I don't think that this one was for me. From the get, you're put into this world with very little if any explanation of different (made up) creatures, terms, etc. A lot of the characters are pretty unlikeable (not a requirement, but it did make a book I already wasn't enjoying even more of a slog for me). I will not be continuing the series. I don't think that the writing style helped with my (lack of) enjoyment reading A Deadly Education.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

EDIT: Adding on to some of the criticisms that the book has faced. I was born in Australia, and am part of the South Asian diaspora. I did not find this book racist in the sense that El is biracial and isn't connected to her paternal side in India. There are people, yep, like myself, who experience similar to El and we should be mindful not to invalidate that. However, I do acknowledge that there is a harmful comment on dreadlocks, which Naomi Novik has humbly apologised for.

--------
4.5 stars. I did not want to put this book down! I get the comparisons to Hogwarts without teachers, but the Scholomance is an extra labrinthine, sinister magical school that serves as both a haven and a death trap for young wizards filled with demon monster things called mals/maleficaria who feast on “mana” (magic power) and as a result, the students face 50/50 odds of graduating or dying.

Surviving the Scholomance is a clever parallel to real life--to survive and thrive, it’s not just about skill, it’s about social status, wealth and privilege, and mana is the currency. We see that contrast in the two main characters:

- Galadriel/El (MC narrator), who lives in a yurt in the woods and has to work really hard to build mana/magic, and has no friends except her mother, and
- Orion Lake, a kid from a prestigious enclave who is put on a pedestal and has access to immense amounts of ‘mana’/magic.

I really enjoyed the main character Galadriel/El’s narration. I know she’s not for everyone, and I understand why. She’s snarky, sarcastic, dark-humoured, cynical and morally ambiguous, and her great-grandmother prophesised that she will “bring death and destruction to all the enclaves in the world” if she wasn’t stopped, probably because she’s a vessel of immense power with an affinity for mass destruction. But at her core, she really doesn't want to hurt anyone despite her struggles with isolation, fear, and the moral implications of her power.

Orion Lake, on the other hand, doesn’t have any real friends either for completely different reasons. He is treated as a hero and saviour and put on a pedestal. That’s because he is a hero, with an affinity for combat magic and heroism. Still, this means that people kinda worship the ground he walks on, which lends itself to isolation, especially when you're just an awkward kid who hates the limelight. It comes as a refreshing surprise when El doesn’t fawn over him and even does her best to insult and push him away.

I adored how diverse and cultural this book was. If you love culture and languages, you’ll appreciate this book big time. However, there is a LOT of info dumping in this book. I admit, I found some of it quite dense to get through. It’s an artistic choice to build a really intricate, detailed world, which might not be everyone's cup of tea.

Still, personally, that didn't prevent me from being completely sucked into the Scholomance, and I can’t wait to devour the next one! I’ve also seen this is getting made into a movie, so I really hope they do the book justice.

My heartfelt thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey and author Naomi Novik for the opportunity to read this work in exchange for an honest review.

So I know this book has a lot of controversy around it. Honestly a lot of the scenarios ppl bring up either didn't occur to me as problematic at the time or were molded slightly to fit the individuals narrative in my opinion. I however, am not a person of color so my opinion matters very little so please look to the appropriate people for that interpretation.

The only problematic point that stood out to me and made me do a double take was the middle eastern reference and a car starting the work sheet must be modern. I thought it was modern bc there mention of the car, not that they were referencing terrorism.

The not washing is a huge point of the book and they will often get attacked in the bathroom. They were not referencing the MC ethnicity this read common for all students not just her.

I liked the magical story line. It's what I would image magical beast would be like if they all behaved like Aragogue. There was some development of characters given the book was written with a short period of time.

I liked exploring the magical school and was hoping for more world exploration. Overall once I got past the first fifty pages I was into but it was a close call until then. I think your should give it a read and make your own assessment. Don't let others bending the plot to for their narrative sway you, decide yourself.

This novel definitely took a bit of effort for me to get going, but once I was in my groove I kept going.

Overall, I think the magic system presented is quite nuanced compared to most. Not only does each person have their affinity, but their ability to cast is limited (hypothetically). Magic "energy" is used as a metaphor for money and classism, where the elite have more and everyone else scrapes by, except for those who dip into maleficarum to get more power.

However, El is a pretty unlikeable protagonist in my opinion. She is, understandably, abrasive but even when she starts making real connections, she continues to have a bad attitude. She just didn't grow on me at all, unlike many of the secondary characters.

