Thank you NetGalley and Scholastic Press for this ARC Copy!

Dark Academia, Secret Society, Mystery, and Queer Romance say no more.

Though this book is clearly geared toward the younger side of YA I still really enjoyed it. There was some language and pop culture references that definitely were not for this old lady, but the story was good enough that it never bothered me one bit.
I have read a lot of books about secrets societies but I really like the system of this one. The mystery kept me guessing, and the tension kept me hooked from start to finish.

This book might not be for everyone, and it was not written to be. If you are bothered by immature characters then this may not be for you and that is fine. I think the actions of all the characters in the book lined up pretty well with their age, after all they are sophomores in high school.

Sad to report this one just wasn’t for me and I had to DNF. I was really interested in the plot, but I think there was something about the author’s writing style that I just struggled to connect with.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this stroy.
SPOILERS TO FOLLOW

The last chapter of this book is very jarring because it abruptly shifts to ten years after everything went down in the middle of it. A time jump is fine in theory but this time jump felt like when those movies based off real people start to tell everyone what happened after the events of the movie and that's how you find out a lot of them died young. Hearing about what happened to Luke was so MESSED UP. I don't understand how he lost his arm in the tunnels or what it was that Cal gave him right before saying goodbye to him forever. Maybe I missed something?? Something that was small enough to fit in their hands that was significant enough to both of them?? What I really loved about this novel was Gretchen and her determination to live. I was really worried that she wouldn't survive but I'm grateful that she did. Nisha was also a really great character! I love ho she ended up being Cal's best friend in the end and how they were so kind to each other.

Thank you, NetGalley, Scholastic | Scholastic Press, for the chance to read this book in exchange of an honest review.

When Cal wins a scholarship to an elite New England boarding school he hopes to leave his past behind, being considered as a poor queer kid back home. But at the Essex Academy people are only obsessed over phones and new clothes and he struggles to fit in. In order to fit in, he learns about a secret society on campus, the key to be finally accepted and he finds an unlikely champion in Luke Kim, charismatic and alluring. Swept in the secrets of the society, Cal finds himself falling in love with his first love and as the rituals grow riskier he will have to choose what he would sacrifice to fit in, since nothing is like it seems.

I really loved reading A darker mischief. Labelled The Honeys meets The Secret History, this book is about a young queer teen, willing to do anything in order to fit in and swept in a world of blood, dangers, old money, privilege and more. It's captivating and well written and you can't not cheer for Cal and to follow him in his trials, struggles and falling in love. The world of secret societies and boarding school have always fascinated me and this book isn't an exception.
Cal is a complex character, forced to confront his morals and needs in order to get what he wants and to fit in in the boarding school and you can't not feel a bit close to him.
I did find the pacing a bit off, sometimes too rushed, others too slow, but overall the book is a good and fast read.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to get into this book. I originally requested A Darker Mischief from the synopsis. But it's just not for me. I do not think the YA patrons at my library would enjoy it either. I hope it finds the right readers who will absolutely love it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Scholastic Press for providing me with a review copy.

I’m sorry but I did not like this book at all. The secret society was pointless, the “romance” was unlikeable and honestly most of the plot was unbelievable.

This is a wonderful addition to the "dark academia" genre that has become more and more popular over the last few years. The characters are well drawn and relatable, and the mystery is paced well and draws readers in. Definitely check this one out!

i was drawn to this book by the cover and the fact that it’s queer. then actually reading it, i loved the story and the dark academia vibes!

thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

Wow, this is an interesting story which got a lot darker than I thought it would. Cal is a sophomore, having transferred from his old school after an incident to a prestigious elite school favoured by many rich and powerful families. But while Cal’s grades are good and he’s smart enough to be at the school, he struggles to fit in, being the ‘poor kid’ from a Southern state. After a rough day at school, Cal goes for a walk and stumbles upon a secret society by accident. Intrigued by the society and what it could do for his status at the school he decides to try and join it. But there are strange rumours surrounding the society, and even stranger tests for rushees to take. Will getting into the society change Cal’s life for the better, or will he regret it?

