Description

Perfect for fans of Ann Cleeves, Susan Hill, Nicci French and Val McDermid, this is an astute and intelligent psychological thriller centring around obsession and rage from international multi-million copy seller Joanne Harris. Fast paced with unexpected twists and turns, it will get right under the skin…

‘[A] gripping psychological thriller… Harris is one of our most accomplished novelists and Gentlemen & Players, with its pace, wit and acute observation, shows her at the top of her form’ — DAILY EXPRESS
‘[A] delicious black comedy … the plot is so cleverly constructed, the tension so unflagging, you’d think she’d been writing thrillers all her life’ — DAILY MAIL
‘It kept me on the edge of my seat and I was thinking about it long after I turned the last page’ — ***** Reader review
‘An intricate, engrossing novel’ — ***** Reader review
‘Wonderfully, horribly plausible’ — ***** Reader review
‘I read it in three days which is as close as I get to “couldn’t put it down”‘ — ***** Reader review
‘Well written and enthralling’ — ***** Reader review
‘A must read….’ — ***** Reader review
‘Absolutely loved this book!’ — ***** Reader review

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At St Oswald’s, a long-established boys’ grammar school in the north of England, a new year has just begun. For the staff and boys of the school, a wind of unwelcome change is blowing. Suits, paperwork and Information Technology rule the world; and Roy Straitley, the eccentric veteran Latin master, is finally – reluctantly – contemplating retirement.

But beneath the little rivalries, petty disputes and everyday crises of the school, a darker undercurrent stirs.

And a bitter grudge, hidden and carefully nurtured for thirteen years, is about to erupt.

The trilogy continues with blueeyedboy and Different Class.

Publisher Review

[A] gripping psychological thriller... Harris is one of our most accomplished novelists and Gentlemen & Players, with its pace, wit and acute observation, shows her at the top of her form * DAILY EXPRESS * [A] delicious black comedy ... the plot is so cleverly constructed, the tension so unflagging, you'd think she'd been writing thrillers all her life * DAILY MAIL * With a lightness of touch, Harris illuminates just how resentment of privilege and exclusion can lead to violent resolutions... Marvellously mischievous * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING * [A] clever story of obsession and revenge... Ms Harris has scored another success * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH * A classic whodunnit with the characters carefully crafted and the tension at a knife edge * SUNDAY EXPRESS (TOP TEN FICTION 2005) *