I didn't have time to read this one before it came out, but I love dark academia and I'm so interested in the author's take on the genre!

" . . . only one of us can survive this . . . And the winner gets to leave Hellebore."

A handful of students are holed up in the library trying to avoid being eaten by the faculty. They will do whatever they must to survive, including avoiding THE LIBRARIAN at all costs.

But . . . these are not your regular, run of the mill students.

"None of us are good people. We aren't. We deserve this."

Most of them are monsters.
Literally.

"Did they tell you that when you enrolled? That you've come to a place of monsters?"

"Right where I belong then."

I found this one a little confusing. The action switches back and forth between what's happening in the library, and what occurred before the graduation/eat-the-students ceremony. Plus, the characters were very similar. Still, there's an eerie, gory time to be had in the one library that you will NEVER want to visit.

Recommended for horror and Squid Game fans.

"Sometimes we do terrible things to survive, don't we?"

Well, I must say this was a dark, body horror, fantasy, if I've ever picked one up. The Hellebore Technical Institute fore the Gifted is really more of a prison, keeping the monsters of the world away from the others of the world. Within it's walls, there are those who could bring about Ragnarök, unzip people with their mind, or who are simply the antichrist.

Alessa is one of these monsters and she is pretty much kidnapped and forced to enroll. As this book opens, Alessa has just taken apart her roommate who was quite popular among the other students. Funny enough, she really doesn't get into any trouble since "these things happen" in this school, btu some of the other students are a bit upset about it. It may actually be a blessing for her now deceased roommate as she will miss graduation, where all the teachers turn feral and start eating the students. Now it's a struggle for survival as the few remaining student are hold up in the library, biding their time until they are either all eaten or are picked off one by one.

There are quite a few grotesque scenes, so be aware if you can be squeamish with body horror. They act like a bunch of teenagers, which I assume they probably are, so a lot of their sniping at each other is juvenile. I see why some fans of A Deadly Education may enjoy this book but I do think this one is a bit more rated R than that. Overall, I liked it but it does need to be something that you're ready for.

This was by far one of the most interesting books I have read in 2025 so far. It was a whirlwind of characters and storytelling. I enjoyed figuring out every characters won little quirks and what they were able to do. I thought they made a ragtag little band of survivors even if half of them hated the other. I will say that it was a little hard to keep everything in check and in line because there was so much going on throughout that book, but otherwise an enjoyable read.

This was a fantastic dark academia novel and the best one of 2025 so far. My most anticipated novel and I devoted every second. Alessa was a great main character and uncovering the mysteries surrounding the library and exploring the setting was amazing. This book was intense and interesting, well worth the hype and I would recs for fans of Ninth House and Babel in a twisted sense as the darkness of the plot came from the reveals of the academia.

I was so excite to dive into a book of dark academia and horror. Students that don't know they are gifted, that are sucked into the life as well as those who applied. Yes, please! Unfortunately, this one was disappointing. The action starts right away, with no character development or world building, but I assumed that would come, but again was disappointed. The writing was so flowery and the sentences so full of unnecessarily long descriptions, that I had to go back to reread often enough to follow what was happening, that I became frustrated. I know that many read this because they loved another of the author's works, and maybe if I had started there, it would have helped. Can't recommend this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this one. It was funnier than I expected, but in a good way. It didn't take itself too seriously and made for an easy read. When trying to best describe this book for my followers I said "its as if the breakfast club was set in hell".

This book was way too gruesome for my taste. It really took me out of the story. The characters were also not all that dynamic or engaging. I just had a hard time getting through this book.
Thank you to Tor Publishing Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

The Library at Hellebore is a dark academia meets cosmic horror meets grim fantasy, in the type of ambitious genre blend that I’ve come to expect from Khaw. Hellebore Technical Institute for the Gifted gathers the world-eaters and apocalypse-makers into its student body via abduction and promises them a path to a normal life after graduation. I found the prose dreamy, in direct contrast with the horrors it was describing, which really added to the experience.

