HarperVoyager
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
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London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by HarperVoyager 2018
Copyright © Rebecca Kuang 2018
Cover design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
Cover illustration © Jung Shan Chang
Rebecca Kuang asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
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Source ISBN: 9780008239800
Ebook Edition © April 2018 ISBN: 9780008239824
Version: 2018-04-16
This is for Iris
Contents
Dedication
Map
“Take your clothes off.”
Rin blinked. “What?”
The proctor glanced up from his booklet. “Cheating prevention protocol.” He gestured across the room to a female proctor. “Go with her, if you must.”
Rin crossed her arms tightly across her chest and walked toward the second proctor. She was led behind a screen, patted thoroughly to make sure she hadn’t packed test materials up any orifices, and then handed a formless blue sack.
“Put this on,” said the proctor.
“Is this really necessary?” Rin’s teeth chattered as she stripped. The exam smock was too large for her; the sleeves draped