The Book of Autumn follows Marcella Gibbons, who struggles being a dimidium, one half of a pair of Magicians, forever tied together to enable the other's powers. Called back to Seinford and Brown in New Mexico, Cella must partner with ex-boyfriend Max to find out who is behind a brutal hex/killing on campus. This book offers a unique magic system with a fresh take on dark academia + a murder mystery.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read in advance this fantasy dark academia murder mystery! It is a gripping story full of plot twists, magic, and complex characters, and I couldn't rip myself away from it until I finished the whole thing. It reads like a very long academic paper turned narrative whilst still retaining the dark academia and fantasy vibes that we love, as well as the thrill of a mystery. Would definitely recommend.

I really wanted to love this book .... but I didn't. The beginning really pulled me in and for the first quarter I was all in. The setting was unique and I like the mystery but eventally the 'investigation' seemed to drag with endless questioning that went no where and not much seemed to happen. As the story took a deep dive into ancient Greek philosophy it kinda lost me. By the end, I really couldn't tell you what was happening. I'm sure some readers will dive in and the plot will resonate with them. It just wasn't for me.

Set against the moody, otherworldly backdrop of a magic-infused college in rural New Mexico, this debut novel follows Cella Gibbons, an anthropologist and reluctant half of a magical pair (“dimidium”) who’s been trying to leave that life behind—until her ex-partner, Max, shows up asking for help. What follows is a mystery tied to death, ancient magic, and messy, unresolved feelings.

this book was such a fun, dark academia book that kept me on the edge of my chair! the format of this book was interesting, to say the least, but i really think it'd be fantastic in a paper copy! some parts of the book was really slow at parts, which is the reason this book isn't a five star, but i truly did enjoy it! the mmc was snarky and enjoyable, and i loved his dynamic with the fmc! reading this in the fall with blankets wrapped around me would be the dream, tbh

thank you to netgalley and molly o'sullivan for this arc in exchange for an honest opinion! <3

Book of Autumn had an engaging start making me think of the exorcist meeting Deadly Education. The theme throughout about humanity and magic, with a bit of historical background was delightful. Unfortunately, there were several pages that I slogged through in the middle because it wasn't filled with enough action elements. It felt too long before they tried to speak with Dani. However, I pushed through because there was enough suspense to entice me to know what the ending would be.

I really enjoyed The Book of Autumn and loved the dark academia vibe throughout. I liked Cella and Max as characters, and I looked forward to picking it up and continuing with the story each day. I just wish there was a bit more detail on the school--I felt the world-building there was a small bit lacking. But...definitely a recommended read!

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This is a debut novel?!

I loved how this story was put across, almost like a journal, I did find it it to be a little slow in parts due to the format, but dark academia X forced proximity X magic school X unsolved murder?? Sign me UP

I loved Cella, I saw so much of myself in her that it made her super relatable and as the other half of her dimidium, Max brought some real fun as the MMC. I loved the world building and how the story unfolded as we learned more truths and uncovered more secrets, overall, a fun (sometimes even spooky) read that had me giggling, gripping my kindle for death life and even shedding a little sneaky tear.

'The Book of Autumn' is a gripping, suspenseful debut novel by Molly O'Sullivan. The novel is centered in the themes of magic, academia, and overcoming one's past. Set in the rich landscape of the deserts of New Mexico, this novel comes to life with complex characters and a unique take on magic and it's practioners.

Marcella 'Cella' Gibbons and Max Middlemore are both alumni of Seinford and Brown College of Agriculture (or as it is known by its students: Seinford and Brown College of the Three Arts). Once PhD partners and dimidiums - two halves of a magical pair that amplify each other's magic - Cella and Max have now been estranged for several years after Cella's disastrous final semester at Seinford and Brown. Precipitated by the unforeseen death of her brother, Cella stays away from magic, Max, and anything that reminds her of the past until when Max shows up on her doorstep one day. A student at Seinford and Brown is experiencing a magical affliction that the council thinks only Max and Cella can solve with their area of expertise in magic. The stakes quickly raise once Cella and Max start investigating, as do long buried feelings between the dimidiums. With a sprinkle of romance and a magic system that was both intriguing and different from anything I've read recently, 'The Book of Autumn' weaves a magical spell around readers from beginning to end.

This novel is uniquely written in the format of a first-person retelling in the form of some kind of research paper or academic document. Interspersed between these chapters are diary entries and other magical journal pages that add depth and history to the story. While the reference notes are a little clumsy to read in an ebook format, I think this will be a fun addition in the print version of this novel. All of the events are seen through Cella's point of view, and her traumatic past skews her viewpoint, causing her to be an unreliable narrator. We learn of her past at Seinford and Brown through flash backs, and her complicated relationship with Max. Information is given to us in digestible bites, both of the backstory and the current investigation.

I do wish we had seen a little more development of Max and Cella's present day relationship, perhaps seen them exploring their magic and feelings about reconnecting after so long apart. Because our view of Max is given through Cella's eyes, and she has some complicated feelings about him, it made it kind of hard for me to like him as a love interest for Cella. He comes across as self-absorbed, with Cella always feeling like she was a footnote beside him even though they were equals in magic and their research. I really couldn't decide if I liked him or not until the last 15 percent of the book or so.

The mystery is well plotted, with a twist towards the end that definitely felt like it raised the stakes in Cella and Max's quest to solve what is afflicting student Danica. The cast of characters kept me guessing - so many people had motive to be involved in the mystery; I enjoyed searching for clues alongside Cella to try to figure out which characters were actually the bad guys. I would actually enjoy seeing a future book with these same characters to see how they are dealing with the events and changes to their lives that happen in this current novel.

I loved Molly O'Sullivan's debut novel, and I'll be keeping an eye out for news of future new releases from her. Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington, and the author for allowing me to read an eARC of this novel.

A spellbinding novel about ambition, privilege and ancient magic. Set at an enchanted school tucked among the red mesas of a rural country where a formidable pair of magicians are summoned to pursue an alleged killer. A second chance romance blooms when two halves of one whole are thrust together to unravel the truth and challenge a power neither can rival alone. A fascinating dark academia fantasy with spellbinding magic, steeped in centuries of bloodshed and heartache.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐊𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐨𝐧 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐦𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐌𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐎'𝐒𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐧

A murder mystery, wrapped up in magic, and thrown into dark Acadamia, sign me up. The premise of this was so promising and interesting I couldn't be more excited to start it.

At first glimpse we see Cella, our main female lead who is intectually brilliant, but struggles when it comes to her own confidence. She's so filled with self doubt and distrust, that it's hard not to feel for her and hope she finds a way to grow into herself. Which she eventually does. Max is her complete opposite, but alos the other magical half of her soul. Many of the snippets we see come from flashes from the past rather than forming opinions on him in the now. I did wish there was more present interaction between the two of them, so we could feel thier connections, but I did enjoy the recounting of thier first meeting.

The way this is written, in an interesting and unique format, almost like an academic paper, intermingled with diary entries, was interesting but also made the story feel very slow. There was a lot of introspection while a whole lot of nothing in the story or investigation happened. There were too many dead ends and noy enough mystery clues left for us to unravel. The footnotes may have been clever in a physical format but in the ecopy I have was more annoying and frustrating than anything, at some point I stopped reading the footnotes because it was too much work to look for them then try and refind my place, and remember what's going on in the story.

For a story with magic there's actually very little actual magic in it which is frustrating, especially when our two "investors" seem to be the only ones capable of solving the mystery due to the magic that they never use. All in all I thought it was good writing, and had a great promise, but felt it fell a little short on the delivery.

Marcella and Max, dimidiums - two Magicians who's magic is bound to each other - return to their former college of Magic to solve the murder of a student, and the possible hex of another, while facing a past Marcella would rather leave behind.

I'm not usually a huge fan of fantasy set in the modern day, but in The Book of Autumn, it is not so overpowering as in other modern-day fantasies, and it is just as important as the past. I really enjoyed how fleshed out the lore and history is in this story, and I can appreciate how much went into getting it right.
I enjoyed the mystery element in this, and I was forming my own guesses and theories throughout. I do wish there was more magic involved however. I can understand the reason behind there not being much, due to the related trauma and past of certain characters, but I think for me it would have been that bit more interesting to see more of.
The characters were likeable, and it was easy for opinions to change ad evidence came to light, or more suspects were brought into the fold.

Thank you so much to Kensington Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC through netgalley!

This is very ambitious for a debut but it absolutely pulls through. The plot is intricate, the characters are well developed and compelling, there's magic and dark academia themes and it pulls you right in. The format might not be for everyone, it's written sort of like a research paper but I really enjoyed it

I really wanted to like this book! But something about the writing threw me off and didn’t really pull me into the story. The premise was good but not so sure about the execution. Thank you for the opportunity

3.5 stars, rounded up.

