Gentlemen and Players

By: Joanne Harris

Narrated by: Steven Pacey

Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

The New York Times best-selling author takes a riveting new direction with this richly textured, multi-layered novel of friendship, murder, revenge, and class conflict set in an upper-crust English school - as enthralling and haunting as Ian McKewan's Atonement and Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr. Ripley

Audere, agere, auferre.

To dare, to strive, to conquer.

For generations, elite young men have attended St. Oswald's School for Boys, groomed for success by the likes of Roy Straitley, the eccentric classics teacher who has been a revered fixture for more than 30 years. But this year, things are different. Suits, paperwork, and Information Technology rule the world, and Straitley is reluctantly contemplating retirement. He is joined in this, his 99th, term by five new faculty members, including one who - unknown to Straitley and everyone else - holds intimate and dangerous knowledge of St. Ozzie's ways and secrets, it's comforts and conceits. Harboring dark ties to the school's past, this young teacher has arrived with one terrible goal: Destroy St. Oswald's.

As the new term gets underway, a number of incidents befall students and faculty alike. Beginning as small annoyances - a lost pen, a misplaced coffee mug - they soon escalate to the life threatening. With the school unraveling, only Straitley stands in the way of St. Ozzie's ruin. But the old man faces a formidable opponent - a master player with a strategy that has been meticulously planned to the final move.

A harrowing tale of cat and mouse told in alternating voices, this riveting, hypnotically atmospheric novel showcases Joanne Harris' astonishing storytelling talent as never before.

©2006 Frogspawn, Ltd. (P)2006 BBC Audiobooks America & HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Best of all is a dazzling climactic twist...its last move is a winner." (The New York Times Book Review)
"Harris combines the conventions of the academic novel -its vicious politicking and rich dynamics - with the taut suspense of a thriller as she leaves tantalizing clues as to the perpetrator's identity....This is one hypnotic page-turner." (Booklist)

Four stars across the board

First Joanne Harris book..... I didn't think I would like it an hour or so in - But I slowly started to warm up to it. By the end - I was thinking I should listen to it again.

Thanks, J

Good but in need of a serious edit!

Great performance but a bit too long in places. Will listen to her next book

Yep.

Nice twisty plot, well developed, believeable characters, super narrator. Kept me intrigued and guessing for all 13 hours.

One of my favorite mysteries....ever!

I have recommended this book to many people, none of whom have actually read it. It is too bad, because after listening to hundreds of books on Audible, "Gentlemen and Players" stands out. This mystery is twisty, fun, complex and above all, entertaining. I tried "Runemarks' after I read this and it did not grab me, but I would like to read more by Joanne Harris.

Frusty Olde British Prep School and Murder

Harris is at her best in creating the atmosphere of inside and outside the world of the British upper crust prep school: the kindly, the snooty, the beastly, the acceptable and the invisible. It's a wonderful juicy mystery with characters worth caring about and thinking about.
BUT added to that is the best narrator in Audible Steven Pacey who is fantastic here but would be worth listening to even if he were reading all the "begets" in The Bible!

Wonderful

Scary and fun. Intriguing and mind popping. Deceptive and soul searching . A wonderful cornucopia thrills and writing.
Of corse Mr. Spacey is the cherry on top of this superb dish of brain desert.

Really good!

At first, I thought I wasn't going to enjoy this, but after 30 minutes I became enthralled.

The writing was excellent! Vivid phrases and subtle sardonic humor permeate this book. There are several layers of mysteries which interlace nicely throughout the story. I suspected one, but was not sure until the end and was surprised by several twists!

The narrator was perfectly chosen. His voice and manor were perfectly suited to the witticisms and tongue in cheek humor. I found myself envisioning Rumpole. The book has 2 main characters both in 2 time-lines. I never had a problem distinguishing between them.

I am looking for books by this author and narrator! Yes, I recommend it!

Push through!

I had some trouble getting started with this book. they're were a LOT of people being described and I couldn't remember who was who outer keep them all straight. I'm so very happy that I didn't let that make me stop listening! Excellent story, twists, and she did a really good job of tying up lose ends which is a pet peeve of mine. I had a little trouble recognizing when the narrator changed characters, but eventually got that figured out as well. Highly recommend.

A bit Banal but nice surprise at the end.

A bit Banal but good surprise at the end. Worth listening to at least once.

Exceptional story

This book has a broad scope of twists, turns and wonderful characters. The narrator was top notch.

Would read again.