Thank you Netgalley and Storytide for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Linsey Miller’s “That Devil, Ambition” is a brutal, biting, and darkly satirical take on dark academia, combining fantasy, horror, and social critique into a story that’s equal parts grotesque and captivating.

The premise is as unforgettable as it is horrifying: each year, the most prestigious academy of magic summons a devil as a professor, and the thirteen students of the honors class are given one task—kill him before the year ends. Success means having their crushing student debt forgiven and earning a place among the most respected magicians alive. Failure means death and erasure from history. The stakes couldn’t be higher, and the tension never really lets go.

The book follows three honors students: Fabian, a carefully polished teacher’s pet; Credence, a gentle math genius; and Euphemia, whose airheaded façade hides sharp calculation. Together they navigate cutthroat alliances, betrayals, and increasingly grotesque attempts to destroy their professor. The body horror, cosmic dread, and sheer absurdity of their efforts make the book both disturbing and, at times, darkly comedic. Miller leans into the absurdity without losing sight of the story’s sharpest edge: a critique of the academic machine that exploits ambition, breaks students, and even demands blood in exchange for success.

At its best, “That Devil, Ambition” shines through its layered characters, twisted satire, and exploration of themes like classism, power, and the predatory nature of student debt. The friendship between Fabian, Euphemia, and Credence gives the story surprising heart amid the carnage, grounding the wild, gruesome stakes in genuine human connection. The writing is lush and evocative, though often dense and deliberately challenging, demanding patience as readers parse out the implications.

The book isn’t without flaws; the pacing can drag in the middle, some of the worldbuilding and the magic system feel underdeveloped, and the multiple perspectives occasionally clash rather than cohere. The prose, at times pedantic, may frustrate those who prefer a lighter style. The ending, while fittingly bleak, doesn’t land as hard as the buildup promises.

Still, “That Devil, Ambition” is a bold and uncompromising entry in the dark academia canon. It’s not a book for everyone—the gore, surreal humor, and intellectual density will alienate some—but for those who crave dark academia with real teeth, laced with horror and biting satire, it’s a wickedly ambitious ride.

Now this is dark academia!
The honors class at a renowned school of magic only has one task - kill the professor, who is a devil summoned each year only for this purpose - and get your student debt forgiven and become one of the most respected magicians ever.

Content warnings include: murder, graphic descriptions of injury and gore, cannibalism, student debt, sex off-page, manipulation.

That Devil, Ambition follows three friends who are all honors students: Fabian, who carefully crafted his image as a teacher's pet; Credence, a soft-hearted math genius; and Euphemia, who is not as absent minded as she pretends to be.
Along with ten other students, they make up the honors class and theorize as well as attempt to kill their professor after he was summoned.

I found this wildly entertaining, but also almost shocking. The book throws you straight into the first day of the honors class, and straight into the plotting - much of which involved deaths of other students. And while the achieving the death of the professor is the goal, getting there is very difficult, no matter the horrific things done to his body.

I loved the intrigue in the book, all the plots and lore and machinations. There's the plots of the individual students, and their plans to kill the professor, which often involves fucking over their fellow students. There's also stuff going on at the school, and the wider political situation of the fantasy realm. I loved the way the book integrated classism into the academic field. Because, as you can imagine, the fact that surviving the honors class waives your student debt attracts some groups of people more than others.

There are some minor romantic subplot, though this is decidedly NOT a romance. But each of the three protagonists has their own semi-romantic struggles (some struggling more than others) going on. These subplots were nice and varied.

I'm not entirely sure if this is YA or NA - I can see arguments for both. The characters do seem to be above 18.

As usually when I read a book by Linsey Miller, I was very taken by the writing style. It's not always the easiest to parse, and it makes my mind race trying to understand the implications, and sometimes it makes me frustrated because what to they mean by that. But overall I adore the style, it's beautiful and evocative, and it makes me want to reread her books again and again.

Overall I had an amazing experience with this, so if you are craving truly dark academia, and don't mind the content warnings, I can highly recommend this.

This story doesn’t pull any punches—its characters will do whatever it takes to make it through the year, even if it means throwing their classmates under the bus. It’s bizarre, unsettling, and oddly entertaining all at once. The ending really worked for me, tying together a narrative that’s as much a critique of cutthroat academia as it is a horror tale. Beneath the absurdity, it digs into the toll academic pressure takes on mental health, and it doesn’t shy away from skewering the predatory nature of student debt—pushing the concept to its most extreme, life-or-death conclusion.