I missed the boat when this book was released the first time, so I was excited to dive in when it popped up on NetGalley. Fans of dark academic magic stories will be thrilled that this a ready-to-read three-book trilogy, with no waiting for the next installment. I love our main character girly, El, and her sarcasm and snark is next level. The book reads very stream of consciousness which worked for me sometimes and sometimes felt a little drawn out and slow. Her love interest? That would be Orion, who seems very much like a Ken, a labrador retriever, or any other stereotypical loyal and tail-wagging character you can think of. The plot was decent, and the story had lots of adventure, even if it seemed a bit far-fetched to me how many students of magic die while trying to get an education. Not great odd, to be sure. In the end, I enjoyed this romp for what it is. It's a fun time in El's brain, with scary things that go bump in the night!

'I decided that Orion needed to die after the second time he saved my life.' - A Deadly Education takes off with one of the most riveting opening sentences in fantasy!

Naomi Novik weaves a refreshing take on the magic boarding school trope with masterful narrative pacing, unforgettable characters and intricate world-building. What I enjoyed most is the tone of the book, set by the smart and impertinent lead El and her many sarcastic inner musings. The complementary character arcs of El and Orion, of whom you find out a lot in just the first few opening words, drive the story forward and are made a lot more distinctive by their personalities. The characters, including many secondary ones, are quite well-formed and are made relatable teenagers even though they face extraordinary unrelatable circumstances. El manages to retain her wit and sass even while fighting her destiny of becoming a dark goddess of death and destruction!

The novel is set in the Scholomance, a magic boarding school with a sort of AI giving personalized course structures for each student; and they learn by surviving not only exams but also the aforementioned extraordinary circumstances such as frequent attacks by mals /monsters. The layered world-building does require some exposition but it's packed in well along with the action, keeping the story moving forward at a good pace. More importantly, this book is enjoyable and provides a good foundation for the next books in the series.

Overall, the book has great diversity and quite distinct characters. It was heartening to see Naomi Novik acknowledge and apologize for racially insensitive comments on dreadlocks. And the series deserves some extra points for trying to create a matter-of-fact cosmopolitan environment, including all the politics.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Random House Publishing group for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[One star for the premise and the whole book; One star for the characters; One star for the writing; One star for the story; One star for the world-building - Five stars in total.]

“I love having existential crises at bedtime, it's so restful.”

Thank you Naomi Novik, NetGalley and Random House Publish Group, for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts are my own and left voluntarily.

We are presented with a school where young witches and wizards from all over the world are fighting for survival while being hunted by monsters who want to feed on their magic. It has no headmasters nor teachers, so the whole thing is fully automated. The Scholomance offers a slim survival rate, but you have to be careful of not only monsters but fellow magicians too. Failure means certain death.

I wanted to strongly DNF this book at around 25%, but I pushed trough it with skipping. There's a lot of info dumping and long chapters with El's monologue of every. single. thing. !

Typically, I love sarcastic, snarky and rude characters, but El was not one for me She's either hit or miss for readers (in my opinion). And then there's Orion - a golden retriever-type of MMC. He's hailed as a hero to all, except El (as she is annoyed by his apparent savior complex). The dynamics were there, but I could care less.

That aside, if I based my rating only on characters and my attention span (due to long chapters about everything and everyone), I would give this book 1 star. Also, the plot was unclear for me. You understand the issue and why they are doing at the school, but what's next? Cliffy after cliffy and just survival?

But, I know and see that there are many readers who really enjoy this book (and the next 2). So I bumped up my rating to 2.5 stars (3 stars for NG/GR/Zon), because of the creative world-building.

What to expect:
* YA Dark Academia
* Single POV
* Long chapters
* Polarizing FMC
* Loved by almost all MMC
* A school that literally tries to unlive you
* Heavy world-building

Thank you to NetGalley & Random House Publish Group for a gifted copy to read and review, all thoughts and opinions are my own and given voluntarily.

I wasn’t sure what type of expectations to have going into this book, and I was not prepared for the scathing & dangerous school I was put into!
This book is a solid 3.5 stars for me and I’ll explain why.