But when this book says dark academia, it means DARK, so you know the students are in for more than what was promised. This is gory, unsettling, shifting back and forth in time and filled with dread. I personally am a fan of body horror but please be forewarned that it may be a bit tough to stomach if you are not.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for providing the ARC.

This book is a doozy. Usually I dont have a hard time with body horror written on page, but this book made my stomach clench and do flips with some of the things that Khaw described in the story. It was a hard read for me, but I think if you're into that kind of prose, then this book is right up your alley

Khaw weaves together a masterful story spread between two different timelines. The main character flips between her time when she started at Hellebore and whats happening right now, trying to make sense of what she is seeing to her fellow classmates. The book can be difficult at times, where you don't really get a chance to get to know the characters before they die. Alessa can also be hard to read, even though she's the narrator. But the vibes are immaculate and the twists are delightful, so you're guaranteed to have a great time if you can get past the viscera.

An excellent book by Cassandra Khaw.

Cassandra Khaw is one of those authors who just seems to get better with every book. Even ones that haven't vibed with me quite so much have been indisputably excellent, and 'The Library at Hellebore' is a writer at the peak of her powers. So far.

This book is a giant middle finger to all of those 'jolly school' moral-lesson books from our childhood, while simultaneously warping the tropes of more recent supernatural academy titles. If David Cronenberg had been Headmaster of the X-Men's School for Gifted Youngsters (with David Lynch as Deputy).

For this is, without any doubt at all, body horror. Cassandra Khaw's writing is almost literally viscous, dripping with description and with more words that were new to me than I've encountered since 'Gormenghast'. Yes, I enjoyed pausing to look them up, because every single time it was worth it. This woman ADORES language and it's infectious.

We have a school who takes students with unique abilities - whether voluntarily or not. We have nods to the usual Teenage Cliques, but taking them to bloody extremes. Because this school exists to prepare its students for the world... as food.

On Graduation Day, the faculty of Hellebore turns on its young charges and begins to consume them. Some escape into the corridors and classrooms; others aren't so lucky. A little 'Lord of the Flies', except rescue is absolutely not coming. This is about survival, but still through a lense of teenage hormones and intensely dangerous powers.

I learned early on never to assume I knew what would happen, because the twists are as knotted as the school itself. Enemies become allies, lovers are revealed and rejected, and trust is something quickly cast aside.

Through it all, the language held me in its grip, monstrous and beautiful, as I imagined what I would do in such a scenario while empathising with teens forced to act like (and so against) homicidal psychopaths. There's wordplay here that would make my school English teachers weep. I adored every moment.

This is absolutely one of my Books of the Year, because it immediately crawled beneath my skin and lurked there, drawing me back to the pages when I tried to get away. Would I survive Hellebore too? Genuine question.

Grotesque and compelling, this is a work of horror genius. I highly recommend it, but only if you're strong enough.

Oh, and whatever you do, do NOT go into the Library.

Dark academia meets horror in this story about a exclusive institute that houses gifted dangerous beings... beings on par with the Anti-Christs, Ragnaroks, world-eaters, and apocalypse makers. Whether or not you actually apply to the school is up to you but you might find yourself kidnapped and awake there regardless, and thats exactly what happens to Alessi Li. Students at Hellebore are promised acceptance and a normal life after graduation.. that is if they can make it out alive with the other dangerous students against them and the fact that the faculty are determined to eat them all.... talk about a tough school year. This book was part body horror part monster romance, and it was just a thrilling read! I had so much fun with this one and it's definitely one I would recommend for your spooky season tbr!

Release Date: July 22, 2025

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

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group | Tor Nightfire for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The Hellebore Technical Institute for the Gifted is the premier academy for the magically dangerous. It promises normalcy after graduation. However, Alessa Li is kidnapped by the school and enrolled against her will. She only wants out and will stop at nothing to escape.
Unfortunately, Hellebore is more than just a magical academy. On graduation day, the faculty goes on a murderous, ravenous rampage, forcing Alessa and a few of her classmates to take sanctuary in the library. Trapped, they must offer a human sacrifice every night, or else the faculty will break down the door and kill everyone.
Very much gives Naomi Novik's Scholomance vibes. Only way bloodier!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for this digital e-arc.*

This is my first Cassandra Khaw novel versus a novella, and man, when there is that much more room for gore and absolutely disgusting body horror it makes for a more squeamish read. That being said, I generally knew what I was getting into with this one, and it was a fun enough read, even if it had me nearly gagging at points or squirming with disgust. I think that Khaw sometimes treads too flowery of a language, but they still know how to create some truly beautiful turns of phrase even if they are soaked in blood, guts, bone, and viscera. Body horror fans should check it out but it's not for the squeamish.

