The tragic consequences of a pupil and teacher affair are laid bare in a former Huddersfield teacher’s debut novel.

‘Me and Mr J’ by former Huddersfield New College tutor Rachel McIntyre depicts a liaison between a vulnerable 16-year-old girl and her teacher.

The story is written through eyes of Lara whose world appears to be falling apart; her parents are splitting up, their business has folded and she has become a victim of cyber-bullying.

Lara embarks on an affair with a young teacher and while the intentions of both are harmless, the relationship has harmful consequences for the concerned parties.

The book, aimed at teenagers, has been snapped up by children’s book publishing giant Egmont as part of a three-book deal.

The deal, signed last year, allowed Rachel to give up her job as an English teacher at the Salendine Nook college.

And while the story is not based on any events at New College, her students’ apathy towards reading inspired Rachel to write a book which would appeal to them.

Rachel, who taught at the college from 2007, said: “Working in a fantastic sixth form college while I was writing was great and the students were inspirational, telling me all about what they liked and didn’t like in books...

“Many of the students I taught were avid readers, but for those who weren’t, I wanted to write something that would hook them in and engage their attention.

“I followed the idea of Hollyoaks and Eastenders with their melodramatic, scandal-ridden plots and tried to re-create that in a book.”

Rachel, formerly of Outlane, says the story is inspired by the Jeremy Forrest case in which a then 30-year-old teacher was jailed for his relationship with a 15-year-old pupil.

And while the affair in Me and Mr J, set in Greenhead Park and fictional locations in Huddersfield, is less sinister, it is nonetheless wrong.

Rachel, 42, said: “The teacher is 23 and he’s not a creepy predatory guy. It shows that you can be exploited – but not by those you expect.”

She added: “Some teenage girls may view it as romantic whereas as an adult you know it’s wrong.”

Rachel has held a signing session at Waterstones, Kingsgate.