This one had the perfect mix of brains, heart, and just the right amount of danger!

Ada Castle may be the black sheep in a family of high achievers, but when she stumbles into a secretive school full of long lost knowledge and hidden motives, she finally gets a shot at proving her worth. The only problem is, she’s supposed to be spying on them.

The pacing hit just right!!

Ada was such a lovable FMC! She was genuine, kind, and so easy to cheer for.

I was obsessed with all the historical aspects woven through the plot, and the setting gave me serious Da Vinci Code vibes in the coolest way.

That cliffhanger left me needing the next book immediately.

If you like smart mysteries, secret schools, and heroines trying to find where they belong, this one’s a must
read.

Thank you NetGalley, Simon Teen and The Nerd Fam for the ARC!

This was an ARC from NetGalley. The story really consisted of everything but the kitchen sink, and the world building and story suffered because of it. While a good attempt was made at building out the primary world, it still did not fully translate, and everything else just remained at a high level. There were a lot of loose ends left at the end of the book and half built storylines that didn't add value. This story could benefit from a lot of focus and simplification, allowing more time to be spent building out the world. #netgalley #theartofexile #yafantasy

I was deeply moved by The Art of Exile by Andrea Max. The way it weaves together history and myth is nothing short of mesmerizing, and the emotional depth of the story really resonated with me. Ada’s journey felt both personal and epic, a powerful exploration of ambition, self-discovery, and the challenge of finding your place in an ever-changing world. The pacing was just right, pulling me in and keeping me eager to see what would happen next. I couldn’t stop reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with an earc of this book. This book comes out May 13.

I loved this book. I really love Ada as a main character. She's kind, selfless, etc. The way she handles situations is impressive as she gets back up. I also love the world and the plot twist, I didn't see it coming. It was amazing. There is also a love triangle which I'm like conflicted cause I don't know who to root for. It left off on a cliffhanger so I am excited for the next book

This was such a good atmospheric young adult adventure! I was immediately drawn in by the unique world the author created and all of the complexities within it. I really enjoyed all of the tie ins regarding art, history, and science and how it all worked into the story. The characters were believable, interesting, and enjoyable to follow. I’m excited to see how the story continues from here.

Read this if you like:
🎭 Found family
🎭 Enemies to Lovers
🎭 Love triangle
🎭 Art history
🎭 Academia
🎭 Secret societies

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted copy of the book.

Ada just wants to be valued by her family and when she finally gets the chance to go on a mission to prove herself, she ends up kidnapped. Luckily it ends up with her getting recruited to join the school they have been trying to gain access to. Now Ada is experiencing a whole new way of thinking and struggling to be okay with stealing from her new friends. This book will make you sympathize with Ada as she struggles to decide whose way of thinking is right and what information she should share. This story has lots of interesting developments and fantasy aspects that are turned scientific. I highly recommend you check it out!

All I needed to hear was The Davinci Code and I was so excited, and let me say it did not disappoint! This was such a riveting and interesting YA fantasy with a sci-fi twist and I could not put it down. The enemies to lovers was also incredible!

Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC. Loved the world building and how the reader followed the path of discovery along with the MC, allowing you to feel all the emotions and knowledge gained. Trust no one.

I loved this book and I can't wait to see what the author does next!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for a copy.

The Art of Exile is an intriguing and fun contemporary fantasy set at a secret institute where the descendants of exiled Renaissance legends continue progressing the long-lost knowledge of their ancestors. Ada, who has grown up believing herself to be completely ordinary in a society of extraordinary elites, manages to infiltrate the Genesis Institute with the goal of proving herself and bringing back secret information that could change the future of all of humanity. What Ada finds at Genesis is a beautiful paradise of unimaginable technology, mythological beings, and the most confident and creative people she has ever met. While Ada initially thought her mission would be simple - get in, steal the knowledge, get out - she now realizes that it is going to be much more difficult. Ada not only falls in love with the environment and ideals of Genesis but also forms unexpected relationships. Now Ada must choose who she is willing to betray - her old society and family or her new friends and mentors.

