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Serious Things

On sale

7th August 2008

Price: £9.99

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Selected: Paperback / ISBN-13: 9780340834688

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In the early 1990s, at an old-fashioned boarding school, two boys form an intense friendship that will shape the course of their lives. Bruno Jackson, the shy and lonely son of British expats, is infatuated by the glamorous but troubled Anthony Blunden. Taken under the wing of an idealistic English teacher, the boys are encouraged to explore the ‘more serious things’ of life beyond college. But in the hothouse of the school, a slight from their mentor seems of earth-shattering importance, with fateful consequences. Years later, with the memories of that time almost buried, Bruno leads a blameless, uneventful life. The sudden reappearance of Anthony forces him to revisit the dark corners of his past and to decide how far he’s prepared to go to assuage his conscience.

From the acclaimed writer of GHOST PORTRAIT and THE SHIP OF FOOLS, this is a gripping tale of vengeance, morality and the complex paths that can lead to redemption.

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Reviews

<i>Guardian</i>
'Subtle, clever and immensely enjoyable'
<i>Sunday Telegraph</i>
Impeccably written . . . his scaling of the treacherous cliffs of the human heart will take your breath away
<i>Independent on Sunday</i>
Superbly written, with not a superfluous word, and enriched with wonderfully vivid images
<i>Daily Mail</i>
A finely observed account of pubescent yearnings, which succeeds on every level
<i>Literary Review</i>
Not a whodunnit or a whydunnit but a reassessment of what happened in order to reach a resolution of forgotten guilt and mystery . . . intelligent and beautifully written
<i> Times Literary Supplement</i>
Impeccably paced . . . Norminton is a talented writer: he depicts the climate of cowardice and loyalty that allows bullying to flourish, while sensitively rendering the beauty of the English landscape
<i> The Times </i>
sharply realised
<i>Independent on SUnday</i>
A desolate story of men behaving unspeakably badly