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The Finishing School
The Finishing School: A Novel | Joanna Goodman
34 posts | 19 read | 67 to read
In this suspenseful, provocative novel of friendship, secrets, and deceit, a successful writer returns to her elite Swiss boarding school to get to the bottom of a tragic accident that took place while she was a student twenty years earlier. How far would you go to uncover the truth? One spring night in 1998 the beautiful Cressida Strauss plunges from a fourth-floor balcony at the Lyce Internationale Suisse with catastrophic consequences. Loath to draw negative publicity to the school, a bastion of European wealth and glamour, officials quickly dismiss the incident as an accident, but questions remain: Was it a suicide attempt? Or was Cressida pushed? It was no secret that she had a selfish streak and had earned as many enemies as allies in her tenure at the school. For her best friend, scholarship student Kersti Kuusk, the lingering questions surrounding Cressida's fall continue to nag long after she leaves the Lyce. Kersti marries and becomes a bestselling writer, but never stops wondering about Cressida's obsession with the Helvetian Societya secret club banned years before their arrival at the schooland a pair of its members who were expelled. When Kersti is invited as a guest to the Lyce's 100th Anniversary, she begins probing the cover-up, unearthing a frightening underbelly of lies and abuse at the prestigious establishment. And in one portentous moment, Kersti makes a decision that will connect her to Cressida forever and raise the stakes dangerously high in her own desire to solve the mystery and redeem her past. An unputdownable read as clever as it is compelling, The Finishing School offers a riveting glimpse into a privileged, rarefied world in which nothing is as it appears.
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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I read this several years ago and loved it! 🏫📚❤️

#SchoolSpirit
#BoardingSchool

Eggs On my shelf!! 2mo
61 likes1 comment
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TheLudicReader
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Pickpick

An invitation to attend the 100th anniversary of the Swiss boarding school she attended sends Kersti down memory lane in this dual time novel about friendship and secrets. I really enjoyed it because it deftly manages a lot of things…and a mystery to boot.
#doublespin @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 12mo
32 likes1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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1) school started here in August 8th! 🏫 ✏️

2) I loved the tagged book!

#Two4Tuesday

TheSpineView School starts so early these days! Thanks for playing! 1y
Mimi28 How is Tux doing? 😍😍😻😻 1y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Mimi28 he is wild most of the time and sweet some of the time 😂 1y
Mimi28 Just like I like them 😉 I saw Miss Priss in the other picture. So she is still hanging around? I petted a stray black cat with a collar but no tag today. But when I told my mom she almost had a heart attack- sooooo no inside kitties for me, lol 💁🏽‍♀️ 1y
43 likes5 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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#BoardingSchool
#SavvySettings

I really enjoyed this one!!

Eggs Love this! On my TBR! 3y
68 likes3 stack adds1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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I loved this one!

#SchoolDays

#FallTreasures 🍂🍁 🏫

I keep thinking today is the first!! Oh well, I‘m ahead for a change 🤣🤣

Eggs Perfect💞 Apparently I have stacked this #blameitonlitsy 💗💗 3y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs 💞📚 so many right?! 3y
Eggs 🙌🏻🙌🏻 3y
68 likes2 stack adds3 comments
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melissajayne
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Pickpick

4⭐️ I quite enjoyed the book; liked that I could read it at a fairly good pace and that the story was easy follow. #2021 #bookreview #bookstagram #fiction #mystery #canadian #Switzerland🇨🇭 #readingeurope2021

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aperfectmjk
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So a client of my mother's gave her these books to give to me. 🤗

Surprisingly, I don't own any them, maybe because they're not my usual genre. I've really only heard of The Finishing School. Anyone have thoughts on any of the others?

Butterfinger I know some are Christian Fiction. Beverly Lewis, Michael Phillips and Judith Pella, Kingsbury, and Tyndall are all Christian Fiction authors. I really liked Phillips and Pella back in the day. I just hadn't read any of this genre in ages, but their historical fiction was really well written. 4y
38 likes1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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#Schoolsout
#SongsofSummer

I love this cover and the book was great!

