Readers of Ellie Eaton's arresting debut, The Divines, should not like Gerry Lake. Gerry is the bratty, coddled roommate of Eaton's protagonist, Josephine; they attend an elite all-female boarding school in England known as St. John the Divine. These girls refer to themselves as Divines, and they consider themselves as such; locals recognize them by their posh accents, trust-funded clothing and the self-important way they flip their hair. But inside St. John, the walls are caving in. The students spend more time chain-smoking and hoarding obscene photographs than actually studying. They chase after men and scoff at townies. These young women refer to one another by traditionally masculine names--Josephine is Joe, Geraldine is Gerry--but these ostensibly powerful titles do nothing to mask their insecurity. Especially Joe's.
Flash forward to the present, where Joe--now referring to herself as Sephine--is happily married. She's trying everything in her power to wash away the Divine that still clings to her, but finds she can't stop thinking about Gerry, who suffered a horrendous accident during their last year as Divines. In her memories of that final year, she returns again and again to the sex, jealousy, cruelty, betrayal and privilege that lead up to Gerry's injury and Sephine's subsequent trauma. Now raising her own daughter, Josephine must reckon with the girl she once was--and the woman she's become. As readers progress through this meticulously plotted story, they'll be surprised to find their loyalties waxing and waning with each new revelation. Readers should not like Gerry Lake. But perhaps she is more of a heroine than Josephine would like her to be. --Lauren Puckett, freelance writer