This is an interesting story which was exciting to read from the first pages. After a brief prologue which sets out a dramatic scene, the story then begins six months earlier, in September, not long after Cal begins at Essex Academy. The school is a prestigious one, filled with the kids of many rich and influential families, and as a result, even though Cal was smart enough to get in on a scholarship, he feels like he doesn’t fit in with all the elite kids who laugh at him, his clothes and his accent. Cal is an interesting character to follow and I like how at first we’re not sure about a lot of things to do with him, such as who he talks to on the phone when he’s struggling to cope at the school. Cal’s a sensitive but smart guy though, and I like how we learn more about him and his past as the story unfolds.

When Cal comes across the secret society at the school he becomes desperate to join, hoping it will change the way everyone views him. The process of joining though isn’t as simple as he thought, and I like how creepy and strange some of the initiation tests are. The society is based around learning, especially learning the history of the school itself, but it’s a lot stranger and creepier than that and we soon find Cal and his fellow rushees (other students who are attempting to join the society) doing some questionable things to enter the society. I like how the school has a creepy back story to it and how we find out more about the buildings on the campus and the history behind it and some of the alumni, the more we read into the tale. The book is narrated throughout by Cal, but while it focuses on the society and his drive to become a member, and what happens as he delves deeper into it, it’s also a story about Cal dealing with his past trauma as well as his homosexuality and his relationship with a fellow sophomore called Luke.

Luke is an interesting and impulsive character and I like the way Cal and Luke become closer over the months at school. The relationship between them for me was a bit of a strange one though, not so much romantic in the traditional idea of romances in books, but a more realistic portrayal of a teen relationship, although a strange one due to questions surrounding Luke and his past. There are many twists and things revealed in this story, we find out more about the school as well as more about Cal’s past and the truth about the society. I like how I didn’t guess any of what was happening and the fast pace of the story kept me turning the pages to find out more about the characters and the school. The setting of the boarding school and some of the history of the places mentioned gave the whole campus a creepy vibe, and having followed the author on social media I do know a lot of real life places inspired the campus in the book I like how easy it was to imagine the whole place in my head as it was described well and gave off some eerie historical vibes.

The story is fast paced throughout, and as it moves towards March so many things happen. There are so many revelations and secrets revealed but I like how throughout it Cal grows as a character and the story on the whole concludes very well. The ending to the main story is exciting and finishes well, although I would have preferred a little more time and maybe a longer last scene before the story moves into the last epilogue style chapter. This last chapter wraps things up nicely, although I have to be honest there were still some shocking things revealed in this epilogue about what happened to some characters. The book does have some uses of the f and s swear words as well as some violence and mentions of deaths. There is also some sex in the book that’s not overly graphic but does go into a few more details than some readers might expect.

Overall this is a great mix of a coming of age story with a more creepy tale about the dark goings on at an elite boarding school. It’s a fast paced thriller that will keep you guessing as to what is happening and with an ending that’s good but which I also didn’t expect. I do like how things conclude for Cal and some of the other characters, though there are some shocking revelations in the end, and although I did enjoy the epilogue, I would have preferred a little bit of a longer ending with the actual events that were happening on that last night at the end of the story. It wasn’t quite the ending I expected. Perhaps I had hoped things would work out differently with one particular relationship, however overall it’s a great story that touches on mental health and trauma too and with a great and quite eerie setting.

I didn't know what to expect going into A Darker Mischief, but I was pleasantly surprised to find an atmospheric dark academia novel with twists that kept me guessing until the end.

Cal was sent from his home in Mississippi to a boarding school in Connecticut following an "incident" that is slowly revealed through the course of the book. In this new boarding school, Cal meets Luke, a fellow student whose charm and mystery are as compelling as the secret society Cal and Luke both find themselves eager to join. The rest of the book unfolds with twists and revelations that force Cal to consider what he is willing to accept from the status quo. A gripping plot is enhanced by sharp dialogue and polished pacing that propels the plot toward a bittersweet conclusion. Recommended for readers who are comfortable reading books with dark themes and who like dark academia, complicated relationships, and mysterious societies.

