Q

By: Christina Dalcher

Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan

IN THIS WORLD, PERFECTION IS EVERYTHING

‘Terrifyingly plausible’ Louise Candlish
‘Devastating and brilliant’ Woman & Home
‘Thought-provoking’ Alice Feeney
‘Shocking . . . A powerful tale’ Cosmopolitan
‘Timely’ Kia Abdullah

Elena Fairchild is a teacher at one of the state’s new elite schools. Her daughters are exactly like her: beautiful, ambitious, and perfect. A good thing, since the recent mandate that’s swept the country is all about perfection.

Now everyone must undergo routine tests for their quotient, Q, and any children who don’t measure up are placed into new government schools. Instead, teachers can focus on the gifted.

Elena tells herself it’s not about eugenics, not really, but when one of her daughters scores lower than expected and is taken away, she intentionally fails her own test to go with her.

But what Elena discovers is far more terrifying than she ever imagined…

©2020 Christina Dalcher (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

"Like all the best dystopian fiction, Q takes the reader just a pace or two beyond where we're already at. This is a sharply written and terrifyingly plausible tale of an education system where less than perfect is a life-threatening condition.... I devoured it in a single day." (Louise Candlish)

"Shocking and a powerful tale exploring themes of survival and superficiality." (Cosmopolitan)

"Christina Dalcher is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. It's a master class in dark dystopian fiction, clever, thought-provoking, beautifully written and terrifyingly believable." (Alice Feeney)