I have to say I didn't love this one. It started well and the ending was fantastic, but the middle really struggled to hold my interest and I don't have a lot of patience for people sitting around and trying to sound clever. I really disliked one of the characters, and I get that we were supposed to dislike him, but there should be some sort of redeeming feature. Nico, Libby and Tristan were my favourites because they at least showed some growth over the course of the book. I will be reading the sequel because that ending still hasn't let go of me, but overall this was a bit disappointing.

My full review will be posted on my blog on 8th March.

An interesting delve into dark academia! The characters all have their own interesting backgrounds and motivations, and I loved the dynamics between each of them as they try to navigate the society and form tentative alliances. There were definitely sections where the pace fell off a bit for me, but I think the author has laid a good foundation for the next instalment and I'm excited to see where it goes!

“The problem with knowledge, is its inexhaustible craving. the more of it you have, the less you feel you know.”

To be honest with you, I’m disappointed by this book. All I’d heard was praise and my reading experience just left me wondering if I’d read a different book.
I optimistically said, when I initially finished this, that I don’t always like dark academia, I have historically rated them 3 stars or less, I shouldn’t be surprised by what I thought of this. But, rereading the blurb, I should have liked this. It almost sounded like an adult THG, but based on magic and its history. Sure, we got that, but only in small amounts.
Despite magic being a key part of it, it honestly felt like it wasn’t there. In theory, I liked how magic was scientific and how science was used to explore it, but I just felt lost whenever it was spoken about - I feel like I needed a degree to just understand what happened. I’m sure I will understand it more with a reread (which I will do… in theory), but it’s the kind of book that makes me feel like I should reread it straight away so I know the plot and only have to worry about understanding what’s happening.
I also wish we’d got to see more of the history - we were promised a society hundreds of years old, but we barely scratched the surface. I understand the six were only in their first year so couldn’t access everything, but I feel like we should have been given more.
It’s not worth saying I didn’t like the characters because they’re not the kind of characters you’re meant to like. They’re prickly and unlikeable and they’re pretentious. And maybe they accurately represent academics - because I think that’s what this book is about, the competitiveness of academia. But they spoke like literary fiction characters trapped in fantasy, I just couldn’t understand what they were saying. Plus, my favourite was Reina, she had a really interesting power, but I feel like she was only there to be an inoffensive filler.
Finally, nothing happened. It felt like a drag to get through. There was a bit of action about 100 pages in and that was about it - apart from the drama at the end that I didn’t react to because I was still trying to understand everything before.
Well. I didn’t intend to rant and I did intend to rate this 3 stars - I think this was probably rated on the potential that I didn’t see - but I’m struggling to find anything positive to say about it - which explains why I struggled to film a video review.
Please let me know if someone else out there didn’t enjoy this.

I was really looking forward to reading The Atlas Six. I've seen so many positive reviews. However, I found myself struggling to keep interested. This kind of book is something I really enjoy. I love books about magic. I found the characters are unlikeable, but the story itself had potential, and I felt it didn't really pick up until the last few chapters. The writing was very descriptive and informative, so there wasn't any issue with the writing style. I hadn't realized it was originally self-published, but it feels like the 'big' publisher hasn't changed much. I do think that the second book will be better, and I do look forward to reading that.

Thanks to Netgalley and publishers for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I kept seeing ‘The Atlas Six’ pop up all over book tube and Instagram; so when I saw I could snag an ARC copy on NetGalley I leapt at the chance to read it.

I liked this book - but I wished I could have enjoyed it more as other readers have. It had such good potential but was let down in many areas which might also put off other readers.

The Characters:
I do enjoy multiple POVs and morally grey characters who start off rough around the edges before we slowly start to unravel a bit more about them and learn why they are the way they are (Six of Crows is a prime example).

Unfortunately, the characters in ‘The Atlas Six’ were so one dimensional I didn’t find myself caring all that much about them. They instantly come across as arrogant and egotistical, or downright annoying, that when we get to the snippets of backstory where we should start to feel sympathy or a deeper understanding of their character, I found myself not caring all that much as there's no character growth. I found myself shaking my head and muttering ‘you’re all terrible’ at the pages a lot.

