It's difficult to describe my feelings on these points. It seemed that Eleanor was verbally abused as a child - she seemed quite repressed. I felt the older Crain daughter may have been repressed as well. She remained a spinster, like Eleanor.

Theo gave me the impression that she was overtly sexual. The "friend" she lived with was never clarified as male or female. She seemed to flirt with everyone and loved being the center of attention. Eleanor was more subdued but it was obvious she envied Theo. I can see what maisonvivante means by "mirror images". They were like two halves of a whole. I don't believe it was a sexual attraction between them, but rather a rivalry.

Crain was a very strange character, which explains why the house was "crazy." He reminds me of Sybil's mother.

I think the haunted house is  something dreadful and horrible happened in that house