Combine the mythical Alexandrian Society, some serious dark academia vibes, a bit of Hunger Games-style magical competition, the entire LGBTQ+ rainbow, and a whole lot of pretentious philosophical debate, and you’ve got The Atlas Six. SIGN ME UP! I can see why it’s not for everyone, but it was definitely for me. I read this entire book in 36 hours, including a late-night binge because I have no will power and I just couldn’t help myself.

Both the magical and scientific elements of this world-building so perfectly suit the dark academia genre, and even though it’s a very slow burn, I was quickly drawn into the mystique of the Society—the secret caretakers of lost magical and moral knowledge—and of its Caretaker Atlas in particular. The book is complex, unnerving, and gets under your skin, and I’m still contemplating the lengths we’ll each go for knowledge and power.

If you love (1) a character-driven read and (2) morally grey (or, more honestly, outright dark) characters, this one is for you. Honestly, every single one of the Six—and even those on the outside—is weirdly entangled with one another, and I still have no idea what truly motivates any of them (except maybe my gal Libby). Every single interaction in this book is a mental game of “f*ck, marry, kill,” except you have absolutely no idea what the outcome will be.

Libby is the poster child for perfectionism, high-functioning anxiety, and an unwavering moral backbone, and I LOVE IT. There are so many characters who I fall in love with in an aspirational sense, but I love Libby because I AM her. I see so much of myself in her, especially her weaknesses. And I cannot even begin to describe the extent to which I ship Libby and Nico—these two are DESTINED for enemies-to-lovers greatness, as soon as f*cking Tristan (ugh) gets out of the way. Parisa is a bad bitch and definitely grew on me, and Callum is just too brilliant and mysterious to be hated in the way a villain often is. And even if I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Reina yet, YOU BET I love her little plant children like they were my own.

I can’t wait for book 2 in this series! I have no idea where these plot twists are taking us, and I love how many unknowns are left among this plot, these characters, and their relationships.

★ ★ ★ ★ ½

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake @olivieblake
Huge thanks to Macmillian/Tor Books @macmillanusa @torbooks for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It took me awhile to figure out my feelings on this book. This book follows six different POVs from six different magicians who are recruited by the infamous Atlas Blakely to guard the long lost Alexandrian Library. (This is a vague summary. I leave the link for the Goodreads page below.)

This book reads mostly like a fanfiction which I wasn't mad about because it made for an easy read. The characters are well fleshed out and I found myself still thinking about them even after finishing the book. However, the plot in this story is weak leaving a lot to be desired. I felt the world-building was lacking and contained some holes that made it hard to get a full scope of the actual world. Also the magic system was confusing making it hard to fully understand. So between excellent characters and a lot lacking in other areas, it made for a difficult time sorting out how I feel about it.

I gave this 3.50 stars. Will I continue? I don't know. Maybe. We will see.

It took a lot of starting and stopping for me to actually get through this book. It follows 6 adults who have been approached by a magical secret society due to their excellent skills in diverse types of magic. Which is starting to become a pretty common trope, making it hard for me to be thrilled by how this was different. And, the switching between 6 points of view made it hard to be invested in any particular character at a given time. One or two fewer points of view would have helped.

But, with that said, I am interested in continuing to read this, and i may even reread it again to see if I better understand the beginning since i know where the plot is now going.

Unfortunately this one wasn't for me as it was too slow paced and had too many perspectives. I ended up not finishing this one even though I really, really liked the premise of it. I can definitely see the appeal for other readers, especially if you like character driven stories.

I'd recommend this to readers who enjoyed A Deadly Education or Six of Crows.

Six of the most promising young magical academics in the world have been gathered by Atlas Blakely, a caretaker of the Library of Alexandria, to compete for initiation into a secret society. Each decade, the chosen six compete for not only wealth, power, and privilege, but for increasing access to the library's secrets of magic. This year, the chosen are:
- Libby Rhodes, a cosmologist who can control matter
- Nicolás Ferrer de Varona, Libbry's academic rival and similarly gifted, though he has secrets of his own
- Reina Mori: a naturalist who can speak to plants and understands life
- Parisa Kamali: a mind reader who uses seduction to enter the minds of others
- Tristan Caine: the son of a crime lord who can see what others cannot
- Callum Nova: an insanely rich pretty boy whose manipulative powers are severely dangerous

The initiates must agree to spend one year together, studying magic and advancing their knowledge as well as the knowledge of the collective. However, only five are chosen to remain. One will be eliminated.

