Critical Praise

In his dream-like and labyrinthine debut, Will Lavender delivers a clever, intricate page-turner that kept me guessing late into the night. OBEDIENCE is a house of mirrors where every corner we turn is a false reflection of the truth until the shocking final scene. A gripping exploration of human nature and all its foibles told in Lavender's fresh and original voice, OBEDIENCE is not to be missed.

—Lisa Unge

OBEDIENCE is a very scary story set on the border where good meets evil, located in this case in that scariest of places, academia. Taut, twisty, and highly original: the pages turned themselves.

—Peter Abrahams

A taut and timely thriller that explores the dark side of academia, where classrooms are dangerous and paranoia abounds.

—Karin Slaughter

A taut, clever puzzle, so artfully crafted and tightly wound that it springs open its trap when you least expect it to.

—Carol Goodman, author of THE SONNET LOVER and THE GHOST ORCHID

A devilishly inventive debut that reads like a house of mirrors. Nothing is what it seems, right up to the devastating finale.

—Brian Freeman, author of STRIPPED

With superb confidence, Lavender constructs a brilliant fictional web of lies, inventively warping the psychological thriller to fit the confines of a scholarly investigation.

—Kirkus Reviews

OBEDIENCE draws you in and never lets go ––– and what a ride!

—David Baldacci