Comments (63)

What did you think about this title?
1 to 25 of 63 items
Feb 27, 2024 CALS_Amanda rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
How bad would it be to have devastating, world-breaking power if you didn’t actually want to break the world? Pretty bad, as it turns out—though when you’re trapped in a school that desperately wants to either kill you or make you…
Feb 04, 2024ndubuisson rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This book was delicious-- a page turner for sure. I like the world building, characters and relationship dynamics between different characters. I would be stressed asf in this world or most likely dead tbh.😂
Jan 02, 2024AprilZek2023 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I read this for the Newbie Adult book club; this book will be discussed in January. Character development was good, world building could have been better.
Dec 30, 2023kn1226 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Very unique setting and magic system with a refreshingly mean (but nice) main character. Only issue I had was it was SO wordy. I know important things happened in the book but it didn’t seem to me like a whole ton happened because so much…
Oct 27, 2023cristina1010 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Wow! Talk about a doozy of a novel filled with action, a snarky hero, flirting-that-isn't-flirting, and monster guts. So many monster guts, monster entrails, monster fighting, and push-ups. Do not forget the push-ups. This fantasy novel…
Sep 28, 2023eherrman322 rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Black cat protagonist and sweet, dumb golden retriever boyfriend somehow survive murderous Hogwarts. Think Parks and Rec's April and Andy. In all seriousness, I didn't immediately like the book because it was basically just an info dump…
Jul 02, 2023
This perilous magic-school adventure is chock full of twists, turns, and some brilliant worldbuilding. If you're looking for witty banter and a fun spin on dark academia, this is the title for you.
Jul 01, 2023ShamaBole rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
Protagonist is wearyingly at odds with everyone in her world, including herself. At some point I didn't care what happened to anyone in the book. It's largely a diatribe, meh.
Jun 09, 2023niewegec rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Cynical, suspicious and an outcast, El’s survival is in constant jeopardy in a world where being alone equates death. Being in school means surviving the hordes of mals that can attack you at any point in your day, and learning how to fend…
May 10, 2023
Imagine Harry Potter but deadlier, Divergent living up to its potential, Hunger Games but in your daily life, or your worst ever nightmare of a private school. The Scholomanse is a school for Magicians where death awaits you literally…
May 03, 2023
Harry Potter like
Apr 26, 2023CaronALibrarian rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik is for teens and adults who have aged out of the Harry Potter series. The Scholomance is both a school and a prison for sorcerer teens. The school is designed to allow magical teens to develop their skills…
Sep 25, 2022crazycatladyreads rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
This is one of the best books I've read in recent years. The world was fun and vivid. The characters were well developed, especially El. I went and bought the book after reading my library copy because I definitely see myself revisiting…
Sep 17, 2022DanielleQuarter rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
I love love love this book. This is a dark YA book. The writing is strong, the main character is well fleshed out. I loved the main character El. She is mean, rude, and everything female protagonists typically aren't. Note, that her…
Aug 23, 2022SurreyLibraries_Teens3 rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
A Deadly Education, by Naomi Novik is a fantasy novel which depicts ‘Survival of the fittest’. It shows that survival is the most important thing and only those who have what it takes can survive. Those who fail to survive die. The…
Aug 16, 2022WPL_JessB rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I usually want to go to the magical schools I read about. But I really really don't want to go to this one. 5 stars.
Aug 09, 2022JCLJENNYT rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
If you are looking for a book to transition from teen to young adult this would be a good one. It is like Lord of the Flies meets magic school. The main character is anything but bubbly but Novik makes you love her regardless. Main love…
Jul 29, 2022sarahmoss02 rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This was a really enjoyable book! It’s a different take on magic and the world, took me a bit to figure it all out visually in my head, but I can’t wait to read the second book in the series!
Jul 26, 2022Mtrey rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
Grabs and holds, I forget meals, had minimal reality breaks, can’t stop recommending to others. Understand it’s YA and for unknown reasons, numerous people, who are chronologically 10+ years, past YA feel they shouldn’t partake in these…
Jun 20, 2022LauraSteinert rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
I hesitate to compare, but this may be better than the Temeraire series. There are many very good post-apocalyptic series that this reminds me of; it also reminds me of some of the better magic/witch books I've read. Better than or at…
Jun 07, 2022
High school can sometimes feel like a fight to the death. For the kids studying magic at the famed Scholomance, it literally is. Join Galadriel “El” as she makes her way through high school, tackling monsters, friendships, and boys, all…
Jun 02, 2022
The synopsis for this book promises a teenage sorceress in a magical school, so the rest of the book is going to be a mass of cliches, right? Wrong, as any fan of Naomi Novik could tell you. The basic premise may sound familiar, but…
May 11, 2022
This book felt a lot more like YA than adult fiction - the near-total absence of adults, the preoccupation with romance in the face of monstrous doom, the deadly consequences of picking the wrong table at lunch period, that kind of thing.…
May 05, 2022Aradne rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
Quite unique. HP but definitely not HP.
Apr 09, 2022JCLAllisonM rated this title 4 out of 5 stars
More world-building than action, but this magical school is so strange that it was still an interesting read. Could use a little more character development, so I'm eager to read the sequel!