Stunning psychological thriller!

books:


	• Gentlemen and Players : A Novel Joanne Harris, 2006 - 432 pages average customer review:based on 54 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

It's made me a Harris fan

My only acquaintance with Joanne Harris was as the original author of Chocolat, a favorite film of mine. When I picked up Gentlemen and Players on remainder, I didn't expect much, since I'm not much of an English mystery fan and I was actually more interested in her magical realism. However, this highly entertaining and literate mystery novel was a delightful surprise -- so much so that I've started reading all of Harris' other books. Classics teacher Straitley (sp?) is one of the best characters I've run into in a while, and I look forward to seeing one of the UK's great character actors filling the role on film. Though I'm usually pretty good at guessing endings, this one was a complete surprise to me -- not to say irritating because I felt in retrospect that I should have figured it out.

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Masterfully Written Mystery

Set in all-boys school, St. Oswald's, Gentlemen & Players is narrated by the school's oldest and most beloved Classics professor, Roy Straightly, by the former caretaker's child, and by a mysterious and nefarious troublemaker out to destroy St. Oswald's. This malevolent narrator's identity is kept secret until the staggering ending.

Roy Straightly loves the school and his students and hates to see tradition supplanted by more modern means of education such as the dreaded computer. A foreboding feeling permeates the air of St. Oswald's as Mr. Straightly begins his 99th term at the school. To start with, Mr. Straightly has lost his office to the ever-invading German department; there are a slew of new teachers that don't quite sit well with Mr. Straightly; and an odd series of mishaps and scandals begin to rip apart St. Oswald's at the seams. Something sinister is happening at St. Oswald's and Mr. Straightly must try to figure it out before his beloved institution is decimated by whatever evil forces are working against it.

Gentlemen & Players is a suspenseful mystery that will leave you shocked with it's stunning resolution. Joanne Harris' writing is deft and masterful. As a narrator, Mr. Straightly is intensely observant and immensely entertaining. This novel is steeped in academia and will be a sure hit amongst those who count Donna Tartt's The Secret History as a favorite novel.

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Stunning psychological thriller!

Think "The Talented Mr. Ripley" or "American Psycho"...but very well written.

Or "The First Deadly Sin" with its alternating narratives from the point of view of the hunter and the hunted.

Wheels Within Wheels

Gentlemen & Players is completely enthralling, with unforgettable characters and intricate plotting. I listened to the unabridged audio book performed by Steven Pacey, who brought to life every detail of St. Oswald's Grammar School for Boys. This is a tale for those who enjoy Patricia Highsmith's kind of suspense and lovers of mysterious and literary fiction. I look forward to reading and listening to more novels by Joanne Harris.

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Did you see this one coming?

This is one of those books where you are so engrossed in trying to figure out how it will all turn out that the ending just kind of comes out of nowhere and grabs you. A well-told tale with both unique and sometimes trite characters - just what you would expect from an English boarding school tale. However, you are going to sit there at the end and say, "How did I miss this?" If you think about it afterwards, you do wonder how plausible the whole thing was, but when you're in the midst of it, you just don't care how it's all going to come to an end. You just want to rush to the end - but, don't - immerse yourself in the dialogue and the plot.

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