Fantastic! This book is like Harry Potter, but the castle is trying to kill you. I will admit, I had a hard time getting into this book at first. It is a bit confusing, but once you get halfway, it really takes off! The romance between the two main characters - El and Orion - is also beautifully done. El is so spiteful and sarcastic, but honestly, I love when people are sarcastic. Such a good read!

This book has been highly recommended by so many and I thought I would love it.

Unfortunately I found that you were kind of dumped into this universe with little to no explanation. I struggled with the first half of the book simply for that reason. I don’t really understand what the appeal of the story. I was really bummed as a I wanted to like it SO BAD.

I also found the main character to be so much of a “im a bad ass” but was really not a bad ass all? I hate people like that in real life and don’t enjoy reading about them either.

I was not a fan of this novel, unfortunately. I really enjoyed Uprooted and Spinning Silver by this author, but I could not connect with this book. I did not like the main characters, and I found it a little boring. I could not wait to be finished with it. I do not plan on reading more in this series, but I will check out other books by this author. I know others really like this series, so I think the problem lies with me. I enjoy magical school settings, so I thought this would be a sure winner for me. However, it wasn't. I found the lack of teachers/direction to be unrealistic and wondered why anyone would want to attend this school.

While the concept and plot of the book initially intrigued me, along with some compelling side characters, the execution ultimately fell short due to the author's writing style. The narrative is heavily dominated by internal monologues and narration, constituting about 80% of the content. This approach not only leads to excessive info-dumping but also includes tedious and repetitive descriptions that stall the story's progression. The lack of engaging dialogue and excessive 'telling' rather than 'showing' made it difficult to remain invested.

Additionally, the main character presented significant challenges. From the outset, she is portrayed as rude, obnoxious, and selfish—traits that she is aware of but indifferent to changing. Her persistent lack of development or redemption only compounded my frustration, leaving me with little hope for her character arc.

I find myself hopeful that the next installment might shift towards more dynamic character interactions and less reliance on internal reflections. The potential for a richer, more engaging narrative is there, if only the pacing and character development can be improved to truly bring the intriguing plot and vibrant side characters to life.

I very much loved this book and will be recommending it to library patrons at my job. An excellent series kickoff that left me wanting more.

"A Deadly Education" by Naomi Novik is a captivating dark academia novel set in the perilous Scholomance, a school for magically gifted students where survival is key. The world-building is intricate, and the school itself feels alive with danger and mystery. El, the cynical and sharp-witted protagonist, is refreshingly unique and her development throughout the story is engaging.

The magic school setting is particularly enjoyable, adding a fresh twist to familiar tropes seen in books like "Harry Potter" and "The Magicians." The book excels in exploring themes of privilege and power within its magical setting, making it thought-provoking as well as entertaining. While the dense information dumps can sometimes slow the pacing, the overall narrative remains compelling. Fans of dark academia and fantasy will find this a standout read.

3.5⭐️

This is the first book I've read from Naomi Novik, but I really had a good time. A Deadly Education is set in a school full of monsters, where magic is what can get you killed but also is the only way you can survive. The book follows El, a sardonic girl who is an acquired taste. I wasn't a huge fan of her if I'm honest, but I saw the appeal as soon as the relationship between her and Orion started to flourish. Their goal is to survive the school year, but there are plenty of twists and turns that keep you on your toes.

I liked the concept and was intrigued by magic system, but I will admit the scholomance setting as a whole is confusing as hell. I had no clue what was happening most of the time. 🤪 But it was a fun ride to see the monsters and El's power reveal more and more of itself.

El and Orion are so ridiculous but cute. I love the cynical black cat girl & a golden retriever himbo. They’re fake dating but he doesn’t realize it’s fake 😂

The writing style was a bit much for me, causing a lot of confusion, but it was negligible in the full plot of the story.

📖 Magically Dark Academia
📖 Monsters in a death trap of a school
📖 Unique Magic system
📖 Fake-(ish!) dating
📖 Angsty Black Cat FMC + Himbo Golden Retriever MMC
📖 Heavy, intriguing world-building

I liked the writing style a lot. And the themes the novel presented. I felt like the end was a little bit of a let down. I wanted more from El.

I could not get enough of this book! Naom Novik is one of my favorite authors, and her world building is spectacular. A dark magical boarding school where there is danger at every step and characters that are so complex — I loved it!

