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kall_em's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
4.25
With consideration to the fact that this is a YA novel and I am an adult, I really enjoyed this book. I found the main character, El very relatable, especially her courage, snarky comments, and ability to be herself, despite hiding a part of herself from others. Her character revealed essences of masking that we all do and in some ways demonstrated where the desire to mask oneself comes from.
It did take quite a while for this book to unravel, but once it did I was wrapped up in the storyline. Part of what delayed my interest in the plot was the over explanation of how magic, the school, monsters, etc. work. Still, the ending made my eyes pop, definitely left me wanting more!
It did take quite a while for this book to unravel, but once it did I was wrapped up in the storyline. Part of what delayed my interest in the plot was the over explanation of how magic, the school, monsters, etc. work. Still, the ending made my eyes pop, definitely left me wanting more!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
kymopolaya's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
A lot of exposition, especially in the beginning but all those details end up making the world and magic system really come to life in the end
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
hzamrzla's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
While I loved the world of this book and the possibilities it presented, the story itself was weirdly paced. I felt like it spent a LOT of time building up to a major, menacing reveal, and then the climax was told with the same weight as the rest of the story, the ending felt abrupt and jarring, and overall, it just seemed like a lot of buildup for not much payoff.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Moderate: Bullying and Violence
Minor: Animal cruelty, Child death, Emotional abuse, and Sexual assault
One scene is not a sexual assault, but a pretty blatant sexual assault parallel. It was the only thing in the book that really gave me pause.allisnbc's review against another edition
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, and Murder
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide
charlies_shelf's review against another edition
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Honestly I'm so confused about how i feel. Book has some good quotes though
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
Minor: Racism and Classism
bluenarcissa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Violence
freckles's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Solid fantasy story. As usual with Naomi Novik's works, I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and the characters.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
lawmaker14's review against another edition
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
For the positives, I thought that this book was a fun read and I am looking forward to reading the next installments. The world building is complex and interesting, while the monsters are grotesque and scary. The book is humorous, mainly due to the witty main character, and there is character development as El learns to let people in.
But Novik puts so much information on the page that it is sometimes difficult to get through such intense internal monologue. I also found some plot points to be thrown in with little to no direction- mainly the combat portions. This left me a little confused and I had to read certain scenes more then once.
But Novik puts so much information on the page that it is sometimes difficult to get through such intense internal monologue. I also found some plot points to be thrown in with little to no direction- mainly the combat portions. This left me a little confused and I had to read certain scenes more then once.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
saintsunshine's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
While neither original nor profound, Naomi Novik's A Deadly Education makes for an enjoyable subversion of magical school tropes popularized by the less than admirable J.K. Rowling. Galadriel is also a charmingly reluctant protagonist and I'm eager to see how she continues to grow as a character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content, Pregnancy, and War
thewileyseven's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-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
4.0
This book is fascinating. A lot of this first book felt like exposition? But I REALLY enjoyed it--the world is SO unhinged and dangerous. Novik is excellent and growing and developing her characters so subtly you don't even realize they're changing, which is always really rewarding when you finally notice. This is a like... wizard school battle royale monster of the week total fuckery and I'm already grabbing the next one to wolf down.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
There is a magical creature that devours souls that is briefly described as waiting to open the main character up and consume her by getting inside either her mouth or between her legs. It's just suggestive enough of assault to be disconcerting and worth mentioning!