It’s twisted, sharp, and not for the faint of heart. But if you’re into dark academia with a satirical edge and a dose of horror, this one might just be worth the plunge.

I still can't believe that one of my favorite reads this year turned out to be a YA novel.

I legitimately thought this was for adults with all the murder and torture and blood galore. Color me surprised.

Anyway, this was such a wild ride. It was everything I wanted in a dark academia novel. There were all kinds of horror (dark fantasy, body horror, cosmic horror, etc.), an interesting and despicable villain in the form of a professor from hell, and MCs that I actually liked and was rooting for throughout the entire book. I'm not usually a fan of romance, but since I liked the characters so much, I actually didn't mind it.

I liked how this novel was absurd and disturbing at the same time. At times it verged into comedy horror but managed to pull itself back, finding a perfect balance between comical scenarios and serious dialogue and relationship building.

It's a dark satire that explores how academia is mentally and psychologically rigorous that it becomes detrimental to students' health. It also pokes fun (in the worst way possible) at how student loans are so predatory that actual lives are at risk to the point of sacrifice.

This is definitely not a book for everyone, but if you love dark academia, horror, and satire all rolled into one, then you should give this novel a try.

Thank you to Storytide and NetGalley for this arc.

This book was thrilling at every turn. The suspense kept me engaged in every part, especially after the plot twist at the end of part 1. I also enjoyed the magic system developed throughout the book, it was unlike anything else I’ve read. The only thing that ruined the book a little for me was that I guessed the big reveal at the very beginning of the book.

I wanted to like this, and I do think I'm probably in the minority of readers who didn't really enjoy this much. I just found the book lacking a bit of...tone? I don't know if that's the right way to describe it, but the writing style with its abundance of parentheses drew me out of the story again and again. Really, the writing itself was the main barrier to the story for me. I liked the magic system but I don't think I understood it very well---I definitely needed more time to sit with it, or a more natural weaving of it into the story. On top of that the book was just hard for me to grasp. The shifting perspectives, the magic system, the prose---it just combined into sort of a chaotic reading experience for me. I can definitely see where others will enjoy this, especially if you like that sort of colloquial writing style. This just didn't work for me this time around.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

4.25/5 stars

✧ Dark academia
✧ Standalone fantasy
✧ Unique magic system
✧ Ambition, exploitation, class dynamics
✧ 3 POVs
✧ TWs: violence & death, gore, grief

This is one of the most unique fantasy stories I’ve read in a long time. It’s also a dark academia novel that, I feel, actually lives up to its name in its discussion of ambition, classism, and power. The multiple POVs also really set it apart for me, and I felt like I really got to know each character as they experienced this demon-killing honors class. It wasn’t a perfect 5 stars for me, but I would still highly recommend to anyone interested in dark fantasy that deals with important topics.

I will say, I struggled to understand the magic system – although, I admit, it might be my dense-ness rather than the book itself. The concept of “severance” is very abstract, but also incredibly unique, which I appreciated. The worldbuilding, too, was quite broad considering the small scope of the story, but it all comes together in the end. I liked that this was a standalone, because I think the author did what she set out to do in ~400 pages, rather than stretching it out into a series (which feels very common currently). However, I was so intrigued by the world that she created that I now want more written in it! There’s definitely a lot of potential with the politics of the larger world, beyond the school that these main characters attend (even though it has a very large role to play).

The plot seems fairly straightforward in the beginning – 13 “honors” students have to kill their devil professor by the end of the school year in order to graduate – but, as the story goes on, we learn that there is so much more to it. This book does an excellent job at weaving in discussions of class, politics, power, and the perils of ambition, especially as the school year goes on and the students start to wonder what the purpose of the honors class even is. SPOILERS: There were two main plot twists that happen in this story, both of which I think were incredibly well done. The first (Fabian getting killed) absolutely floored me; it was a very bold choice by the author, but I think it paid off in the end. The second (the Professor being the same devil) was something that I’d pondered earlier in the story, but didn’t really think about the implications until the reveal happened. There was also a steady sense of dread and suspense throughout the book, which definitely kept me on the edge of my seat.