"Deadly Education" by Naomi Novik is an electrifying blend of magic, danger, and coming-of-age struggles that captivates readers from the first page to the last. Set in a school for young sorcerers where survival is as crucial as mastering spells, Novik crafts a richly imagined world filled with dark secrets and relentless challenges.

What worked: the atmosphere, cast of characters, the magic system!! (the magic system felt so well thought out and unique, I loved it)
What needs work: pacing - the story lagged in moments where I thought we would get a bit more of the immersive writing she already exhibited.

Overall, very excited to continue this series.

I've heard so much about this book and have read Naomi's other books and liked them alot. I loved it so much. This series is amazing.

3⭐️
I think this is an interesting book and an interesting and unique concept but I just don’t think it’s the book for me. I see the potential but I just wasn’t sucked in and couldn’t get into it unfortunately. But maybe one day I’ll pick it up and get sucked in.

I ended up falling in love with this quickly. It had been on my shelf a long time, but Netgalley pushed me to finally read it. i am so grateful for that. I've already purchased physical copies of the rest of the series so I could jump right it.

At first the stream of consciousness style of narration was a little disorienting, but then I realized that it's similar to how my brain works and was a fun way to get the story and the possibly more boring details of the world. I enjoyed the characters, the weird world Naomi built, and the complexities of the magic system (even if I remain a little fuzzy on some of the details).

This was a great read. if you love magical schools, complex & unique magic systems, and unlovable lovable characters - run, don't walk to pick this one up!

There was so much going on and it really lost me with how much was happening. Very heavy on world building but felt too light on plot which for me was the biggest problem

4.5

I LOVE a magical school setting. Harry Potter vibes for sure. This was so fun and interesting. Yes of course this felt younger (it’s ya!!!) but I didn’t mind it one bit, which is surprising because I don’t usually love ya these days. And what’s the opposite of a chosen one? Because that’s what El supposedly is (more like chosen to destroy the world) and I love that trope.

We are thrown into a magical school riddled with monsters and it’s never really explained what they are or why they’re there (maybe in future books?). I’m not one who always needs a lot of explanation in my fantasy books but if you do, you probably won’t like this. This is the type of book where you don’t always understand or know what’s going on but are along for the ride - and what a fun ride it was. I loved the characters and the friendships/mild relationship. I’m super excited to continue in this world. Currently have the second book on hold from my library!

This is a banger of a book. The world-building is supreme and can't be ignored. The characters are complex and you don't want to leave them. In the end you're just glad there is another book coming, because any wait to go back to the Scholomance is too long.

This book is very heavy in world building and light on plot points, I suppose the author is setting up the scene for the following two books in the series. It also relies heavily on inner monologue which may put off some readers. The last 20% of the book the plot really picked up so I’m looking forward to book 2 and 3.

Single POV, School Setting, Magic

I'm not a stranger to Naomi Novik. I have been an avid fan of her Termeraire series.
So when NetGalley gave me the chance to do a post-release ARC review, I was ecstatic.

Reading through this, there were a lot of challenges that I can't help but make comparisons to her other series. The story in itself is fantastic, the world-building and character development are really on par with a lot of the big names in the field. In this sub-section of dark academia, Scholomance does set itself apart.

But, the biggest hurdle is getting through Naomi Novik's writing style. There's something rather off-putting for readers in the initial parts, specifically when they're trying to make points of reference to other fantasy and YA authors - it's different, marginally so. This can make the initial setup and character introductions a little bit hard to read, and possibly want to just drop the book entirely. However, sticking with it and calibrating to the reading - you'll come across with a great story and a great delight in the atmospheric story-telling with character development.

Will I continue this series? Absolutely.

Thanks again to Naomi Novik, Netgalley and Random House Publishing for providing me with an ARC for review!

3.36 / 5

Main character was starting to annoy me with being so closed off and negative. And why was Orion so obsessed with saving everyone?? I liked the adventure but the attitude really got to me.

I hate to say that I really struggled with this book. I felt like I was walking into a movie halfway and missed all the explanations that would help me understand what was happening. It had great potential to me but missed the mark.

This is the story of a group of students who are in a magical school. They are working their way towards graduating and from what I could gather it is encouraged to join an enclave before you graduate for safety. We learn a little bit about our main character, Galadriel, whose mother is a famous healer. She is being consistently saved by a guy named Orion Lake who is a top hitter in the school. She also has a few other friends that she realizes are actually friends halfway through her book. We learn that she has been hiding a lot about herself including how powerful she is. With how the book ends it leaves a lot open to what could happen next. I do not plan on reading book 2 at the moment.

I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.