Thanks to Netgalley and HarperCollins for the ARC of this spooky secret society story!

This was perfectly atmospheric and creepy. A really interesting look at the price of fame, I found this to be very compelling. Just right for fall reading.

Screaming crying throwing up, this has the vibe and the energy that I was wanting from a spooky book. The setting, the characters the emphasis on hope and love and art. Gah. Yeah. Good

Tara is a student at Corbin College and works two jobs trying to pay for what her partial scholarship didn’t. She wanted desperately to get into Manny Hall for the free tuition but tied with someone else who they picked she feels isolated going to school with all these rich kids including her roommate who isn’t that nice to her. She finds people she does talk to about the kids from Manny Hall act a little cultish and only hang out with each other. Despite that however she would still give anything to be a resident in soon she will get her chance because ,Meredith the girl that won the tie is found dead in the library by Tara and her professor. So after Tara attends Meredith‘s funeral she is shocked when the director of Manny Hall invites her to take the dead girls place. Tera it’s shocked but definitely wants to do it even though she’s heard from her boss and others cryptic warnings about Manny Hall. After moving in tell her it’s happy she doesn’t have to pay tuition and she now has people to talk to it isn’t long before strange things start happening and eventually she feels like she may be going crazy. It seems like their are those who previously lived at Manny Hall and don’t want to leave. She feels she is being haunted by Meredith but that will just be the tip of the iceberg. I love books that have a good forest scene in it and All That Consumes Us definitely does it is almost a second character I think Erica Waters story in this a story I highly recommend if you love possessions in hauntings you’ll definitely love the story I want to thank random House publishers and net galley Thor my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review did a great phenomenal job riding this spooky collegiate haunting. I love a book that involves a forest and in all that consumes us by Erica waters the forest is like another character don’t think you know the trope after reading the summary this is very much an original thought novel I loved it and highly recommend it I want to think harpers Ann Ned Gallie for my free Ark copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

3.75 stars

I really liked the premise of this, a dark academia with a paranormal element and queer main characters. It's perfect for October and a quick read to get you in the mood for fall.

The first third or so felt so slow to me. We're introduced to Tara and there's a death very early, but after that it felt like not much was going on besides Tara meeting the other first years and developing a romance, which I wasn't a big fan of. Once Tara starts to write and dream, things ramp up and then I was pulled into the story.

This was a fun idea that I haven't read before and the cover art is so perfect!

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to HarperTeen and NetGalley for the copy.

I haven't delved very deep into dark academia, but it's definitely something I want to read more of. I felt the overall horror in the book was pretty light, but still intriguing and enjoyable. I would definitely file it under gothic and it ticked that box wonderfully. I loved how engaging the overall writing was and never really felt like I was struggling to get through the story. It was full of twists and turns and kept me thoroughly engaged, a great October read!

Gothic dark academia is something I will read over and over and over and still want more of it. I love them. I love the creepiness, the secret societies, the dark twisted plot line of Gothic, eerie within these worlds. And All That Consumes Us was all that. We meet Tara who we learn wants to be an author, (right away, love that.) After finding a student's body she is offered a place at Magni Viri, a secret society. This society helps not only financially but in other ways too. But when she starts noticing things odd, weird, and creepy things going on she starts to question her choices. I won't say anything more as I don't want to give anything away. But I have to say I enjoyed how things unfolded, I like the reviles. There's a lot of ups and downs in the book. The main character, Tara, feels and states that she is alone and has no one she can count on. (It feels like the author really, really wants to get that point across.) There is a little tiny side plot that has to do with Tara's mother and I feel like that is not really needed.
I enjoyed the ending classic dark, gothic acaemia feel to it. I like the themes of found family, friendship, and learning that your dreams have limits. There is a bit of a romance between Tara and someone, it was sweet. Not over the top, but a good balance to the eerie world. There queer rep, and it help well written.
I have to note that I was a bit surprised by the author's writing style. She does such a good job of description, the tone and the settings of this spine-chilling world was probably my favorite part. There is a scene with a mirror that gave me chills while reading it.
It's a creepy and twisted story of a dark academia of horrifying truths of what people will do just to reach their dreams.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins for providing me with a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