I really liked how this book was split into 3 sections, each being narrated by a different main character. It allowed us to get to know them individually and see how they were thinking about and dealing with the honors class, which were all quite different from each other. It felt quite unique to keep the POVs separated too, rather than alternating each chapter – and I think that it ultimately paid off, since it helped to set the tone of each section based on who was narrating. I think my favorite perspective was Euphemia’s, as she closed out the story in a very interesting way.

As someone who recently graduated from university, I resonated with these characters and their experience with academia and ambition a lot. This story was a fun and engaging time, but it also touched on some really important issues that I think are absolutely necessary to address in any “dark academia” novel. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a dark, twisty, and equally profound story to pick up this year.

In order to graduate a class, a group of magicians must find a way to kill their professor... a literal devil summoned solely to kill or be killed. Told from three students POV, the story progresses in 3 parts. This one was a bit of a harder read for me, its suppose to be like Assassination Classroom and A Deadly Education mixed together however I was completely bored by it. I love a dark academy story and I do love the fun deadly classroom vibes... but this actual book just felt so slow and I wasn't the biggest fan of the writing. The story honestly felt like it dragged on for so long and I just wasn't invested in any of the characters or the actual outcome of the story. Sadly this was a miss for me but if you want a unique classroom story I would say give it a go.

Release Date: June 3, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books | Storytide for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The premise and intrigue were all perfectly set up for such a fantastic book, but this was such a slog to get through. I usually can read through books no problem, but the fact it took me so long to finish this one is a testament to how much I struggled reading this.

One of the biggest things that really deterred me from reading was the prose. It was unnecessarily thick and hard to follow. I had to consume this book in short increments due to the headache I'd get from reading it too long. I did manage to appreciate some clever wordage and lines at some instances, but I just could not get into the rest of it.

The worldbuilding is also very confusing and lackluster. Apparently, there was a war in this world a long time ago before the story started that set this deal of students becoming magicians after successfully killing their devil teacher. Any details outside of that are muddled and not quite clear enough to argue against when nothing is clearly defined. This is especially apparent in Euphemia's background-to-foreground plot with this girl Aisling. I don't wanna give details because it's so convoluted, but the main point is she used the girl for political reasons, and that gives way to getting an on slot of political information that wasn't all much explored until, like, over three quarters into the book. I just feel like there should've been a better way to untangle the mess of this plot.

As for the characters — I didn't really care about any of them, not even the main trio. I was sympathetic to their metaphorical fight against the brutal, unfair school system, but their personhood was nothing to me outside the surface level traits the narrative tells us. I do appreciate Miller's attempt to flesh out the other students, as well, but they still felt lie fodder and ways to shock the reader more than anything.

All in all, the only thing I'm happy about right now is that I finally finished this book. Otherwise, I don't think I'll read anything more of Miller's in the future.

I'm breathless at the ambition and wonder of this book. WOW. genuinely one of the most unique and happening book I've read that's set in an academy of sorts.

linsey miller captures the heart of dark academia and delivers one of the most breathtaking novels I've ever read with her story telling prowess and captivatingly distinct characters. i audibly gasped at the audacity she had to pull off some of these she did which we don't typically see happen in mainstream books.

kudos to the author really. take a bow. I'll never forget anyone, but especially my darlings fabian and Irene.

**I received an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley.**

Actual rating: 3.5

Linsey Miller returns with That Devil, Ambition, a YA dark academia fantasy. Each year the students at the Stellarium face the choice of trying for the honors class of magicians. These students have their tuition waived if they pass, but their lives forfeit if they fail. This class is taught by a Devil. Dealing in tricks and bargains, this year's devil is the opponent of the aligned students Fabian, Credence, and Euphemia along with the rest of their classmates.

I started this book via ebook and switched to audio when I recognized I was having a hard time connecting despite being very interested.

I both liked and disliked the formatting of this book, which switches from one character to the next between our three perspective characters as the book progresses. Disliked predominantly because I liked Fabian best and once we were no longer in his perspective for the latter two thirds of the book, I didn't enjoy Credence or Mia as much.

The messaging in this book was a little heavy-handed but did not take away from the overall entertainment value. Ultimately, if the concept presented in the synopsis interests you, the book is exactly as advertised and I feel positively about my experience with it.

I'm thoroughly obsessed with Linsey Miller's writing voice! The story is dark, twisted, and humorous at the same time with wonderfully inventive worldbuilding. The cast is incredibly diverse and dynamic, and I found myself easily falling in love with each of them for their own reasons. Fantastic read, I'll definitely be buying a physical (trophy) copy!