The Art of Exile is another favorite of 2025! I absolutely loved the world building, the morally gray characters, and the intriguing story. There is a bit of everything in this book - action, mystery, history, and romance. In fact, there are three love interests throughout the book. While I normally find love triangles/multiple love interests frustrating, the author does a fantastic job balancing the relationships and drama throughout. Of course, I do have my favorite love interest for whom I'm rooting. I thought all of the characters were well developed and interesting. I can't wait to learn more about each character in the next book. The book is fast paced; I honestly could not put it down. I will definitely be recommending The Art of Exile! Easy 5 stars!

Ok. This was a great start to a dark magical academy. I laughed out loud with the scene after the Met. She was hoping to catch him in a compromising hot scene and finds him... snacking. ahahsh (readers will know what it means)
She is a Sire, and to get her family's acceptance, she spies on those hiding in the Genesis Academy. She has a difficult time accepting that these Masters have so much knowledge and power that could help in the common world.
There are so many fun scenes, the acceptance to the guilds, the tournament, creating a golem bird, dealing with his highness, ahaha.There are Valkyries and dragons, jewish traditions. Fun read and fun characters. Ok. This was a great start to a dark magical academy. I laughed out loud with the scene after the Met. She was hoping to catch him in a compromising hot scene and finds him... snacking. ahahsh (readers will know what it means)
She is a Sire, and to get her family's acceptance, she spies on those hiding in the Genesis Academy. She has a difficult time accepting that these Masters have so much knowledge and power that could help in the common world.
There are so many fun scenes, the acceptance to the guilds, the tournament, creating a golem bird, dealing with his highness, ahaha.There are Valkyries and dragons and Jewish traditions. Fun read and fun characters.

I decided to DNF The Art of Exile at 32%. When I started reading, the first 10% really pulled me in and had me excited to continue. Unfortunately, once Ada arrived at the Genesis Institute, the tone and pacing shifted in a way that didn’t work for me. The writing began to feel much younger than expected, reading more like a middle-grade novel despite its initial tone.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of The Art of Exile by Andrea Max.

I really enjoyed reading The Art of Exile. With that being said, the first 50% or so was difficult to get through. I struggled. For me the issue was specifically around the world building and establishing the magic system used. Most of the time it felt more like a lecture than organic. What was done really well were the art and historical concepts. They were woven into the story in a way that they felt organic and felt like they had a place. I really love how that was used. I think this is a solid start to a new series. Now that the world building is established I hope that the next would be more of the parts that I really enjoyed.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really loved the premise of this book- I love the da vinchi code and the idea of those ystery aspects being woven into a scifi fantasy was too good to pass up!

Unfortunatly, it was a big miss for me. I don't know if I am just not the right audience for this book, or if myabe I've just officially grown out of the YA genrea, but I felt like this book was really unpolished and some of the references/ideas in the book were really glaringly obvious and/or just.. kidna lazy feeling.

Example one: calling the guard around the school Ava is in the Avant Guard? Really? That's something I expect from a middle school book, not YA.
Example 2: having almost everyone names after a major person in either history, mythos or lord of the rings for some reason really took me out of the story- if Aragon is indeed a name from a mythology I'm unfamilair with, I'll concede that but my first thought is the LOTR character which REALLY thre me for a loop.

I also felt like the author was trying to base a lot of the plot points off of mythology but it was really mishmashed up and didn't make a lot of sense, especailyl with the intense worldbuilding that takes place in the beginning.

I felt also that the romance in the sotry was.. weird? The FMC immediatly lusts after one of the MCs like.. as soon as she sees him in the beginning and then the romance lines continue to have a weird level of sexual tension that i was NOT a fan of.

The ending was a cliffhanger, which is to be expected in the first of a series, and honestly a lot of the last half of the book gave me early 2000s dystopia YA vibes (thing Divergent) in a weird way.

