Dark academia perfect for fans of The Secret History and If We Were Villains. Four scholarship studentsโ dreams come true when they are accepted into an exclusive boarding school, but they will soon be bound by a dark secret that could save one of them... or destroy them all...
'A dark, compelling and beguiling novel of revenge, guilt and love โ Ellie Keel is a dazzling new voiceโ Kate Mosse
โAn intensely gripping, thrilling and darkly beautiful debut. I was hookedโ Karin Slaughter
โSharp, powerful, tragic and addictiveโ Chris Whitaker
โThis is The Secret History for millennials' Daisy Goodwin
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We were always The Four. From our very first day at High Realms.
The four scholarship pupils. Outsiders in a world of power and privilege.
It would have made our lives a lot easier if Marta had simply pushed Genevieve out of our bedroom window that day. Certainly, it would have been tragic. She would have died instantly.
But Marta didnโt push her then, or โ if you choose to believe me โ at any other time. If she had, all of what we went through would not have happened.
Iโve told this story as clearly as I could โ as rationally as Iโve been able, in the circumstances, to achieve. I donโt regret what we did. And I would do it all again.
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Reader reviews:
'A shockingly powerful debut... raw and unflinching, not for the faint of heart' โญโญโญโญโญ
'Beautifully written and utterly brutal' โญโญโญโญโญ
'Complex and heart wrenching and oh so gripping' โญโญโญโญโญ
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'Suspenseful... an engrossing read' The Sunday Times
โAddictive debut... sharp, compellingโ Adele Parks, Platinum
'Darkly disturbing and deeply atmospheric' Heat
โOne warning: clear your diary before you pick up this novel, as once youโve read a handful of pages you will be hooked' I News
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* A Blackwell's Booksellers' Choice for 2024
* A Fabulous Magazine Top Book of 2024
* Featured in Dua Lipaโs Service95 Top Fiction Trends for 2024
Ellie Keel is an award-winning producer and campaigner based in London. She is the Founder Director of The Womenโs Prize for Playwriting, a literary prize and campaign for gender equality among writers for the stage in the UK and Ireland. In January 2024 she was the youngest producer ever to win Producer of the Year in The Stage Awards.