We started off with the main character, Galadriel, droning on in a negative fashion about life at the difficult school of Scholomance, which put a negative spin on the first part of the book. I will say that the reader may either end up enjoying this or really not enjoying this, but I started to really understand out MC as the book went on. I’m not sure if I like her, but I certainly think I’ve come to a respect and understanding. I enjoyed her character arc and the evolution of her soft skills. I don’t think we got a very great dive into the other characters in the novel, except for Galadriel’s mom. I would’ve appreciated more in the side characters, and hopefully we will get more of that in the next book.

The world building in the novel was limited to Scholomance, with explanations of how magical beings live in our real world. I enjoyed the way that the school setting was built; it was a tough & very dangerous place. Each new room or new happening in the school along the way felt like an opportunity for death and/or disappearance. The world building certainly helped immerse me into the story.

For me, the plot was somewhat unclear as the story felt more character driven at the beginning with a plot coming to life in the second half of the novel. The character interactions, relationships built and futures made were more the plot (character driven in my view) than the action based situations that were in the later half of the book.

This was my first book my Naomi Novak, and it was a bit difficult for me to get into the writing. I think this was mostly due to the fact that it was from the perspective of the main character who was more negative and defensive focused. I would read another of her series to get a better sense of the writing style and if I enjoy it.

Overall, I found this novel to be enjoyable but also to be on the grittier and darker side of fantasy. The magical system, the way that magic/spells are used and the strategies for survival in the school are all interesting and woven in a somewhat captivating manner. I will be reading the sequel and I hope we dive into more the school and the other characters!

3,75/5 Stars
I really enjoyed this book. It took me a while to get into it, but the slow start is definitely worth it. As this is the first book in a series, there is a lot of worldbuilding that I found a little confusing at times, but I do very much love the world the author created.
I also really liked the characters, especially the dynamic between the two protagonists and the amount of bickering between them. I also loved how the main character was just completely incapable of dealing with any emotions whatsoever, it made for a lot of very fun moments.
All in all, I’m very much looking forward to reading the second book, I just hope it’ll have a bit more action and a bit less descriptions and worldbuilding than this one.

Oh wow! The world building in this book was unexpected and interesting!
Scholomance is a school for the magically gifted but it's nothing like the magic schools I've read before. There is a lot of detail in this and not in a boring way. The mood is dark academia with a big cloak and dagger feel. Every student is basically fighting for survival from the hordes of monsters that live in the school. This is a book where you actually get to see students studying in school because their life depends on it. They need their skills and knowledge to survive and trade to form alliances. I also liked that this book is full of diversity and international students.

I listened to this on audiobook and at first I wanted to turn it off because Galadriel or "El" is an aggressively rude person, but as you go on you get to see her in a different light. I think this world is unique and well written. Definitely give it a read or a listen! The audiobook narrator does an amazing job as well.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for sharing this book with me in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a copy of “A Deadly Education” by Naomi Novik. Please see my bio for how my star rating system works. 😊

ATTENTION

Some trigger warnings: death and gore.

Summary:

Although “A Deadly Education” was a 4/5 for me (4.5 if I could), this trilogy as a whole work is a 5/5. I cannot recommend it enough for fans of dark academia, fantasy, and boarding school settings.

Plot:

El Higgins is a student at the Scholomance, a magical school that is out to try to kill its students. El is eternally frustrated and angry at the way the magical world she is a part of is rather classicist and unfair, and she takes out a lot of that frustration and anger on the school’s resident hero, Orion Lake. In particular, El hates that Orion keeps saving her life from the Scholomance and mals, monsters that are obsessed with teen wizards.

Pros:

The Characters

El: El Higgins is an amazing protagonist. She is extremely flawed and a rather unreliable narrator, but she is still incredibly relatable. As this is a book written in the first person, we are exposed to El’s thoughts the entire time, and her mind is as confusing as it is clear. Props to Naomi Novik for writing in this stream of consciousness style so well.

Orion: Orion Lake is a bit one-note in the first book, but he is as lovable as they come. He serves as an amazing foil for El, and seeing their relationship develop is such a treat.

The Scholomance: you may not think of a school as a character, but believe me, the Scholomance is as much of a character with goals and personality as any of the breathing cast. The Scholomance is a major antagonist in the book, but also our heroes’ only safe haven in their teenage years. How to reconcile this?

The Setting

I’m a sucker for boarding school settings. If they are magical boarding schools, even better. The imagery that Naomi Novik shares of the Scholomance as well as her vivid description of this macabre place makes the setting fascinating and fun.

