A ‘Different’ kind of thriller

Joanne Harris is the New York Times best-selling author of “Chocolat,” which was made into an Oscar-nominated film. She has since written acclaimed novels in diverse genres, including historical fiction, fantasy and psychological suspense. She taught in a boys’ grammar school for 15 years before becoming a full-time writer.

In “Different Class,” Latin master Roy Straitley has guided all sorts of boys through St. Oswald’s Grammar School for 30 years. Each class has its clowns, rebels, ringleaders and underdogs — many of whom Straitley remembers with fondness. But he is haunted by the memory of one student who didn’t quite belong — an outcast, an instigator, someone who was filled with darkness.

Straitley has given his life to St. Oswald’s, so when he meets the new headmaster, Johnny Harrington, who was a student at St. Oswald’s 20 years ago, he feels as if his life had been threatened. He considers Harrington evil and vows to protect his school. He never stops to think that he might be wrong.

The story is told by two narrators — Master Straitley and an anonymous author of a St. Oswald’s diary. Straitley gives us information on the school and his views on how the school is changing. The new headmaster wants to merge with the nearby girls’ school! The other voice, from the diary of a St. Oswald’s student, is sinister, filled with hate and murder.

With academic failure and insolvency looming, Straitley tries to save St. Oswald’s and keep his job. Scandals in the past have threatened the school, but with the new headmaster in charge, there seems to be little hope.

— BETTY LYTLE, FOR THE OKLAHOMAN