A Deadly Education

A Novel (The Scholomance, Book 1)

By: Naomi Novik

Narrated by: Anisha Dadia

New York Times Best Seller

From the author of Uprooted and Spinning Silver comes the first book of the Scholomance trilogy, the story of an unwilling dark sorceress who is destined to rewrite the rules of magic.

Finalist for the Lodestar Award

“The dark school of magic I’ve been waiting for.” (Katherine Arden, author of the Winternight Trilogy)

I decided that Orion Lake needed to die after the second time he saved my life.

Everyone loves Orion Lake. Everyone else, that is. Far as I’m concerned, he can keep his flashy combat magic to himself. I’m not joining his pack of adoring fans.

I don’t need help surviving the Scholomance, even if they do. Forget the hordes of monsters and cursed artifacts; I’m probably the most dangerous thing in the place. Just give me a chance and I’ll level mountains and kill untold millions, making myself the dark queen of the world.

At least, that’s what the world expects. Most of the other students in here would be delighted if Orion killed me, like one more evil thing that’s crawled out of the drains. Sometimes I think they want me to turn into the evil witch they assume I am. The school certainly does.

But the Scholomance isn’t getting what it wants from me. And neither is Orion Lake. I may not be anyone’s idea of the shining hero, but I’m going to make it out of this place alive, and I’m not going to slaughter thousands to do it, either.

Although I’m giving serious consideration to just one.

With flawless mastery, Naomi Novik creates a school bursting with magic like you’ve never seen before, and a heroine for the ages - a character so sharply realized and so richly nuanced that she will live on in hearts and minds for generations to come.

The magic of the Scholomance trilogy continues in The Last Graduate.

“The can’t-miss fantasy of fall 2020, a brutal coming-of-power story steeped in the aesthetics of dark academia. ... A Deadly Education will cement Naomi Novik’s place as one of the greatest and most versatile fantasy writers of our time.” (BookPage, starred review)

“A must-read ... Novik puts a refreshingly dark, adult spin on the magical boarding school. ... Readers will delight in the push-and-pull of El and Orion’s relationship, the fantastically detailed world, the clever magic system, and the matter-of-fact diversity of the student body.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

©2020 Naomi Novik (P)2020 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“I loved this book. It’s such a nail-biter, it’s funny, it’s thought-provoking, and it’s such a good read.”—BuzzFeed

“Novik deliciously undoes expectations about magic schools, destined heroes, and family legacies. A gorgeous book about monsters and monstrousness, chockablock with action, cleverness, and wit.”—Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author

“Hilarious and wild! Take any fictional magic school, make it as over-the-top dangerous as possible, and populate it with a bunch of snarky teenagers; the result is pure batshit fun.”—N. K. Jemisin, New York Times bestselling author of The City We Became

Another great story from Naomi Novik

Didn't put it down from the first word. It's 7 in the morning now.

Wow... A New Take on Magic School

I went into this book not sure if I was going to like it at all. Having said that, I thought this was one of the best takes on "Magic School" that I've read in a long time (and I've read a LOT of different books and series with the theme).

First off, there are no "teachers" or "professors" in this school. The entire school is controlled by magic. All of the students are magically transported to the school in their first year and remain there until after they graduate. The school is also infested with all kinds of dangerous creatures that prey on the students. However, since untrained magic users have a very low survival rate without proper training, attending the dangerous Scholomance school is one of their only real options.
The MC is a relative outcast. The daughter of a prominent healer and pacifist, she herself has an affinity for spells of dominion and mass destruction (spells that she dare not use or risk corrupting herself and her magic). Throughout the book, she begins to develop a friendship with some of her fellow students, including the wildly popular and heroic boy that has saved her life on multiple occasions. They work together to face the growing threat of the magical creatures that infest the school.

I thought the narrator was perfect for the book as well. She did an excellent job with the different characters and genders.

Honestly, I liked this book enough that I started reading other books by the author after reading this one. She has a pretty interesting imagination and viewpoint on fantasy and magic. I HATED that she left the book in such an obvious cliffhanger... I've often said that writers don't need to do this to keep readers coming back and turns people off more than anything. However, the overall plot and story of the book did conclude (at least) and the ending was more of a setup for the next book.

Another winner from Naomi Novik

Great characters and a very unusual world make for a tremendously fun read. Really hoping for a sequel.

Brilliant story

Brilliant series I’m totally going to reread over and over.

Things I love about these books:

1. The attitude and snark is brilliantly witty. In the first book she comes off as a bit caustic but the personal growth arch of all of the character is awesome.

3. The layers of story. She has some brilliant world building all based on a very simple concept that become layered like a puff pastry. It’s not too much at once so you aren’t slogging through ages of complicated lore.

4. It’s one story spread beautifully through three books BUT each one is a complete story and doesn’t end on a cliff hanger.

5. While romantic interests play a part in the book it’s not the main plot point. Other relationships are equally or more important. She isn’t spending her life wondering if someone likes her / moping over her prospects.

Down sides - I’m a little bit sad that she included some sex in the next two books just because I wanted to read these with my tweens. It’s not too graphic / detailed but enough I wouldn’t recommend it to people under maybe 15y?

Dark side of Hogwarts

Hogwarts, if Hogwarts ate the children. And told from the perspective of a girl who's been told all her life that she's the villain.

Refreshing, sassy and engaging

Knees some of the true tropes in the groin, and proceeds to be a fun listen. Engaging protagonist, engaging antagonists and environment. I was grinning and enthused throughout.

A little slow start but worth it

The beginning and the pacing was a little slow sometimes, but I'm glad I pushed through because it is so worth it!

Impressed!

I’m a bit of a nerd for fantasy like many others here. One of the Best most sofisticated and funny works I’ve seen in a while. Both in terms of magic system, world building and characters. I’ll treasure this one!!!

A Different Kind of Magic School

Sometimes magic school books are great fun, and sometimes they are not. This one I quite enjoyed because it was totally different from any magic school book I've ever read. There's no sneaking out at night with friends for zany magical adventures or complaining about homework (hello, you are learning magic, stop complaining). This magic school is filled with deadly monsters and if you don't learn, you die, and even if you do learn and manage to make good alliances, you will still probably die during graduation, which is just trying to get out the door past all the monsters. The protagonist of our story is cantankerous and unlikable, and has been prophesied to become a massively destructive and evil sorceress. She struggles to do simple things because her magic is more designed for apocalyptic destruction than cleaning her room.
There is quite a bit of narration to this story as most of it is the main character's thought processes, so if that annoys you, heads up. Over all I quite enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next one.

Another fantastical world!

I am a big fan of Naomi Novik and I love the narrators she chooses.

I've never blindly pre-ordered a book before, but after Uprooted and Spinning Silver I had the faith.

I'm giving it a 4/5 across the board because there were some extremely hefty information ridden moments throughout the book that I think could have been traded off for more details into the classrooms, daily life, and relationships between factions.

Solid read - though I wish this was a novel vs. a series because I hate to wait.