All That Consumes Us is a paranormal, dark academia YA novel about ambition, creativity, and the price of success. It follows Tara, a first-generation freshman at Corbin College, who is having a rough time. She has no friends, little family who cares about her, and, as someone who has to work two jobs just to afford her education, feels like she doesn't fit in with all of the rich kids at her school. Midway through Tara's first semester, a girl from a prestigious academic society, Magni Viri, dies, leaving an open spot that Tara is offered. Suddenly, she is whisked into a new life, where she receives a scholarship, a close-knit group of friends, and is given ample support to pursue her dreams to become a writer. Is it too good to be true, though? Something seems off, and strange occurrences keep popping up - Tara feels like she's being followed, wakes up after writing in the middle of the night, with no recollection of what she originally wrote, and more. What exactly is going on in Magni Viri?

This novel is fun and spooky, but ultimately it is not as memorable as I was hoping it would be. It feels like a book that could be marketed as "dark academia lite for teens." It has all of the elements that make up an interesting dark academia novel, but it falls a bit flat. It's definitely not a bad read, but I expect that some people will find it more fulfilling than others.

I'll start off with what I liked about the story. First, it's really easy to read! The writing is simplistic, which is both positive and negative in some ways. The good part is, though, that it flows easily and is quick to get through. I'm not usually a fast reader, but it felt like the pages were flying by as I read this one. It's engaging, and the author keeps the pace moving at a good speed. I read this in a couple of sittings, because it pulled me in right off the bat. I also liked its themes. It presented some thought-provoking ideas about what people are willing to do for success and the stress modern day students are expected to endure to build their careers.

Additionally, the supporting characters are all interesting. There's some great representation, including many queer characters, a love interest with a disability, a non-binary character, and others from different classes and backgrounds. It all feels natural; I appreciate that, especially in the YA genre. Wren and Penny were my favorite characters. Wren is so sweet and easy to root for. Penny is fun - I especially enjoyed her love of bats. Her disability is handled with care, and I appreciated how respectful Tara always was of Penny's needs - from being mindful of her occasional use of a cane, to watching to make sure she didn't overexert herself, and more. I'm a sucker for sapphic romance, and the romance here was nice (it didn't blow me away, but it had its cute moments).

Finally, I also enjoyed the tone of the book. It's suspenseful and unsettling at times. I could feel Tara's confusion, turmoil, and stress radiating off of the pages. All That Consumes Us is a fun Halloween read. I'm glad it stuck with the paranormal direction throughout the entire novel, instead of tapering out or veering in a different direction halfway through. I personally didn't find the story to be scary, but it was still a great mood read for October.

Unfortunately, although I had fun reading it, this novel was still disappointing at times. I'd argue that the biggest issue was the writing. It felt juvenile, even for YA. I don't mind simplistic writing at all, but it was a bit out of place with the dark academia setting, particularly because all of the characters were pretentious about writing. Tara references gothic literature nearly every chapter. While this book was certainly trying to be gothic, it didn't feel very comparable to all of the books it mentioned (it just made me want to pick up the novels it was name-dropping instead). I also found it strange how important writing was to Tara, yet we never actually got to read any of her work. There's a novella she's working on and frequently references, yet we're never given any excerpts from the book at all. It was a missed opportunity to make the story more unique. Also, the descriptions were often too vague (with too much telling instead of showing). I remember being annoyed early on when Tara first visits Magni Viri's exclusive dormitory building, and she says she doesn't have the language to describe how its gothic architecture looks. Isn't her favorite book Jane Eyre?

