After thirty years at St Oswald’s Grammar in North Yorkshire, Latin master Roy Straitley has seen all kinds of boys come and go. A boy with hidden shadows inside.

With insolvency and academic failure looming, a new broom has arrived at the venerable school, bringing Powerpoint, sharp suits and even sixth form girls to the dusty corridors.

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The impressively versatile Joanne Harris in her psychological thriller mode, at her darkest and most unsettling. Perfect for fans of Ann Cleeves, Susan Hill, Nicci French and Val McDermid.

'A magnificently plotted and twisty journey to the heart of a 24-year-old crime...darkly humorous...constantly wrongfoots and misdirects...up to a satisfyingly eccentric conclusion.' -- Observer
'Classy writing, sensitive and moving.' -- The Times
'Harris pulls off an impeccable thriller denouement...consistently entertaining.' -- Sunday Times
'Just fabulous' -- ***** Reader review
'An absolute triumph of a book' -- ***** Reader review
'Twists, turns and droll humour - a great read!' -- ***** Reader review
'Absorbing' -- ***** Reader review
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After thirty years at St Oswald's Grammar in North Yorkshire, Latin master Roy Straitley has seen all kinds of boys come and go - the clowns, the rebels, the underdogs, and those he calls his Brodie boys. But every so often there's a boy who doesn't fit the mould. A troublemaker. A boy capable of twisting everything around him. A boy with hidden shadows inside.

With insolvency and academic failure looming, a new broom has arrived at the venerable school, bringing Powerpoint, sharp suits and even sixth form girls to the dusty corridors. But while Straitley does his sardonic best to resist this march to the future, a shadow from his past is stirring. A boy who even twenty years on haunts his teacher's dreams. A boy capable of bad things.