Irresistible . . . Constantly surprising and wickedly fun.” — Washington Post Book World
“With GENTLEMEN & PLAYERS Harris has tapped an unsuspected talent for writing sophisticated, absorbing suspense.” — Daily News
“[A] disturbing yet strangely rewarding morality tale . . . Not every chess game ends with a checkmate.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Riveting . . . The checkmate is a bold stroke — so audacious as to send readers, including this one, backtracking.” — Houston Chronicle
“[A] masterful literary thriller.” — Fort Myers (Fla.) News-Press
“Far darker than Chocolat author Harris’s previous books, this canny page-turner comes with a satisfying twist.” — Mail on Sunday
“Very good indeed.” — Bookseller (London)
“A complex, well-crafted murder mystery, with its author’s trademark blend of wit, wisdom and magic.” — Time Out London
“[An] enjoyable mystery romp.” — Sunday Times (London)
“Fun with a neat twist ... it’s a bit like A.J. Wentworth squaring up to the talented Mr. Ripley.” — The Independent
“A strong psychological mystery.” — Times Educational Supplement
“A literary gobstopper with an aniseed heart.” — Independent
“Harris pulls it all off . . . Book groups of the world, watch out.” — The Guardian
“[Harris] turns to the literary thriller, with stunning results . . . This is one hypnotic page-turner.” — Booklist (starred review)
“[A] clever story of obsession and revenge . . . .[Harris] has scored another success.” — Daily Telegraph (London)
“[A] gripping psychological thriller. . . . [Harris] cleverly keeps the reader guessing till the very last chapter. — Express
“One of those rare books that grips and holds you . . . [B]oth socially important and vastly entertaining.” — Chicago Tribune
“Don’t start this one late in the evening, unless you plan to stay up all night. It’s that gripping.” — Seattle Times
“Best of all is a dazzling climactic twist . . . . its last move is a winner.” — New York Times Book Review
“Perfect escapist reading for deep winter.” — Hartford Courant
“A cunning, high-brow cat-and-mouse tale ... [W]ill keep even the sharpest readers off-guard.” — Florida Times-Union
“[A] tense, perspective-shifting narrative ... [A] page-turning climax that ... avoids the easy out of a tidy ending.” — Tampa Tribune
“The gold standard for this year’s best mystery...[GENTLEMEN AND PLAYERS] left me breathless...a delightful read.” — Salon.com
With GENTLEMEN & PLAYERS Harris has tapped an unsuspected talent for writing sophisticated, absorbing suspense.
Irresistible . . . Constantly surprising and wickedly fun.
Washington Post Book World
[A] masterful literary thriller.
Fort Myers (Fla.) News-Press
Riveting . . . The checkmate is a bold stroke — so audacious as to send readers, including this one, backtracking.
Very good indeed.
Fun with a neat twist ... it’s a bit like A.J. Wentworth squaring up to the talented Mr. Ripley.
[An] enjoyable mystery romp.
A complex, well-crafted murder mystery, with its author’s trademark blend of wit, wisdom and magic.
Far darker than Chocolat author Harris’s previous books, this canny page-turner comes with a satisfying twist.
[A] gripping psychological thriller. . . . [Harris] cleverly keeps the reader guessing till the very last chapter.
A literary gobstopper with an aniseed heart.
A strong psychological mystery.
Times Educational Supplement
One of those rare books that grips and holds you . . . [B]oth socially important and vastly entertaining.
Harris pulls it all off . . . Book groups of the world, watch out.
Best of all is a dazzling climactic twist . . . . its last move is a winner.
New York Times Book Review
The gold standard for this year’s best mystery...[GENTLEMEN AND PLAYERS] left me breathless...a delightful read.
Perfect escapist reading for deep winter.
[A] clever story of obsession and revenge . . . .[Harris] has scored another success.
A cunning, high-brow cat-and-mouse tale ... [W]ill keep even the sharpest readers off-guard.
Don’t start this one late in the evening, unless you plan to stay up all night. It’s that gripping.
[Harris] turns to the literary thriller, with stunning results . . . This is one hypnotic page-turner.
Booklist (starred review)
[A] tense, perspective-shifting narrative ... [A] page-turning climax that ... avoids the easy out of a tidy ending.
One of those rare books that grips and holds you . . . [B]oth socially important and vastly entertaining.
A literary gobstopper with an aniseed heart.
"A strong psychological mystery."
Time Magazines Educational Supplement
"[Harris] turns to the literary thriller, with stunning results . . . This is one hypnotic page-turner."