Cons:

Narrative style

Listen, this wasn’t a con for me in particular, but I’ve talked to a lot of folks that thought El’s stream of consciousness style of thinking is a bit grating at times, and just plain unfocused in others. El will be in a dangerous situation and suddenly lore dump on us about some beef character X had with character Y and you are left wondering how that is relevant for her current situation. I thought that was endearing, some may not.

Verdict

I cannot recommend this book enough. It is amazing, the characters are amazing, the plot is amazing, and the setting is amazing. Please read this book and the whole trilogy!

This was such an amazing read! I flew through this book in one afternoon because I could not stop! The characters were so unique and gripping that I really adored them. The author did a great job with keeping the plot moving and avoiding any stale moments. I will be recommending this book to everyone I know!

This wasn't my cup of tea but I am not the target audience of course. Being way too old. I can see why this could appeal as a YA. Someone who feels left out in a group of peers, might connect with the book, Someone who likes magic novels that are much darker than Harry Potter...

The fact that there are no teachers in the Scholomance is refreshing. I did love the female characters. El is wonderful. I just loved her snarky comments.

My main issue with the book is that it is too descriptive to my taste. But again, it might be very helpful for a YA that hasn't got much experience with reading.

This book has been on my tbr list for so so long and I don’t know what I was waiting for! I loved it! Thoroughly enjoyable read.

This is a strange start to a fantasy series based at a magic school that is safer than the real world but not quite safe enough to that there isn’t a good chance you don’t make it to graduation. El is an outcast that hides her extreme power from the other students. When the class hero “saves” her life and she yells at him, she quickly earns his friendship which changes her standing in the school. I loved the characters of this book so much and it is pretty much what kept me reading since I didn’t know what on earth was actually going on. The author provides so much information without really explaining any of it and if she didn’t create such likable and well formed characters, I’m fairly certain I would have abandoned it all together. I am invested in finding out what happens to El so I probably will keep reading the series, hoping that the magic system begins to make sense. I received a digital advanced review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publising group for providing me with an eARC of A Deadly Education in return for my honest opinion.

DNF at 14%.. I don't like to DNF and honestly tried to push through but I just couldn't do it. I had heard such great things about this book and that it was recommended as a darker, more adult version of Harry Potter but I don't get the hype..

It is so hard to read, it's delivery is poor and I just could not understand what was happening as the world building is so poorly explained. The main character is unlikable and is hard to tolerate. There is a lot of rambling in this book that I think is meant to be descriptive and help with the world building but it is so poorly executed that it left me with more questions than answers. I'm still unsure if it's the school trying to kill the students or just random evil creatures that appear in the school. Also I don't think there are teachers in this school? So i'm unsure of what they do for the four years they are there before the Hunger Games like graduation..

Overall a really interesting concept, just poorly executed.

At first I was wary about this book as the start was very repetitive, but slowly I got dragged in. El is an interesting character because although she fits well into the "loner" category, she's pretty confident in who she is. She doesn't give into the desires of her peers, she continues to push off Orion's kindness, but she still has a heart. She has a strong sense of good and bad, even in a world where that line is dimmed. She feels fear, and happiness, and is just so much fun to watch grow. I appreciate the romance between her and Orion, but it isn't the main focus. The only part that took me back is just the pure extent of danger in this school. It doesn't even seem the slightest bit possible to have so many near death experiences and have as many students as there are. I couldn't seem to suspend my disbelief enough to believe it. I am excited to read the next book in the series.

DNF @ 49%

This was painful - the plot itself had potential, but the delivery!!!! I don't even know how to describe these ramblings: midway through something happening (even in the middle of a decent piece of dialogue), the writing goes into stories from the past and lengthy explanations, making it so difficult to focus on what's going on.

The beginning was the worst part of it and that should have told me something, such blocks of ramblings that want to seem descriptive, but they're super confusing, switching from the present to the past in 1 paragraph.

A Deadly Education has been on my TBR for a long time now and I'm SO mad at myself for not reading it sooner. I'm obsessed! Such a fresh, dark take on magical schooling. A wild ride with an ending that leaves you desperate for more.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

"A Deadly Education" by Naomi Novik presents a fresh take on magical education, set in a perilous school where students battle deadly creatures. The world-building is imaginative, blending dystopia with fantasy. While the pacing occasionally falters and some characters lack depth, the unique premise and atmosphere make for a captivating read that fantasy enthusiasts will appreciate.