When We Were Monsters
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of All the Bright Places comes “a standout dark academia thriller” (e. lockhart, author of We Were Liars) about the monsters who walk among us—even in the glittering upper echelons of society.
A dead teacher at an elite boarding school. Four students who had every reason to want her gone. Who is the monster?
At an elite New England boarding school, eight students are selected for an exclusive storytelling workshop with the one and only Meredith Graffam—an enigmatic writer, director, and actress. For sixteen days, they will live in the isolated estate of the school’s founder, surrounded by snowy woods and a storm-tossed seas. Only one of the chosen will walk away with a lifechanging opportunity to realize their creative dreams.
Everyone, including Graffam, has a compelling reason to be there—Effy, the orphan, Isaac, the legacy, Ness, the wallflower, Ramon, the outsider, and Arlo, whose unexpected arrival leaves Effy spiraling—but only the most ambitious will last the term. Graffam’s unorthodox methods push the students past the breaking point, revealing their darkest secrets, taking unthinkable risks, and slowly starting to turn on one another. But Graffam never expected they would turn on her . . .
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A group of promising young writers are plagued by death, mystery, and shocking personal revelations in this satisfying psychological thriller by Niven (Breathless). For eight lucky high schoolers—including the novel's primary protagonists Effy and Arlo—attending an intense three-week writers' workshop led by enigmatic, controversial author Meredith Graffam at a remote New England manor seems like the opportunity of a lifetime. Even more coveted than learning the art of the trade from Graffam, though, is the opportunity to win $15,000 and obtain life-changing connections with professional creatives for their future careers. Though Graffam claims that the goal of the workshop is to refine her pupils' craft, she begins demanding impossible things of them, such as leaping from dangerous heights, placing them into increasingly perilous scenarios, and using fear to thin the herd ("You cannot be afraid and write. Because if you're afraid, the writing will be dishonest"). Each student must decide if a shot at fame and fortune is worth rising to Graffam's horrifying—perhaps even deadly—challenges. A moody prologue immediately establishes stakes and tension, which Niven deftly builds upon through each subsequent and tautly paced chapter. While development of most members of the large white-cued cast is somewhat thin, Effy and Arlo's complex alternating POVs stimulate readers' engagement as the novel spirals toward a chilling resolution. Ages 14–up.
