The stunning Booker shortlisted novel from bestselling author Zoe Heller, now a Penguin Essential

'Fascinating, brilliant, horribly addictive' Guardian

From the day that Sheba Hart joins the staff at St George's, history teacher Barbara Covett is convinced that she has found a kindred spirit. When Sheba is discovered having an illicit affair with one of her pupils, Barbara appoints herself Sheba's chief defender. Yet all is not as it first appears in this dark story and as Sheba will eventually discover, a friend can be as treacherous as any lover.

'Superbly gripping' Daily Telegraph

"Fascinating, brilliant, horribly addictive" - Guardian

"Superbly gripping. One of the most compelling books I've read in ages" - Daily Telegraph

"Deliciously sinister" - Daily Mail

"Excellent. An undercurrent of subtle malice, cleverly controlled by Heller" - Evening Standard

"Brilliant, nasty, gripping" - Observer

"Reads like a nose through someone else's bathroom cabinet: full of guilty insights and delicious snobbery" - Independent

"A subtle study in obsession and loneliness ... my take-it-to-the-beach recommendation" - Guardian Summer Reading