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About The Book

Told in emails, text messages, and essays, this unputdownable mystery follows a group of students in an art master’s program that goes dangerously awry, from the internationally bestselling “new queen of crime” (Electric Literature) Janice Hallett.

Gela Nathaniel, head of Royal Hastings University’s new Multimedia Art course, must find six students from all walks of life across the United Kingdom for her new master’s program before the university cuts her funding. The students are nothing but trouble from day one.

There’s Jem, a talented sculptor recently graduated from her university program and eager to make her mark as an artist at any cost. Jonathan, who has little experience aside from running his family’s gallery. Patrick manages an art supply store, but can barely operate his phone, much less design software. Ludya is a single mother and graphic designer more interested in a paycheck than homework. Cameron is a marketing executive in search of a hobby or a career change. And Alyson, already a successful artist, seems to be overqualified.

When the examiner, the man hired to grade students’ final workssifts through the students’ final essays, texts, and message boards, he becomes convinced that someone is in danger…or already dead.

With her trademark “witty, original” (The New York Times) voice, Janice Hallett weaves a fresh and mind-bending page-turner that will keep you guessing until the final page.

About The Author

Gaia Banks
Janice Hallett

Janice Hallett is a former magazine editor, award-winning journalist, and government communications writer. She wrote articles and speeches for, among others, the Cabinet Office, Home Office, and Department for International Development. Her enthusiasm for travel has taken her around the world several times, from Madagascar to the Galapagos, Guatemala to Zimbabwe, Japan, Russia, and South Korea. A playwright and screenwriter, she penned the feminist Shakespearean stage comedy NetherBard and cowrote the feature film Retreat. She lives in London and is the author of The Examiner, The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels, The Appeal, The Christmas Appeal, and The Twyford Code.

About The Readers

Anushka Chakravarti

Brendan Dempsey

Jonathan Andrew Hume

Rachel Handshaw

Sarah Durham

Dawn Murphy

Product Details

  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio (September 10, 2024)
  • Runtime: 10 hours and 17 minutes
  • ISBN13: 9781797182698

Raves and Reviews

"An ensemble of six narrators narrates this twisty British thriller, which follows six art students who are enrolled in a nontraditional graduate program. Eager to impress the university, their instructor secures a year-long collaboration with a local tech company as part of the curriculum, but when a student disappears after an off-site excursion, the group struggles to work together under tense circumstances. As the story unfolds through emails, texts, reports, and messages from the course examiner, the narrators capture each character’s distinct personality, which makes the format easier to follow. Anushka Chakravarti and Brendan Dempsey are particularly great as Jem and Patrick, respectively, who form a tenuous friendship. The disastrous end-of-year gala keeps listeners engaged to the very end."

AudioFile magazine

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