A sex scandal at a New England boarding school unleashes a storm of shame and recrimination throughout the small community. A chorus of voices--those of the men, women, and teenagers involved--details the events of that night and their aftermath.

Writing with a pace and intensity surpassing even her own greatest work, Anita Shreve brings us a gripping emotional drama with the impact of a thriller. No one more compellingly explores the impulses that drive ordinary people into intolerable dilemmas, or the ways in which lives can be derailed or destroyed in one foolish moment.