Shadow of the Lions: A Novel
Christopher Swann
eBook
(Algonquin Books, Aug. 1, 2017)
âA literary thriller and coming-of-age story set at an elite Virginia boarding school. A promising, well-crafted debutâ (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution).Southern Living Best Books of the YearPublishers Weekly Best Summer BooksHow long must we pay for the crimes of our youth? That is just one question Christopher Swann explores in this compulsively readable debut, a literary thriller set in the eliteâand sometimes darkâenvirons of Blackburne, a prep school in Virginia. When Matthias Glassâs best friend, Fritz, vanishes without a trace in the middle of an argument during their senior year, Matthias tries to move on with his life, only to realize that until he discovers what happened to his missing friend, he will be stuck in the pastâguilty, responsible, alone.Almost ten years after Fritzâs disappearance, Matthias gets his chance. Offered a job teaching English at Blackburne, he gets swiftly drawn into the mystery. In the shadowy woods of his alma mater, he stumbles into a web of surveillance, dangerous lies, and buried secretsâand discovers the troubled underbelly of a school where the future had once always seemed bright.âFast-paced and full of unexpected turns, Christopher Swannâs Shadow of the Lions pulls readers into the dark underworld looming beneath a prestigious boysâ boarding school.â âMira Jacob, author of The Sleepwalkerâs Guide to DancingâComes alive with action and intrigue.â âThe Wall Street JournalâSwannâs tightly knit debut novel is a moving coming-of-age story with a noir twist that will appeal to readers of John Knowlesâs A Separate Peace, N.H. Kleinbaumâs Dead Poets Society, and Donna Tarttâs The Secret History.â âLibrary Journal (starred review)