The Truants
Author: Kate Weinberg
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing
Pages: 341
Format: Hardback
My Rating ★★★★★
People disappear when they most want to be seen.
Jess Walker, middle child of a middle class family, has perfected the art of vanishing in plain sight. But when she arrives at a concrete university campus under flat, grey, East Anglian skies, her world flares with colour.
Drawn into a tightly knit group of rule breakers – led by their maverick teacher, Lorna Clay – Jess begins to experiment with a new version of herself. But the dynamic between the friends begins to darken as they share secrets, lovers and finally a tragedy. Soon Jess is thrown up against the question she fears most: what is the true cost of an extraordinary life?
My thoughts
In this captivating coming-of-age debut, Jess Walker is about to start university. She chose the university due to her obsession with the academic Lorna Clay, whose book "The Truants" is about writers having to push themselves to reach their goals. Jess is 19 and used to fading into the background, but she is also striving for something more – seeking some essence of life to truly make her feel alive.
The story is initially narrated by an older Jess, who is reflecting back on the events of her first year at university. As readers we already know that something awful is coming from the beginning. This constant sense of foreboding makes for an entirely gripping story.
Tension builds throughout the book as secrets begin to unravel. There is a lot of foreshadowing and several references to all the clues being there, in plain sight – but we, like Jess, are restricted by her limited point of view as the unsettling truth slowly begins to emerge.
It's a really intriguing read with lots of mysterious moments and interesting elements. My favourite parts were those concerning Agatha Christie, whose writing is discussed at length in the university classes Jess attends as one of Lorna’s students.
One of the greatest aspects of the novel is the way Weinberg explores Christie’s themes, especially the connection between love and death. The idea that “people disappear when they most want to be seen” is a theme that is explored throughout the novel, cleverly referring back to Christie’s own, infamous disappearance in 1926. As an Agatha Christie fan myself, I greatly enjoyed this aspect of the story.
The Truants is a character driven thriller and modern day coming-of-age story about a clever group of misfits who yearn to break the rules. Unsettling, challenging, strangely funny and beautifully written, The Truants is a hugely atmospheric and addictive read from start to finish. I loved the mood of it. The characters. The ending. The whole thing. Weinberg’s debut novel is wonderfully satisfying, and such an enticing read.
Overall reaction:
