Reviews

Scholomance - Tödliche Lektion by Naomi Novik

persnickety_9's review against another edition

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4.0

Okay. This book wasn’t bad. I was confused as hell at first about how this is a school when there are no teachers, but whatever. I guess there’s a magical system in place. I mean, I liked the magical routes you can take, i.e. alchemy, incantation, etc. I mean, that’s pretty cool. Like, you basically have a major.

Anyways, this book was like “oh, okay.” I didn’t hate it. I really didn’t. It just felt as if I was in Draco’s head and Orion was clearly Harry and I mean, I’m into the weird romance that develops, I guess, but it was also kind of like, what are we even doing?

Like, WHAT IS THE POINT?

This is how I felt reading this book. I don’t feel any better or worse for reading it. It was just kind of a slog to get through sometimes? Like, I would put it down to eat or exercise and I wasn’t like, “Oh my gosh, I HAVE TO GET BACK READING.” I liked the characters well enough; I like El’s shitty attitude and general grumpiness. I found her endearing. Orion was annoying but in a good way.

Nothing was inherently bad about this book. Really. Like, I feel as if I have to defend this book and myself for not loving it but also defend the book for not being so lovable?

I just want to give this book 3.5 stars and a shrug.

But I’m also going to read the sequel because the cliffhanger was goooooooood.

tyhud's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

hvo's review against another edition

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4.0

Intricate world-building. Very compelling protagonist because she is clever, and has her principles. But it looks like the author was twisting themselves into a knot trying to keep the stakes because our girl is clearly overpowered, and there are instances where she could have saved herself and the people around her with a simple spell but she doesn't because .... (check notes) ... that might put a target on her back instead of earning her respect .... 

mercar's review against another edition

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4.0

Lovely book, finished it about a week ago, so details not so fresh any more (as I have read few more books since).
Loved the school setting with it's lovely details on languages and grading and punishments. Loved the people. Can't wait to read the next one.

debr's review against another edition

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4.0

Oh that was SUCH a fun read!

evivankorven's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-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? N/A

4.0

beeguard10's review against another edition

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4.0

3.5 ⭐

I heard someone say that the world building in this book is written like a Wikipedia article about the Scholomance, and she's right, but I love it. I just wanted a little more plot and a little less setup. Ready for the next books though!

carocat's review against another edition

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dark funny mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

ejcorporan's review against another edition

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4.0

4.4

tosmeabook27's review against another edition

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4.0

The ending