Three hours ** CONTAINS SPOILERS **

[StealthPolarBear]

Did we ever find out the identity of the third shooter?
How brilliant a twist was it that the police officer wasn't fine after all? I didn't see that coming at all.

Actually I don't understand how I didn't pick that up at the time

In my defence it was well past my bedtime when I finished it.

I didn't pick it up either until after talk of a third shooter had been introduced. And then I thought that perhaps the third shooter actually was the policeman, not someone who was masquerading as him.

I don't think we do find out who it actually is. I wondered if if could be the arsey teacher (can't remember his name!) but he was one of the ones evacuated from the beach I think.

Thank you, glad it wasn't just me. Sounds like it was just someone else from the group they were affiliated with.

I agree though arsey teacher I'm fairly sure was evacuated (Mr Linwood or something)

Oh thank god. I loved the book but I am still baffled by the ending. Can someone explain it slowly? I reread about five times and still couldn’t quite make it out.

@Bouncycastle12 the pc who was supposedly shot at but unharmed near the beginning of the siege was indeed shot at - but killed. The third gunman dressed in the pc's uniform and orchestrated the escape of the students into the "safe" theatre. In fact, the gunmen planned the escape in order to trap more people in the theatre which is where the bomb was.

And set up the whole "I'll knock on the door and then you count to 30 and then make your escape" thing.
I thought that twist was brilliant, and the fact that all through the book the theatre was shown as a safe place with the students in there scared but not in danger as the ones elsewhere were and yet it was the opposite
I also 'liked' (as much as morbid twists go) that the actual siege ended in quite a low key way, both gunmen distracted and shot cleanly. I was expecting something much more dramatic and if the book had been written by a man, it would have been.

Bumping this

Thanks! But who is the person shooting at the end when the two boys are hiding in the boathouse?

Were they not just shooting to get in?

I guess that’s why I was confused. Would they shoot into a room (through a door so no sight line) where they knew there were two children? I thought it suggested another shooter?

Well he was trying to kill them I think

And we assume the head teacher dies?

I've read back and think there were some initial shots as 'pc beard' tried to hit them and then others as he was killed

I think the police shot the third gunman just as he opened fire through the boathouse door. I sort of assumed that the police were shooting him from an angle so that their gunfire wasn't aimed through the boathouse door.

So like the gunman was shooting straight through the door, whereas the police marksmen shot him side on

I've just ordered a book about the Colombine shootings on the back of this book. Not sure if that was a wise move or not

But who was the third gunman?

I've double checked and unless there's a clue early on it doesn't say. So I assume it's another of the group they're in

Thanks, @StealthPolarBear! I got the rest of it - just that bit of confusion. (And like the ambiguity as long as it’s not just me being thick!)

I don't like ambiguity! I want the shooter's name, address and inside leg measurement :o

It's a bit strange thinking about it actually that the third shooter is left unnamed. What happened to the other boy who was expelled? Was he ruled out as a shooter?

Victor? No he was the mastermind. He was shot before he hurt anyone

Bought this yesterday on the back of the other thread and read it last night in one sitting. Very tense, I knew there was a twist of some kind but it really did take me by surprise. The reveal of 100 and 18 was quite deft I think in showing that Jamie really had been thoroughly sucked in.