Summary: Beautiful dark academia. A boarding school thriller about a queer teen from Mississippi who finds himself swept into a world of old money, privilege, and the secret society at the heart of it all.

Review: You had me at secret societies. This book is so amazingly crafted and the writer presents the universe piece by piece. Hooks you from the start and you can't stop wanting more! While we've all read about "secret societies at college", this still feels fresh, fun and a bit creepy. Author plays with the dark academia setting so well. I feel it's inspired by the best, and made a great new story.

#ADarkerMischief #NetGalley

829/10 or 4.5/5

Advertisements

REPORT THIS AD
Characters-8

The characters in this book were enjoyable. I like how they all interacted. When I read stories of this genre, I need the characters to have some kind of darkness, or mood, as that sets the tone for the rest of the story. Cal, Luke, and the other members of the society brought the dark humor, and dark undertones to the story. The only thing was that I wanted to see Luke on the field, we were told he played sports, but the reader never saw him during a game, or at practice. Cal was sweet, and he just wanted to help people which I loved.

Writing-9

A big part of Dark Academia and Mysteries for me is the writing style. I loved how this story was written. There was a mixture of darker humor which was funny, and an overall atmosphere that wasn’t necessarily scary, but it was eerie because the reader didn’t know all of what was going on behind the scenes. I loved how the clues of the story were unraveling like a puzzle for the reader as the story progressed thanks to the writing.

Plot-8

This story was interesting. I was wondering where the story was going to go. I was intrigued because there were events that were unfolding, and I was wondering how they were going to wrap up. A Darker Mischief was also a story about finding yourself, and finding where you belong. When we first meet Cal, he’s a transfer student as a sophomore, so he missed the freshman bonding experience. The Society gave him friends, and a group of people that cared about him, and would fight for him. I enjoyed both the mystery and the journey for Cal.

Enjoyment-8

I enjoyed this story. I thought it had a great premise, and the characters were well done. The story was interesting and had a lot of heart.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for providing me with an eARC of A Darker Mischief in exchange for my honest review!

I'm always up for the atmosphere, suspense, and secrets of dark academia, so I'm glad to enjoy these things in A Darker Mischief. It creates an interesting and complicated relationship between Cal and Luke that helps me understand why Cal is becoming so lured in by him, even when Luke is throwing up red flags all over the place. That being said, there are still points in which I have to really suspend my disbelief over Cal not being just a little more plausibly wary under these foreboding circumstances. The dark academia and secret society cliches also hit me as being formulaic. Yes, I get it; the powerful and the wealthy excel at using their tools and connections to unfairly get ahead in life, but that's executed in a bit too much of a tropey fashion for me here. The overtly tidy nature of the epilogue is irksome, too. Considering how grim the tale was willing to get beforehand, it feels strange to wrap it all up with such a relatively clean conclusion.

Overall, I'm officially rating A Darker Mischief 3.25 out of 5 stars. It may get weighed down by some shortcomings, but I still admire what it has to offer.

Cal is a transfer student to the prestigious New England boarding school Essex Academy. All he wants is to belong, especially after The Incident, and once he discovers a Secret Society on campus he thinks he might finally find what he's been searching for. As things start getting more mysterious and nefarious, how far will Cal go to protect what he cares for most?

This was such a unique book. A YA thriller with dark academia vibes, mystery, puzzles, gay romance, and so many imperfect, unreliable characters.

I loved the setting. Essex Academy made for a perfect set piece, with its seemingly endless abandoned buildings with unexplored locales. All the gothic architecture, tunnels, and secret rooms really set the mood perfectly.

The characters were interesting. I wouldn't say I particularly liked any of them, but I think that was the point. They were 16 year olds trying to act older than their years and keep secrets that no one should keep, of course they're not going to be particularly likeable or trustworthy. It was nice to read about a nuanced gay relationship as well. I wouldn't say it was a healthy one: they were co-dependent, didn't know each other all that well, and were trying to make everything mean so much more than it needed to. But I really enjoyed all that, and was curious to see how it would all turn out.

