David Federman has never felt appreciated. An academically gifted yet painfully forgettable member of his New Jersey high school class, the withdrawn, mild-mannered freshman arrives at Harvard fully expecting to be embraced by a new tribe of high-achieving peers. But, initially, his social prospects seem unlikely to change, sentencing him to a lifetime of anonymity. Then he meets Veronica Morgan Wells. Struck by her beauty, wit, and sophisticated Manhattan upbringing, David falls feverishly in love. Determined to win her attention and an invite into her glamorous world, he begins compromising his moral standards for this one, great shot at happiness. But both Veronica and David, it turns out, are not exactly as they seem.
"Stunning-and profoundly disconcerting...the pleasure of the book is not in its ultratimely plot but in its complicated-and unsettlingly familiar-cast. These people are nuanced even when they're disturbing, human even when they're horrendous. A spectacular stylist, Wayne is deeply empathetic toward his characters, but-brutally and brilliantly-he refuses to either defend or excuse them. A star
Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"An enthralling portrait of male narcissism and voyeuristic obsession."
Library Journal (starred review)
"The reader is...compelled to frantically turn the pages."
