theSkimm Reading Pick!
Blurring the lines of blame and moral ambiguity, Indecent by Corinne Sullivan is a smart, sexy debut.
Shy, introverted Imogene Abney has always been fascinated by the elite world of prep schools, having secretly longed to attend one since she was a girl in Buffalo, New York. So, shortly after her college graduation, when she's offered a teaching position at the Vandenberg School for Boys, an all-boys prep school in Westchester, New York, she immediately accepts, despite having little teaching experience--and very little experience with boys.
When Imogene meets handsome, popular Adam Kipling a few weeks into her tenure there, a student who exudes charm and status and ease, she's immediately drawn to him. Who is this boy who flirts with her without fear of being caught? Who is this boy who seems immune to consequences and worry; a boy for whom the world will always provide?
As an obsessive, illicit affair begins between them, Imogene is so lost in the haze of first love that she's unable to recognize the danger she's in. The danger of losing her job. The danger of losing herself in the wrong person. The danger of being caught doing something possibly illegal and so indecent.
Exploring issues of class, sex, and gender, this smart, sexy debut by Corrine Sullivan shatters the black-and-white nature of victimhood, taking a close look at blame and moral ambiguity.
About the Author :
CORINNE SULLIVAN studied English with a Creative Writing Concentration at Boston College, where she graduated in 2014. She then received her MFA in fiction from Sarah Lawrence College in 2016. Her stories have appeared in Night Train, Knee-Jerk, and Pithead Chapel, among other publications. Indecent is her debut novel.
Review :
[A] surprising debut...an affecting novel, examining self-doubt, self-sabotage, and the lasting impact of both. -- Publishers Weekly
[A] steamy debut, in which infatuation crosses the line into obsession... Imogene's backstory...will have readers sympathizing with her as she works through her past. -- Library Journal
"A heart-breaking, entirely believable exploration of an illicit affair. Indecent captures the white-hot haze of first love, as obsessive and delicious as it is blinding and dangerous. You won't be able to put this down." -- Georgia Clark, author of The Regulars
Indecent is a fresh twist on the prep school novel, a thrilling ride that masterfully explores class, sex and obsession. Sullivan's debut novel is a sharp and complex coming-of-age story that will keep you hooked until the last page. -- Jennifer Close, author of The Hopefuls
"A page turner with characters so fresh and real it's scary, Indecent will take your breath away. Sullivan explores subject matter that could be merely titillating, sex, power, desire, but is so ruthlessly honest about them that in the end she challenges everything we thought we knew." -- Rufi Thorpe, author of The Girls from Corona Del Mar and Dear Fang, With Love
Indecent is so astutely observed, so expertly crafted, I didn't realize I was riding a roller coaster until I was already buckled in and halfway to the top. A fractured coming-of-age story, a one-two punch about self-sabotage and obsessive love, Indecent is a page-turner of a debut by a ridiculously talented young writer. --Lauren Fox, author of Still Life With Husband
Indecent asks the hard questions about just how low low self-worth can make a person go, and the even harder questions about what it means to truly grow up. -- Elisa Albert, author of After Birth
"A suspenseful and excruciatingly true portrait of what it's like to be young, female, and desperate to be loved - by the wrong person. Corinne Sullivan's style is effortless and completely absorbing." -- Swan Huntley, author of We Could Be Beautiful and The Goddesses
