by Donna Tartt
Rating: 4.38 (4 ratings)
First published 2004
Richard Papen arrives at an elite Vermont college seeking reinvention. He's quickly absorbed into an intensely secretive classics program led by a charismatic professor, studying ancient Greek with five eccentric, wealthy students who seem to exist outside normal social boundaries. When Richard finally penetrates their closed circle, he discovers they've committed a shocking murder—and are willing to kill again to protect their secret. As winter descends on the isolated campus, Richard becomes both witness and potential next victim in a deadly academic conspiracy that blurs the lines between scholarly obsession and violent ritual.
Genres: literary-fiction, mystery, crime, contemporary, thriller, academic
Vibes: dark, emotional, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator, witness
Period: 21st-century
559 pages · Paperback · Vintage Books
Content warnings: murder, violence