiday read.
We learn that Victoria and Mr Lavelle went missing and haven’t been seen in years. In later life, a local journalist manages to interview Victoria, something that many journalists before haven’t been able to do, and the secrets start falling out. The book is very nearly haunting and romantic - at points I really wanted Donohue to get deeper and darker and really take me into the characters anxieties.
I think my favourite part of the plot was when we finally started seeing some answers. I developed a lot of theories in my head about what happened but ashamedly, I didn’t guess the ending! (Must try harder)
If I were a decade younger (21) I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more. The plot would make for an interesting Julia Stiles-type movie but I found the characters quite unrealistic - more aspirational than pragmatic.
I’d recommend the book to teenagers or someone who wants an easy holiday read.