Constantly surprising and wickedly fun, this revenge tale is told by two narrators in alternating chapters that begin at the start of the school year at St. Oswald's Grammar School for Boys in England. … Beyond the book's considerable entertainment value, Harris has written an unsettling reminder of how much our orderly lives depend on a fragile level of trust. Little grains of dishonesty and malice sprinkled in the gears of an organization are almost impossible to detect but can bring down the whole structure.
At the heart of Harris's riveting new book is a major secret, and veteran British stage actor Pacey does everything in his power not to give away even the slightest hint of it to audio listeners. Pacey plays both sides of the story's central chess match for the soul of a posh British boy's school with equal energy and wit, bringing to life the sad and troubled outsider Snyde, who wants so badly to be a student at St. Oswald's, and the deeply embedded classics master Roy Straitley, who cares for the school's future more than he will admit. As the two duel on the chessboard of life for St. Oswald's reputation, Pacey growls and whimpers with so much vitality that it's hard to take sides. Even when the two change into something else-when Snyde turns into a frightening killer and Straitley's inertia and antiestablishment leanings threaten to overwhelm him- we always know who is speaking, and why. Minor characters are also vividly drawn: rival masters reek with chalk and bad habits, a boy Snyde loves becomes a natural betrayer, and parents are always credible if not admirable figures. This is verbal magic of the highest order, the kind every author deserves but doesn't always get. Simultaneous release with the Morrow hardcover (Reviews, Oct. 31). (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
St. Oswald's School for Boys is under siege by a new faculty member who has a secret history with the school and will use every trick and bit of knowledge about it—its past and layout—to create a tightly wound knot of revenge. Narrated by both the revenge-seeking instructor and veteran classics teacher Roy Straitley, this book moves skillfully between the two perspectives and between past and present in a well-crafted mystery. Harris shows a deep understanding of the politics of academia and the routine of the classroom, as well as the demands of a solid mystery. Listeners will be rewarded with surprises and twists in this well-paced tale, read by Steven Pacey. Highly recommended.
Adult/High School-Three voices are heard in this tale of a venerable English boys' school. One belongs to Roy Straitley, a veteran teacher of classics. Another is that of a teacher who has just arrived at St. Oswald's with the malicious intent of bringing it down through well-placed rumor and cunning innuendo. The third is that of a child from 14 years earlier who loves the school but does not belong to it. He even assumes an alter identity, Julian Pinchbeck, complete with uniform, in order to roam the school at will and as much as possible escape the painful reality of life with his loutish father, its porter. Then he makes a friend at St. Oswald's and at last has someone from his chosen world with whom to spend his time. But everything unravels with the death of Julian's adored friend. Now the teacher who was the child Julian returns. Harris shows what a master storyteller she is through the play and counterplay of current happenings twisting through the telling of what went on before. The story builds suspensefully and cleverly with surprises and turns to a satisfying denouement.-Judy Braham, George Mason Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.
Harris (Five Quarters of the Orange, 2001, etc.) tries her hand at homicide. Her latest recounts a life-and-death struggle for the soul of a posh school for boys. It's a mystery, of sorts, one fueled more by dramatic irony and ostensibly shocking twists than by any real suspense, since the reader knows from the start that very bad things are about to happen. The story has two narrators, one who has given his life to St. Oswald's and one determined to destroy it. Latin teacher Roy Straitley is irascible and recalcitrant, but he's utterly loyal to St. Oswald's and his students love him. The crusty old master is a cliche, but Straitley is canny enough to recognize himself as a type. He's beset on many fronts-the German department has taken over his office and the headmaster is constantly nagging him to check his e-mail-but the curmudgeon doesn't recognize his deadliest adversary until it's almost too late. The aforementioned antagonist is the novel's second narrator and its villain. The shifty individual sometimes known as Snyde arrives at St. Oswald's as the offspring of the school porter and returns, bent on destruction, in the guise of a teacher. Murder is a strong subject for an author best known for literary confectionery, and allowing a sociopath to take over storytelling duties for more than half the novel is a brave move. Unfortunately, Harris is more bold than successful. Socioeconomic inequities, neglect at home, bullying at school, unrequited love: These are all presented as sources of Snyde's cold and calculating rage, but they're just the handy rationalizations of a fatally narcissistic creep. The problem with giving Snyde a narrative soapbox is that the more the reader knowsabout this character, the less plausible this character becomes. A daring gambit, poorly played. Agent: Howard Morhaim/Howard Morhaim Literary Agency
