The Leavetaking

by Anna Gilbert

Isobel Penrose shared an idyllic life at charming, picturesque Emberside Grange with her widowed father and Lydia, her vivacious older cousin. Then one day a tall, dark stranger invaded their lives. He called himself Simeon Graw, and there was something disturbing about the gifted portrait artist in the flowing ebony cape. He seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, accompanied by a silent woman clad in black. Suddenly Emberside became a place of terrifying night shadows. Lydia had vanished, and Isobel, setting out in search of her, was propelled down a twisted road menaced by cloaked desires and sudden death...

Genres: Gothic, Historical Fiction

192 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Marguerite Jackson Lazarus
aka Marguerite J. Gascoigne, Anna Gilbert

Marguerite Jackson was born on 1 May 1916 in Durham, England, UK, daughter of Hannah, and John Jackson, an inspector of schools. On 1937, she obtained a BA with honours and on 1957 a MA at Durham University. She worked as Grammar school English teacher from 1938 to 1973. On 5 April 1956, she married Jacob "Jack" Lazarus.

She published Children's fiction as Marguerite J. Gascoigne, and later gothic romance novels as Anna Gilbert. Marguerite died at 88, on 24 September 2004 in North Yorkshire, England.

Reviews

[Naksed · Rating 3 out of 5]

From the cover, it looks like “The Leavetaking” may have been marketed as a Gothic historical romance, like so many other popular books published in the 1970s. Read from my perspective in 2026, it reads more like a Christian historical fiction. It’s very well written, with numerous plot twists, some predictable, others genuinely surprising. There are some creepy moments, scenes that flirt with supernatural themes, and a few characters who have potential to be bone-chilling villains. But the author does not go beyond teasing hints. The heart of the story is simply that of a young woman coming of age at the end of the 19th century, navigating the loss of her best friend, the dawning disillusionment with her feckless father, and the sudden intrusion of an unwanted stepmother. Most of the plot is spent on the female protagonist sleuthing her way through various villages and communities looking for her best friend, who seems to have vanished into thin air and may have met a dismal end. Weaved through the narrative is the overall social commentary on the precariousness of women’s position in this harsh society, if they do not have a home or a man to cling to. One of the main characters finds salvation through being a reborn Christian, leaving behind the fripperies of fashion and the selfish wants and desires of a young woman, becoming a saint like martyr. For these reasons, I would call this book a Christian historical fiction.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story . Isobel lives a charmed life with her Father and a distant relative Lydia. She is very close to Lydia. When an artist and his wife arrive at the estate. It changes everything. Lydia goes missing . Isobel wants to know why and where she has gone . This has good mystery and a couple of twists.

[Melinda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Creepy and occultish, not my thing.

[Angel Graham · Rating 1 out of 5]

I tried reading, but nothing ever made sense. Very boring and forgettable.

[Kathy Barter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

This story was interesting and I loved the ending. A young girl, a widowed father, a young woman who was sent away, a mystery.