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Shadow of the Lions: A Novel
Narrato da James Anderson Foster
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How long must we pay for the crimes of our youth? It has been almost ten years since Matthias graduated from the elite Blackburne School, where his roommate and best friend, Fritz, fled into the woods, never to be heard from again, in the middle of their senior year. Fritz vanished just after an argument over Matthias's breaking of the school's honor code, and Matthias has long been haunted by the idea that his betrayal led to his friend's disappearance.
Years later, after hitting the fast lane in New York as a successful novelist—then falling twice as hard—Matthias is stuck, a failure as a writer, a boyfriend, a person. When he is offered the opportunity to return to Blackburne as an English teacher, he sees it as a chance to put his life back together. But once on campus, Matthias gets swiftly drawn into the past, and is driven to find out what happened to Fritz. He partners with a curmudgeonly local retired cop and tries to solve the case, dealing with campus politics, the shocking death of a student, Fritz's complicated and powerful Washington, D.C., family, and his own place in the privileged world of Blackburne.
Years later, after hitting the fast lane in New York as a successful novelist—then falling twice as hard—Matthias is stuck, a failure as a writer, a boyfriend, a person. When he is offered the opportunity to return to Blackburne as an English teacher, he sees it as a chance to put his life back together. But once on campus, Matthias gets swiftly drawn into the past, and is driven to find out what happened to Fritz. He partners with a curmudgeonly local retired cop and tries to solve the case, dealing with campus politics, the shocking death of a student, Fritz's complicated and powerful Washington, D.C., family, and his own place in the privileged world of Blackburne.
Azioni libro
Inizia ad ascoltareInformazioni sul libro
Shadow of the Lions: A Novel
Narrato da James Anderson Foster
Descrizione
How long must we pay for the crimes of our youth? It has been almost ten years since Matthias graduated from the elite Blackburne School, where his roommate and best friend, Fritz, fled into the woods, never to be heard from again, in the middle of their senior year. Fritz vanished just after an argument over Matthias's breaking of the school's honor code, and Matthias has long been haunted by the idea that his betrayal led to his friend's disappearance.
Years later, after hitting the fast lane in New York as a successful novelist—then falling twice as hard—Matthias is stuck, a failure as a writer, a boyfriend, a person. When he is offered the opportunity to return to Blackburne as an English teacher, he sees it as a chance to put his life back together. But once on campus, Matthias gets swiftly drawn into the past, and is driven to find out what happened to Fritz. He partners with a curmudgeonly local retired cop and tries to solve the case, dealing with campus politics, the shocking death of a student, Fritz's complicated and powerful Washington, D.C., family, and his own place in the privileged world of Blackburne.
Years later, after hitting the fast lane in New York as a successful novelist—then falling twice as hard—Matthias is stuck, a failure as a writer, a boyfriend, a person. When he is offered the opportunity to return to Blackburne as an English teacher, he sees it as a chance to put his life back together. But once on campus, Matthias gets swiftly drawn into the past, and is driven to find out what happened to Fritz. He partners with a curmudgeonly local retired cop and tries to solve the case, dealing with campus politics, the shocking death of a student, Fritz's complicated and powerful Washington, D.C., family, and his own place in the privileged world of Blackburne.
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Recensioni
I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion of the book or my review itself.Matthias' best friend and roommate, Fritz, disappeared during their senior year at boarding school, and Matthias has always blamed himself.Now, after one highly successful novel and complete writer's block since, Matthias finds himself back teaching at his former school. The memories that surround him make him determined to solve the mystery of what truly happened to Fritz.Swann has a really nice writing style. He has a lot to say, and says it really beautifully. I felt emotionally drawn into the book and wanting to know more. There's a real sense of suspense to this read, with a lot of effective flashbacks.Plus, I always love a book set in a school.This book kind of fell apart for me about halfway through. Swann had too much he was trying to do, and it all started to feel forced. The ending really felt like too much, and didn't end up feeling real or even making a lot of sense.I really wanted to love this book, especially with its comparison to The Secret History, one of my all-time favorite books. And this was definitely a suspenseful read-I found myself having to keep turning pages until I got to the end. But Swann just tried to cram way too much in for my tastes, and the ending left me confused and dissatisfied.
Dramatic and suspenseful, set in the elite works of a prestigious boy's private school. When Matthias is first brought to the school as a young teen, he feels abandoned by his parents. Through the next four years he will become acclimated, make a very good friend, and be accepted into college. In his last year, after a confession and argument his friend disappears. Ten years later, after a stalled writing career, broken relationship, he returns to the school as a temporary teacher. He vows to find out what happened to his friend, unfinished business. There are secrets, on top of secrets, both at the school and in the disappearance of his friend.The insular world of a boarding school as always intrigues, much fertile ground is found within this environment. This is a literary and smart rendering of a young mans search for his lost self, a coming together of youth and man. I found it to be a page turner, the atmosphere at the school was written vividly, could picture myself there, totally immersive. The book moves swiftly, we watch as Matthias changes, grows more confident, both as a youth and a man. Some stereotypes are found within, but I found a to be novel personalities, with interesting back stories. The resolution, when it comes was partly expected, but the reason behind it totally out of my range of thought. A first novel and a very good start.