Back in my school days there were of course some teachers that I absolutely couldn't stand, but at least they were no devils that I had to kill as a final exam with failed assassination attempts meaning my own death. Lucky me, poor characters in this book. Because this is exactly what Fabian, Credence and Euphemia have to deal with. They are part of the honors class of a prestigious magician school – prestigious and above all expensive. Passing the honors class is the only way for them to not drown in debt, but that is no easy task let alone a safe one. The book begins when the class summons this year's devil, the professor, and then is about the students figuring out how to possibly kill such a being. All the students are able to perform a kind of magic that splits the soul from the body called severance, but so is the devil. The professor is mostly a normal teacher holding rather dull lectures, but he will punish every assassination attempt with a horrible death. And let me tell you that this book is absolutely ruthless with its characters. It can probably be classified as dark academia, complete with deaths in the classrooms and field trips to the cemetery where all the other failed students rest (there are plenty). I think the premise is kinda similar to "Assassination Classroom", but I haven't actually read or watched this series yet. I would compare this book to "A Deadly Education" by Naomi Novik for a YA with a lethal school, and the hard to grasp magic system reminded me a lot of "Vita Nostra" by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko. Two books that I absolutely love. I would rate "That Devil, Ambition" with up to 4.5 stars, but there were some little things I didn't like. For one, I wish there were more character moments. I'm told that Fabian, Credence and Euphemia are an inseparable trio, but their close relationship is never really shown or at least I didn't think it that credible. All three of them get POVs in separate parts of the book and it's clear that they want to protect each other, but their friendship still lacked something in my opinion. The side characters weren't that fleshed out either, not even the professor, but I liked that there were many queer people and relationships. It would have been fine without literally everyone being in a relationship, but it was interesting to see who would betray whom. All the characters are ambitious and want to survive the year and it might be necessary to sacrifice some classmates to reach that goal. I would say that I had a great time with this book, but that feels wrong when every single character is either dead or deeply traumatized by the end. I guessed the twist about the professor, but the ending was still pretty good in my opinion. I did have a bit of a hard time with the writing, though. At times it was difficult to understand for me, not because of the vocabulary but because of short or shortened sentences. It was hard to follow what the characters were actually referring to, especially in dialogue. I guess I have to read this book again sometime, and by that I mean that I went and ordered a finished copy after I read like two chapters. I just knew it was my thing.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Storytide / HarperCollins Children's Books for providing a digital arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a interesting new concept.
13 students are offered a chance at a better life as long as they can kill a devil before school ends.

I wanted to love That Devil, Ambition—a dark academia fantasy with a cutthroat premise, devilish stakes, and a trio of students trying to outwit a literal demon professor. Unfortunately, despite the compelling concept, this one didn’t work for me, and I ended up setting it aside around the halfway mark.

The story starts with promise: the idea of a deadly final exam where students must assassinate their professor to graduate is as bold as it is bizarre. Linsey Miller’s writing is sharp, and Fabian’s ambition and calculated friendships make for an intriguing (if not always likable) protagonist. The book leans into morally gray characters, which I usually enjoy.

But as the story progressed, I found myself losing interest. The pacing felt uneven—heavy on introspection and worldbuilding at the expense of momentum. The characters, while smartly written, started to blur together in tone, and I struggled to stay emotionally invested in their fates. For a book built around life-or-death stakes, the tension never fully clicked for me.

This might be a great fit for readers who enjoy slow-burn academic intrigue and cerebral, ethically messy narratives. But for me, the execution never quite matched the premise’s potential.

Did not finish.

Is it YA? It doesn't feel like YA, except when it does. It's a dark book, and highly ambitious, but there are times when it's effective and other times it slightly misses the mark. The magic is interesting and the characters are fascinating.

That Devil Ambition delivers a compelling and refreshingly dark take on the magical school story, with a premise that immediately raises the stakes: thirteen students, one devil professor, and only two options—kill him or die trying. Linsey Miller leans into the moral ambiguity of the setup, exploring what ambition, desperation, and loyalty look like when survival is on the line.

The multiple points of view work well, offering a fuller picture of the central trio’s shifting relationships. Each character brings a distinct perspective, and their complicated dynamics—especially as pressure mounts—are among the book’s most effective elements. The tension builds gradually, with moments of reflection and reckoning threaded through the action.