3.75/5⭐️
Now that I’ve had some time to digest this, damn was this dark and a little gory. It definitely fits the dark academia/horror vibes. I don’t think I was fully prepared before I read this. All in all, this was definitely the perfect amount of disturbing and I think it would perfectly fit the spooky season vibes.

Cassandra Khaw has done it again. The Library at Hellebore is a blood-drenched, poetic, and unflinchingly brutal story of survival, friendship, and monstrous transformation. Imagine A Deadly Education got locked in a room with The Library at Mount Char and a Lovecraftian flesh-eating demon took notes.

We follow Alessa Li, whose "gift" earns her a place at Hellebore, an elite and terrifying school for the cosmically cursed and metaphysically deadly. Split across two timelines 1. her harrowing initiation and 2. a fatal library showdown, Khaw constructs a world that's both vividly visceral and emotionally resonant.

The prose is lush, lyrical, and saturated with gore. It’s the kind of writing that makes you pause and admire a sentence even while someone’s being unzipped by a supernatural force. That said, it can occasionally feel a bit like reading a thesaurus at a haunted poetry slam. Dense, gorgeous—but sometimes too dense for its own pacing.

What really works is the emotional core. Beneath the body horror and insect cults is a raw story about what it means to be chosen, broken, and still choosing to fight. Alessa’s voice is sharp, caustic, and strangely endearing, a necessary anchor in a story that often reads like a fever dream.

Some of the worldbuilding feels purposefully opaque. Cool ideas left half-sketched in shadow. The prose, while stunning, might be a barrier for those craving a leaner, faster narrative.

Still, if you love horror with heart, magic schools that would eat Hogwarts for breakfast, and stories that explore monstrosity both literal and emotional—this one is well worth a read.

I don’t usually reach for dark academia, but Cassandra Khaw is a must-read author for me! Plus, it’s blurb about a cursed school for future apocalypse-makers?!? Yes please!

There’s a Lot to love about this novella. The dual timelines kept me guessing, the wild and magical character arcs were perfect and the survival horror vibes were *chef’s kiss*. Kinda’ Hunger Games-ish but with way more body horror and an awesome queer edge. Khaw’s vocabulary is onpoint as per usual, making the gore vivid and relentless.

This one’s right behind The Dead Take the A Train as my favorite Khaw read. Plus, Natalie Naudus narrates the audio?! A re-read/listen WILL be happening! Big thanks to NetGalley @casskhaw and @torbooks for the arc. The Library at Hellebore publishes July 22!

If you can imagine a darker, gorier version of the school from A Deadly Education and a faculty our of your wildest nightmares, there is a chance that you've got a vague picture of what to expect from The Library at Hellebore. From the jump, the premise of a facility where people (or, you know... beings that are people shaped sometimes) who are outright dangers to reality itself can get some kind of structure in their lives is a homerun. Throw in some fun characters, a wildly escalating plot, and some great plot twists, and readers will be racing through this book to get to the end.

A lot of fun, my only complaints were that I'd have liked a little more fleshing out of the world and some slower character arcs, but overall a great time. Very gory, though!

This book was one of my most anticipated this year and unfortunately I just couldn't get through most of it without cringing. There is a lot of gore in this so if you are someone who can't stomach it, I would skip. the characters also are just not rootable. I am really sad I was not a fan.

Complete chaos and carnage. This takes dark academia to a whole new level.

Welcome to Hellebore Technical Institute for the (Dangerously) Gifted. The students are forced to enroll and unlikely to make it out alive. Fast-paced, witty, and oh so gory!

Thank you to NetGalley & Tor Nightfire for an eARC