by Naomi Novik (Novik)
A Deadly Education is a
teens-in-magic-school story that leans all the way into horror. El (short for
“Galadriel”) was prophesied to become a world class villain, but in her junior
year at the Scholomance, she’s mostly just low on friends and trying to figure
out how to survive graduation next year, literally.
Surviving the horde of monsters
blocking the school’s only exit at graduation requires alliances, but El hasn’t
found the right time to show off her magic. She’s better equipped to incinerate
a city than spin up a simple room-cleaning spell, again…literally. Worst of
all, the class hero, Orion, keeps saving her life. With other people noticing.
Could she possibly look more helpless?
Despite the constant threat and
frequent student deaths, I found this to be a hopeful, fun read! I’ll be
picking up the sequel as soon as it comes out.
My enthusiasm for recommending this book is tempered a bit by (1) a monster attack being compared to sexual assault, (2) some racist stereotypes, one of which has been edited out of subsequent printings, and (3) the apparent total lack of LGBTQ+ teens in a sizeable cast in a 2020 publication. So heads-up on those aspects.
[If
you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the The Magicians series by Lev Grossman, or The Old Man’s War series by John Scalzi.]
Recommended by Garren H.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service
Have you read or listened to
this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?
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