Dark academia is my vibe!! I was really excited to read this one, however the characters were confusing to me for the majority of the book. The choices that were made were not rational and lacked plausibility. I liked the setting and plot, but most of the characters dampened my love for the book.

This was a dark academia with a lot of hard topics that some may want to research before reading, including bullying, rape, and incest, just to name a few. It was hard to read while also being hard to put down at the same time. Some characters were just atrocious while others were tragic. I felt like it could have maybe been a little bit shorter, but it was written well, in an articulate and engaging way. This was hard to rate, and while I enjoyed it, this may not be for everyone. Three stars.

Thank you, Netgalley and William Morrow, for this ARC.

As psychological thrillers go, this is about as compelling as it gets. And it’s also an excellent friendship story.

As good as the pacing is and how smartly observed the content is, there’s a lot of “ick” to this that definitely affected my enjoyment of the story for the worse. Otherwise, this is probably a five star read for me.

I loved the prep school setting of this novel, and it’s better rendered in that regard than most. The intricate web of loyalties and politics is also exceptionally well done. The atmosphere is terrific, rooted in a strong sense of place and an almost oppressive feeling as the plot unfolds and the protagonist’s situation becomes more and more dire, and that of her best friend even more so.

To that end, as previously mentioned, the flaw in this is the ickiness of all the rape-driven content, particularly awful in the central plot point that hinges on a major character being the victim of rape and incest. This needs a lot of trigger warnings, and I also think this stuff didn’t need to be here.

There are a million reasons that could have placed Marta in the impossible situation she’s in, and many of them don’t force the reader to deal with on-page rape and pedophilia. Her home life could have been intolerable in a way that drove the plot in the same manner without this. I’ll never understand the appeal of this kind of thing in literature, and it always changes my opinion of the book for the worse.

And it’s too bad, because even in spite of that this is a very good story, and it has so much to recommend it, from the pacing to the setting to the intensely observant psychology of the characters’ actions. I’m recommending this despite my displeasure with the unnecessary rape-centric plot lines, but please take this into consideration when deciding whether to read.

I tried to get into this one and just couldn't. The characters were so mean! The bullying was out of control and I feel like it was completely ignored by the adults. Ultimately, I bailed and DNF this one.

"The Four" by Ellie Keel left me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, the dark academia atmosphere was definitely immersive, and the queer representation was refreshing, particularly with Rose's character feeling authentic amidst all the chaos. But the plot really pushed the boundaries of believability. While the premise of four scholarship students navigating a toxic boarding school environment was intriguing, the characters' decisions often felt irrational and overly dramatic, making it hard to take the story seriously. At times, it read more like a YA novel, which might have worked better for the outlandish twists and turns. Overall, it’s an ambitious debut with great potential, but the execution didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

The Four by Ellie Keel presents an engaging and enjoyable dark academia narrative. I found myself thoroughly absorbed in this astute tale, which was masterfully crafted and infused with moments of intense suspense. It offers a captivating and intriguing mystery, complemented by an excellent setting and well-developed characters. I extend my gratitude to NetGalley and William Morrow for their generosity in providing me with a copy of this eARC.

I had a hard time getting into this book. But overall it was very well written I just could not really fully engorge myself in it.

Thank you to to netgalley, the publishers and the author Ellie Keel for letting me read & review this book ARC that releases August 20th 2024. This was a great mystery read that is full of twists and turns that also reminded me of the thrilling scream movies.

Ellie Keel's debut novel, The Four, follows Rose, Marta, Sami, and Lloyd, four scholarship students at the exclusive High Realms boarding school.  They are all outsiders to the other students' world of power and privilege.  This dark academia novel reminded me of Donna Tartt's The Secret History.  It took me a while to really get into the novel, which at times felt a bit unnecessarily long and drawn out, though perhaps that only added to the sense of tragedy and unease that permeates the pages.  Parts are quite difficult to read, though important to the characters and storyline - I would recommend some caution for potential triggers. Overall a solid debut perfect for fans of dark academia.

The Four by Ellie Keel is was quite simply surreal and unforgettable. Keel truly has a gift in the was she writes emotional scenes and as a reader I’ve never been this shocked, surprised and heartbroken by a novel. This is one you will never forget.

What a story! So much sadness and bad things that happened at this school and even more secrets. Though also this story is about 4 friends that will do anything to protect each other. I felt every emotion while reading this because it was written so well.

The description of this book had me interested. I was ready to go into the dark academia world but I really struggled to connect to this book. Being a 90's HS girl I wanted to connect to someone in this book and I just couldn't, that being said I do think this would work best for someone currently in HS or fresh out of it. The writing is well done in describing locations and situations and I think there is definitely an audience that will connect to this book.

** Thank you NetGalley, Kellie Keel and William Morrow Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. **

This book was gripping and hard to put down. It didn't feel like everything else you see out there, it felt very fresh. I really enjoyed this book!

They were known as The Four. at the boarding school High Realms, where they were all scholarship students. They were outsiders in a world of power and privilege, and according to everyone else, they were dangerous. When the prefect Genevieve took a long fall, everyone assumed Marta pushed her. What really happened to Genevieve? And how far will Marta's friends go to protect her?

Normally I love books that are set in schools like this, but this one fell flat for me. It was a slow burn for the entire book, all of the characters felt one dimensional, and I just could not get invested in the story. I really tried to like it. I wanted to DNF it, but I kept going hoping it would get better. It never did. I can not in good conscience recommend this one.

Four students on scholarship at an elite boarding school band together against the brutal and privileged students who have been attending for years. The dark academia vibes were spot on. It was easy to picture the school and the students and how they were behaving. The characters were multi-faceted and thought-out. I liked that the story was written with some hindsight to hint at what would happen later in the story. Please check trigger warnings before reading because some of this is very dark.

Thanks NetGalley!

The Four by Ellie Keel was such a fun and entertaining dark academia story.
I was completely immersed in this clever story which was executed brilliantly with some nerve-jittering suspense.
An entertaining and gripping mystery, great setting and well developed characters.

Thank You NetGalley and William Morrow for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

A dark academia suspense debut perfect for fans of The Secret History and If We Were Villains, The Four follows a group of scholarship students whose dreams become a reality when they are accepted into an exclusive boarding school, but they are soon bound by a dark secret that could save one of them… or destroy them all.

I don’t regret what we did. And I would do it all again.

Debut Author Ellie Keel delivered the dark academia vibes. It was easy to quickly envision High Realms, the boarding school in which “The Four” attend on scholarship.

In complete transparency, The Four took a minute to get into. Once getting to know the dynamics at High Realms, the students, and the staff, The Four was engaging until the end.

The Four is told in first person narrative with hindsight. Doing so further added to the dark vibe present through The Four.

Please check for TW prior to reading. 🖤

Thank you go NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced copy of The Four in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and and William Morrow Books for an ARC of this title!

The Four primarily follows Rose, a scholarship student at High Realms school. Rose is part of a tight friend quartet, but when one of the friends is accused of pushing another student down the stairs, the friend group is turned upside down.

I believe this book lagged on a little too long. The last 100 pages really slowed down the pacing. I thought the plot of this novel was really intriguing, but the book could have done better with an additional round of editing. One element I really enjoyed was the classroom discussions. These discussions introduced the themes of the novel, and I wish there were more of those moments. Furthermore, those moments could have used more connection to the main plot of the book.

Overall I would recommend this book to those who love the dark academia sub genre, and are looking for books which explore the mental strain of a high stress school environment.

This debut novel is very well written and the descriptions of the High Realms boarding school are immersive. I really enjoyed the environment, the distinctive classes and rituals the students follow. Unfortunately, I didn’t connect with any of the characters, their motivations or even their predicaments. I understand that teenagers act in ways incomprehensible to adults but these kids were especially dense. I also didn’t love the inclusion of a few actual lessons. It seems like it was a way to explore the protagonists’ minds, but it made the book unnecessarily long. There are some powerful images, and I was hoping there would be more of that. I was probably the wrong reader for this, since I enjoy Dark Academia when there are mysteries to solve. This is more about the feelings of the four titular students. I imagine how hard it must be to write a book and it pains me to give it a bad review but this wasn’t for me.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, NetGalley/William Morrow.