This one was so fun! Marcella is finishing at her academy, and things are starting to feel a little bit odd. When Max shoes up with a favor to ask, Marcella realizes that big things are happening and she may be able to help.

4 out of 5 stars – A Dark, Hypnotic Read!

What an intriguing plot! The book was incredibly dynamic and gripping. The author masterfully conveyed the tension and sinister atmosphere of this dark academia setting, making every page feel immersive. The magic system introduced here completely enchanted me—it was so unique and mesmerizing.

I wouldn’t call myself a die-hard fan of the genre, but the way it was showed in this story won me over. At times, it was so chilling I had to stop reading at night—it genuinely got under my skin!

The protagonist’s personal struggles resonated deeply with me, as I’m sure they will with many readers. The complex relationships between characters, the weight of external circumstances, and the theme of loss all intertwined seamlessly, evoking a whirlwind of emotions.

If I had one small critique, it would be that I wanted more of the main characters’ present-day interactions rather than so many flashbacks. That said, the story reached a satisfying and logical conclusion, and I was truly happy with how everything wrapped up.

I sincerely hope the author continues writing—I’d love to see more. I’ll be eagerly awaiting future releases, ready to lose myself in another beautifully crafted book like this one. Highly recommended!

* Copy provided by Kensington Publishing via NetGalley & 100% voluntary review.

This book was really good, I enjoyed the dark magic academia vibes, the mystery around the school and the second chance romance.
I really recommend it.

The truest speculative dark academia book I’ve read since Ninth House (which this book is compared to). I appreciated the refreshing new setting and older main characters who act appropriately their age. The world-building was “as needed,” which left some lingering questions, though none that felt too much like plot-holes. However, in the end, I was left wanting more: more romance, more mystery, more drama, more magic.

I really enjoyed the writing style of this book! The mix of first person narration/ diary entries and informative text/philosophy was a great touch for a murder mystery story.

The idea of the main characters being magically entwined (dimidiums) was really unique — though I did wish we got to see more of it. However, that leads me to my next point which is that the trauma representation was done extremely well. My assumption is because the FMC is so deep rooted in her trauma, that is why we don’t get much on the magic system until the end. As she shuns that part of her life away.

I loved the origin story of when Cella discovered Max was her dimidium! “𝘐𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘹 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨?” — GOLD lol both characters were easy to love for me and had great character growth.

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing and Molly O'Sullivan for letting me read and review this book early.

as someone who ADORED ninth house and atlas six, I thought this book would be right up my alley. it has a beautiful concept and a striking format told through academic papers, diary entries, and foot notes but ultimately, this book missed the mark for me.

the structure is impressive, however, I found the plot itself struggles. the central mystery feels like a series of dead ends and the two leads, cella and max, are framed as the only ones who can solve it. here’s the problem: we’re never given a reason WHY they’re the only ones who can.

neither one are investigators, and despite the story’s promise of magical stakes—they rarely use it. when the magic finally arrives in the last quarter, it’s rushed. add in confusing worldbuilding—like a hidden magic school with ivy league aspirations and frat parties—and it’s hard to stay grounded in the story. in the end, it’s a book with big ideas and bold style, but the execution never quite comes together.

molly o'sullivan's ambitious, beautiful debut, the book of autumn, takes the format of an anthropological research paper, drawing on religious annotations, ancient philosophy, metaphysics, diary entries, and supplemental footnotes to tell the story of marcella gibbons and max middlemore—ex-lovers and two halves of a magical whole—as they're called together once again to investigate a brutal murder and suspected possession at their magical alma mater.

still reeling from the untimely death of her younger brother aaron, her complicated and unavoidable feelings for max, and her desire to keep her painful past far away, cella returns to the school to find an afflicted student who reminds her keenly of her brother and is someone she becomes desperate to help. but as she delves into the web of history, magic, deceit, and power that's begun to weave itself into the school since her departure, cella finds herself in the middle of a harrowing, centuries-old situation that she may not make it out of.

the book of autumn is one of the most refreshing dark academia books i've read in a long time. set in the canyons and ranches of new mexico and brimming with ancient greek philosophy, real historical grimoires, and an aching sense of found family, o'sullivan's debut is a thrilling and emotional tale of grief, ambition, power, magic, and what we're willing to do to our souls for love. fans of magic for liars, ninth house, and the atlas six won't want to miss this one, and i can't wait to see where o'sullivan takes us next!

Thank you netgally for letting me read this
Magic, College, mystery and investigation, this book is well written. From the beginning I didn't want to put it down. Cella returns to her college to help investigate the strange happening after getting a letter. It is good book but it does lack the magic, as in there is barely any in it.

Oh this book! Where do I start? This was one of my ultimate favorites... such a good story, such good characters... it leaves your heart warm after reading it.

The characters are compelling and well-developed. FMC undergoes significant growth, facing internal struggles and moral dilemmas that add depth to their journey. Supporting characters, such as [notable side character’s name] and [antagonist’s name], bring additional layers of complexity, with motivations and arcs that keep the reader invested.

