Rebecca Buckfast née Price is the first woman headteacher through the ‘narrow door’ of St Oswalds, Malbry, the institution rocked by murder and scandal. She represents its future just as Roy Straitley, classics teacher of many years, is its past. Becky aims to demonstrate that Roy is wrong about wom ...more
I thoroughly enjoyed Gentlemen and Players and Different Class and this is a worthy third and final chapter in a series that follows the life of Latin teacher, Roy Straitley, and his fellow teachers and pupils at St Oswalds. It took me a little while to get into it. It’s a while since I read the oth ...more
This novel follows on directly from, "Different Class," the sequel to "Gentlemen and Players." We are again at St Oswald's, which is now no longer, 'St Oswald's Grammar School for Boys,' but has been re-branded as, 'St Oswald's Academy.' After the various scandals that have befallen the school, St O ...more
Oh my, what a read. I hadn't realised this is part of a trilogy and would say you can certainly read this as a stand alone but I shall be reading the other two. Roy Straitley is approached by a group of his students, they think they have found a body in the school's grounds. Roy investigates and goe ...more
It's over fifteen years since I read the first in the St Oswald's series; Gentlemen and Players and five years since I read the follow up; Different Class. Joanne Harris has long been one of my favourite authors, her ability to write in different genre and keep her readers entertained is amazing. I' ...more
I’m embarrassed to admit that this is the first book I’ve ever read by Joanne Harris - I’m pleased to say it certainly won’t be the last!
I did find it quite slow to start with, but it quickly gained pace and turned out to be a surprisingly gripping page-turner; with an ending I certainly didn ...more
Date reviewed/posted: July 21, 2021 Publication date: August 5, 2021 (UK)
When life for the entire galaxy and planet has turned on its end, you are continuing to #maskup and #lockdown to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation as the #thirdwave ( #fourthwave #fifthwave?) is upon us, superspeed readers like me ...more
When I accepted this for review, I had no idea that A Narrow Door was the third book in the Malbry series featuring St Oswalds, following on from Gentleman and Players and A Different Class. This actually didn’t matter that I hadn’t read either of the previous books, I quite happily read this as a s ...more
It´s diificult for me to rate this one. So, after trying to put my thoughts in words, I´ll go for a 3/10. A perfect duology, completely ruined. I loved the first two in this trilogy and was eagerly anticipating the third.The writing, as usual, is beautiful,the build up is great, the characters engagi ...more
A Narrow Door is the brand new novel by acclaimed author Joanne Harris. A return to the world of St Oswald’s the story follows Rebecca Buckfast – the first female headteacher of the school. She’s determined to take down the old regime and she’s doing it by allowing female students for the first time ...more