I loved this book.

I didn't know what to expect because I have never read any dark academia, but I could not put this book down.

My favorite things about this book where the atmosphere and the characters. So let's start with atmosphere.

For some reason in my brain I always seem to connect dark academia with the fall, and I am not sure why that is, but this book takes place in the summer in New York, and the stifling heat and long days add to the claustrophobic atmosphere in the best way possible. On top of that, the majority of the story takes place at The Cloisters, which is a museum, and though I have never been there, Hays did a phenomenal job of painting the picture of the location in my mind. The Cloisters is actually a medieval building complex that was brought from Europe to New York, so we have this great juxtaposition of this very old very European setting with the rest of New York which is bustling and modern. Finally, the use of the occult and the tarot gave the feeling of secret societies and dark rituals without there actually having to be much by way of really fantastical elements which I loved (but I know may not work for readers who were more interested in a more speculative story).

The other thing I loved about the book where the characters. It's a fairly small cast, we have our main character who has moved across the country to escape the tragedy of her father's death, we have the director of the Cloisters, a rich socialite who also works at the Cloisters and is in a not so secret affair with the director, and the groundskeeper at the Cloisters who is from the wrong part of town and is your typical "bad boy" archetype. Oh and it's likely that every last one of them has at least one secret they would rather keep hidden. I loved the tangled web of relationships that Hays was able to create between these four people over the course of one summer. There were twists and turns that I didn't expect that had me reading well past bedtime. One note of caution though, these are not smart, likeable characters, they are all trying to manipulate one another, and while our main character comes across as very naive, she is far from innocent.

Since I haven't read any other dark academia I can't say whether or not this is a good example of the subgenre, but I will say that if you have been wanting to try something in that vein I think this is a good place to start.

I can't wait to see what Katy Hays comes up with next, and I will definitely be checking out more books with dark academia vibes.

It took awhile for me to get into The Cloisters as it’s a slow burn suspense. But after the 50th mark, it really got exciting. There’s murder and mystery, paranormal element, plus a bit of romance and jealousy thrown in. The dark academia vibes from a NYC museum is certainly captivating, as is the enigma of the tarot cards’ origin. Because of the slow start, I think you must be in the right mood to really appreciate this novel. Nevertheless, it’s such an atmospheric read and so beautifully written that I can almost see myself inside the museum with Ann surrounded by medieval arts! The relationships between the characters were intense, and I really got sucked into their ambitions. I liked how the story concluded and that bit of aha moment. Read this if you like mystery + magical realism with strong and ambitious women.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book, but the writing style did not sustain my interest. The prologue was maybe supposed to create suspense, but it seemed gimmicky to me. And the narrative started so slow and did not make me want to keep reading.

DNF. Unnecessarily slow and descriptive. Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada, Atria Books, and NetGalley for the e-ARC in exchange for a review.

Wow! What a ride. I loved this book's dark academic style and it's a wonderful addition to the genre. I wish there was more historical elements in the book to go along with the research, but that's alright. The ending had some twists and turns, but it was all in the cards.

Great debut book! Cannot wait for your next.

3.5 stars, rounded to 4. The Cloisters is an intriguing dark academia debut. The story follows Ann as she moves to NYC the summer after graduating college to work at the Met. When circumstances change, Ann is given an opportunity to remain in the city to work on a project over at The Cloisters instead. Ann accepts, and the author draws us in, creating an atmospheric, intellectually stimulating treasure of a story. The history of tarot features predominately and there are dark twists and turns which makes this a novel of mystery and suspense. A friendship with Rachel Mondray, a wealthy orphan who also works at The Cloisters, helps to indoctrinate Ann into big city life and the exclusive world of academia where connections are crucial to acceptance and success.

Katy Hays demonstrates her writing acumen and brilliance of mind, and I think I enjoyed the book more by making a conscious effort not to get entwined within some of the details, which could have slogged the momentum.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada, Atria Books and Netgalley for the advance reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

When Ann Stilwell arrives in New York at the beginning of a thick and cloying summer to begin her associate student term at the Met, she arrives with both her backpack and the weight of the loss of her father on her shoulders. Her hopes are dashed– her supervisor has been called away and she has been declared redundant before she even begins– then lifted within minutes by a mysterious benefactor. Ann is quickly swept up into the haunting world of The Cloisters, and drawn deep into the fascinating annals of Renaissance academia, the darker side of tarot, and the swirling depths of fate, lust, and ambition. The Cloisters is an evocative and captivating debut that is sure to keep you guessing until the very end.

Many thanks to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! I was not expecting everything that this book had to offer. I loved this dark academy story and how it weaved fortune-telling and mystical elements with academic research. I think all of the characters had such interesting backstory's and it was mesmerizing to see how they all managed to work together while still being fiercely independent on their quest. The twists at the end were jaw dropping and I had no idea what to expect as the end of the book began to draw near.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC!
7.5/10
I wanted to like this book more than I did...
The plot involves a graduate student who ends up at the Cloisters (wow!) by accident, and then mysterious things begin to happen.
I was expecting from the promos for more of the mystery to be involved with the Museum's collection, and less with a sort of adolescent socialization angst.
The details and descriptions were very compelling, but a lot of the character interactions felt a bit forced.
I also felt that the characters kind of slotted into stereotypes - academic loner, rebellious bad boy, psycho 'best friend'.
Spoiler alert: I lost momentum about 3/4 of the way through when it turned out that the whole tarot thing was a red herring and we were really dealing with a coming of age novel. Sad that the author did so much work on her tarot when it just drops out of focus...

The Cloisters absolutely checks the boxes for a dark academia and gothic read. The atmosphere of this book is everything. The writing was beautiful and lyrical and I felt like it totally sucked me in. I loved the tarot card aspect but found I was interested in learning more about the tarot and was less invested in Ann’s story and her strange relationships with her colleagues. I didn’t quite buy into the magnetism that Rachel was supposed to have and so much revolves around her. While intriguing at first, Ann’s relationship with Rachel eventually just felt drawn out and unsatisfying, much like several aspects of this story now that I think about it - I love it when big dark juicy secrets are revealed yet, in this book, they fell flat for me.

This book definitely falls into the cool idea but poor execution category for me.

If you liked the vibes of Ninth House/ If We Were Villains, I’d still give this a try since the atmospheres are similar. Definitely, don’t expect a huge fantasy/magic aspect, this book leans more towards discussions of Fate and also, do not go in thinking this is a Thriller, it is quite slow burn.

Note: No extensive list of content warnings here because I don’t want to spoil some twists, this book does get dark and there is death.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I really wanted to like this book. There was a Gothic, mysterious feel to it and it had an interesting focus on tarot cards, which I was excited about because I used to be very into tarot.

Unfortunately, this turned out to be a miss for me. It took me so long to finish and I felt like it dragged on forever. The writing was nicely done and there were a couple of cool reveals near the end, but I felt like the first 80% of the book was moving at a snail’s pace with not much really happening. And then when things did happen, it was written a bit blandly, taking all of the shock factor away.

I also struggled with the fact that there was no one I wanted to root for. I hated every single character. Sometimes this works for me (depending on the book), but this was not one of those times. It kind of exhausted me that everyone was morally grey.

I do believe that this would be an incredible book for the right reader…it just wasn’t a good fit for me. I strongly encourage you to read the synopsis and try it out if it sounds like something that might interest you!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for my gifted copy! This review is posted on my Goodreads and my Bookstagram account.

The Cloisters was an incredible debut novel by Katy Hays - I absolutely ate it up from the minute I saw the cover and read the description. This is for the artsy girls out there who love tarot and aspects of historical fiction, who love watching a mystery unfold and being comfortable with the dark undertones that might be unleashed.

This book follows Ann Stilwell, who arrives in New York to work at the Met for the summer - only to realize that there is no position for her. The museum curator for the Met Cloisters happens upon her, and offers her a position at the famed Cloisters museum. It is a gothic museum and gardens known most for its medieval art collection - and more recently, a group of eccentric researchers uncovering secrets of divination. Whether she was unlucky or lucky to get the role is something that the reader will have to unveil. We continue to follow the novel through Ann’s perspective, finding out she’s escaping the horrors of her own past while we discover the dark inner workings of the researchers as the Cloisters. When a 15th century tarot deck is uncovered that may hold some of the secrets to telling the future, we find that even more secrets, darkness and death follow.

This book honestly had me at the edge of my seat! Although I’m usually a fantasy or romance reader, this book was such a blend of unique genres and I truly enjoyed it. There were all the themes and components of a captivating dark academia thriller. Every single character has their own flaws and their own motivations, and you do get insight into all of them.

This was a four star read for me - only because I felt like parts of the storyline were a bit restrained. I wanted a bit more thrill from it and certain parts were just more muted. Nevertheless, I am looking forward to what Katy Hays writes next as I will absolutely be reading it!

Thank you to Atria Books, Katy Hays, and NetGalley for the ARC of the Cloisters. It was out for general publication on November 1st and I definitely recommend!

I absolutely adored this book. A mystery, a coming of age story, an academic mystery all wrapped up in the magical Cloisters in NYC. Twists and turns I never say coming and I adored every one of them. So happy that this book is getting so much publicity and praise right now! So well deserved. 10/10 will reccomend.

I think this has the potential to be a very popular book, and I'll certainly recommend it to many people.
I very much enjoyed the description of the Cloisters - both the building/grounds and the behind-the-scenes life of the staff. The plot was generally well executed, too, although there were some sections where the pace was a little slow for my liking.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance e-copy.

3.5 stars

The Cloisters by Katy Hays is a mystery novel, somewhat gothic in nature.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Simon & Schuster/Atria Books and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Ann Stilwell is accepted in the summer associates program at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.  She had spent 4 years in college studying the Early Renaissance,  and is anxious to start her career....and leave behind her home where the death of her father has over-shadowed everything.  She also wants a fresh start, a chance to re-make herself into someone different, someone more confident, someone fresh.

But when Ann appears at The Met, she finds herself sent to The Cloisters, an old medieval monastery, turned into a gothic museum and garden known for it's medieval art collection.  She is to work with Rachel Mondray and under the guidance of Patrick Roland, they will be researching some of the more esoteric and outlandish theories.  Patrick is into divination, and fortune telling.

Although Ann has never believed in some of these theories, she starts to become rather obsessed when she discovers a 15th-century deck of tarot cards.

Not all is as it seems at The Cloisters, and Ann finds herself in over her head.


My Opinions:
This was really different.  The mix of fantasy and reality worked really well.  It was a rather dark and compelling story.  Yes, it was about fortune telling/tarot cards.  It is also about greed, and selfishness.  But basically, it was about fate, and whether our choices control our destiny, or whether there is something else at work.

The characters....You knew from the beginning that there was something "off" about all of the characters, and although I was cheering for Ann, I had mixed feelings about her as well.

It did, however, move rather slowly, and I felt it lacked a certain level of excitement.  Although I had guessed most of the twists, one was definitely a surprise.

Overall, I was very impressed that this was a debut novel.  I will definitely watch this author. Oh, and I liked the cover.

I enjoyed The Cloisters, which is the debut novel from Hays. The synopsis was well written to catch my attention and gives a very good idea of what to expect from the book (unlike some blurbs). I read this book quite quickly and enjoyed the visual descriptions of the behind the scenes of the New York museum scene, and some of the historical origins of tarot. Although the characters weren’t my favourite, they were well written and the story had some interesting character storylines, I will definitely look to read the next book from Hays. I think The Cloisters would be a good book club book, and could definitely see it become a limited series.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC of this novel.
3.5/5

This book has all the right ingredients but I just couldn’t get into it. I’m at about 10% and it’s really dragging so I had to make the sad decision to move on

Thank you for TBR publisher for an opportunity to read The Cloisters

The Cloisters is a lyrical novel about fate and obsession set against the world of museums.

I loved this debut novel: it has hints of intrigue and the occult, is set in New York City and has a young main character deal with some major life changes.

Ann Stilwell is a brilliant academic who’s left her small Washington hometown where her father’s sudden death and her mother’s crippling depression is haunting her. She jumps at the chance to have a summer position at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, where she hopes to figure out her life plans: a PhD? A job in a Museum? But right from the get go, nothing seems to go as planned. She is told that her summer position has been canceled, but then the handsome curator of The Cloisters, the medieval art gallery that you can actually go and visit in NYC, stumbles on her just before she’s shown the door. Before Ann knows what’s happening, she’s spending her summer in The Cloisters with Patrick, the curator, his beautiful assistant Rachel who’s privileged and wealthy and charismatic, and the gardener Leo, who tends to the medieval garden filled with deadly plants. When someone dies, Ann struggles to understand what is happening and tries to discover if she’s at risk. Who can Ann trust? And can she even trust herself?

This book is filled with charismatic and sexy characters. The setting at The Cloisters is a character all on its own, and one I now can’t wait to go visit the next time I’m in New York. Ann, a small town girl from a blue collar family, finds herself way out of her realm in New York City, at the gallery and with colleagues like Rachel. Rachel is glossy and smart and Ann is immediately obsessed with her. The book weaves in layers of character intrigue, and readers quickly realize that everyone is linked in the small gallery.

Throughout the book is some history of Tarot and it discusses the obsession with the cards during the medieval times to now and how humans are always fascinated to know about our fate. Is there such a thing as fate the book asks? As the twists throughout the book unfold, the reader, through Ann’s eyes, has to struggle with the answers. Who controls your fate? Is it you? Is it the stars? Are we all victims to our pre planned destiny? Can you change your fate?

Ann and Rachel both struggle with these questions. Ann is desperate to make a name for herself, to get accepted into a PhD program and to never have to return home: since her father’s hit and run she has no desire to live at home. Ann’s grief is layered throughout the book. Rachel is a poor little rich girl. Orphaned in her teens, she is left to balance her parent’s fortune with her intelligence and drive to succeed in academia. Rachel is gorgeous, wealthy, confident and charming: everything Ann wishes to be. Ann will realize that death also seems to follow Rachel. Ann and Rachel’s relationship was one of the most fascinating in the novel: sisterly, obsessive, controlling, it was a trainwreck that I couldn’t look away from.

This is a quiet book that will sweetly encourage you to sit and keep reading. The scenes are gorgeously described and the characters and their dynamics pull you in. The plot twists kept me engaged and I tore through this book. Fans of dark academia will also adore this novel. I was obsessed with slowly gathering all of the strings of the plot as it unraveled in front of me. Because it’s told from Ann’s perspective we learn what she learns when she learns it, or lets herself remember.

This is a gothic and vivid debut novel who seduced me with beautiful words and compelling characters.

Thank you Simon & Schuster for the ARC in return for an honest review.

- 4.25 Stars -

This is a slow-burn dark academia book and it was fantastic! I’ve seen people saying that it could be the love child of NInth House and The Secret History. I’ve only read one of those books, but honestly, I would definitely agree with that statement.

I was hooked by this story immediately and stayed that way the entire time that I devoured it. It was compelling, intriguing, and mysterious in all the right ways. Ann has all the potential of being an unreliable narrator, and honestly, this made it all the more worthwhile to be reading from her perspective. The twist at the end, while shocking, was also almost predictable in the best way? It was definitely a fitting end to the story, which made me love it even more.

There is mystery, academia, tarot, fortune-telling, sexual tension, and just so much more. I don’t know a lot about the things that were being researched and discussed in pieces of this book, nor do I really have any interest in it, so I was lost at times, but that’s due to a personal aspect not due to the author's writing! Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, but just be aware that it does read a little bit slower despite its mysterious plot line.

⚠️TW: death, drug use, death of parent, murder, infidelity, suicide, blood

Thank you @atriabooks for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review! All of the thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

A very suspenseful book, one that moved along quickly and held my attention throughout. A woman who is trying to succeed and overcome her father's passing moves to New York to work somewhat in her area of expertise in a museum entitled The Cloisters. Everything captivates her: the city, her job, the new environment, the people she works with, and she strives to please and to make herself indispensable. Ann becomes aware of increasingly strange relationships within and among her workmates, and becomes immersed in tarot cards and what they are saying to her. She loses herself in her ambition and in making a new 'good' friend and soon forgets what is right and what is wrong. The book moves along very quickly and has surprising twists and turns. A must read for sure. Everyone will be talking about this book in the near future.