A dark academia murder mystery? A magical university tucked away in the New Mexico desert? A fractured partnership between two powerful magicians forced to reunite? It sounded like my perfect read. But unfortunately, the concept was much stronger than the execution.

Let’s start with the good: the format of this book is certainly unique. Written like an academic research paper, it blends diary entries, religious texts, ancient philosophy, and footnotes into the narrative. It's an interesting and immersive approach that will appeal to fans of The Atlas Six and Ninth House.

However, the mystery itself left much to be desired. The investigation felt like a frustrating series of dead ends rather than a puzzle to unravel. No one wanted to cooperate, and the book kept insisting that Cella and Max were the only ones who could solve the crime—without offering any real explanation why they were the most qualified. And while the tension between them had potential, their relationship never quite hooked me.

And then there's the magic—or rather, the lack of it. For a book that promises ancient magical forces, the first 75% of the story barely touches on any actual magic. When the magic finally kicks in toward the end, it feels rushed and jarring. The pacing throughout the book was painfully slow, and it dragged on for far too long, making it hard to stay engaged. The lack of balance and the slow build-up made the story harder to get through.

Bottom line? This book had a brilliant premise, but unfortunately, the execution didn’t match up. If you enjoy dense, slow-burn dark academia with a unique structure, this might work for you. But for me, it didn’t hit the mark.

Review - 4⭐️
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this on NetGalley, thank you!!!

I recommend this for people who like The Atlas Six or Ninth House!
Dark Academia, Magic, and a Secret Society.

A college where magic is practiced finds itself in the midst of a mystery with a murder and a student now in a strange state.

The main character, Cella, finds herself unwillingly drawn back to the college to assist with the investigation of these strange goings on. While investigating she must deal with some trauma in her past that led her to leave school.

This was interesting from start to finish though some of the scientific talk could be a little dense at times. Thankfully there is a glossary to reference that really helps.

2.5 Star Rating, rounded down.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Kensington Publishing for the ARC of The Book of Autumn by Molly O'Sullivan.

I think the concept of The Book of Autumn is really interesting, but something was lacking in the overall execution. Our main character, Cella, returns to her alma mater, Seinford and Brown College of Agriculture, a school that secretly teaches magic, when a student is murdered and something strange is occurring with the accused murderer. Cella is meant to investigate with her dimidium, her magical half, Max, to figure out what is happening before anyone else gets hurt or anyone outside the school looks too closely.

I think what ate at me while reading the story is that I couldn't at all figure out the magic system -- Cella and Max don't seem to use any magic in their investigation, and they are not investigators. It made things really confusing as to what their purpose actually was and it dimmed the magical aspect to the backseat, until it comes back at 150 mph the last 25% of the book. Cella has not given up magic, as the description states, she is still working on papers - she just doesn't want to be anywhere near New Mexico or Max because of her own trauma.

The investigation itself doesn't make any sense because Cella and Max aren't investigators, and because no one on the Council actually wants to cooperate and people are constantly just saying no -- it felt like a way to try and raise suspicions about people, but if people wanted to protect their school and Cella and Max are supposed to be members of the all-powerful council, you'd think people would listen to them. Everyone's motivations in the story seemed really misaligned from how the description of the book reads, which was frustrating. The description also says that Cella and Max are the best, perhaps only, chance to intervene with the mystery and the murder, but they actually seem like the least qualified.

Cella's investigative prowess includes heading out to frat parties, as if that is at all appropriate, and I found her thinking she had been slipped something/being slipped something in her drink to be a really problematic and unnecessary scene in so many ways (though I loved all the Third Eye Blind flashbacks, 10/10 for that). It's just...Cella as a character is so damaged and is obviously trying to work through her trauma and her past, but either that muddies the investigation she has no place investigating, or it completely takes away from any actual magic things that made me interested in the book in the first place.

When the book does pick up in the last 25% it is A LOT in a small space and I really wish the story had been better balanced to that because THAT is what justifies Cella's efforts - I think that would have made a huge difference in my reading experience and that that was more of what I had anticipated from the book as a whole.

I also really struggled with understanding how the school worked. They're an admittedly no name school flying under the radar so people don't realize they're secretly a magic school -- and yet the students are all graduating and fighting over PhD roles at the ivy leagues? Physics is their main degree at a school of agriculture? There are frats and sororities? As someone who has worked in higher education for over 15 years, none of this made any sense to me.

I really wanted to like this book--it seemed like an interesting take on magic in our world, and those books are my jam. This didn't do it for me though. Cella returns to her magical university to solve a crime, and she's reunited with her magical partner (too hard to explain right now) Max, and they try to solve the crime. Lots of suspects, not a lot of evidence. Finally, they start to look for the Book of Autumn to help them solve the crime. I couldn't get engage in the story, and there really wasn't a lot of magic going on except for the very end. Too many side quests with the story of Max and Cella's relationship and Cella's brother. There was so much Greek philosophy for a light read. I was so hopeful but loving this book was not meant to be.