Book Review: High Jinx

As you might have read on my blog before, I love Enid Blyton books. I especially love the Malory Towers books, and was particularly gutted I was never allowed to go to boarding school to partake in midnight feasts, tomfoolery and high jinx.

So, when I discovered High Jinx by Sara Lawrence (courtesy of Tatler's Summer Reads), a modern-take on Malory Towers, I suspected I would like the book. For the record, I *love* it.

High Jinx follows the story of Jinx Slater and her classmates at Stagmount, England's most exclusive boarding school (based on Roedean, which was founded by Lawrence's great-great aunts, and which she also attended).

From sneaking out into Brighton, A-Levels, battles with the evil Gunn, and the arrival of bitchy Stella Fox, there's never a dull moment at Stagmount! Peppered with colourful (explicit) language, this is an accurate and enjoyable (controversial to some) portrayal of life at an exclusive boarding school for girls. Sure, the girls are a little spoilt, but they are nice enough about it, and the humour detracts you from hating them outright.

If you ever wondered what a modern day Malory Towers would be like, you have to read this book. There's also a sequel out - Jinxed - that was released in September, but I've not managed to get hold of a copy yet (grrrrrr). And if you're worried this is strictly for children, it's not, as demonstrated by the opening sentences:

Jinx Slater lay in bed listening to Chastity Maxwell shagging the handyman. She wasn't so much listening, mind, as accidentally overhearing, for the paper-thin walls of the sixth-form boarding house had been built with no regard for aural abstinence.

Brilliant! Has anyone already read this? Or does anyone know any similar young adult modern boarding school books? x