The novel focuses on the contemplative, philosophical nature of magic and what it means to wield such enormous power, but neglects to flesh out the particulars of the magic system. Readers are thrust into the setting with little contextual world-building, much as these scholars are thrust into the knowledge of the library, left to draw their own conclusions from their study and exposure to magic and each other. Characters contemplate the nature of their abilities and the proclivities they have to wield them in a cerebral manner.

Blake's prose is indulgent and sensual. While there is not much in the way of plot, characters are examined through a removed lens of clinical description. Moral ambiguity abounds within the Atlas Six. However, the lack of coherent plot leaves the twist at the end to fall flat. There is more confusion created than answers given in the finale. Overall aesthetically alluring, there is something lacking.

The Atlas Six, by Olivie Blake, was derived and revised from the BookTok Atlas series. It is book 1 of the Alexandrian Society series, and book 2 – The Atlas Paradox – is set to release in October this year.

The concept is that the historically famous Great Library of Alexandria, which was said to contain a huge collection of knowledge in texts of up to 400,000 papyrus scrolls in the second and third century BC, and it was believed that the library famously burned to the ground and that knowledge was lost forever. But what if that fire was an illusion and the keepers of the library were an ancient society devoted to keeping that knowledge of magic and ultimate power alive?

I found it a fascinating and seductive read, compelling me to voraciously devour its contents and its characters. Full of morally grey personalities and a dark secret that drives their ultimate behavior, it makes you wonder what you would do to obtain infinite riches, power and access to the library’s contents?

I am anxiously awaiting the next book in the series!

Synopsis (from the internet book description):
The Alexandrian Society, caretakers of lost knowledge from the greatest civilizations of antiquity, are the foremost secret society of magical academicians in the world. Those who earn a place among the Alexandrians will secure a life of wealth, power, and prestige beyond their wildest dreams, and each decade, only the six most uniquely talented magicians are selected to be considered for initiation.

Enter the latest round of six: Libby Rhodes and Nico de Varona, unwilling halves of an unfathomable whole, who exert uncanny control over every element of physicality. Reina Mori, a naturalist, who can intuit the language of life itself. Parisa Kamali, a telepath who can traverse the depths of the subconscious, navigating worlds inside the human mind. Callum Nova, an empath easily mistaken for a manipulative illusionist, who can influence the intimate workings of a person’s inner self. Finally, there is Tristan Caine, who can see through illusions to a new structure of reality―an ability so rare that neither he nor his peers can fully grasp its implications.

When the candidates are recruited by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they are told they will have one year to qualify for initiation, during which time they will be permitted preliminary access to the Society’s archives and judged based on their contributions to various subjects of impossibility: time and space, luck and thought, life and death. Five, they are told, will be initiated. One will be eliminated. The six potential initiates will fight to survive the next year of their lives, and if they can prove themselves to be the best among their rivals, most of them will.

I really enjoyed this book. I totally get the hype surrounding it because it jus had such good vibes throughout. It's been about a month since I read this so I don't have a lot to say but I'll say a bit.

CW: suicide, death, sexual content, murder, violence, suicidal thoughts, emotional abuse, blood, alcohol, gun violence, suicide attempt, toxic friendship, toxic relationship, kidnapping, death of parent (off page prior to book), infidelity, gaslighting, confinement, grief, drug use, sexism + more

I loved how each character was built, and super loved the multiple perspectives we got. The characters were all unique and had distinct voices and traits. Some characters I loved, others I hated, and some changed over time.

