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mariebrunelm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Felicity Morrow is back at Dalloway a year after the tragic accident that caused her best friend's death. It's a new year at the elite school and a new set of students are housed with her at the very demanded Godwin house, among creaking floorboards and tilting bookshelves. Among them is Ellis Haley, young prodigy writer who attracts people like nectar for bees. Ellis is working on her next novel, about the Dalloway witches, a group of five students who died in the 1800s at Dalloway, whom Felicity was studying when tragedy struck. As one tries to make it all a thing of the past and the other is desperate to dig it out, ghosts are never far.
This book ticked all the dark academia boxes, one by one. Meticulously. As much as I loved all the references, and was glad to get most of them, it did feel a little too conspicuous. Like the author was presenting each one and saying ‘See? We're on the same wavelength!’.
That being said, again, there was much to love about this book. From the unreliable narrator to the mystery and the vibes. I loved how the beginning and the end unfolded, shining light on the characters’ tortuous psychology. My favourite part was perhaps how blurred the line was between reality and magic. Yet I came out a bit frustrated. I think I wish the themes had been explored that little bit deeper. But it's really to find a fault because this novel was perfectly enjoyable. I can also blame the stratospheric hype this book came with.
Rep: lesbian MC.
This book ticked all the dark academia boxes, one by one. Meticulously. As much as I loved all the references, and was glad to get most of them, it did feel a little too conspicuous. Like the author was presenting each one and saying ‘See? We're on the same wavelength!’.
That being said, again, there was much to love about this book. From the unreliable narrator to the mystery and the vibes. I loved how the beginning and the end unfolded, shining light on the characters’ tortuous psychology. My favourite part was perhaps how blurred the line was between reality and magic. Yet I came out a bit frustrated. I think I wish the themes had been explored that little bit deeper. But it's really to find a fault because this novel was perfectly enjoyable. I can also blame the stratospheric hype this book came with.
Rep: lesbian MC.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol and Death
Moderate: Animal death and Murder
ahntologies's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism
aneges's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Liked a lot the writing and the atmosphere. I like the fact that there is care in the writing and the descriptions to create the atmosphere without weighing down the story too much, especially considering it is YA.
The premise was also quite intriguing, we got a glimpse of the past of the school which gives horror vibes, some mistery about what happened which will be slowly revealed and also mentions of the occult and magic in a magical realism way.
Throughout the story it’s not clear if the magic is real or not and this was handled really well and added a lot to the tension.
The characters were well developed and had the right depth to them and there was also some representation of mental illness which was good in my opinion.
The plot was not the main point of the book but it was mostly there to guide the narration of the exploration of the characters and atmosphere.
For my liking the ending was the weakest part of it as some things happened that even though it raised the tension it lost something on the mystery and atmosphere side.
The ending was a bit underwhelming perhaps, it seemed almost like the author didn't know how to close it properly, especially the epilogue 3 years later didn't really add that much.
Overall I enjoyed the character arc of Felicity and I liked how she wasn't good and didn't even feel particularly bad about it (not because I think it's right obviously but because it's still fiction and sometimes it's refreshing to read about bad people).
I would say the book overall deserves a solid 4.5 (or even slightly more) but this ending makes me lower it a bit. Despite this it was still not that bad that it makes me regret reading it and I'm glad I picked it up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Murder
iphigeniad's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
A psychological thriller in sheep's clothing. Went into this one expecting actual ghosts and magic, and it was a wild ride. Big plot twist - I agree the third act felt rushed, and I would have liked to spend more time with Leonie and Kajal, the only characters of color in the book. Other than that, wow, this was a knockout punch of a mindfuck.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Animal death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Murder, and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism and Suicide
sylexlibris's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Toxic friendship, Death, Grief, Murder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
gmat's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Grief and Suicidal thoughts
jesliwen's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
holy shit the last hundred pages of this book is CRAZY and the best part,, but some of the representation is questionable and honestly i was confused often. so basically lesbian dark academia but i have no idea what’s going on half the time
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, and Alcohol
Minor: Racism
moxiemin's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Drug use and Alcoholism
solarel's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
At some points in this book I thought I was able to predict what would come next but I was always proven wrong. It kept me in a state of shock at every step with plot twists and reveals.
With the subject of high school girls, it makes sense that it read like a YA. At some points it felt like it was almost pretentiously trying to be adult, but that’s also on theme. The prose felt like it was trying too hard at times to be dark and edgy, but overall the vibes were very spooky academic.
Definitely a page turner. I enjoyed it.
With the subject of high school girls, it makes sense that it read like a YA. At some points it felt like it was almost pretentiously trying to be adult, but that’s also on theme. The prose felt like it was trying too hard at times to be dark and edgy, but overall the vibes were very spooky academic.
Definitely a page turner. I enjoyed it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Gun violence, Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Grief, Murder, Outing, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Toxic relationship
kerrygetsliterary's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Animal cruelty, Child death, Drug use, Gaslighting, Gore, Body horror, Animal death, Blood, Grief, and Murder