Sassy_Steph I have this one in my pile 5y
OriginalCyn620 Sounds good! 😎 5y
86 likes4 stack adds3 comments
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Mirazzles
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Pickpick

I really enjoyed this one! At first it was a little slow and I thought I knew what to expect but I was wrong. I kind of guessed who did it but there was a twist at the end I never saw coming! I really enjoyed this one, but I think an extra bonus was I was in a small town in Germany right on the Swiss border when I read it, which gave me a feel for the atmosphere :) if you get a chance I recommend you give it a try :) #bibliophile #suspense

36 likes1 stack add
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Samplergal
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Who has finished some books so far this month? I have finished three so far! ( all in the works prior to Febrauary!). #finishingFebruary

GingerAntics I just finished a book this afternoon. 7y
Lcsmcat I‘ve finished 3, but they were all started in January. 7y
Samplergal @GingerAntics yay! That's great. 7y
Samplergal @Lcsmcat Mine were too, but it still counts!!! I have 13 currently in process, although 7 are Serial Readers. A Finish is great! (edited) 7y
75 likes4 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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#school #scenesfromabook

Was it a suicide attempt or was Cressida pushed? Kersti returns to her Swiss boarding school 20 years later to uncover the truth.

I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from her!!

JoeStalksBeck 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏❤️ 7y
Chelsibeau Me too!! 7y
LeahBergen This sounds like a fun read. 👍🏻 7y
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SilversReviews I didn‘t really like this book. I actually did not finish it. (edited) 7y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @SilversReviews really?! I liked it and it had a twist at the end!! 7y
SilversReviews @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Fun on the twist. I just couldn‘t connect with it. Sorry I missed the twist, though. (edited) 7y
108 likes2 stack adds9 comments
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Redy2trvl
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Pickpick

I loved this book! Gossip Girl meets Pretty Little Liars. Very suspenseful until the end.

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MrBook
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#TBRtemptation post 4! Released in April. Successful writer, Kersti, heads back to her elite Swiss boarding school where, 20 years ago, her friend, Cressida, fell to her to death from a 4th-story balcony. Was it suicide or murder? Kersti intends to get to the bottom of the mystery. Invited as a guest to Lycée's 100th anniversary, she has the chance to probe from all angles, including of the secretive Helvetian Society. #blameLitsy #blameMrBook ?

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I loved this one 💕📚 7y
Sassy_Steph I've seen this one at work and it intrigues me!! 7y
Chelsibeau This is a good one! Don't usually read this genre but I love anything about boarding schools so I picked it up. Didn't disappoint. 7y
50 likes8 stack adds3 comments
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rjnellie
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"Beneath the flawless surface lies an ugly truth."

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Ehbooklover
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Pickpick

I have always had a soft spot for mysteries set in boarding schools so as soon as this one crossed my desk I decided to add it to my TBR pile. I'm glad that I did as it kept me guessing until the very end with its numerous twists and turns. A fun "guilty pleasure"-type read.

BethsBookBlog I liked this one, too! 7y
16 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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A great #whodunit that keeps you guessing until the end!

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I wish Litsy didn't crop the pics so much!!! 7y
36 likes1 comment
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Jilljemmett
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If you‘ve read this book, you know why I‘ve chosen it for today‘s challenge. There‘s a creepy person who did a creepy thing 👀


#rockinmay (Creep) - The Finishing School


#bookstagram #bookblogger #bookblog #bibliophile #fiction #thefinishingschool #canlit #books #amreading

22 likes1 stack add
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Redy2trvl
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Spent the day downtown with a bestie, @DeAnneVB , visiting an #independentbookstore. #PrinceBooks was everything @Vbrrgirl said it would be! Such a fun day!!!!

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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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Almost done with this one!! Loved it! ❤️

Lmstraubie Looks like a really cozy reading spot! ☺️ 8y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Lmstraubie it's my favorite spot!! ❤️ 8y
43 likes2 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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#maybookflowers First book of May!!

