Kyle Broder has achieved his lifelong dream and is an editor at a major publishing house. When he’s contacted by his favorite college professor, William Lansing, Kyle couldn’t be happier.

Kyle has his mentor over for dinner to catch up and introduce him to his girlfriend, Jamie, and the three have a great time. When William mentions that he’s been writing a novel, Kyle is overjoyed. He would love to read the opus his mentor has toiled over—until the novel turns out to be not only horribly written but also the most depraved story Kyle has ever read.

After Kyle politely rejects the novel, William becomes obsessed, causing trouble between Kyle and Jamie, threatening Kyle’s career and even his life. As Kyle delves into more of this psychopath’s work, it begins to resemble a cold case from his college town, when a girl went missing. William’s work is looking increasingly like a true-crime confession.

The Mentor is a twisty, nail-biting thriller that explores how the love of words can lead to a deadly obsession, with the fate of all those connected and hanging in the balance.