The Vladimir Book Ends With A Bizarre Twist

Between Rachel Weisz as an erudite English professor and Leo Woodall as the new colleague she’s hardcore crushing on, Netflix’s Vladimir has all the makings of a steamy campus drama. But this one is much twistier than you can imagine.

The new series (streaming now) is based on Julia May Jonas’ 2022 novel of the same name. It’s a page-turner told from the perspective of an unnamed narrator who becomes obsessed with the titular Vladimir (or Vlad). At first, it’s a welcome distraction from her frustrating personal life — but soon, her desire gives way to a truly disturbing scheme.

Want to take a peek ahead? Here’s the Vladimir plot summary, including the book ending you won’t see coming.

A Campus Obsession

The narrator and her husband, John, both teach English at a small college in upstate New York. While they have an open relationship, she’s shaken when John’s past sexual conduct with students catches up with him, prompting his suspension and damaging her own reputation, too.

At the same time, the narrator is taken with her new colleague, Vlad, who is married to fellow professor Cynthia. One day, the narrator and her adult daughter, Sid, follow John’s car and see him meeting with Cynthia at the school. Believing that they’re having an affair, the narrator resolves to act on her obsession with Vlad.

On the day of John’s dismissal hearing, the narrator takes Vlad out for lunch under the pretense of giving him feedback on his book, which he’s delighted to hear. They get drunk and go to the narrator’s country cabin, where she puts drugs in his drink that knock him out. In this state, she ties Vlad up. When he wakes up, she claims that they were both drunk and decided to try BDSM. She also tells Vlad that Cynthia’s been cheating on him, and he decides not to return home right away.

The Book’s Fiery Ending

The narrator and Vlad have sex the next evening. And soon after, John comes to the cabin looking for his wife. He reveals that he and Cynthia aren’t having an affair, but working on writing projects together — which angers Vlad, who’d been led to believe the narrator caught them in the act. Hurt at the lie and its fallout, he goes to kayak on the lake at night.

While he’s gone, John and the narrator fall asleep. A fire breaks out due to unattended space heaters, and Vlad returns from kayaking in time to rescue John and the narrator. However, they both suffer severe burns and take months to recover.

The experience seems to bring them closer together. After going through rehabilitation, they buy an apartment in the city. The narrator still teaches two days a week, while Vlad writes a novel about an affair with an older woman, but it’s not very successful. The narrator and Vlad also become grandparents after their daughter’s impromptu sexual encounter with a man on a train. They help raise Sid and her partner Alexis’ baby.

In the book’s final pages, the narrator has a cathartic meeting with one of the women who came forward about John, and encourages her.