NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of Uprooted and Spinning Silver comes the first book of the Scholomance trilogy, the story of an unwilling dark sorceress who is destined to rewrite the rules of magic.FINALIST FOR THE LODESTAR AWARD • “The dark school of magic I’ve been waiting for.”—Katherine Arden, author of Winternight TrilogyI decided that Orion Lake needed to die after the second … Trilogy
I decided that Orion Lake needed to die after the second time he saved my life.
Everyone loves Orion Lake. Everyone else, that is. Far as I’m concerned, he can keep his flashy combat magic to himself. I’m not joining his pack of adoring fans.
I don’t need help surviving the Scholomance, even if they do. Forget the hordes of monsters and cursed artifacts, I’m probably the most dangerous thing in the place. Just give me a chance and I’ll level mountains and kill untold millions, make myself the dark queen of the world.
At least, that’s what the world expects. Most of the other students in here would be delighted if Orion killed me like one more evil thing that’s crawled out of the drains. Sometimes I think they want me to turn into the evil witch they assume I am. The school certainly does.
But the Scholomance isn’t getting what it wants from me. And neither is Orion Lake. I may not be anyone’s idea of the shining hero, but I’m going to make it out of this place alive, and I’m not going to slaughter thousands to do it, either.
Although I’m giving serious consideration to just one.
With flawless mastery, Naomi Novik creates a school bursting with magic like you’ve never seen before, and a heroine for the ages—a character so sharply realized and so richly nuanced that she will live on in hearts and minds for generations to come.
The magic of the Scholomance trilogy continues in The Last Graduate
“The can’t-miss fantasy of fall 2020, a brutal coming-of-power story steeped in the aesthetics of dark academia. . . . A Deadly Education will cement Naomi Novik’s place as one of the greatest and most versatile fantasy writers of our time.”—BookPage (starred review)
“A must-read . . . Novik puts a refreshingly dark, adult spin on the magical boarding school. . . . Readers will delight in the push-and-pull of El and Orion’s relationship, the fantastically detailed world, the clever magic system, and the matter-of-fact diversity of the student body.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for a complimentary copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
A Deadly Education
By: Naomi Novik
REVIEW
Imagine graduation being dependent upon survival. Either, the school building kills you, or you get to graduate. What??? El is the sarcastic and perpetually angry heroine who possesses, but doesn’t really use, great power. El faces a consequence of some kind if she uses her power, so it’s easier to just not go there. Orion is another student, a boy El dislikes, but she doesn’t like anyone anyway.
Circumstances throw them together, and the ensuing love hate dance is so entertaining and tension filled-not to mention the witty banter between El and Orion. This story is refreshingly different from others with similar premises. El attends a school of magic that is entirely unique, fascinating and dark. She is not your typical girl, either. And, the end will leave you with??!!!?? I definitely recommend for magical readers seeking a new and exciting experience.
I loved this book. Naomi Novik is one of my favourite fantasy authors right now and she’s outdone herself with the world building on this one. A Deadly Education is set in a semi-sentient, extremely dangerous magical school that acts as a magnet for homicidal monsters who are just dying to eat young witches and wizards. Our heroine is El, who is just trying to survive until graduation while managing her incredibly powerful affinity for dark magic. She’s in conflict with Orion, the school’s resident hero who has a bad habit of upsetting the balance of the universe by saving too many lives and starving the local monsters into a frenzy. I liked the magic system that Novik creates here and the twist that she’s taken on the idea that magic must always come with a price. I also really liked this twist on the ‘magical school’ trope – people joke that it’s a miracle Hogwarts wasn’t shut down because so many students die every year but Novik has made the danger of the school integral to the plot rather than a mere plot device. The result is a really exciting new fantasy series and I can’t wait until the next one comes out.
I really liked the setting and the main character.
I usually like this author’s stories but this one has foul language, full of anger and sadness. I couldn’t finish the book.
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik is the first in a new fascinating series: Scholomance. This is an excellent science fiction/fantasy/epic novel that kept me enthralled from beginning to end.
This is a genre that I am quick picky with. I find that I either love the novel and am truly enraptured, or I find it tedious, dramatic (unnecessarily so), and a chore to finish. This book was definitely a gem.
I loved the concept: a school for dark magic where to graduate means to survive. The stakes are high, the dramatic events abound, and action/surprise is around every corner.
I really enjoyed the main female character: Galadriel Higgins (El). She was smart, sassy, funny, dark, sarcastic, and I loved her verbiage, dialogue, and complex characteristics. Was she perfect? Nope. But that would have been boring. I like my main characters having chips and flaws. I find that infinitely more beautiful and intriguing. I also enjoyed her love-hate, push-pull, fiery relationship with Orion. There was just enough of a touch of romance between the two to add a great extra level to the story. Somehow it made them seem even more real.
I enjoyed the descriptions, the beyond unique concept, and of course I loved, LOVED the ending. It just sets it all up perfectly for the next book in the series.
I am so glad I went outside of my comfort zone and picked up this book to read.
Truly enjoyable. 5/5 stars
Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine/Random House for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.
I am posting this review to my GR, Bookbub, and Instagram accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.
Well this most definitely is NOT Hogwarts ! El goes to a magical school called Scolomance which has no teachers, no professors or staff just fellow students and of course the all too real monstrous Mal creatures that hunt them ! El isn’t exactly part of the in crowd and in fact her Dark sorceress in training vibe means most view her with distrust but she’s survived this long and she’s not giving up anytime soon.
I liked El with her defences always up and her insightful way of seeing others for exactly what they are. Crucial to remember here is that there are two powerful ways to obtain and store magic known as Mana. First is through your own sacrifice, toil and labour which takes effort although many have found ways to share using allies. The second method is through the purging of life force so for example pulling from a plant, an ant or more horrifically taking a human life. So take a guess at which method most think El uses ? Our curmudgeonly heroine El isn’t exactly polite or forthcoming with anyone so it’s no great surprise really but as the story progresses she does open up more to others .
I think this was quite unique and I did feel that the second half had a lot more to recommend it than the first. Perhaps if there had been some lighter moments along the way as these are teenagers and there wasn’t really a giggly moment until the end which I admit did make me smile . However I did feel it lacked levity throughout because as much as these characters are constantly in danger they are still of an age when hormones run rampant. Perhaps too many info dumps but it certainly didn’t stop me reading until the end which left me completely shocked and now I really need to know what happens next. Darker than I expected but definitely well worth your time reading.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair