Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the digital copy of this book; I am leaving this review voluntarily.

As someone who loves historical fiction novels with female protagonists that are feminists, I loved The Secrets of Lovelace Academy. The first part of the book is very reminiscent of the first Enola Holmes mystery, but then it quickly finds its own pacing and structure.

This a great book with themes like overcoming adversity, cultural adversity, mental health, and academic intrigue. Lainey is younger than Enola Holmes but shares the love of mathematics and science. She also devours every book she can get her hands on.

One of the great lessons taught is that women throughout history did not always get the recognition or credit they deserved for their accomplishments. This smells like the beginning of a wonderful series that show female empowerment.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Audio, LibroFM, Marie Benedict, Courtney Sheinmel, and Aladdin for the ALC and ARC!

I really enjoyed the first half of this book! Hearing of Lainey’s experiences as an orphan was just heartbreaking, and by the time she gets to go to the school, I was ready to fight for her. Then the bullying at school - this girl cannot catch a break. Unfortunately, I started to lose a little bit of the story when she heads to Switzerland. There is a LOT going on, and we never do get a wrap up of her relationship with the kids she meets along the way in Switzerland. I did still really enjoy - just think it could’ve cut some of the characters/events in the middle!

Book Review: The Secrets of Lovelace Academy by Marie Benedict & Courtney Sheinmel

We meet 12-year-old Lainey in an orphanage, where she’s learned to survive by staying quiet — but her mind and heart desire knowledge. She escapes into donated books, dreaming of a different life. When a mysterious visitor arrives, everything changes.

Lainey receives an unexpected invitation to the Lovelace Academy, setting her on a life-changing adventure filled with friendship, world travel, and challenges shaped by misunderstanding and poverty. Along the way, she meets inspiring historical figures like Mileva Einstein and her husband. She exhibits amazing kindness to other orphans along the way.

Lainey’s kindness, courage, and determination shine throughout her journey, making this a beautifully written novel about resilience, curiosity, and finding your place in the world.

A fine concept for a children’s novel, but also a huge reminder that there is often a significant disconnect between what some adults think kids want to/should read and what kids actually want to read.

This is billed as a sort of mystery/adventure with some historical context, and it doesn’t really succeed in any of these capacities. The “mystery” is misleading and in the end hardly a mystery at all, the historical context is thin and feels a bit like a women in STEM kitchen sink, and the adventure is not especially plausible nor fun enough to help you forget its implausibility.

There’s really no sense of place in this story at all, and I think that’s a mistake when the goal seems to be attempting to help kids imagine life and lessons in a different place and time. It’s not at all evocative visually, which would have been easy enough to realize in a story like this. It’s also worth noting that most of the book does not take place at a school, so if you saw the word Academy in the title and thought you were getting a novel about that…well.

I’ve generally not been a fan of Marie Benedict’s novels because she tends to eschew details of the accomplishments of really important women in history in order to imagine them into a schlocky romantic subplot. There’s nothing like that going on here and the story is certainly age-appropriate in terms of pacing and language, but my kids were bored by this one and honestly, so was I.

This young adult’s novel, a wondrous collaboration between best-selling adult novelist Marie Benedict and young adult writer Courtney Sheinmel, offers up a young teen’s perspective about meeting Albert Einstein’s brilliant wife Mileva Einstein, who’s behind the scenes work significantly contributed to Einstein’s famous equation and who gets featured in Benedicts’ fabulous adult novel, The Other Einstein (which all grown-ups need to read in tandem!).

The novel opens with Ada Lovelace writing from her deathbed in 1852 bemoaning that as much as she’s adored planning in her life, she now can only plan her children’s future. She uses her money as daughter of poet Lord Byron, to fund a girls’ boarding school focused on math and science. Her daughter, Lady Anne Blunt, takes over running the Lovelace Academy. On a visit to a local orphanage which she supports (run by tyrants who act nice in front of donors), she discovers Lainey Phillips doing science experiments by herself in a corner. She offers Lainey the first scholarship to the academy.

Lainey struggles to fit in with the wealthy, snobby girls at the academy and unexpectedly finds herself on a grand adventure to Switzerland to see if she can help Mileva Einstein the ground-breaking math equations she’s doing with her husband Albert Einstein, who at the time was serving as a postal clerk. Lainey connects with other orphaned children and sets out to prove herself worthy of her place at Lovelace Academy.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

The Secrets of Lovelace Academy by Marie Benedict is a historical fiction novel that follows 12-year old Lainey Phillips. As the story starts, she is living in an orphanage where she has been since the death of her parents when she was young. By chance, she meets Lady Blunt who runs a boarding school for girls and picks Lainey to attend. Once there she embarks on more adventures including assisting a well known physicist!

I enjoyed this and think many of my upper elementary students will as well. Definitely one I will put on my next list to order!

This delightful historical novel is well written and well paced. The main character is very likeable. The story is engaging and I appreciated the representation of females in STEM

"The Secrets of Lovelace Academy" is lovely historical fiction read for young audiences. The story is paced well.

Marie Benedict and Courtney Sheinmel offer an engaging middle-grade historical adventure in "The Secrets of Lovelace Academy". Set in 1904 London, the story follows Lainey Phillips, an orphan whose life takes a turn when she’s invited to the prestigious Lovelace Academy. The narrative explores themes of resilience, inclusivity, and the empowerment of girls in science, with a strong focus on Lainey’s personal growth and intellectual curiosity.

While the Lovelace Society—a group supporting women scientists—appears in the story, it serves more as a backdrop than a central element. The real heart of the book lies in Lainey’s determination to overcome prejudice and carve out her place in the academic world.

By incorporating Mileva Maric, Albert Einstein’s first wife and a significant historical figure, the authors add a layer of historical depth and connect the narrative to Benedict’s adult work, "The Other Einstein". This inclusion provides young readers with an opportunity to learn about important, though often overlooked, contributions to science.

Overall, "The Secrets of Lovelace Academy" celebrates resilience and female representation in STEM. Perfect for readers who enjoy historical adventures with themes of perseverance and inclusion.

After tragically losing her parents at a very young age, Lainey Philipps has lived at the Sycamore Home for Orphaned Children. Despite the wretched conditions in the orphanage, Lainey feeds her mind by reading every book she can find even reading the dictionary cover to cover. During an open house, Lainey is given the opportunity to attend the prestigious Lovelace Academy. Although we come from vastly different backgrounds, I felt an immediate kinship with Lainey, based on our shared love of books and reading. This story highlights the fact that in the past many women's contributions may have not been in print and known to the world, but what they shared is incredibly valuable. This book was a beautiful mix of adventure, courage, and celebrating the power of girls supporting each other. I highly recommended for young readers and the grownups who support them.

This delightful historical fiction novel begins as a tragic tale of a girl who has spent eight years in an abusive orphanage and turns into a suspenseful adventure. Lainey Phillips is rescued from the orphanage to attend an elite academy and gets sent on a secret mission to assist Mileva Maric, Einstein's wife, with her significant contributions to an important paper Einstein is drafting. Lainey's unlikely friendship with a pickpocket is endearing, and the revelation that Mileva's name doesn't appear on the published paper gives readers insight as to the way women scientists and mathematicians were treated at that time.

The Secrets of Lovelace Academy is another wonderful addition to Marie Benedict’s growing list of books that spotlight extraordinary women—this time written in collaboration with Courtney Sheinmel. Perfect for middle school readers, especially girls interested in STEM, this story is equal parts inspiring, adventurous, and thought-provoking.

We follow 12-year-old Lainey as she embarks on an unexpected journey that blends mystery, friendship, and science. Along the way, readers are introduced to real historical figures like Mileva Marić, Einstein’s brilliant first wife, and get a glimpse into the challenges faced by women in science in the early 1900s. There are tough moments and hard lessons, but they're balanced with uplifting messages of perseverance, curiosity, and empowerment.

This book is a beautiful mix of adventure and heart, celebrating the power of girls supporting each other and finding their place in a world that doesn’t always make space for them. Highly recommended for young readers—and the grown-ups who cheer them on.

This is Marie Benedict's first YA novel, and she has some help from her experienced co-author Courtney Sheinmel. Lainey Philipps is an orphan with a strong mind and a great interest in math. This interest brings her to the attention of the headmistress of the Lovelace Academy, a private all-girls school that emphasizes math and science during a time when woman and girls were not expected to have such interests. The founder and headmistress of the academy named it for her mother, Ada Lovelace, the daughter of Lord Byron and the first woman to create computer language alongside Charles Babbage. Ms. Benedict is again combining truth and fiction in a first-rate historical novel for a younger audience. She even includes information about Mileva Einstein, the subject of one of her previous adult historical novels. The only problem I had with this story is all the teenage angst that accompanies it, but then, that should be expected. I am not the target audience for this book, but those who are will find a terrific story and strong characters. Thanks to NetGalley, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, and Aladdin for providing an ARC.

The orphanages parental figures gave off some Miss. Hannibal vibes (see:Annie) .

The authors excel in setting the tone for the misery, desolate environment for both the young heroine and her unfortunate companions. When a chance encounter with a progressive soul appears, her life changes. Bit too slow paced of a story though.

This ARC was provided by the publisher, Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing Aladdin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An incredibly enjoyable book. I have read and loved several other books by Marie Benedict and this collaboration with Courtney Sheinmel doesn't disappoint!

The adventures of 12-year-old orphan Lainey Philipps is almost as Dickensian as "Oliver Twist" (mistreated in the orphanage, is given lucky new prospects at school, even falls in with a pickpocket) but the book's strength is its championing of girls and women in math and science via an utterly delightful story line that involves Ada Lovelace's daughter, Mileva Einstein and travels through Switzerland.

I highly recommend this book - even though this is a "children's book" I would say that older young adults and even adults will find it very interesting and enjoyable.

"From New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict and Courtney Sheinmel comes a historical adventure about a young girl plucked from a London orphanage to begin attending a boarding school with more secrets than she could imagine - perfect for fans of Enola Holmes.

Lainey Philipps has lived at the Sycamore Home for Orphaned Children since she was three years old. Now nearly a teenager, her life is hard, and she doesn't expect it to get better - until a chance encounter during an open house changes everything when Lainey meets a woman who invites her to attend the prestigious Lovelace Academy.

Fitting in amongst the many privileged students within the ivy-covered walls of Lovelace Academy presents challenges unlike the ones Lainey has faced in the past. Her life of drudgery has hardly prepared her for the aristocratic airs and cutthroat academic ambition of the other girls. Terrified she'll be cast out of the academy, Lainey grabs at her chance to prove herself by traveling to Switzerland to meet a female scientist crafting a groundbreaking theory.

Determined to prove her capability and reach her destination, Lainey must rely on her own wit - as well as a mysterious boy who has yet to prove himself as friend or foe. But the real test is what awaits her in Switzerland, at the home of Mileva Maric, wife of Albert Einstein."

I hope it's more Enola Holmes books versus Enola Holmes movies. Nothing against the movies, the books are just so much better.

Enjoyed this middle grade historical fiction about a girl, Lainey, who was discovered at an orphanage and invited to the Lovelace Academy with a full scholarship. Lainey had been dealing with challenges ever since her parents died when she was 3 and navigating the horrible conditions at the orphanage. Now as a teenager at the Academy, the challenges continue with bullying privileged girls who look down on Lainey because of her past. Lainey tries to make a difference by going on a secret quest to Switzerland to meet and help Mileva Einstein, the wife of Albert Einstein. She's not sure what she can do to help Mileva until she gets there but discovers her purpose.
This is great for 8-12 year olds trying to figure out their way. They can discover there are many ways to have a purpose and contribute to others. It shows the best way to counter a bully is to ignore them and continue on your own path. Also, the story highlights the fact that many women's contributions may have not been in print and known to the world back then, but what they have to share is valuable. The Lovelace Academy was a nod to mathematician Ada Lovelace.
#TheSecretsofLovelaceAcademy #middlegrade
Thank you Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing and Net Galley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

3.75⭐️
So I’m a bit flummoxed on how to review this book as I don’t know how I feel about it because it is a middle grade book.
Overall I liked it and I think young readers will like the fun adventure the main character goes on.
It has the ability to possibly get young ones to be interesting in math and science to see where it can take them.

That being said a few things bothered me.
First, and I realize history isn’t always pleasant but the beginning of the book was terribly depressing. I know how I reacted to it as an adult so I can only imagine what an 11 year old mind may do with it.

Secondly, it’s historical fiction but the historical facts don’t make sense for the timeline. The author tries to cover some of the information where some of it could technically happen but not all. Particularly when she speaks about the car that Lainey remembers being a passenger in at 3 years old . Let’s set aside that she apparently was a super 3 year old with the language skills of a school ages child, the car described just wasn’t available in the year that she would have been talking about. Now I’m not going to give a break down (although I could and it doesn’t track) as the authors were clever not to give exact specifics but they did give enough where it doesn’t match up. Is a young reader going to notice? Of course not. But should we be having incorrect historical info in books shaping young minds?

The other fact that didn’t sit well historically was having a character be dyslexic. That fact is great! Wonderful connections for inclusivity. However, at the time in history the chances of her knowing she was dyslexic or having the name for it was really slim. Because while it was first named in research circles back in the early 1800’s, it wasn’t wide know as a diagnostic term until over 100 years later. The causal use of it takes one out of the history. It could easily be fixed in giving some other background of how young Sabrina came to know of this diagnosis. It would have made it fit better in history while giving a great lesson for the reader.

Lastly, while the book is rich with historical details and such it still reads like a modern story . That of course may be a good thing to catch the reader more easily.

In the end I think this book will appeal to young readers . I could see myself as a child eating this up wishing to be in a secret society! It comes out on April 22.2025.

I am thankful to have gotten a complimentary eARC from Simon and Schuster through NetGalley to read which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

My rating system for Middle Grade and children’s books

⭐️ Significant problems and would never recommend to the audience.
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea but may have some appeal.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ an ok book which I wouldn’t go out of my way to recommend but it has some value for young readers
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! I would recommend for the age or reading level appropriate for the book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Would recommend highly, especially to school programs as a wide spread reading opportunity.

The Secrets of Lovelace Academy was both intriguing and heartbreaking. The character of the orphaned Lainey carries her anxiety and struggles with her daily in an unjust world. She begins her journey powerless and concludes by exploring her strength in ways she never thought possible, even when the world around her is uncontrollable and full of barriers. She is brilliant, strong, and capable. She learns to seek her worth within, not from outside herself. I adored her, wanted to cry with her, and I loved being along for her journey.

I welcome this book as one to recommend in my library to upper elementary students to encourage sharing dialogue on self-reflection, empathy, and worthiness.

Thank you to NetGalley, authors Marie Benedict and Courtney Sheinmel, and the publishing company for the opportunity to read this moving story.

As soon as I saw the title, I knew this was going to be an excellent book if it had anything to do with Ada Lovelace, and I was correct! The book follows an orphan named Lainey who receives the chance to escape from her cruel orphanage through a scholarship to the all girls school Lovelace Academy, invited by the headmistress, Ada Lovelace’s daughter. After her friend finds an envelope with information about a secret society dedicated to helping women of mathematics and science, in order to prove herself, Along the way her world becomes bigger than she could imagine from working with Mileva Edison and meeting a boy named Gen, who’s full of both tricks and kindness.
There are a lot of things I liked about this book!!!
I was really excited to see Mileva Einstein as a character. She was a very fascinating person who is overshadowed by her more famous husband in history.
I liked how one of the prominent side characters (Sabrina) is dyslexic, because while I don’t have it myself, I believe that showing that kind of thing in books that take place in all time periods is really important. Sabrina in general is such a fun and bouncy character, and I wish she had gotten more page time.
The writing is fantastic, the orphanage scenes made my heart ache, I felt Lainey’s panic, her grief she she felt those emotions. Also, it’s mentioned how even after she was safe at the school instead of at the orphanage, she didn’t just magically feel safe, and that felt realistic.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing | Aladdin and NetGalley for giving me an advance reader’s copy to review!