My other major issue with this novel was the main character, Tara. We're stuck in her perspective, and she gets annoying pretty quickly. She comes from a difficult background - before college, she lived with a single mother who didn't care about her, she grew up poor, and she seems to have always struggled with forming connections. She is very self-centered, though, looking down on everyone else at her school because she feels they had easier lives than her. Even when her peers tell her about their struggles, she finds ways to envy parts of their lives or centers her thoughts on her own hardships, rather than trying to understand where they are coming from. I suppose it's realistic for a freshman in college, but it was grating to read about. She's also inconsistent, changes her mind constantly, and makes odd decisions. It's difficult to tell if that's just Tara's personality or if she's poorly-written.

There are a couple smaller things that bothered me, such as plot holes in the second half of the novel and an overly convenient ending, but I don't want to be too harsh on this book. I think it will have an audience who enjoys it, but that audience might be a bit narrower than I originally expected. I would recommend this to teenagers and readers who are just starting to read the dark academia genre. I'd also recommend it to readers who want an easygoing, paranormal read for Halloween, but who don't want something overly scary. All That Consumes Us is interesting and has some heart (with a sweet sapphic romance and diverse characters!), but I found it to be more shallow than other books in its genre. That doesn't have to be a negative thing, depending on what you're looking for. If you want something quick and a bit different from the cozy, witchy Halloween reads trending right now, give this a try. If you want something more serious in nature that leans further into the struggles of competitive academia, you might want to try something else.

2.75 stars out of 5 stars, rounded up because I did enjoy this one while reading, even if I had issues with some parts of the book.

Tara finds the body of a fellow student on campus and is then invited to join an elite and powerful secret society. It is a queer story of ghosts and possessions. You can feel the darkness of the society and the campus coming off of the page. Tara was frustrating at times and made unwise choices but it’s a decent gothic story.
Thank you to NetGalley and HarperTeen for the ARC.

This was a very gripping read. I kept wanting to read more and more even though I found myself not that interested in what was happening most of the time? Now that's some sorcery.
The plot was working for me until it wasn't. A few things seemed a little too childish to me and also a lot repetitive. It was still a good one-time read and I'll recommend it to DA lovers.

Keep an eye out for the triggers in this book. I had to dnf part way in due to the mishandling of schizophrenia rep and it's harm. I was excited for the unreliable narrator rep but this seemed rude.

All That Consumes Us is the perfect spooky dark academia read! Corbin College has an elite student society, Magni Viri, with all the connections, prestige and benefits you can imagine - but it is also mysterious and secretive. When struggling, first-gen Freshman Tara gets the opportunity to join she jumps at the chance. So what if the only reason she gets in is because another student mysteriously dies? This is her chance and she is going to take it! But when dark and chilling things start to happen will she be able to get out?

Overall, I loved this dark story. It had everything that the synopsis promised: it is dark, full of mystery, creepy, and chilling. This story is such an original take on dark academia! The story is eerie and moody, it is a slow-burn creepy. Anyone that loves a good "light" horror story will love this book. It is very atmospheric and you will not be able to put it down!

The only reasons that you may not want to read this is if you like scary stories, but not creepy crawly ones. There are some things that happen that could be considered slightly grotesque, it is not over the top but is present. As always, make sure to check the author and publishers trigger warnings.

I really enjoyed this YA horror. It was just what I wanted during this spooky season. I love dark academia and this was no exception. So moody and creepy, the writing is spectacular and really builds the story. This author never fails to impress me with the way they build atmosphere within a story. I think that all YA horror, thriller lovers should read this one. I will definitely be recommending this wide and far!

Book Report for All That Consumes Us by Erica Waters

Cover Story: Back to Nature
BFF Charm: Big Sister
Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Talky Talk: Dark and Dreary
Bonus Factor: Kickass Gramps
Anti-Bonus Factors: Dan Scott Award for Awful Parenting, Awful Grown-Ups
Relationship Status: Hopeful

Cover Story: Back to Nature
This is the second book in a row I’ve reviewed with hands, vines, and moths. It. too, is applicable to the story within, and I love the added gothic nature of one hand being just bones. I also love the juxtaposition of the sweet-looking plants (can plants look sweet?) with the ominous title.

The Deal:
Tara Boone works two jobs to make it possible for her to attend Corbin College. And although she’d love to be a novelist, she’s on the English to teach track, since she knows she’ll have to make money to pay off all of her student loans after she graduates. So when she’s given an opportunity to join Magni Viri, Corbin’s most elite (and mysterious) academic society—meaning that her entire tuition, plus books, plus room and board, plus a personal stipend, will be paid for—she jumps at the chance. She doesn’t think the rumors about the society are true, but sometimes there are worse things than a little devil worship.

BFF Charm: Big Sister
Tara’s an interesting person who’s overcome a lot of crappy life situations. Her mother is only a mother in the biological sense and she feels like she can’t do what she really wants to do in life because she doesn’t have any money to spare. She’s looked down on by other students at Corbin thanks to her upbringing and scholarship status, even though she worked twice (or more) as hard as any of them to get into such a prestigious school, and early at that. I liked her gumption and passion. But she has a lot of confidence issues and frequently turned morose and nearly gave up when things got hard. I get that she’s only 17—I likely would have given up for reals were I in her place—but it made her a bit of an unreliable narrator and not someone I’d really want to be friends with until she did a bit more maturing.

That said, she’s someone I would love to be an adult in her life for, someone who could be a grounding presence and give her the love she’s been missing out on.

Swoonworthy Scale: 4
Tara’s immediately taken with Penny, another Magni Viri Freshman, and it seems like Penny likes her, too. But the many secrets Penny (and Magni Viri) are keeping cause Tara to pull away, and rightly so. There are some sweet moments between the two, but for the most part, there’s an underlying current of untruth that really dampens the swoon.

Talky Talk: Dark and Dreary
Have you ever watched a TV show and wondered why/how it is always dark in that location? All That Consumes Us gives off that kind of vibe, even when the characters are in the sunshine. There’s a dark pall that hangs over the Corbin College campus, but in the case of this book, that’s a good and fitting thing. Waters excels at writing suspenseful novels with an otherworldly flair, and All That Consumes Us is no exception.

I also love her descriptions, which are detailed and extremely visual.

Bonus Factor: Kickass Gramps
Tara’s boss at her janitorial job, Mr. Hanks, is a gruff older gentleman that Tara initially thinks hates her. But she quickly realizes that it’s only his exterior that’s mean, and he actually has a wonderful heart. He warms to Tara when she needs him the most, and it made me so glad to see that she had at least one adult in her life that was there when she needed him.

(I actually don’t know how old he is, but he gave off more grandpa vibes than father-type ones.)

Anti-Bonus Factor: Dan Scott Award for Awful Parenting
Although Tara’s mom isn’t a character so much as a presence that affects Tara’s life, she’s a horrible mother who deserves none of Tara’s concern. She not only stops talking to Tara after Tara “leaves her” to attend Corbin, but—SPOILER ALERT—up and moves away, without leaving a forwarded address and disconnects her phone so that Tara has absolutely no way of getting in touch.

Anti-Bonus Factor: Awful Grown-Ups
Pretty much all of the other adults in the book are terrible, out for their own power or fame, and using Tara and her friends for their own gain. I really don’t get how people can be so vain and heartless, but I suppose humanity’s filled with all kinds.

Relationship Status: Hopeful
While the time we spent together was fraught with suspense, Book, I have a feeling that you’re going to be OK in the long run. I’d love to continue to be in your life to be a solid adult presence. (As much as I am a solid adult …)

All That Consumes Us is about a first-generation college student, Tara, who is in way over her head. But when she is offered a spot in a prestigious academic society, she jumps at the chance… even if that means replacing a girl who was recently found dead in the library! Filled with spooky hauntings, atmospheric settings, and a queer found family ensemble cast, this book is sure to delight dark academia readers!