I loved Libby and Nico instantly, the dynamic that they have gave me everything. I loved Libby's quiet strength and how inquisitive she was. Nico definitely has multiple sides to him, and I loved seeing glimpses of all of them. Reina is cool as fuck and I loved her instantly. Her powers are so cool and I loved how she interacted with everything around her. I just wanted more Parisa, I feel like we've just scratched the surface on her character and I need to know more. But I both loved and hated what we got from her, she's a very interesting character. I liked Tristan, though I feel wary of him. I don't trust him but I'm curious to see where his character goes. Callum is the worst and I will not be speaking of him.

The character dynamics were so intricate and well done. I loved the forced proximity, and how that played into the characters and the relationships formed and changed over time. Friendships, rivalries, relationships, this book had a great mixture of it all.

I think the plot was very well done. The magic within was so interesting and I really enjoyed how much we focused on that and the character relations. I really enjoy books with secrecy, I was intrigued by the society and lived for the glimpses we got of it. This book just has a good overall vibe. It's dark, and doesn't shy away from leaning into the darkness.

The writing within was good. The characters and world were impeccably built, and the magic systems all seem interesting.

Overall this book was great. Dark academia with a big cast of characters and cool magic. Just good vibes all around tbh. (

I chose not to post this review on my Instagram or Goodreads account.
I stopped reading The Atlas Six over halfway through (I never drop a book that far in). I found the characters (except Nico) to be unlikeable and typecasted. The pace was too slow and there was more slice than I expected. Just not a good fit for me.

I loved he writing style and story of this book. This is a story that gives fantasy readers exactly what they are looking for. From great pros, to aesthetics, character development and desire this story has it all..

This could have been such a great, unique read with the plot being about 6 talented magicians and a secret society, but all the book really seemed to be is dialogue and no action. We didn't really see much of what the magicians can do and the book was really missing that. The characters have so much potential. They aren't really likeable and hopefully in the next book we will get more depth of each of them. The ending set up the second book and hopefully because of where this one ended, the second book will be more exciting and action packed.

A dark fantasy that reads like YA and contains some similarity to themes of Harry Potter and The Hunger Games books.

This was definitely not a book that I normally would choose and probably one that I should have skipped entirely. I was enticed by the hype and ended up being totally disappointed in the story. It was surely an overreach of quasi philosophy and the concept of magic -- of course being misused by power hungry masterminds playing at being God. Another miss was that this ARC contained none of the promised illustrations.

The premise -- six magicians are chosen to attend the Alexandrian Society indoctrination with the ultimate prize of being asked to join this super secret collective and have access to all the lost and ancient knowledge. The characters are introduced and narrate their own chapters as their magical specialties are explained as they try to prove their worth to each other and to the Society. There is a catch, however. Out of the 6 invited, only 5 will be initiated members.

Very slow pace, a lot of repetition, and ultimately somewhat boring -- this was not my cup of tea. I did not like any of the characters and the whole concept of their purpose was only vaguely explained. I have no intention of reading further books in this series because I simply do not care about any of them nor their future conspiracies or manipulations. There is no sense of menace or foreboding even in the magic or the atmosphere of the mansion where they live and study. I was a trial to read through to the end and I am glad to be done.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for this e-book ARC to read and review. Sorry, it was not for me and I can see from other reviews that I am an outlier on this one.

did I enjoy this? yes. do I understand the hype it gets on BookTok? not really??? this book was great. it was compelling and unique and dark academia and just a whole vibe. I loved doing the audio through Libro's ALC program alongside physically reading. I'm definitely excited for the next book. but I don't really get why people are as obsessed with it as they are. I think part of the problem is that I took so long reading it, maybe if I was able to crank it out in a few days I'd understand more. don't get me wrong, it's on the like/love level, just not on the favorites shelf.

This book felt very similar to “The Magicians” by Lev Grossman. I love the premise and can’t wait to find out who is betraying whom. What a cliffhanger! Don’t expect to like any character. But if you love magic and shows like House and Sherlock that are super meta this maybe is for you. At first I thought I would recommend this to a high schooler but with the amount of sex and toxic relationships I will keep this as a rec for my adult fantasy lovers.

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley, thank you to them. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Atlas Six is a gorgeous, character-focused dark academia that’ll leave you desperate for the next book in the series.

