This book was so good! The transition from the first to second book was done really well. I was enamoured with the whole story and I can say I was very invested to see how things would go. I can’t wait for the third book!

All the stars🌟⭐


Have you ever read a novel who managed to grip you in and wouldn't let go no matter what? Yes! The Last Graduate was so good that I was in tears and invested. I was on edge of my seat most of the times as I was so scared of the mals and other creatures while reading this novel. This novel would go down as one of my favourites and the best novels out there.

The growth of the characters are so spot on that I am in glee.

Also looking forward to its adaptation to the big screen because we all know that El, Orion and the rest of the gang deserve it.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the Publisher for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

My only post-read thought: ORION YOU SICK SON OF A GUN. I love this series--it's hard to find a good fantasy series that checks all my boxes, but this one has kept me on the edge of my seat since the release of book 1. So imagine my pleasant surprise when my wish was granted by the publisher to read book 2 (thank you thank you)! Naomi Novik's writing style is so uniquely /her/, and I'm so drawn into the Scholomance world she's created. I cannot wait to see what happens in book 3 (and if THAT cliffhanger doesn't get resolved by chapter 3 there will be WORDS).

Novik has taken the premise set up in the first book and continued the storyline smoothly, creating interesting character and world building development in this second volume. The tangential asides and monologues are stronger here and do become frustrating at times when they break up the action and tension. But El's biting humor, her friends' quirky characters, and Orion's obstinacy are not only better explored but also defined. I listened to the audio version and the narrator was excellent, giving us a variety of American and British accents while also creating narrative personalities.

Story: El is now a senior and has managed to survive the scholomance to this point. But as she becomes more powerful, she also forges new alliances that increase her potential abilities. Suddenly, she no longer just wants to survive with her friends; now, she wants to save the whole school. But the scholomance has a mind of its own: is it hindering her or is it helping her achieve that goal?

I have a lot of respect that Novik didn't just rewrite the first book, with El facing monsters of the week while sporting witty bon mots directed at everyone and especially Orion Lake. Along with El, the other students are also given interesting growth arcs, whether enemy or friend. Relationships develop, further alliances created, and even sex is discussed (and performed). These are not the same characters from the first book and instead have grown into their own unique people. As El's and the students' situations change, so do the characters.

The story ends on quite an abrupt cliffhanger that I think will leave many frustrated since the first book closed on a neat arc. The story is set for three books and it will be interesting to see where the author takes the story from here.

In all, I greatly enjoyed the audio narration and felt it gave it a great spark and personality. I can see where many will find the endless breakaway expositions frustrating, though, and it is an interesting plot device by the author to do so.

This is going to be a hard review for me to write, because there is absolutely nothing going on in my head, just as I'm beginning to realize that there is not much happening at all in this book.

If there truly is such a thing as second-book-syndrome, this book suffers greatly from it. While thepage count has increased greatly from the first book, there's a lot less happening. To recall: At the end of the first book, El and some other students repaired the machinery to cleanse the graduation hall from the monsters waiting to devour the graduating seniors. As a result, all the monsters were killed, and now - you guessed it - there are none left. None to attack the students. (Except for our beloved heroine, because she's speeeecial.)

A lot of the problems of the first book have been resolved in this one - mainly, there is no massive racist paragraph smack bang in the middle of it like there was in the first book. The childish, forced-funny writing style has been calmed down a bit, although it still doesn't reach the flowing prose of Naomi Novik's other novels. However, it doesn't resemble a text from your middle-aged boss, desperate to prove he's able to keep up with the times and slang, anymore. Thank God. It does retain it's forced-seeming, light-hearted black humor, that I just don't think fits with the subject matter.

Talking about the subject matter: The plot is still as stupid as the first one. For all the reasons the students gave as to why this whole Scholomance thing is supposedly the best decision ever and the best way to help kids survive, it still doesn't make SENSE. The basis of the very thing the book is about is so stupidly nonsensical that I just don't care about it's resolution. You're still trying to tell me that a bunch of very smart adult scientist wizards and scholars can't take care of their children's survival, but a group of hormonal teenagers can come up with a simple solution in a matter of days? Once again, I just don't buy it. And that makes reading this book very difficult.

However, there is a major advantage this book has over its predecessor: There's actual relationships. El having friends does so much, and her actually having conversations that aren't just insults is ... god, it's just a major relief. I still don't get the romance between her and Orion, because while Orion is sweet and likeable and, next to my beloved Liu, probably the best character in the book, there's just no chemistry between the two. We are told all the time that Orion has never wanted anything except El - but why? She has never been nice to him, ever. And I don't think he's that much of a glutton for punishment. Well.

Another point that irked me very much was the spoilers the book delivers itself: Every chapter is named after the enemy our group is going to be fighting in that particular chapter. So when I looked at the table of contents at the beginning of my ebook copy, well ... I saw the title of the last chapter and knew from the beginning what was coming. Kind of destroyed the whole experience for me, and I don't usually mind spoilers at all.

