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What to expect

The first in the chilling STAGS series! STAGS 2: DOGS is out now and STAGS 3: FOXES is coming out in the summer.

It is the autumn term and Greer MacDonald is struggling to settle into the sixth form at the exclusive St Aidan the Great boarding school, known to its privileged pupils as S.T.A.G.S.

To her surprise Greer receives a mysterious invitation with three words embossed upon on it: huntin' shootin' fishin' - an invitation to spend the half-term weekend at the country manor of Henry de Warlencourt, the most popular and wealthy boy at S.T.A.G.S.

Greer joins the other chosen students at the ancient and sprawling Longcross Hall, and soon realises that they are at the mercy of their capricious host. Over the next three days, as the three blood sports - hunting, shooting and fishing - become increasingly dark and twisted, Greer comes to the horrifying realisation that those being hunted are not wild game, but the very misfits Henry has brought with him from school...

Critics Review

  • MA Bennett reinvigorates the boarding-school thriller… This is a darkly compelling examination of the allure of privilege, and the unscrupulous means by which it preserves itself.

    The Guardian
  • A cracking debut psychological thriller set in an elite boarding school ruled by a set of six pupils known as the Medievals. Think Enid Blyton meets The Hunger Games!

    Irish Sunday Independent
  • Bennett creates a chilling atmosphere on every page. She describes the gorgeous grounds of Longcross, the de Warlencourt home, in rich detail, but never allows readers to relax for long. A threatening servant or an explosion of gunfire always lurks around the corner. The book reads like a Sir Arthur Conan Doyle or an Agatha Christie mystery for modern teens.

    School Library Journal
  • A very readable story in the hands of an experienced writer. Recommended

    Thornton Rigg
  • MA Bennett is brilliant at keeping the reader in suspense.

    Book Murmuration
  • The pacing and plot development is brilliantly executed and will have you on the edge of your seat, desperate to find out what happens next until the very last page, I couldn’t put it down once I’d started. There’s a brilliant twist at the end, I won’t spoil it but trust me, It’s a good one! I can’t recommend this book enough, it’s definitely in my top ten 2017 reads and I’ll definitely be buying a finished copy when it’s out.

    Fantastic Book Dragon

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