A review by stardustnia
The World Cannot Give by Tara Isabella Burton

4.0

‘the world cannot give’ is a coming-of-age drama set in a boarding school with dark academia elements as well as themes of wealth, obsession, devotion, and toxic relationships. it follows an anxious, compassionate, overachieving female lead, named laura and her fascination with a deceased author and his book. following his footsteps, she looks for a place to call home, looks for somewhere transcendent to belong. she eventually becomes entangled with the school’s choir as a result of her attraction to virginia, the choir’s intense and charismatic leader. as someone who absolutely adored ‘the secret history’, i enjoyed every bit of this book and recommend it to anyone who is in the mood for something dark, mysterious and philosophical. the writing was stunning and it’s definitely a book i would like to revisit in the future.