White Rabbit, Red Wolf

By Tom Pollock

Sometimes, courage is just knowing what you're more afraid of.

A taut thriller about murder, maths and the mind. Peter Blankman is afraid of everything but must confront truly unimaginable terror when his mother is attacked. Seventeen-year-old Peter Blankman is a maths prodigy. He also suffers from severe panic attacks. Afraid of everything, he finds solace in the orderly and logical world of mathematics and in the love of his family: his scientist mum and his tough twin sister Bel, as well as Ingrid, his only friend. However, when his mother is found stabbed before an award ceremony and his sister is nowhere to be found, Pete is dragged into a world of espionage and violence where state and family secrets intertwine. Armed only with his extraordinary analytical skills, Peter may just discover that his biggest weakness is his greatest strength.

Categories: Fiction

For readers aged: 14+

  • Publication details:
  • Format: Paperback
  • ISBN: 9781406378177
  • Published: 03 May 2018
  • Price: £7.99
  •  
  • Size: 198 x 129 mm
  • Pages: 400

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Customer reviews

Reviews

'“In this dark and twisted thriller, nothing is what it seems; but Pollock’s greatest triumph is the portrait of a psyche at war with itself.”' The Guardian

'“This novel has been compared to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, but it is unlike anything else you have read… This book does more than a synopsis can suggest: it is revelatory about mental health, ingeniously constructed and a thrilling ride for sophisticated readers.”' Children’s Book of the Week in The Sunday Times

'“The web of deception grows more tangled with each page.” ' The Daily Mail

'Dazzling. It's as though Escher and Schrödinger had collaborated on a thriller.' M. R. Carey, author of The Girl With All The Gifts

'“A gripping and gloriously treacherous thriller without guide ropes or safety nets. Leave all certainties by the door.”' Frances Hardinge, Costa-award-winning author of The Lie Tree

'White Rabbit, Red Wolf is incredible. My mind is blown. It's thrilling, SO smart and packs an emotional punch. A Beautiful Mind meets The Bourne Identity with complicated and fascinating teenage protagonists. Author Tom Pollock skillfully weaves together mental health, complicated mathematics, murder, and mystery - resulting in a brilliant and unforgettable psychological thriller.' Katherine Webber, author of Wing Jones

'Breathless, smart, twisty and heartfelt! Like a YA Le Carré.' Kim Curran, author of Shift

'Exceptional. It's funny, bleak and emotionally brutal, and had me permanently on the edge of my seat.' Jon Courtenay Grimwood, author of Moskva, The Last Banquet and 9Tail Fox

'A dazzling, dizzying rollercoaster of a novel, about memory and family and other things you can't completely trust. It will twist your brain in the best possible way.' Will Hill, author of After the Fire and The Department 19 series

'Unreliable. Unputdownable. Deeply empathetic. White Rabbit, Red Wolf is a magnificent rollercoaster of a book.' Marieke Nijkamp, author of This Is Where It Ends

'Tom Pollock displays a graceful mastery of both words and numbers in this brainy, unpredictable and truly original thriller.' Samantha Shannon, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Bone Season

'Tense, twisty, breathlessly compulsive and brilliantly unpredictable.' Katherine Woodfine

'“Smart, complex and dizzyingly twisty, expect lots of buzz about this one.”' The Bookseller, One to Watch

'“Gripping, dazzling, and pulse-pounding, Pollock’s YA debut is a thrill from the first page to the last . . . The final twist is well disguised and truly revelatory.”' School Library Journal, starred review

'“Unrelenting twists and turns . . . Even the last page will keep readers wondering if there’s truth to the title.”' Kirkus Reviews

'“Talk of a roller-coaster ride! If you like books with lots of twists and turns, this is one for you.” ' alittlebooklife

'"What begins as a familiar tale of juvenile angst develops into a spy thriller with well-imagined science fiction elements that force the reader to re-evaluate the reality of the opening chapters. At times dark and gory and illustrated with strong language, Pollock’s paranoid world has real substance thanks to his skilful development of the characters."' James Caan (Gloucestershire Echo)

'“Fast, witty, brilliant thriller” ' The Sunday Times

'[...] This revelation is but the first twist in this sophisticated, dark novel, where reality is but a variable in Peter's complicated life ... Readers who thrill to the combination of mathematics and psychological suspense will be utterly enthralled.' Booklist, starred review

'“Fans of The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time and all stories where everything is not as it seems will lap it up.”' Woman's Way

'“Pollock's paranoid world has real substance thanks to his skilful development of the characters.”' The Daily Gazette

'“[…] an intricate thriller.”' Independent Ireland

'“With a shocking, turbulent conclusion, this is a "spy novel" with a real difference. Powerful riveting and incredibly gripping.”' Fallen Star Stories

'The book’s genre is ambitious in its exploration of different avenues of story-telling. Pollock dips his pen into supernatural science, crime drama, coming-of-age narrative and even a touch of romance. This is a whirlwind for the reader and can at times be described as disorientating; more than a couple times the thread of the plot becomes almost too tangled, yet it always seems to unknot before frustration sets in. A rip roar of a ride that promises to continue catapulting even when you think Peter has survived the many crescendos of his adventure. Into the ‘white’ rabbit hole the reader is compelled to go!' NATE

'This is a thrilling read with a compelling main character who finds strength in his considerable deduction skills and uses his paranoia to his advantage in a world where everyone really is out to get him. This is one for the future John le Carré fans out there.' Children's Books Ireland - Mind Yourself

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