A review by hollowspine
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

adventurous dark funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

 I wrote this in my review of Otaku and I think it applies here too, sometimes authors just need to remember that they are taking up space when they write, and if they are a white author remember that there are already plenty of spaces for them and their books. I appreciate that Novik wanted to create a story with a diverse cast of characters, including the MC, but the author admitted that she made mistakes, and it just goes to show the lack of diversity in publishing, and the need for more BIPOC writers, editors, reviewers, marketers, etc., and that more space needs to be given to BIPOC authors rather than white authors peppering their books with BIPOC characters.

As for the story, I enjoyed it. It has a classic coming-of-age fantasy set up in a lot of ways - it's about a "Chosen One" going to a magic school. It has a classic Taming of the Shrew/10 Things I Hate About You romance between the MCs. The book sets a good pace, there are both enough action sequences to keep things moving and exciting, and enough world-building and character development to get readers invested in the world and characters.  Folks who enjoyed when Harry Potter got dark and moody might enjoy this, but those who found HP's darker notes less so might not like the 'unlikable' main character.  Because I'm a bit of a downer myself, I kind of enjoyed the outsider aspect of the MC.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism

The author has acknowledged her implicit racism, but it's still there in the book, where the character describes someone with locks getting some sort of magic parasite due to the locks as a hairstyle, implying that this hairstyle is somehow 'dirty,' which is racist.