Scan barcode
marmaladereads's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An absolutely thrilling "who done it" set in 19th century Oxford, I could not put this book down and found myself speculating on the murderer all throughout my work day as I was forced to pause between reading periods due to *blegh* adult responsibilities. Set in 1905 with frequent flashbacks to 10 years prior, the story follows a group of 7 close friends who had studied at Oxford together. They had been all drawn together, or "collected" by the charismatic Toby, golden boy and heir to a marquess who liked to surround himself with odd characters - a scholarship kid, two women scholars, one of the first Black men to study at Oxford, the son of a rich shipping magnate. Somehow, this odd group works and forms a close bond. However, their friendship and indeed many of their promising futures are ended abruptly when Toby is suddenly murdered in their final year.
Ten years later, Jem (the narrator) is suddenly dismissed from his post following an anonymous and scandalous letter bringing up this old murder. Having nothing else left to lose, he decides to solve Toby's murder once and for all, finding all of his remaining friends and digging up all of their old secrets from university. Each of the six remaining friends has a lot of secrets to hide, and the tale unraveling the knot is absolutely gripping. At any point I suspected each of the friends individually, and ultimately was wrong in most of my guesses, but this tale kept me hooked from beginning to end. A fast paced unraveling with plenty of social commentary and lots of the historical tidbits that KJ is known for.
It also features a fairly solid romantic subplot. The romance is certainly not a focus in this book and does not carry the same emotional weight as other KJ works, as well as being a closed door affair, but it underpins many of the motivations of the characters and the emotions are hinted at throughout. An incredibly satisfying read.
Ten years later, Jem (the narrator) is suddenly dismissed from his post following an anonymous and scandalous letter bringing up this old murder. Having nothing else left to lose, he decides to solve Toby's murder once and for all, finding all of his remaining friends and digging up all of their old secrets from university. Each of the six remaining friends has a lot of secrets to hide, and the tale unraveling the knot is absolutely gripping. At any point I suspected each of the friends individually, and ultimately was wrong in most of my guesses, but this tale kept me hooked from beginning to end. A fast paced unraveling with plenty of social commentary and lots of the historical tidbits that KJ is known for.
It also features a fairly solid romantic subplot. The romance is certainly not a focus in this book and does not carry the same emotional weight as other KJ works, as well as being a closed door affair, but it underpins many of the motivations of the characters and the emotions are hinted at throughout. An incredibly satisfying read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia, Alcoholism, and Sexual assault
Minor: Pregnancy
More...