Emily Layden’s debut novel, set in an exclusive all-girls’ American boarding school, concerns accusations of historic sexual abuse, which threaten to permanently damage the reputation of an academic and privileged community. The author astutely captures the claustrophobic and toxic culture of conformity among teenage girls, and while the book’s multiple perspectives prevent deep engagement with any single character, Layden nonetheless creates an incisive portrait of young women in the #MeToo era.
