Lily King is the acclaimed author of The Pleasing Hour, a New York Times Notable Book. In The English Teacher, King pens an emotionally devastating tale of a mother and son-and the turns of fate that threaten their carefully constructed existence. English teacher and single mother Vida Avery has insulated herself and her 15-year-old son from almost all outside influence. But her sudden marriage to Tom Belou-and the subsequent integration into Tom's family-radically alters the course of all of their lives.