The Vanishing at Loxby Manor by Abigail Wilson

The Vanishing at Loxby Manor by Abigail Wilson ISBN-13: 9780785232957 Paperback: 336 pages Publisher: Thomas Nelson Released: January 26th 2021

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
Haunted by the assault she’s kept hidden over the past four years, Charity Halliwell finally has a chance to return home to the quaint village she left more than five years before and the happy life she wants so badly to reclaim. All she needs is time with her old friends and an opportunity to find a governess position, and she can leave the fear and guilt behind. But the family who agrees to her yearlong visit turns out to be a far cry from the one she thought she knew, particularly when her friend disappears and the one man she made certain would not be at the house is forced to return--the only gentleman who ever held a piece of her heart.

Piers Cavanagh was branded a coward when he failed to show up for a duel he arranged. He had his reasons, but disclosing them would hurt far more than life as a social outcast. With the mysterious disappearance of his sister, the strange nightly occurrences in the ruins of an old abbey, and the uncomfortable whispers of a secret organization, Piers must work with the last person he ever thought he would get the chance to speak to again—the girl whose heart he had no choice but to break.


My Review:
The Vanishing at Loxby Manor is a Christian romance (with a mystery) set in 1816 in England. Frankly, I want to know what happened to the maid that was sent for help in the prologue and who should've quickly returned with that help. Instead, she's mysteriously never talked about again even though her absence set off a complex sequence of events that deeply impacted people years later. But ignore that since it's otherwise a very good book.

Charity was assaulted several years ago (which was described very vaguely and as not having 'taken everything'). She feels like she can't trust men or welcome their attentions now and is ruined, though no one knows about it. She's very distressed when her friend, Pier's sister, insists on going out alone at night and completely disappears. She's determined to uncover what happened and find her friend. She works with Piers, the man she used to want to marry and learns to trust again. He has his own ruined reputation to deal with, called a coward because he won't to explain why he missed a duel. Both find renewed friendship and healing as they uncover all of the secrets of the past.

The characters were complex, reacted realistically to events, and I cared about what happened to them. The mystery was complex, and the main characters asked good questions about what was going on. As clues and truths about the past and present were uncovered, several people died as people attempted to get free of the deception and evil that entrapped them. Piers and Charity built each other up, worked well together, and based their romance on a long-standing friendship. There was no sex or bad language. Overall, I highly recommend this enjoyable romance and mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.