This may be a great book for ages 12-16, but I don't think I'd read anything by this author again.

Overall I thought this was a fun read, filled with so many things I love—dark academia, magic, secret societies, mystery, and betrayals.

As far as the world building goes, I liked the blend of fantasy and real-world that was present in this book. I will say that some aspects of the world felt complex, so it took a while for me to truly feel like I was enveloped in the world and understood how everything worked. There were many different guilds and magical powers that took some time to get used to and remember; but once I did, I enjoyed it all. Having said that, there were elements of the magic system and academia aspect that I wished were fleshed out a bit more, but that could be fixed in the final version.

I thought the characters were pretty interesting to follow, though it took a beat for me to settle in with them. I thought Ada in particular had a pretty good character arc (even if she made some questionable decisions along the way). I’m not the biggest fan of love triangles most of the time (and in this case, I didn’t particularly care for either boy), so I wish we had seen less of that and focused more on Ada’s exploration of power, but I’m sure other readers will feel differently.

The pacing was quick and action-packed, which I really liked once I settled into the story. And while I guessed a lot of the twists, I liked watching the secrets be revealed. Readers should go into this book knowing there are a lot of details to keep track of in the first half; but if they can get through it, the second half is great.

All in all, it was a fun read. And I could see myself reading the sequel in the future.


Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for the eARC!

This wasn’t bad. The writing was fine, and the story started interestingly. Where this book lost me was how dense the world-building was. So much was explained about the world that didn’t really matter, and the things I wanted to know weren’t explained.

Also, the character interactions were weird. So many people trusted the MC immediately. For a society trying to hide itself, that seemed impractical. Where this book really lost me, though, was the insta-lust between the MC and another character, but then he turns out to be a professor at this secret science school?? He’s only a few years older than her, so that 1)didn’t make sense and 2)was obviously just meant as a barrier so they couldn’t instantly be together.

Not a bad book, but not one I was excited to pick up again.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately the 21 year old MMC interest for a 17 year old FMC did not sit right with me and I lost interest in continuing the story any further.

Thank you regardless to Simon Teen for the ARC! I appreciate and am grateful for the opportunity, even if this one wasn’t for me.

2 I’m giving this a two stars only because it starts with the part about how profound it is to see Michelangelo’s David for the first time. I love the Renaissance, art, Italy, YA literature. I do not love this book. The writing itself is fairly bland. The magical powers reduced to video game script and the love scenes predictable. I was so excited to read this, because what a great premise! Alas, it isn’t great or even good. Maybe a romance starved, art history nerd, gamer girl geek will like it? Maybe.

Historical secret societies, prophecies, and betrayal. I loved this book.

The Art of Exile surrounds Ada Castle- the child of a long line of people who belong to an ancient secret society dedicated to finding a secret school founded by the Renaissance masters after they were exiled. After Ada is chosen to infiltrate the school, and spy for her family, she finds the reality she’s thought she knew, completely flipped.

The start of the book with the statue of David was brilliant, and it truly drew me in. I loved how fantasy was incorporated into the story, but was also explained in a scientific way. I also thought the school itself was so well crafted, and the guilds intrigued me so much. There were so many plot twists and secrets. The romance was something I totally wasn’t expecting, but I LOVED it so so much. If you like the Da Vinci Code, (specifically Angels & Demons), I really think you’ll like this book.

Right from the first sentences you're drawn in, however, it is a bit of a slow start, and the chapters feel wordy and lengthy. Though the beginning chapters aren't as fast paced they feel necessary for world building and character development.

The world building is complex and took me some time to actually get settled and understand fully, there are a lot of different types of magic, powers, guilds, and secrets societies, so the slower start was helpful. It's a more sophisticated version of Harry Potter.

I never have strong feelings on a love triangle, but this one is done really well! I always feel like in a love triangle is always apparent who we should actually root for, but not here! I’m looking forward to reading what’s next!