This book should definitely be at the top of your spooky reads list! It's my new fave YA dark academia novel. I absolutely love the small college setting - an elite college nestled in the hills of Tennessee and removed from the rest of the world by it's remote location and isolation. There the students are joined in a true liberal arts community where gender and sexuality are expressed openly without fear. However it's not a perfect place: there's classism, snobbery, and - while several of the supporting characters are POC - the campus is less diverse. Tara feels out of place; she's from a small nowhere town in Florida, she's poor, and she doesn't have a family or home to go back to. That's why her unexpected admission to the renowned society of Magni Viri is such a shock. Surely she doesn't have the same level of genius as the other students, especially the brilliant and recently deceased Meredith, whose spot she's taking.

I loved every minute of this southern gothic tale, It's full of desperation, horror, betrayal, tragedy, literature, and ghosts. It's also a great found family story as the six freshmen band together to unravel the mysteries of Magni Viri and fight for their futures. Chilling and beautifully told, this is a story I'll be thinking about for a long time.

I’m teetering on the edge of giving this five stars, because after a bumpy start, this book sunk its teeth into me. A bit like the situation our protagonist, Tara, finds herself in.

When we’re introduced to her, Tara is a shy, deeply insecure, and pretty jealous person. This is what initially made it hard for me to connect with her. But as the book went on, I grew a fondness for her. Her connection to other people made her more likable, and her history made her much a much more sympathetic character. I’ll admit that sometimes her choices baffled me, but in the end I admired and was proud of her.

This book is deliciously creepy, and the more we unwind this tangled mess, the more fraught it becomes. Even though I predicted the crux of the mystery early on, I still found myself engrossed and eagerly moving to the next chapter. The author had a way of creating such a compelling psychological horror interspersed with great characters that it hardly mattered what I had guessed—I had to know every detail of how and why this was happening.

The book also had decent representation—in addition to Tara coming from a poor, rural upbringing, there were several three dimensional characters of color that didn’t fall into the usual stereotypes, as well as many queer characters (covering every letter of the alphabet), and a love interest with an auto-immune disease. I thought the author handled these identities well, highlighting realities without attempting to write their experiences firsthand. As an occasional cane user with an autoimmune condition, I really felt seen by Penny and the way she was written. She’s probably my favorite character of the whole novel, as well as Wren.

Really though, all of the characters left an impression on me. Even when they weren’t present on the page, the core six made themselves known. They felt as if the had a life beyond just their appearances in Tara’s life, and I loved every moment we got with them. I already miss them :’)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was so good! All That Consumes Us is my first book by this author and I flew through it in a day. This gothic, dark academia style YA really worked for me. The writing was beautiful and flowed well, and I devoured it easily. I loved how the descriptions of Tara's loneliness were so vivid and real.

There were a few parts in the middle that pulled me out of the story with how quickly Tara's personality and choices seemed to change back and forth. I really enjoyed the side characters but wish that the romance, while I did enjoy it, had a bit more of a build up.

I'm so happy that I enjoyed this and that cover is amazing! Will be picking up more from his author!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc.

first off, the vibes of this book were truly immaculate. from the haunting dark academia setting to the mysterious secret society, I felt truly immersed in the story.

it’s the perfect book to read this time of year because it takes place entirely during the season of autumn. the graveyard parties, spirits, and rituals add such a nice spooky touch to the story. the entire concept of this book felt so intriguing and original to me which I loved!

i really liked the disability and queer representation in this book. there is a character in Tara’s friend group with an autoimmune disease as well as multiple queer characters including Tara herself. although there were several characters to learn about and get to know, I felt like they were all interesting facets of the story. I do love a found family trope and this book definitely had that!

my only issue was the pacing. it lagged in some areas and overall the plot was pretty slow. I don’t always mind a slower plot but near the end I became a bit impatient and wanted to see how the story would unfold!

overall, I highly recommend to readers who enjoy dark academia and YA horror.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperTeen for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest reviews.

I am not a big fan of books on the darker side but dark academia will always be the exception. I don’t know what it is but they always draw me in. It is an interesting experience being in an academic world I know I wouldn’t survive two seconds in.

I really tried to enjoy all that consumes us and I thought for sure I would because it has everything I like. There were the unsettling themes, obsessive academics, and mystery but the execution wasn’t quite where I wanted it to be. I was honestly uninterested in most of the characters because it felt impossible to connect with them.