The plot, although bonkers, was riveting. I loved all the secrets, mysteries, and puzzles, although I thought some could have been dragged out a little longer to make me think on them more. I saw where it was going pretty early on, but that didn't lessen my enjoyment of it. I've seen people complain that the ending was abrupt, but again I think that was intentional and it felt fitting.

My one complaint was that I sometimes felt like the writing wasn't working, especially during dialogue. Sometimes conversations felt like a string of disjointed non-sequiturs and I didn't know what they were talking about. I chalked it up to 16 year olds trying to talk past their years, but I was pretty confused during quite a few of the conversations.

Overall, if you're looking for a thriller full of teenage angst, mysteries, and dark academia, this is the read for you!

Another on that I was very excited for, but the characters fell very flat to me. I wanted to like this book a lot but it was slow and a little tedious to read. Overall, kind of disappointed.

3.5 stars

For the most part, I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the author's writing style, and the plot twists that came. I love a good dark academia, plus adding that it's queer? Sign me up! The only thing that was a little disappointing to me was the love interest. In my opinion he seemed more abusive and manipulative than anything, and that didn't sit right with me. Especially because I would have loved to see the main character Cal in a budding relationship while going through this secret society. But that's why my rating is as low as it is. I would have also loved to learn more about Cal's past, as I felt we got pieces, not the whole picture. I will also warn, there is more sexual content than usual for a YA book. Not a bad thing, just something to consider.

A Darker Mischief by Derek Milman
⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review:
I'm going to be honest. In my opinion the best part about this was the cover. It's absolutely stunning. It's what drew me in and made me request it. After I learned it was a queer dark academia, I thought wow it couldn't get any better! ... and so was right!

I did not love this. I didn't like the writing style. It felt like a millennial trying to speak in gen z and it didn't sit with me. I didn't like any of the characters and overall I felt like the plot fell a little flat too. It wasn't exciting for me like most dark academia is. These kids are running around writing exposes on the run down and not used portions of their school. It was just kind of weird to me.

The author tried to bring it back at the end with this big wow factor but it didn't hit for me. But it clearly did for a lot of people because this has 4.0 on Goodreads. I was honestly surprised as I had to fight with myself to finish it. But this is just another clear example of books being subjective and even though I didn't love it, others do!

THOUGHTS

I liked so much about the set-up of this book, but it really didn't come together for me. The melodrama here was just too much for my taste, and the central relationship--something that this book really does hinge on--just felt... wrong to me. It made my skin crawl, and I don't think it was meant to. So that's, well, unfortunate.


PROS
Southern Kid Rep: There are a lot of parts of this book that I really do appreciate, and the working class Southern rep is one of those things. An elite private school is bound to have its share of scholarship kids, of course, and there's a whole layer of judgement that comes with that. Add in a Southern accent, and of course this kid feels like a fish out of water. Of course he feels like the others are constantly judging him. In fact, they probably are.

Layers of History: A school this old is bound to have it's share of secrets. This is dark academia, after all. And being built on layers of history ups the ante--and the atmosphere of this book. Dark tunnels, abandoned buildings, forgotten passages: these make up the backbone of the school, and there's quite a bit of time spent crawling through these cobwebbed corridors. And that spooky, unsettling layer underneath the posh exterior really nails the aesthetic, right?

Dark Academia: Which brings me to this point. Dark academia is having something of a moment, and I'm not opposed to that. Old libraries, dusty books, hidden secrets for those who study and learn: these are such fun building blocks. And contrasting a wealthy boarding school with a scholarship kid adds to the drama (or the melodrama, as necessary) in a way that I can appreciate.


CONS
Too Emo: This book dedicates a lot of page space to crawling through abandoned tunnels, true, but just as much time is spent building up a central romance. And... it just didn't work for me. Luke as a love interest feels a little too, well, emo and 2000s-style "edgy." He's addicted to graffiti. He's got a sort of masochistic aesthetic that's pretty cringey. And he's got a bad-boy sort of violent side, too. And I don't know. Maybe if I were still a teen reading this I'd be swooning, but something tells me this type just... isn't the type, even for the market audience. He was too much.

