Catherine House

"[A] delicious literary Gothic debut." -THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, EDITORS' CHOICE

"Moody and evocative as a fever dream, Catherine House is
the sort of book that wraps itself around your brain, drawing you closer with
each hypnotic step." - THE WASHINGTON POST
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A
gothic-infused debut of literary suspense, set within a secluded, elite
university and following a dangerously curious, rebellious undergraduate who
uncovers a shocking secret about an exclusive circle of students . . . and the
dark truth beneath her school's promise of prestige.
Trust us, you belong here.
Catherine
House is a school of higher learning like no other. Hidden deep in the woods of
rural Pennsylvania, this crucible of reformist liberal arts study with its
experimental curriculum, wildly selective admissions policy, and formidable
endowment, has produced some of the world's best minds: prize-winning authors,
artists, inventors, Supreme Court justices, presidents. For those lucky few
selected, tuition, room, and board are free. But acceptance comes with a price.
Students are required to give the House three years--summers included--completely
removed from the outside world. Family, friends, television, music, even their
clothing must be left behind. In return, the school promises a future of
sublime power and prestige, and that its graduates can become anything or
anyone they desire.
Among
this year's incoming class is Ines Murillo, who expects to trade blurry nights
of parties, cruel friends, and dangerous men for rigorous intellectual
discipline--only to discover an environment of sanctioned revelry. Even the
school's enigmatic director, Viktória, encourages the students to explore, to expand
their minds, to find themselves within the formidable iron gates of Catherine.
For Ines, it is the closest thing to a home she's ever had. But the House's
strange protocols soon make this refuge, with its worn velvet and weathered
leather, feel increasingly like a gilded prison. And when tragedy strikes, Ines
begins to suspect that the school--in all its shabby splendor, hallowed history,
advanced theories, and controlled decadence--might be hiding a dangerous agenda
within the secretive, tightly knit group of students selected to study its most
promising and mysterious curriculum.
Combining
the haunting sophistication and dusky, atmospheric style of Sarah Waters with
the unsettling isolation of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go, Catherine
House is a devious, deliciously steamy, and suspenseful page-turner
with shocking twists and sharp edges that is sure to leave readers breathless.

Elisabeth Thomas grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where she still lives and now writes. She graduated from Yale University and currently works as an archivist for a modern art museum. This is her first novel.