A secret magical society filled with rare and lost knowledge recruits new members every ten years. The Alexandrian Society is a guaranteed pathway to power, and they’re only interested in the best. Six talented magicians are chosen by the mysterious Atlas Blakely. They must spend a year together working towards their initiation. After that year is up, five will move forward, and one will be eliminated. Libby, Nico, Reina, Parisa, Tristan, and Callum are this year’s recruits. Relationships will be forged, loyalties tested, and they’ll have to consider what they’re willing to become to achieve their goals.

Olivie Blake crafts a lush, magical world full of dark secrets and morally grey characters. It’s a slow-paced, character-focused read with descriptive, flowery writing. That might sound like a bad thing, but it perfectly builds up the dark academia atmosphere. Even with the slow pace, it’s difficult to put this book down; you need to know more. The characters are three-dimensional. Their desires and insecurities play off each other wonderfully. They’re pretentious, overdramatic, unpleasant, and yet, so compelling. Even when you hate them, you can’t help but want to know more. And they’re all so horny for each other? Amazing. The Alexandrian Society has a deeply unsettling aura about it, but the power it holds is alluring. If this sounds like your kind of read, trust me, you’re going to love it.

There was so much hype around the release of the book. I am so thankful that I was given a chance to read it. However, it really helped me understand that fantasy is not for me. I loved the academia in this book and really brought me back to reading harry potter when I was a kid. I felt very confused throughout this book because I felt like the magic was not clearly explained and some of the big plots left a little too much to the imagination. Overall, if you like fantasy and academia this might be a good one for you. But I will not be moving on in this series.

I am unsure how I feel about this book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading from these characters POVs— well except for Callum’s. I hated how malicious Callum was, especially considering he was an empath. Libby, while annoying, was the most relatable for me. Parisa is a queen. Nico is charming and a bundle of energy. Tristan was intriguing and his powers are still a mystery to me. Reina was the much needed calm center for the group.

I found the explanation of the magic to be lacking. The word medeian is used in contrast to witch, but it is not clearly explained what the difference is. I think medeian is just a highly skilled and/or trained wizard and a witch is just a common person with magic and no training, but not sure.

I do not fully understand the plot and what happened at the end either. Every time I thought I understood what was going on, the next chapter confused me even more. I am intrigued to see where Olivie Blake goes with this though, so I am tempted to read book 2.

This book is SO unique to me. It takes the magical society trope and really turns it on its head, I think. I was pulled into this world from page one and was swept up in the Alexandrian Society completely. I love all six of the main characters that we get to know--they're all so different and bring unique things to the table. This would be a cool book for my students to do character analysis with because of that alone. The magic felt new and refreshing and I never felt bogged down in information and details. Such a great read!

Just finished reading THE ATLAS SIX by Olivie Blake.

A secret society for those with magical powers. Yes please 🙏. Still waiting for my invite 🪄 .

The Atlas Six follows 6 MC's from recruitment through to initiation into a very secret magical society, of which will only accept 5 new members every decade... Those who go on to become members will have access to magical books & a knowledge base, which will help improve their powers beyond their imagination.

The Atlas Six hooked me in from page 1, with the uniquely dark magical society, the deeply flawed sexy 🔥 characters, and backstories. What kept me hooked throughout was how they were forced to work together to keep the societies magic and knowledge a secret. With a messed up ending that will leave you so pissed off that you have to wait for book 2 to come out.

While this definitely won't be everyones cup of tea, I would recommend if you liked the sounds of any of the above. If any of that made sense 😅😂.

This book totally lives up to the hype! The multi-dimensional characters, the suspenseful pace, the dark academia vibes -- it's got it all!

Thanks to the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book has been getting a lot of hype thanks to booktok, and I'd also seen some rave reviews from bookstagrammers who I tend to get a lot of my fantasy recommendations from, so I was really eager to read this one.

I loved a lot about the story - the dark academia vibes, interesting types of magic, and an entertaining group of characters. The world building was a bit slow, but very methodical, although at times I felt a bit lost and like things had been made unnecessarily dense. I was both confused and fascinated as the story went on, but thought the ending was really strong. I'm very curious to see where the next book goes.