FALL

FAward-winning author Colin McAdam's second novel takes place at St. Ebury, an elite Ottawa boarding school. It's a place of privilege and hollow rules, of newly minted “traditions” and the barely restrained animal instincts of the boys. A handful of girls are also in attendance, among them Fall, a beautiful and elusive figure who becomes the object of fascination for many of the male students, including Noel, a smart, intensely idiosyncratic young man. But Fall ends up dating his roommate Julius, the charismatic son of the American ambassador, whom Noel also fixates upon. Amidst a heady mix of hormones and delusional impulses, Noel gradually loses control of his obsessions.

Told from the very different perspectives of Julius and Noel, Fall is a psychologically acute and relentless literary thriller of the first order.

Colin McAdam's first novel, SOME GREAT THING, was the winner of the 2004 Governor General's Award.

US: Riverhead; UK: Jonathan Cape; Canada: Penguin;

FALL
Deutsch von Eike Schoenfeld
[Wagenbach HC 8/2010/ btb PB 2/2014]