Not bad for a debut novel! I liked this, but I did feel like the pacing could use some work. I also felt like the ending left some things not quite as explained or resolved as I would have liked. A little heavy handed on certain themes. Still, an enjoyable “magic school” academia fantasy—I do enjoy that there’s been a few “magic school” novels lately that are set in grad school, with characters in their late twenties/early thirties. Would recommend if these kind of tropes are your vibe, and hopefully she’ll write more books!

Thanks for the eARC, netgalley! All opinions are my own, shared in exchange for the eARC.

5 STAR READ!!! HOLY SHIT this book was amazing. I was NOT expecting it to be as good as it was but it completely sucked me in. This had a little bit of a scary vibe at some points, a really unique magic system, a snippet of romance, and a whole lot of emotion.

Two halves of a magic soul come together in an attempt to solve a magical mystery. How do they stop the attacks?! Ride along with Marcella and Max to find out.

I loved this! From the very first few sentences to the last page it was a great read! i would have preferred more world building and description to help me picture the area we were reading about. I know what New Mexico looks like but the descriptions would have helped. I loved Cella and Max's dynamic and history. I appreciated the supporting characters and their well rounded-ness. I had the assumption given the title that we would have a spring, summer, and winter book to which similar stories in the same book world could be written, but that's yet to be seen. I'd love it though!

I loved the super unique concept this book used to tell the story of Cella & Max. The story unfolds in bits and pieces and readers get the sense that they are reading through first hand accounts, journals, articles and even historical texts. The magic system used is intriguing and the author does a great job of giving the reader snippets of understanding as the book goes on, instead of a large dump of info for world building and magic system structure that can be dry to get through.

The story itself is a mystery within a mystery and that part is very well done. Readers that enjoy academia books and fantasy books will enjoy the unique take on those thermes in this novel. I also love how as the story goes on, our main character is able to heal a lot of hurt she has. You are rooting for her from the beginning and we always love when a story allows our MC to grow and heal!

I will say that I did find have some struggles getting “into” the story so to speak. There were parts that drug on for me. I also read this as an ebook, and I feel like the unique footnotes that are sprinkled in to add to the story kind of fell flat in an ebook format. I feel like this would have been more of an experience with a physical copy vs the ebook.

I do think this is a unique and lovely story, and the reading experience itself was fun and unusual (in a good way).

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC copy.

This book wrapped its pages around my heart and held it in a chokehold from page 1. I had a hard time putting this book down, much like our FMC, I became obsessed with reading. The world building, the characters, and the magic system was beautifully written. I loved how the little footnotes included different characters POV. There were times I was a little confused when the book was discussing certain theories but was able to work through it. Overall, I loved this book!

I recently had the opportunity to read an advance reader copy (ARC) of The Book of Autumn by Molly O’Sullivan, and it was an enthralling experience. This debut novel masterfully intertwines themes of ambition, privilege, second-chance romance, and ancient magic within a richly constructed world. 

The story follows Marcella “Cella” Gibbons, an anthropologist and dimidium—one half of a formidable pair of magicians whose powers are interdependent. After a tumultuous final year at Seinford and Brown College of Agriculture (and Magic) in rural New Mexico, Cella had distanced herself from magic, academia, and her other half, the charming rancher Max Middlemore. However, when mysterious and dangerous events unfold at their alma mater, Cella and Max are compelled to reunite and confront their shared past to unravel a centuries-old mystery.  

O’Sullivan’s portrayal of Cella is compelling, capturing her internal struggles and resilience with depth and authenticity. Max is depicted as a complex character—both a rugged rancher and a man grappling with unresolved feelings and responsibilities. Their chemistry is palpable, their interactions filled with tension and allure.  

The novel’s pacing is well-balanced, seamlessly blending action-packed sequences with moments of introspection. O’Sullivan’s prose is evocative, painting vivid images of the New Mexico desert and the enchanted school. The plot twists are unpredictable, keeping readers engaged and eager to uncover what lies ahead. 

In summary, The Book of Autumn is a standout debut that delves into complex relationships and moral dilemmas against a backdrop of magic and academia. Its intricate plot, well-developed characters, and richly imagined world make it a must-read. I wholeheartedly recommend it to fans of dark academia and those seeking a story that will linger in their thoughts long after the final page.