Tara would have inner monologues but then her actions would contradict her thoughts. For me this made me feel like she was either an unreliable narrator or Erica was going in a direction with Tara but decided against it. Her connections with everyone felt off, barely developed and typically in dark academia you get the possessive behaviors but I barely saw that. The Magni Viri students are described as close knit but I never really felt that. And one can say that’s because there’s obviously inner tension and that creates cracks but typically in dark academia you still have the possessive/close knit behavior despite the cracks. They’re usually all dysfunctional but still morbidly close. But I didn’t feel this at all.

I hope others enjoy this novel especially for this fall season. The creepy and eerie moments were what kept my attention which I think others will enjoy those aspects.

Gothic dark academia heck yeah!

Dark academia, to me, are those books set in a collegiate atmosphere (they don’t even have to necessarily be set in a college, but the atmosphere needs to be collegiate in nature) where the plot of the book is centered around the darker and more predatory aspects of academia: publish or perish, predatory lending practices, racism, secret societies, homophobia, corrupt officials, and so on. All That Consumes Us is gothic in nature due to the isolated setting of not only the liberal arts college it takes place in (fictional Corbin College), but also because the secret society at the heart of the plot, Magni Viri, lives in an isolated Victorian dorm building on the oldest and most isolated reaches of the campus. The students of Magni Viri really are set above and apart from the rest in more ways than one.

As for the dark academia aspect of the book, the dark and predatory side of college here is in how each student of Magna Viri is recruited: They all have dreams, skill, and ambition, but they need a little more push to get them to the top. Magna Viri dangles a carrot in their faces and usually warns them that there will be a stick. They just don’t know how hard that stick will whack them until it’s too late. By then, they’re stuck. The director of Magna Viri dangled the carrot in front of Tara, our protagonist, but never bothered to tell her about the stick. Telling you anything more than that would make this review spoileriffic.

This is an enjoyable book, and a great fall read. I loved the creepy, New England vibe to the book. Did it feel like a college book? Not really. Did it feel like Waters was trying to drive the dark academia vibe down my throat? Yes. Did I need The Secret History mentioned so many times in one book? No. Did I enjoy the plot itself? Yes.

I’m going to go ahead and recommend it because it was fun and I liked the way the plot was approached, even though I felt it was a little immature in its approach. It’s also well-trodden territory. But it was a tasty treat anyway.

I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.

File Under: Dark Academia/Ghost Story/Gothic/LGBTQ Romance/Occult Fiction/Secret Society/YA Fiction/YA Mystery/YA Suspense/YA Thriller

All That Consumes Us is a haunting, stunning and truly special dark academia tale.

Erica Waters is one of those authors that just never fails to totally captivate me. Her stories have such original concepts with this murky mix of fantasy and reality, with almost a folk tale gloss over all the events. These slices of something slightly off-kilter from our world are just something else.

All That Consumes Us is yet another example of this. It is Dark Academia in a unique spin, or at least one that I have never seen explicitly before. Waters’ distinctive use of atmosphere so thick that it feels like it may start choking you is heightened here. This genre thrives on claustrophobia and paranoia, which is delivered here in next level territory. We really ruminate on the cost of ambition and success, leaving the question of what may be sacrificed for greatness. There is a real undercurrent of exploitation within the central conceit. Nothing here is quite as it seems, making that atmosphere that much more threatening and thick.

Tara was an excellent way in for us. Her narrative voice was so entrancing, full of heart and pulling you to become endeared to her so quickly. She is smart, driven and just wanting to find a place where she feels like she can truly belong. With that, you may be pushed to extreme circumstances in the right situations. This place is one that is designed to drive people to that exact point. It really centres what you would do in order to achieve perfection and speaks to that corrosive exploitation often at the heart of academic institutions. Waters delves deep into questions of legacy and what that truly means for us in the present. It is excellent.

All That Consumes Us is a Dark Academia tale like no other - sleep on Waters at your peril.