If you like crime reads, pick this book up. The main character, Bodie Kane, a successful podcaster, returns to the private 9-12 boarding school she attended for a two-week teaching stint. While there, with her students’ interest, she confronts the past death of her ex-roommate Thalia Keith, and the conviction of Omar Evans, the school’s athletic trainer convicted, under questionable circumstances. Did he do it, and what did she know she hadn’t realized then?
This book was excellent, and while it was a slow burn, the author’s writing was compelling, oscillating between Bodie’s past trauma and her current. The book’s length seems necessary, building up to an ending that crashes against Bodie like a crescendo. While there are frequent flashbacks, they aren’t difficult to discern from each period, giving a follow-the-breadcrumb approach to the mystery of Thalia’s death.
The narration of the book is also different but interesting. The whole book was told through Bodie speaking to her former music teacher through letters (though the communication medium was never revealed, that’s what it seemed like).
There are some definite trigger warnings for this book, from sexual assault to abuse, suicide to murder, so I would make sure before reading this book that you take the time to mentally prepare yourself for anything that is a sensitivity. If you feel comfortable reading stories with those themes, I recommend you pick this book up.
With the academic twist of The Secret History, this book is a solid five stars.
Happy Reading!
Chris Kauzlarich 