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aisleyreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
athryn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Picks up right where the previous one left off, but managed to surprise me with subverting my expectations of where I thought it was going. Still darkly humorous, and hard to put down.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Child death, Gore, and Vomit
Minor: Blood
toopunkrockforshul's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
What a book! Just as good as the first but omg the ending. Unbelieveable, glad I don't have to wait for the next one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Child death, Death, Grief, Confinement, and Blood
Minor: Sexual violence, Murder, Vomit, Sexual content, and Pregnancy
Confinement in the sense that the students are trapped in the school and unable to leavejkneebone's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
In the sequel to A Deadly Education, El and her allies/friends face down their senior year in the Scholomance, and the terrifying graduation run that will conclude it. However, it quickly becomes clear that it’s not going to be a normal year for El, or for anyone - the school knows how powerful she is, and is taking action because of it.
I loved this one, if possible, even more than the first book. Naomi Novik continues to build on the already-amazing world building by giving us new features and new cognizance from the Scholomance. We get to find out more about the friends El made in book one, such as Aadhya and Liu, while meeting even more players. And similarly to what I adored in book one, El continues to make the harder choices - the ones that are right and good - at every step of the way.And obviously the fact that everyone had to learn to work together - the opposite of what everything else about the Scholomance had taught them! - in order to save everyone really got me. Plus, Novik gives us such a tragic full circle moment with that ending - even though I was expecting something might happen to Orion, I wasn’t expecting it LIKE THAT. Gah.
If you liked book one, you will like book two - and if you didn’t like book one, you probably don’t want to read book two anyway!
I loved this one, if possible, even more than the first book. Naomi Novik continues to build on the already-amazing world building by giving us new features and new cognizance from the Scholomance. We get to find out more about the friends El made in book one, such as Aadhya and Liu, while meeting even more players. And similarly to what I adored in book one, El continues to make the harder choices - the ones that are right and good - at every step of the way.
If you liked book one, you will like book two - and if you didn’t like book one, you probably don’t want to read book two anyway!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
pages_with_panda's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The pacing felt a LOT better in this book. And even though we got El’s monologuing and side stories, I felt like the world building was pretty solidly done by this book and it left us more time to get to know the characters better.
El’s development was great - she still has the same attitude and rudeness (which I love for her), but her resolve to help people (even people she hated) was amazing. I loved her overall.
Orion is so bland but we did get to know him a little better; and I’m glad that him and El had an actual conversation, considering they’re "dating."
Overall a great story - I wanted to cry during El’s realization that everyone deserved to live. It was a great way to describe the classism of our world and link it to the magical society.
Great story that wrapped up nicely while still leaving us with an AWFUL cliffhanger and enough material for the next book. Couldn't wait to pick it up.
El’s development was great - she still has the same attitude and rudeness (which I love for her), but her resolve to help people (even people she hated) was amazing. I loved her overall.
Orion is so bland but we did get to know him a little better; and I’m glad that him and El had an actual conversation, considering they’re "dating."
Overall a great story - I wanted to cry during El’s realization that everyone deserved to live. It was a great way to describe the classism of our world and link it to the magical society.
Great story that wrapped up nicely while still leaving us with an AWFUL cliffhanger and enough material for the next book. Couldn't wait to pick it up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Gore, Body horror, Sexual content, and Child death
Minor: Death of parent
emilymia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
Moderate: Sexual content
icarusandthesun's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
a great sequel with the most brutal cliffhanger one could imagine. thrilling.
quite a curious read, especially regarding the characters and their development. the whole book centers around graduation, and a very important and substantial twist in el's thinking. the ideas behind the book were brilliant, if perhaps a little "out of character" with a lot of new concepts that make the reader basically scrap everything they know about the dark school of magic (and partly the characters as well) from the first book. it wasn't at all unpleasant or anything, quite the opposite - it filled the sequel with fresh and interest-evoking ideas, but just know that this one is swerving in the 'everything is going to be alright' and positive-thinking direction. i seriously missed the 'fuck we're all gonna die' mood from the first book and also just some death in general, but alright.
the romance sort of peaks in this one as well, and i'm really in love with the dynamic. the cliffhanger made me want to haul the book against the wall because it was just so so ... screaming crying throwing up yk, in a good way.
the one awkward sex scene made me a little uncomfortable because it was simply so uncalled for and just an unnecessary like, three-page-filler, so nope, didn't like that at all.
quite a curious read, especially regarding the characters and their development. the whole book centers around graduation, and a very important and substantial twist in el's thinking. the ideas behind the book were brilliant, if perhaps a little "out of character" with a lot of new concepts that make the reader basically scrap everything they know about the dark school of magic (and partly the characters as well) from the first book. it wasn't at all unpleasant or anything, quite the opposite - it filled the sequel with fresh and interest-evoking ideas, but just know that this one is swerving in the 'everything is going to be alright' and positive-thinking direction. i seriously missed the 'fuck we're all gonna die' mood from the first book and also just some death in general, but alright.
the romance sort of peaks in this one as well, and i'm really in love with the dynamic. the cliffhanger made me want to haul the book against the wall because it was just so so ... screaming crying throwing up yk, in a good way.
the one awkward sex scene made me a little uncomfortable because it was simply so uncalled for and just an unnecessary like, three-page-filler, so nope, didn't like that at all.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Sexual content
Minor: Blood, Medical content, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Child death, and Vomit
ireadinbed's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
What the actual fuck. Naomi Novik loves to end a book on a DEVASTATING line. I cannot wait to read the next one. This book filled me with hope and despair. I never wabt to highlight books but there were 2 lines i want to keep with me forever.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Gore
Moderate: Vomit and Sexual content
leahfoko's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
YO ORION WTF. I liked this book, a little less than the first just cause I was a little less invested in the plot of this one but it was good. I don’t know how I will feel about the next one now that it’s not going to be set in the scholomance but I will be curious to see where the plot goes!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Sexual content
the_quickening_tree's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Blood, and Body horror
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Sexual content, and Injury/Injury detail