'In this captivating debut novel, Ellie Eaton traces adolescent female sexuality, class divides, and the weight of formative memories on adults.' - Vulture, New York Magazine 'Shifting in time, this crisply written novel explores the universal human yearning to belong-and the terrible toll it can sometimes exact.' - People Suspenseful, provocative, and compulsively readable, The Divines explores the tension between the lives we lead as adults and the experiences that form us, probing us to consider how our memories as adults compel us to reexamine our pasts. But the more Josephine recalls, the further her life unravels, derailing not just her marriage and career, but her entire sense of self. With each memory that resurfaces, she circles closer to the violent secret at the heart of the school's scandal. Ruminating on the past, Josephine becomes obsessed with her teenage identity and the forgotten girls of her one-time orbit. The visit provokes blurry recollections of those doomed final weeks that rocked the community. Yet now Josephine inexplicably finds herself returning to her old stomping grounds. She hasn't spoken to another Divine in fifteen years, not since the day the school shuttered its doors in disgrace. For Josephine, now in her thirties, the years at St John were a lifetime ago. They were fiercely loyal, sharp-tongued, and cuttingly humorous in the way that only teenage girls can be. The girls of St John the Divine, an elite English boarding school, were notorious for flipping their hair, harassing teachers, chasing boys, and chain-smoking cigarettes. This perfectly paced novel examines class structures and sexual identity and betrayals and tragedy in a way that had be both wanting to rip through the pages and wanting to savor each sentence until the extremely satisfying end.' -Elin Hilderbrand for Literati 'o beautifully written that I marked lines-for their perceptive genius-on nearly every page. In this provocative novel, the past isn't always as far away as you think.' - The Skimm 'For when you want a coming-of-age novel with a dark twist. Recommended by Entertainment Weekly * CNN * Harper's BAZAAR * E! Online * Refinery 29 * Bustle * Shondaland * Vulture * The Millions * Lit Hub * Electric Literature * Parade * MSN * and more!

The Elin Hilderbrand Literati Book Club Pick!

About the Book This compulsively readable literary debut set in a secluded boarding school explores the intoxicating, destructive relationships between teenage girls.

Ellie eaton the divines