September 27, 2006

Love Sucks

“Sabine,” by A.P.

What is it with books about boarding schools? From J.D. Salinger to Curtis Sittenfeld, prep school misadventures never lose their appeal.

The genre gets a lurid new twist with the publication of Sabine, a louche little tale of schoolgirl crushes and steamy makeout sessions, bloody fox hunts and formal balls, a hint of the supernatural, and more than a touch of evil.

Written by the pseudonymous A.P. and set in the late ’50s, the novel is narrated by Viola, an English teen exiled to a picturesquely ruined chateau in rural France. Here, under the watch of an unusual, hard-to-read headmistress, she and four other old-money offspring mope existentially, smoke Gitanes endlessly, and languish generally.

Things get cheerier for Viola with the arrival of Sabine, a beguiling new teacher with radical attitudes and sexy ways. But just as their romance heats up, Sabine leaves Viola for Roland de Vibrey, the charismatic son of a local aristocrat. (Cedar Rapids High was never this much fun.)

When Sabine contracts a mysterious, apparently fatal blood disorder, a hysterical Viola, convinced the illness is the work of vampires, sets out to discover the sinister truth.

In Hollywood pitch, this book is The Secret History meets Interview with the Vampire. It’s campy, creepy, sensational fun that’s hardly life-sucking.

Available online at amazon.com.