jaedia's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Classism, and Confinement
Moderate: Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, Child death, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Vomit
Minor: Grief, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical content, and Suicidal thoughts
kat1105's review
- 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
Graphic: Vomit, Blood, Child death, Violence, Death of parent, Gore, Body horror, Death, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
allisnbc's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Gore and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, and Murder
Minor: Sexual assault, Suicide, and Rape
mycology's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
- El is a well rounded character who is easy for the reader to like despite her being disliked by other characters.
- The premise and plot is enjoyable and easy to get hooked into.
- The worldbuilding is fantastic. It’s woven into the text so well it never feels like slogging through pages and pages of lore.
- It’s funny at times without taking away from the atmosphere.
- A great stepping point between YA and adult fantasy
Negatives (nit-picking here, the book was great)
- I dislike El’s relationship with Orion towards the end.
Spoiler
It feels forced to me that she’s starting to have feelings for him already. Or, at all for that matter. They just don’t seem compatible to me. Also, small point, but El mentions wanting kids badly at one point, which feels so out of character for her. Maybe later depending on how she’s developed, but it just didn’t seem right to me.<\spoiler> - I desperately wish there was any queer rep at all
Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Body horror, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Murder, and Vomit
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, and Grief
thequiltyreader's review against another edition
- 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
There was an attempt to address inequalities due I class which was good.
Overall a good read and I'll try the sequel.
Graphic: Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Gore
sphinxofblackquartz's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
bethanycrowepowell's review
- 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
4.5
Scholomance was built to protect teen wizards from the evil creatures drawn to their magic, but after some major technical failures, it doesn't quite work that way. Instead, students have to be on guard constantly, and their graduation is a gauntlet through where the largest of the monsters gather. When El starts to question whether it can be fixed, she's up against a lethal status quo that not everyone wants to change.
This book launches a trilogy that deconstructs magical school escapism with an eye to societies built around power disparities, full of compellingly complicated characters. El is a cranky but very relatable heroine whose fight against her prophesied destiny as a dark sorceress kept me reading through the whole series in a matter of days.
Graphic: Violence and Classism
Moderate: Child death, Cursing, Bullying, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Sexual content
Minor: Sexual violence and Rape
malley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Bullying, Death, Child death, Classism, Gore, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Toxic friendship
eule's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
What was a little off? The nearly constant inner monologue with sometimes too much details (info dumping about unnecessary politics and background stuff)? Her personality was somehow too careless in my opinion…?
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Pregnancy and Vomit
applezing's review
- 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
Graphic: Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Moderate: Grief, Abandonment, Bullying, Murder, Pregnancy, Animal death, Confinement, Animal cruelty, Child death, Classism, Death of parent, Drug use, and Violence