Gentlemen and Players

Description: Friendship, murder, revenge, and class conflict collide in an upper-crust English school. As a new term gets under way, a number of annoying incidents befall students and faculty, escalating to murder.

Brief description:

Joanne Harris is the author of seven previous novels--Chocolat, Blackberry Wine, Five Quarters of the Orange, Coastliners, Holy Fools, Sleep, Pale Sister, and Gentlemen & Players; a short story collection, Jigs & Reels; and two cookbook/memoirs, My French Kitchen and The French Market. Half French and half British, she lives in England.

Review Quotes:

"The gold standard for this year's best mystery...[GENTLEMEN AND PLAYERS] left me breathless...a delightful read." - Salon.com

"With Gentlemen & Players Harris has tapped an unsuspected talent for writing sophisticated, absorbing suspense." - Daily News

"A dark, intense chiller that evokes comparisons with Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr. Ripley. . . . Don't start this one late in the evening, unless you plan to stay up all night. It's that gripping." - Seattle Times

"[A] masterful literary thriller." - Fort Myers (Fla.) News-Press

"[A] clever story of obsession and revenge . . . .[Harris] has scored another success." - Daily Telegraph (London)

"Very good indeed." - Bookseller (London)

"Riveting . . . The checkmate is a bold stroke -- so audacious as to send readers, including this one, backtracking." - Houston Chronicle

"[An] enjoyable mystery romp." - Sunday Times (London)

"Don't start this one late in the evening, unless you plan to stay up all night. It's that gripping." - Seattle Times

"Irresistible . . . Constantly surprising and wickedly fun." - Washington Post Book World

"Even the talented Mr. Ripley would find himself outclassed by the twists and turns Harris serves up here." - Washington Post Book World

"[A] tense, perspective-shifting narrative ... [A] page-turning climax that ... avoids the easy out of a tidy ending." - Tampa Tribune

"One of those rare books that grips and holds you . . . [B]oth socially important and vastly entertaining." - Chicago Tribune

"With GENTLEMEN & PLAYERS Harris has tapped an unsuspected talent for writing sophisticated, absorbing suspense." - Daily News

"Perfect escapist reading for deep winter." - Hartford Courant

"A complex, well-crafted murder mystery, with its author's trademark blend of wit, wisdom and magic." - Time Out London

"[Harris] turns to the literary thriller, with stunning results . . . This is one hypnotic page-turner." - Booklist (starred review)

"[A] disturbing yet strangely rewarding morality tale . . . Not every chess game ends with a checkmate." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Best of all is a dazzling climactic twist . . . . its last move is a winner." - New York Times Book Review

"A cunning, high-brow cat-and-mouse tale ... [W]ill keep even the sharpest readers off-guard." - Florida Times-Union

"Harris pulls it all off . . . Book groups of the world, watch out." - The Guardian

"Far darker than Chocolat author Harris's previous books, this canny page-turner comes with a satisfying twist." - Mail on Sunday

"A literary gobstopper with an aniseed heart." - Independent

"[A] gripping psychological thriller. . . . [Harris] cleverly keeps the reader guessing till the very last chapter. - Express

"Fun with a neat twist ... it's a bit like A.J. Wentworth squaring up to the talented Mr. Ripley." - The Independent

"A strong psychological mystery." - Times Educational Supplement