The pacing lags slightly around the midpoint, and at times the setting feels more implied than fully realized, but the emotional throughline holds steady. Fans of A Deadly Education or similar high-stakes academic fantasies will likely find this one satisfying and thoughtful in its execution.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

“The bodies are irrelevant.”

That Devil, Ambition is a dark academia novel that follows three students who attend the Stellarium, a notoriously expensive institute that happens to be the only school that produces magicians. Every year, thirteen students enter the honors class, and their only assignment is to kill their professor. If they succeed, their student debts are null and they become honorable magicians—the highest of achievements. But the professor is a devil, and the consequences of a failed assassination is the would-be-killer’s life. If no one succeeds before the last day of school, the professor kills any student still alive. Fabian, Credence, and Euphemia are best friends, and none of them could ever afford to pay off their loans; passing is their only option. If these friends want to graduate, not only will they have to kill an immortal, but they will have to stay alive long enough to figure out how.

Linsey Miller has conquered the art of writing a dark atmosphere and forming distinct characters that propel the narrative of her plot. In this world, the Stellarium is the only school that trains magicians and, regardless of their twisted curriculum, they are invaluable. Several different countries send their students to the Stellarium with hopes of them becoming honors class graduates, which puts a pressure on some of the students that I think really adds to the narrative. Determined characters are not uncommon, but it isn’t often that characters really embody the idea of doing anything to reach their goals. These students, not just the three narrators but the entire class, want to pass at all costs, even if it means sabotaging and hurting the people around them. The school has three terms, with a new narrator for each period. The first term is from Fabian’s perspective, my favorite, and his carefully crafted persona hides his true thoughts and ambitions. He wants nothing more than to become an honorable magician to restore his family’s name. Credence’s development throughout her perspective was interesting, and she often reflects on the burden she carries to graduate, which really made me want her to succeed as well. Euphemia is observant and not at all what I expected her to be, but her perspective is the perfect conclusion and really ties everything together. That Devil, Ambition is a thrilling combination of dangerous schemes, unique magic, and desperate characters that dark academia fans will love.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

Not gonna lie, I did not vibe with this book at first. There are a lot of characters introduced right off the bat, and the magic system is pretty complicated ((tbh I still don't fully get it)). The beginning is pretty slow going, but I'm glad I kept on because this was an amazing read.

It takes a while to establish the characters and premise, but by 30% the plot really kicks off.

There are 3 main PoVs: Fabian, Credence and Euphemia. I'm a huge sucker for scheming, arrogant characters, so of course Fabian's PoV was my favourite. I love the way he thinks and his interactions with the Professor are sooo delicious. I also love Credence's PoV, the way her emotions are portrayed felt powerful and real. Euphemia is the most mysterious of the main three, so getting to read her PoV is very interesting, especially comparing it to how she is seen by the other characters.

I don't want to give too much away, but I have to say I really appreciate how this book goes deeper under the surface level dark academia aesthetic and examines how academia is structured to prioritise political and capitalistic interests over students.

That Devil, Ambition is the kind of story that grips you from the first chapter with its premise—thirteen elite students must kill their devil professor or die trying—and never loosens its hold. But what makes it exceptional isn’t just the blood-soaked stakes or the haunting magic system—it’s how Linsey Miller threads real grief, institutional pressure, and fractured identity into every choice the characters make.

Told in three POVs over three academic terms, the structure itself mirrors the descent into madness. Each perspective—Fabian’s controlled façade, Credence’s quiet unraveling, Euphemia’s cold precision—peels back more layers of not just the mystery, but each other. Miller’s use of narrative devices like parenthetical thoughts doesn’t just feel stylistic—it serves the character work, showing how much these students are hiding from themselves as well as from each other.

This is not the aesthetic-only dark academia that populates so many bookshelves. It’s a scathing examination of how ambition, grief, and pressure mutate young minds. Miller doesn’t flinch—there’s death, mutilation, moral collapse—but none of it feels gratuitous. It all feeds into the story’s themes: What are you willing to sacrifice for your future? For survival? For your soul?

It’s not a perfect book—the pacing wobbles at times, the magic system can get dense, and some readers may not gel with the prose—but the characters are unforgettable and the emotional arc lands hard. The world Miller builds feels lived in and queernormative without fanfare, and the ending manages to leave a crack of light in the darkness.

Equal parts philosophical and horrifying, That Devil, Ambition is a spellbinding descent into what it means to be shaped by systems designed to consume you.