A young college president struggles to save his once prestigious alma mater Caldwell College from a financial scandal which may be linked to the murder of a student some seventeen years previously. The Caldwell campus is dominated by a large bell tower known as The Spire. The Spire ornaments the school yearbook stationary all publications. Steeped in lore it tolls every hour of the school day; or to mark notable events such as athletic triumphs. But in 1993 the body of Angela Hall a black student was found at the foot of the Spire. Raped and murdered she seemed oddly like a sacrifice to the newly-ominous college landmark… Gripping and razor-sharp The Spire is both a hugely satisfying thriller and a poignant love story. Richard North Patterson has outdone himself—this is his most compelling novel in years.