Murder is not a subject investigated by Her Majesty's Inspectors of Education in the normal course of their duties. It was certainly not something Robert Fanshaw, technically retired HMI, was prepared for when he inspected Sinclair School in Northumberland, even though it was what used to be known as an Approved School.
Its sixty boys were among the toughest delinquents from the Midlands, and their presence amid the peaceful beauty of the Northumbrian hills was fiercely resented by many local residents who were anxious to see Sinclair closed, or at least in the hands of a more hard line headmaster, a man such as deputy head, Ted James.
The staff were divided on this issue. And then James disappeared, only to reappear with his neck broken - which brought home to Fanshaw what a violent world he was in. The violence seemed epitomized by one boy, a remarkable character, who polarized staff attitudes and seemed a strong contender for the title of School Murderer.
During his week at Sinclair Fanshaw found himself investigating many things outside the brief of an Inspector of Education, including the expression in a woman's eyes and the nature of an old guilt which persistently haunted him.
Genre: Mystery
Its sixty boys were among the toughest delinquents from the Midlands, and their presence amid the peaceful beauty of the Northumbrian hills was fiercely resented by many local residents who were anxious to see Sinclair closed, or at least in the hands of a more hard line headmaster, a man such as deputy head, Ted James.
The staff were divided on this issue. And then James disappeared, only to reappear with his neck broken - which brought home to Fanshaw what a violent world he was in. The violence seemed epitomized by one boy, a remarkable character, who polarized staff attitudes and seemed a strong contender for the title of School Murderer.
During his week at Sinclair Fanshaw found himself investigating many things outside the brief of an Inspector of Education, including the expression in a woman's eyes and the nature of an old guilt which persistently haunted him.
Genre: Mystery
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