Melissa_J Hope it's a good one as I'll be reading it soon 😊 8y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Melissa_J it's good so far!!! 8y
RealLifeReading Pretty photo! 8y
48 likes1 stack add4 comments
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Pinkmeghan
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A bit of a light month for me, but enjoyable nonetheless! The highlight was probably The Finishing School, and the low of the month was Hillbilly Elegy. (Still glad I read it, still think it's full of 💩).

JoeStalksBeck 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏 8y
Reviewsbylola Great month! 8y
Cinfhen Great month ~ pretty graphic 8y
73 likes4 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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wallacereads
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A quick whodunit set partly in Toronto. #readathon @DeweysReadathon

8 likes1 stack add
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Pinkmeghan
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Pickpick

I ended up really enjoying this book, despite the egregious typo I found in it! 😂. This is the kind of book I buy, intend to read, but never do, so I'm glad I made the time now. I was really engaged with the mystery, and did not see some of the twists coming!

mrsmarch HI ROSE. 8y
rubyslippersreads This is on my TBR list (although now I'll be looking for the typo! 😄) 8y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I just got this today 😊 8y
See All 7 Comments
Pinkmeghan @mrsmarch Rosie says hai and plz give her baby her love. 😂 8y
Pinkmeghan @rubyslippersreads check my last post for a hint! 8y
Pinkmeghan @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks it's a good read!! 8y
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Pinkmeghan and the cover is gorgeous 😊 8y
84 likes3 stack adds7 comments
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Pinkmeghan
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I was bopping along, enjoying this book. I got really excited when they started discussing my favorite Scott Fitzgerald novel, then I turned the page and this happened. The main characters of Tender Is the Night are the Divers, not the Drivers. #copyedit

Texreader 😬 8y
CocoReads Grr! 😬😬😬 8y
minkyb 😳 8y
58 likes4 comments
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks
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These came in today!! I seriously can't buy anymore book!!! 😊😊 I have enough bought to make my goal on Goodreads!! But I keep seeing books that you guys suggest and I want them!! 😳

Tamra I know! Terrible problem! 8y
Purrfectpages I'll never be able to read all the books I have! 8y
52 likes3 comments
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Leigh0906
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Picked up some reading for me and the husband on my Sam's Club trip! #bookhaul

ramyasbookshelf Gaiman 💙💙💙💙💙 8y
susanw I really liked The Finishing School! Enjoy! 8y
25 likes1 stack add2 comments
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Jilljemmett
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Pickpick

#aprilbookshowers Drop everything and read this book! No seriously. Go read The Finishing School by @jogoodmanauthor 😄It's awesome!

21 likes1 stack add
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Justacatandabook
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Pickpick

Happy publication day to Joanna Goodman and THE FINISHING SCHOOL! While bits of the plot are a little outlandish, this dark and twisted tale will have you frantic to finish the last portions of the novel and put everything together! (Besides, Ellie the cat approves!) Full review at my blog: goo.gl/IpNAtR
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#bookrecommendation #bookreview #books #bookworm #booklover #bookblogger #booklove #thefinishingschool #joannagoodman #fiction #edelweiss

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BookNAround
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It's still #litsypartyofone if one of the furs is with me, right? Because my lap is never empty. 😂

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susanw
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Pickpick

Swiss boarding school? Scandalous love affair? Secrets? and a mystery that goes unsolved for 20 years? Check, check, check and check! It keep me guessing. Chapters alternate between a then and now time frame. Perfect for between those deep and heavy kind of books.

HardcoverHearts Oh a boarding school mystery is my weakness!! Adding this. 8y
MamaGina I went to boarding school for three years and not once was there a mystery for me to solve, I've always found that very disappointing 🤣 8y
55 likes5 stack adds2 comments
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BethFishReads
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Years after an accident (or suicide?) claims the life of a student at a Swiss boarding school for the rich and famous, her classmates still have questions. A reunion reopens theories of a coverup. Looks like good suspense from @HarperBooks

LeahBergen I have a thing for boarding school stories. 👍🏼 8y
LitHousewife You had me at boarding school! 8y
BethFishReads @LitHousewife ha! I know that about you 8y
LitHousewife @BethFishReads @LeahBergen We're in good company! I hope this book is fun. 8y
52 likes11 stack adds5 comments