For Your Own Good
Teddy Crutcher was just crowned Teacher of the Year at the prestigious Belmont Academy. According to Teddy, his wife is absolutely thrilled by the honor—even if no one has actually seen her in quite some time.
While the campus is rocked by a string of suspicious deaths, and a nosy student starts poking into his private affairs, Teddy remains entirely unfazed. His singular priority is driving his students toward absolute academic perfection. All he asks is that his coworkers and the school's overbearing parents keep their distance. If they cross him, they will definitely face the consequences.
Ultimately, achieving true greatness sometimes requires a deadly toll.
- Teddy Crutcher - English teacher at Belmont Academy
- Allison - Teddy’s wife
- Zach - Teddy’s student, a junior
- Fallon - Former student at Belmont Academy
- Ms. Marsha - Headmaster’s assistant
- Mrs. B (Sonia) - English teacher at Belmont Academy
- Frank - Math teacher at Belmont Academy
- Courtney - Zach’s friend
- Ingrid - Courtney’s mother
- Joe - Janitor at Belmont Academy
- Part One
- Teddy doesn’t like Zach because he thinks Zach is not a good person.
- Fallon was a very bright girl, but Teddy hated Fallon more than he hated Zach, so when she asked him to write her a college reference letter, he wrote horrible things about her attitude and that she cheated, sent it to all the schools she applied to, and she ended up in a state school.
- Teddy has a social profile under the name Natasha that he uses to befriend the students and eavesdrop on their conversations.
- Belmont holds a memorial every year for the last headmaster, who was found hanged from his office ceiling fan.
- Sonia gets very ill when Teddy puts something in her coffee.
- After thirteen years of marriage, Allison walked out on Teddy because she wanted to get pregnant, and Teddy went behind her back and got a vasectomy.
- Teddy drugs Sonia’s coffee to ruin her ten year anniversary party, but Ingrid drinks the coffee instead and dies.
- Teddy gets rid of all his lab equipment and the plants in his backyard, including the dolls-eyes he had put in the coffee.
- Courtney is arrested for killing Ingrid.
- Part Two: Two and a half months later
- Before her death, Ingrid got Frank very drunk and took a suggestive photo of them in a hotel room to blackmail him into giving Courtney an A in his class.
- On the day of Sonia’s party, Frank put diuretics in Ingrid’s green tea, and he thinks he’s the reason she’s dead.
- Sonia has a seizure and dies.
- Teddy poisoned Sonia’s lunch with dolls-eye, intending to kill her so that she could not be forced to testify against Courtney because he likes Courtney and wants to help get her out of jail.
- Frank can’t take the guilt anymore and confesses to Ingrid’s murder, but the police officer says there was no green tea in Ingrid’s system when she died, so he can’t be at fault.
- Frank takes leave from Belmont.
- Fallon is hired as Sonia’s replacement.
- Someone steals Teddy’s teacher of the year award.
- Zach is arrested for bribing a jail guard to let him in to see Courtney, but is released on bond.
- Now that Fallon is back at Belmont, she has a camera in Teddy’s classroom and his mailbox. She ruined his marriage and now wants to ruin his life.
- There is a mass poisoning event at Belmont, six people are hospitalized, and the headmaster dies.
- Teddy poisoned some of the school milks, including his own, still trying to get Courtney released from jail.
- Part Three
- Teddy is appointed to be interim headmaster.
- Courtney is released from jail.
- Fallon had been blackmailing the headmaster who hanged himself with the fact that he was gambling online during school hours.
- Fallon is also the one who sent the information about the vasectomy to Allison to get revenge on Teddy.
- Frank becomes an ordained minister.
- Joe and Ms. Marsha are arrested after police find a receipt for syringes in Ms. Marsha’s desk and a sprig of dolls-eyes in Joe’s office, both of which were planted by Teddy.
- Fallon dies of carbon monoxide poisoning after Teddy causes a tiny leak in her hot water heater.
- When Frank finds out that Fallon sent Allison an e-mail claiming she thinks Teddy poisoned everyone and now Fallon is dead, Frank poisons Teddy with rosary pea because Teddy is a godless man. Teddy dies two days later.
- Epilogue: Frank is arrested for Teddy’s murder.
- Zach and Courtney start dating and attend boarding school in Vermont.
- Zach is the one who stole Teddy’s teacher of the year award.
If you want a fast-paced thriller with a ton of drama, For Your Own Good is for you. The private school setting is chaotic in the best way - people keep dying, falling mysteriously ill, or getting arrested, so there is never a dull moment.
The story is separated into three parts with super short chapters, and constant action which makes it hard to put down. It’s told from several different points of view, but it’s very easy to follow along and keep track of who is who. I really enjoyed the character of Teddy, it was mind-bending to read the different ways he rationalized and justified his actions. If you love action and drama you will love this book!
- Ingrid - Dead - Accidentally poisoned by Teddy
- Sonia - Dead - Poisoned by Teddy
- Headmaster - Dead - Poisoned by Teddy
- Fallon - Dead - Carbon monoxide poisoning orchestrated by Teddy
- Frank - Alive - Arrested for Teddy’s murder
- Courtney - Alive - Dating Zach and attending boarding school in Vermont
- Zach - Alive - Dating Courtney and attending boarding school in Vermont
- Teddy - Dead - Poisoned by Frank
- Murder
- Blackmail
- Suicide
- Stalking
Publisher: Berkley
ISBN: 9780593100981
Publication Date: April 26, 2022
Note: Details are for the original edition. Other formats, editions, and audiobook versions may be available.