Sexual Content: This book definitely contains more sexual content than the average YA book. I was kind of shocked by how much made it onto the page here. That's not to say it will be anything particularly scandalous for a real romance reader, but those expecting the sort of safe space that is YA should definitely take note. It's... a bit much.

Toxic Relationship: Edgy, moody, emo might not be my particular type, but my issues with Luke as a love interest go deeper than that. His interactions, romantic and otherwise, with Cal were manipulative, reckless, and cruel. He was, in fact, scary, and the unfolding of this "romance" was one of the most toxic relationships I've read in a long, long time. And my biggest issue with this is that the book doesn't really address that. I don't think all toxic relationships need to be spelled out that way, but in a book marketed at children, the messaging does need to be clearer than this. In fact, I came away feeling kind of sick because this relationship gets somewhat glorified--immortalized--in the end. And not only was I uncomfortable all throughout, I was definitely uncomfortable with the relationship being valorized in retrospect in the final chapter of this book. It was... not good. Not good.


Rating

⭐⭐⭐
3/10
Fans of Cynthia Murphy's Win Lose Kill Die will like this new, cutthroat secret society. Those who enjoyed Alexa Donne's The Ivies will love this elite student body getting up to no good.

back home in mississippi, cal was the poor, queer kid whose family was hated. when he wins a scholarship to a prestigious boarding school in new england, he takes it as an opportunity to reinvent himself. but he soon finds out that his classmates at essex aren’t much better. they all come from money, and they mock his cheap clothes and southern twang. cal’s at his breaking point when he gets invited to rush a secret society. he’s desperate to find a place in this school, so he takes on the challenge, which leads him to dangerous places.

what originally drew me to this book was the comparison to the honeys and the secret history, two books i loved. i also loved the sound of a dark academia book with a secret society. i think this aspect was really unique; i haven’t read about many secret societies like this one👀

i do wish there had been more exploration into cal’s past. there were mentions but i don’t feel like we necessarily got the full picture.

i’d recommend this to anyone wanting a fresh dark academia book!

This was such a dark and twisted story, full of mystery that you just cannot help enjoying. Our main character was quite easy to love, I quite honestly just wanted to protect him all the time. Cal certainly had a hard time in high school and when I say hard time I mean dark stuff and trauma. It brought a very interesting side to this story about how he dealt with it all and how he was feeling about himself after all that happened.

The whole secret society activities were quite intriguing and definitely kept me hooked. Right from the first chapter you are just wondering what is going on and honestly it stays that way all throughout your reading until the very end. So many secrets and puzzling things going on, you never know who you can trust and what is everyone hiding.

It is hard to tell what is right or wrong or who's good or bad in this dark academia set-up because quite honestly we all have a bit of a dark side, don't we? Maybe it is because I love dark characters that seem to have demons but I was kind of a fan of Luke, couldn't get enough of him somehow, he was mysterious and I just wanted to know more about him all the time. I would have wished his character was more developed than that because he felt like a very important part of the book, and he was so intriguing but in the end I felt like I didn't get to know him really. It shouldn't be a bad thing I guess, but for me I crave that connection with all characters and I want to understand them fully, that's all.

The story navigates the idea of how much are you really willing to sacrifice to get what you want and also there is this idea of being accepted and having a feeling of finally fitting into something but at what price? I'm still a little confused about the fact that this one is YA because of the subjects it broaches and the language too, but I read adult reads too so it is no problem for me in the end.

My main disappointment was about the ending, but then, I'm not used to reading thrillers, so it might be a "me" problem, but I felt like the ending was quite rushed. I wanted it to go a bit slower, I found myself re-reading parts because it all happened so fast I was feeling like I was missing stuff. Other than that, the book was still super interesting and I read it in no time because I kept wanting to know what would happen next.

Thanks to Colored Pages Book Tours, the publisher and the author for my copy of the book. All opinions are my own.