So yeah, that's all I can think of right now. I'm kinda glad it's over for now, but I'm already dreading the third book. But I can also not not read it, ya know?

hi there,

There seems to have been a glitch on the site and I will not be giving feedback on this title, I never wished for or requested this book and seem to have been given access by mistake and do not wish to read or review it.
(I also didn't want to rate a book I have not read but netgalley refused to send this message unless it included a rating).

thank you

I enjoyed A Deadly Education, but I loved The Last Graduate even more! It was so exciting and full of adventure. I was torn between being so excited about seeing how it would end but not wanting it to end! If you are a fantasy fan, I highly recommend this series. I absolutely can't wait to get my hands on book 3!

Whoops requested this thinking it was the 3rd upcoming book. Oh well - have already read and enjoyed it!

The second book in the Scholomance series, this one picks up where the first left off. El is now in her senior year and has to figure out how exactly she's going to survive.

I really enjoyed watching El open up and learn to have friends and care about other people. However grudgingly, she looks after the underclassmen too, and gradually realizes there's some value in relationships that aren't fully transactional.

Looking forward to finding out how things end in the third book!

Great continuation of this fantasy series. Novik’s world building is tight and logical, the characters are multifaceted.

This was a great continuation of the Scholomance series! This is my favorite series of Naomi Novik's, and I really like the expansion of the world and the characters. El continues to be so unlikeable she's likeable, and I loved seeing her relationship with Orion and her friends develop. I'm so excited for The Golden Enclaves later this year!

If you enjoyed Deadly Education, you're sure to love The Last Graduate! Once again, we join El as she battles the monsters of the Scholomance, except this time, she has allies to help out, including Orion, hero extraordinaire. A good foil to El's dark demeanor, Orion just wants to battle monsters and seems indifferent to the looming graduation ceremony. But El is determined to make it out alive with her team and perhaps change the rules in of the Scholomance for good.

So I've just finished reading this and I keep staring at the wall and can't think of anything else… I mean, how am i meant to get over ending like that? I’m so excited for book 2 and so thankful to have received this arc. The reason I’m giving a 4 instead of 5 is a few things that bothered me, the description pages got a little boring, there was a lot of redundant facts and El being grumpy is mentioned way too often. But overall I loved this one as much as the first and can’t wait for the third.

Naomi Novik always brings something special to the worlds that she builds. After reading her stand-alone fiction, I am thrilled to be able to dive into a series at her hand.

This was one of my fave 2021 reads. Magical school? Check! Snarky but lovable MC? Check! Sort of enemies to lovers? Check check check!! I loved how the author further developed the world, the story, and the characters, especially El and Orion, and their slowly growing relationship. I loved how El makes real friends and starts to realize that she doesn’t have to do everything herself but can rely on others. That ending though!!! If you don’t like cliffhangers, and who does really, then you might want to wait til closer publication of the third book. I wish I did :)

I really enjoyed this! I loved getting to see El in the savior role in this book. Naomi Novik knows how to write a cliffhanger that’s for sure, can’t wait for the final book to come out!

While the words "Dark" and "Academia" apply to Novik's Scholomance books, they do so in the truest manner. Absent are the earthy tones and stately ivy-clad walls; in their stead are void spaces in crumbling infrastructure and deadly monsters lurking around each corner that one must pray that one's studies will be sufficient to triumph over. While the prior entry introduced us to the delightfully jaded and misunderstood El and her grudgingly gathered friend/allies, this entry picks up right where the previous installment left off and sets off running.

Those who have not read A Deadly Education will likely find themselves a little lost, so I would recommend reading these books in order. That said, this book pleasantly surprised me with some of the twists and turns; the rapidly moving plot along with more excellent world building coupled with that cliffhanger-ish last page has me anticipating the third entry (coming out later this year; can't wait!)

Thanks to Netgalley to granting me access to this "advanced" readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Last Graduate delivers. The quick pacing and fantastic detail make this atmospheric read enjoyable from start to finish. And don't even get me started on that ending... when does the next book come out? I'll be first in line to get it.

This is such a great series, and the second book just got better than the first. El matures so much throughout the book, and it's just a great journey. I hate the cliffhanger at the end because I just want to know what happens next. Can't wait until the third book!

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this brilliant book

2nd part of this series and wow it just blew my mind away...there is so much going on and though i want to compare it to harry potter because it does in a way remind you of hogwarts and wizards but this is by far a more dangerous place to learn your skills...as daily pupils are killed by monsters lurking about...

alliance's are made and broken during this epic storyline and that ending oh my goodness me... no spoilers but whens the next book in this series....honestly i cant wait....

I loved Novik's first Scholomance book, A Deadly Education, so I was excited to read her sequel, The Last Graduate. This was the rare book where the sequel was as good as, if not better, than the first. El continues to be a multi-faceted, unique protagonist who is easy to root for, and the deepening of her relationship with Orien was realistically measured. I can't wait for the release of the Golden Enclaves!