Clashing egos, rigid hierarchies and a huge imbalance of power: it’s no wonder that universities have inspired so much fiction. And no surprise either that those at the top of the academic food chain sometimes fall horribly short of the standards set by the prestigious institutions that give them tenure. This is the territory I explore in my new thriller, 29 Seconds. Set against the backdrop of a fictional British university, it pits a junior member of the faculty against a senior professor whose glittering public persona hides a very, very dark side. When I wrote the book, I had worked (in a non-academic role) at a university for 13 years, and while I loved my job, I also knew the hallowed halls of higher education could be fertile ground for a novel exploring the darker side of academia.
I was drawn to the story partly because of the particular place in society that academics occupy. As teachers and mentors, they can be inspirational figures to many generations of students just setting out in the world. But that role also gives them a level of influence over others that can become toxic, particularly if they have the power to make or break the careers of junior colleagues below them on the ladder. As in any environment where you have a small number of powerful, highly-regarded individuals—whether it’s movie-making, the media, high finance or Silicon Valley—that imbalance can sometimes bring out the very worst in people. And of course, higher education has its own share of bad apples: here are some of my own favorite books about academics behaving disgracefully.
The Book of You by Claire Kendal
It only takes a single date with creepy university lecturer Rafe for Clarissa to realise she’s made a horrible mistake that she wants to put behind her as quickly as possible. Rafe, however, has other ideas. He begins a ruthless campaign of stalking, following her everywhere and insisting they are meant to be together. Advised by the police to gather evidence of his obsessive behaviour, Clarissa begins to document Rafe’s behaviour in diary entries that are revealed as the story unfolds towards its horrifying climax.
The Perfect Liar by Thomas Christopher Greene
Max has a teaching position at a leafy Vermont college, a gorgeous suburban house and a picture-perfect life with his wife Susannah and her teenaged son. But their seemingly idyllic existence is threatened when somebody leaves an anonymous note taped to the couple’s front door: ‘I KNOW WHO YOU ARE’. Max is not who he says he is, and it soon becomes clear that both he and Susannah are harbouring secrets that they’re desperate to keep hidden – from the world and from each other.
An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
When Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study on ethics and morality conducted by the mysterious Dr. Lydia Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money and leave. Anonymity is guaranteed – or so she is led to believe. Suffice it to say that things get weird… As the questions grow more and more invasive, and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to lose track of what is real and what is just part of Dr. Shields’ manipulative experiment.
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
The book that introduced the world to Humbert Humbert: the ultimate unreliable narrator. A middle-aged literature professor, he is obsessed with 12-year-old Dolores Haze and becomes sexually involved with her after assuming the role of stepfather (‘Lolita’ is his private nickname for Dolores – no-one else uses it). He takes her away under false pretences, isolates her, drugs her, rapes, and abuses her over a period of years – all the while gaslighting his victim, her family and us readers into believing that he truly loves her.
The History Man by Malcolm Bradbury
The classic 1970s campus novel is set at the fictional University of Watermouth and focuses on Howard Kirk, a sociology lecturer and self-appointed revolutionary hero. Kirk is the trendiest of radical tutors and has an inexhaustible appetite for intrigue, control, and sexual conquest. He’s also deeply selfish, intolerant of the opinions of others and motivated solely by his own appetites. Seen through modern eyes, and post-#MeToo, Kirk is a monstrous character, who not only seduces his students but also exploits his position to indoctrinate them.
Obedience by Will Lavender
The new students in Winchester University’s Logic and Reasoning class are given a startling assignment on their first day: find a hypothetical missing girl named Polly. If, after being given a series of clues, they have not found her before the end of term, she will be murdered. At first the students are as intrigued by the premise of their puzzle as they are wary of the strange and slightly unnerving Professor Williams. But as they delve deeper into the mystery, they begin to suspect the Polly story is far more sinister than a simple exercise in logical deduction…
White Noise by Don DeLillo
Set at a liberal arts college in Middle America known only as “The-College-on-the-Hill,” White Noise follows a year in the life of Jack Gladney, a professor who has made his name by pioneering the field of Hitler studies. As Jack and his fourth wife, Babette, obsess over their own mortality, the atmosphere on campus is one of slowly decreasing connection to reality. Their death obsession slowly takes over, poisoning everything around them and driving them to the brink—possibly over the brink—of madness.
The Truants by Kate Weinberg
Jess Walker is drawn in by the flamboyant and charismatic Dr. Lorna Clay, whose seminars transform Jess’s thinking on life, love, and literature. Swept up in Lorna’s thrall, Jess falls in with a tightly-knit group of student rule-breakers – Alec, a South African journalist with a nihilistic streak; Georgie, a seductive, pill-popping aristocrat; and Nick, a handsome geologist with layers of his own. But when tragedy strikes, Jess falls still deeper under Lorna’s spell. Together, the two seek refuge on a remote Italian island, where Jess tastes the life she’s long dreamed of—and uncovers a shocking secret that challenges everything.
