A Deadly Education: A Novel (The Scholomance)
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 the Winternight 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 and The Golden Enclaves
“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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Readers say *A Deadly Education* offers a boldly original dark magical school setting with rich world-building and a unique, sharp protagonist whose u...
Honestly, I think my feelings about this book come down to the fact that Novak has written better stuff. When I think of her writing, I think of gorgeous prose, lush settings, history and fantasy being beautifully interwoven...not angry angsty teenagers in a fantastical world where all the rules of the magic system are so convoluted that you’re just expected to go with the flow. It’s not a bad read, but it is so out of the realm of what I expect from this author that I just came out with mixed feelings. And that’s not to say I don’t enjoy authors trying new stuff. But I do think think some authors have a niche and don’t always succeed when they try to experiment.
When you have a narrator that is as angry and jaded (albeit with good reason) as El, it’s hard to focus on much else. Mostly because she’s shoving her anger at you the entire time. I had very much of the same feeling when I finished with Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye.
I will say that I am intrigued enough to probably pick up the second book, but I really hope Novak moves back to her regularly scheduled program of writing soon.
When you have a narrator that is as angry and jaded (albeit with good reason) as El, it’s hard to focus on much else. Mostly because she’s shoving her anger at you the entire time. I had very much of the same feeling when I finished with Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye.
I will say that I am intrigued enough to probably pick up the second book, but I really hope Novak moves back to her regularly scheduled program of writing soon.
"...Dignity matters fuck-all when the monsters under your bed are real.”
When I was in high school, I remember thinking: "OMG, If I don't do well in school, my parents will kill me."
Pffffffffffffft.
That is nothing compared to "If I don't graduate, I will die."
Literally.
And boys... they are so... like... dumb...
"It's not that I'm ugly. On the contrary, I've been growing increasingly beautiful in a tall and alarming way, as befits the terrible dark sorceress I'm meant to be. At least until I presumably collapse into a grotesque crone. Boys often think for about ten seconds that they might want to go out with me, and then they look into my eyes or talk to me and, I suppose, get the strong impression I'm likely to devour their souls or something."
Urgh. Being a teenaged sorceress is hard.
This was an enjoyable foray into dark academia; despite the YA trappings, A Deadly Education skillfully plumbs thematic depths.
Though the main protagonist never shies away from throwing shade, and often seems one barb away from locking arms with Tom Riddle (which, by the mid-way point, I kind of rooted for), she is also so well-written and innately, stubbornly, good.
Thanks to a cliffhanger dropped on the final page, I’m warily and excitedly looking forward to The Last Graduate (Book 2).
Though the main protagonist never shies away from throwing shade, and often seems one barb away from locking arms with Tom Riddle (which, by the mid-way point, I kind of rooted for), she is also so well-written and innately, stubbornly, good.
Thanks to a cliffhanger dropped on the final page, I’m warily and excitedly looking forward to The Last Graduate (Book 2).
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