''Well-Schooled in Murder'' is a

crime novel Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...

Elizabeth George Susan Elizabeth George (born February 26, 1949) is an American writer of mystery novels set in Great Britain. She is best known for a series of novels featuring Inspector Thomas Lynley. The 21st book in the series appeared in January 2022. T ...

, published by Bantam in 1990. It was the third book in her Inspector Lynley series, which originated in 1988 with ''A Great Deliverance''. In 2002 its screen adaptation was broadcast as the first episode of season one in ''

The Inspector Lynley Mysteries ''The Inspector Lynley Mysteries'' is a British crime drama television series that aired on BBC One from 12 March 2001 to 1 June 2008, consisting of six series and 24 episodes. The protagonist, Detective Inspector Thomas "Tommy" Lynley, 8th Earl o ...

'', a BBC TV series. Set in the late 1980s at an

elite In political and sociological theory, the elite (french: élite, from la, eligere, to select or to sort out) are a small group of powerful people who hold a disproportionate amount of wealth, privilege, political power, or skill in a group. D ...

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

in the

South of England Southern England, or the South of England, also known as the South, is an area of England consisting of its southernmost part, with cultural, economic and political differences from the Midlands and the North. Officially, the area includes ...

founded in 1489, the book, which is a

mystery novel Mystery is a fiction genre where the nature of an event, usually a murder or other crime, remains mysterious until the end of the story. Often within a closed circle of suspects, each suspect is usually provided with a credible motive and a reas ...

in the tradition of the

whodunnit A ''whodunit'' or ''whodunnit'' (a colloquial elision of "Who asdone it?") is a complex plot-driven variety of detective fiction in which the puzzle regarding who committed the crime is the main focus. The reader or viewer is provided with th ...

, revolves around the strict yet unwritten code of behaviour prevalent at independent schools which says that under no circumstances must pupils ever tell on their schoolmates, no matter what they have done. Accordingly, when a 13-year-old boy goes missing one Friday afternoon and two days later is found dead in a

churchyard In Christian countries a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster-Scots, this can also ...

an hour's drive away, Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley and his partner, Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, both of the

Criminal Investigation Department The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is the branch of a police force to which most plainclothes detectives belong in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth nations. A force's CID is distinct from its Special Branch (though officers of b ...

New Scotland Yard Scotland Yard (officially New Scotland Yard) is the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police, the territorial police force responsible for policing Greater London's 32 boroughs, but not the City of London, the square mile that forms London' ...

, are up against a wall of silence as none of the 600 pupils of Bredgar Chambers School seems to be willing to co-operate with the police and communicate what they know.

Plot summary

Teacher John Corntel asks his former

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

schoolmate Lynley for help when the 13 year old schoolboy Matthew Whateley has disappeared. Initially Lynley refuses, until Deborah St James finds the naked body of the boy in a churchyard in Stoke Poges. Lynley and Havers start their investigation at Matthew's school Bredgar Chambers, an elite

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

West Sussex West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...

. They find a letter from Matthew to Jeannie Bonnamy, a daughter of Colonel Bonnamy. Matthew has visited them three days before his death to dine and play

chess Chess is a board game for two players, called White and Black, each controlling an army of chess pieces in their color, with the objective to checkmate the opponent's king. It is sometimes called international chess or Western chess to disti ...

with the colonel. When Jeannie brought Matthew back to school, they saw 6th form student Chas Quilter in a school

minibus A minibus, microbus, minicoach, or commuter (in Zimbabwe) is a passenger-carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, ...

, returning from a visit to Cecilia Feld, a girl in Stoke Poges. Chas didn't want anyone to find out about his relationship with Cecilia, and the fact that he was the father of Cecilia's child, which has

Apert syndrome Apert syndrome is a form of acrocephalosyndactyly, a congenital disorder characterized by malformations of the skull, face, hands and feet. It is classified as a branchial arch syndrome, affecting the first branchial (or pharyngeal) arch, the ...

. Cecilia herself was transferred from Bredgar Chambers to another school when she was pregnant. Chemistry teacher Emilia Bond tried to burn

child pornography Child pornography (also called CP, child sexual abuse material, CSAM, child porn, or kiddie porn) is pornography that unlawfully exploits children for sexual stimulation. It may be produced with the direct involvement or sexual assault of a ...

photos that belonged to John Corntel; she was in love with Corntel, but found out he was collecting those photos. This explains why Corntel didn't patrol in spite of being duty master. That same evening 6th grader Clive Pritchard nabbed Matthew Whateley to torture him, because Matthew had made a tape recording of Clive

bullying Bullying is the use of force, coercion, hurtful teasing or threat, to abuse, aggressively dominate or intimidate. The behavior is often repeated and habitual. One essential prerequisite is the perception (by the bully or by others) of an imba ...

schoolboy Harry Morant. When Clive found Matthew dead he felt responsible, unaware that the cause of death was

carbon monoxide poisoning Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as "flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large e ...

. During the investigation there's an attempt to kill Jeannie Bonnamy with a rake. Chas Quilter hangs himself. The investigators find out that Matthew's biological parents were Mrs Pamela Byrne and Edward Hsu, a Chinese former pupil at Bredgar Hall who killed himself after this scandal. Giles Byrne felt financially responsible for the child of his late wife. As a board member he obtained a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...

for Matthew at Bredgar Chambers. Giles' 18-year-old son Brian turns out to be the culprit. He killed his half-brother in the

fume cupboard A fume hood (sometimes called a fume cupboard or fume closet) is a type of local ventilation device that is designed to limit exposure to hazardous or toxic fumes, vapors or dusts. Description A fume hood is typically a large piece of equipmen ...

in the chemistry lab. He then transported the body to Stoke Poges in the school minibus Chas Quilter was driving. His motive was to win Chas Quilter's lifetime loyalty. Brian also tried to kill Jeannie Bonnamy for the same reason. Brian Byrne and Clive Pritchard are arrested. In a

subplot In fiction, a subplot is a secondary strand of the plot that is a supporting side story for any story or for the main plot. Subplots may connect to main plots, in either time and place or thematic significance. Subplots often involve supporting c ...

Barbara Havers visits her demented mother, and finds her father dead. Another theme is Lynley's

aristocratic Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At the time of the word's ...

descent (he is sometimes referred to as "Lord Asherton")—shown through his working relationship with his

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

colleague Barbara Havers from

Acton Acton may refer to: Places Antarctica * Mount Acton Australia * Acton, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb of Canberra * Acton, Tasmania, a suburb of Burnie * Acton Park, Tasmania, a suburb of Hobart, Tasmania, formerly known as Acton Canada ...

and his unrequited love for Deborah, his best friend's wife.

Characters

* DI Thomas Lynley *DS Barbara Havers *Jimmy Havers: Barbara's father *Mrs Havers: Barbara's mother *DI Mike Canerone *Simon Allcourt-St James: forensic scientist *Deborah St James: Simon's wife *Lady Helen Clyde: absent object of Lynley's affection *Matthew Whateley: 13-year-old schoolboy *Kevin Whateley: Matthew's adoptive father *Patsy Whateley: Matthew's adoptive mother *Harry Morant: schoolmate of Matthew *Arlens: schoolmate of Matthew *Smythe-Andrews: schoolmate of Matthew *Chas Quilter: 6th grader *Clive Pritchard: 6th grader *Brian Byrne: 6th grader *Giles Byrne: Brian's father *Mrs Pamela Byrne: Brian's mother (deceased) *Alan Lockwood: headmaster *Mrs Kathleen Lockwood: Alan's wife *John Corntel: teacher, former Eton schoolmate of Lynley *Emilia Bond: chemistry teacher *Cowfrey Pitt: German teacher *Judith Laughland: sanatorium sister *Frank Orten: porter *Elaine Roly: matron *Colonel Bonnamy: lives in the neighbourhood of the school *Jeannie Bonnamy: Colonel's daughter *Yvonnen Livesley: Matthew's old mate from Hammersmith *Cecilia Feld: 17-year-old girl in Stoke Poges *Edward Hsu: former Chinese pupil who killed himself

Quote

We live by
code In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...
s, he ynleythought. We call them our
morals Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of cond ...
, our standards, our
value Value or values may refer to: Ethics and social * Value (ethics) wherein said concept may be construed as treating actions themselves as abstract objects, associating value to them ** Values (Western philosophy) expands the notion of value beyo ...
s, our
ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns m ...
, as if they were part of our genetic make up. But they are only behaviours that we have learned from our society, and there are times to act in defiance of them, to fly in the face of their conventions because it is right to do so.

Literary significance and reception

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'' wrote: "Ms. George has crafted a fine and powerful novel sure to delight readers in the mood for a thought-provoking, hard-hitting mystery." ''

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

'' wrote: "Like

P. D. James Phyllis Dorothy James, Baroness James of Holland Park, (3 August 1920 – 27 November 2014), known professionally as P. D. James, was an English novelist and life peer. Her rise to fame came with her series of detective novels featuring th ...

, George knows the import of the smallest human gesture; ''Well-Schooled in Murder'' puts the younger author clearly in the running with the genre's master." ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'': "George is a master ..An outstanding of the modern English mystery."
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'': "A spectacular new voice in mystery writing."
''

Daily News (New York) The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ta ...

'': "A compelling whodunnit ..A reader's delight."
''Well-Schooled in Murder'' was awarded the MIMI, a German prize for suspense fiction.

TV adaption

''Well Schooled in Murder'' was

adapted In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...

and broadcast by the BBC in April 2002 as the first episode of season one in ''

'', following a 2001 pilot based on the inaugural Lynley novel ''A Great Deliverance''. Several changes were made to the plot. Matthew's biological mother is Patsy Whateley instead of Pamela Byrne. Corntel is gay but doesn't actually collect child porn. Deborah and Simon St James are omitted. So is Cecilia Feld, and there's no mention of Chas Quilter having a child. Lorry driver Barry Summers is a new suspect.

Publication

*1990, UK, Bantam Press (), Pub date 25 October 1990, hardback (First edition)

Read on

* Patrick Redmond: '' The Wishing Game'' *

Stephen Dobyns Stephen J. Dobyns (born February 19, 1941) is an American poet and novelist born in Orange, New Jersey. Life Dobyns was born on February 19, 1941 in Orange, New Jersey to Lester L., an Episcopal minister, and Barbara Johnston Dobyns. Dobyns was r ...

: '' Boy in the Water'' *

Joanne Harris Joanne Michèle Sylvie Harris (born 3 July 1964) is an English-French author, best known for her novel '' Chocolat'' (1999), which was adapted the following year for the film '' Chocolat''. Early life Harris was born in Barnsley, Yorkshire, t ...

: '' Gentlemen & Players'' *Generally, other books listed at

School and university in literature Educational settings as place and/or subject in fiction form the theme of this catalogue of titles and authors. Organized alphabetically by the author's last name, the information is further divided by general school environments and those where th ...

* An incomplete list of mystery novels

References

{{Books by Elizabeth George 1990 American novels American mystery novels Novels set in boarding schools Bantam Books books