Magic System:
I read this whole book, and I still can’t explain what the magic system is or how it works. I was left with so many questions; what’s the difference between a witch and a medeian? Is magic genetic or random? Is it actually magic or more like X-men powers? Where does it come from or how is it powered? It implies that regular non magic folk are aware there is magic...and are somehow cool with this and with this small magical minority group effectively running he world? Magic in this book seems interlinked with physics and psychology but is very poorly explained that I couldn’t grasp how it works at all.

Another point is all the main characters have an ability or a type of magic they can do (with some variation) and the author starts off the story introducing each person along with their skill…and then changes it, over and over. It’s a constant ‘oh they can do this…and now they can do that…oh and also this!. All without any training or moments of discovery so it comes across as super overpowering. There seem to be no limitations at all.

It got so bad that at one point a character is randomly revealed to be able to shapeshift and I just glossed over it without care because at that point I’d lost track of what everyone could do now anyway and nothing felt like a surprise anymore. I had to gloss over most of the magic talk between characters anyway as I don’t think anyone other than the author could wrap their head around it.

Genre?:
This book is marketed as a Dark Academia but I think the author forgot the academia part. It’s more of a Dark Independent Study Group. After being invited to the Alexandrian Society to study, the characters are then left to their own devices to do what they want apart from a few random topical lectures and getting together twice in the whole book to work on the group project they were assigned.

Overall, this book and universe have promise and I hope there are improvements for the sequel. However, it won’t be something I’ll be rushing to read at the moment.

I'd give this book 2.5-3 stars.

[This review is based on NetGalley ARC provided in
exchange for an honest, unbiased opinion.]

The Atlas Six follows six candidates that are chosen to be a part of an elite academic Society. They each have incredible talents and are told that only five of them will be accepted to into the Society. None of them know the darkness that awaits.

First of all, the writing in this book was truly something else. each sentence was full with turning and twisting words. It was almost darkly poetic in a sense. The descriptions were deep and rich, full of so much imagination. I think it's amazing that someone has a brain that works like this and can come up with such an intricate plot and execute it in the way that the author did. That being said I can't really put my finger on how I feel after reading it. I know that there is a sequel coming out and I feel like because of this, this book was more of a set up of what's to come. There is a lot of new information and explanations that had to be given (which is obviously necessary) but I just felt like there was more to come.
The 'plot twist' I found to be slightly disappointing, especially because it was so near the end. I t felt like a huge lead up to something that wasn't really that insane or unexpected.

I really liked the dark academia atmosphere in this book. I think also because of this setting that the characters make more sense. To be honest, none of them were likeable. Even the ones that weren't overtly bad and acted poorly still weren't really characters that I cared deeply about. I think that the author can get away with this because it is almost the nature in highly academic settings in books for the people to be harsh and egotistical in a sense. I felt almost intrusive and uncomfortable at some of their actions and reading from their point of view felt like I was in their heads without permission. I will say that I think the author has an incredible talent for writing so honestly about humans and their nature, it was truly impressive. I do also think that in the next books I'll feel more amicable towards them.

Overall, this book is a refreshing concept, with great description and dark atmosphere and interesting characters. I'll definitely be reading the sequel when it comes out.

I want to kiss this book for saving me from an oncoming slump. I was 👌 this close to not picking up a book for a month because of the last two books I read. I’m so glad that I did pick this one up because WOW.

The characters were so in depth and I loved their different abilities. Gotta say Libby was my favourite, probably because I relate to her a bit too much. There were some surprising twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. Notably the steamy scenes that would pop up EVERY time I was reading on the bus but never when I was reading alone in my house (you were warned).

The writing is incredible and the physics well-researched (not that I would know but it seemed legit). Sometimes it went over my head though. I think this book is actually too smart for me. Still, I loved it and can’t wait for the next book <3

This book is not the masterpiece everything on the Internet is making it out to be, but what it's being told about the characters is certainly true: they are the strongest point of the story. I loved their relationship with one another and they way each of them is crafted as an individual, they kind of fit the dark academia tropes. However, the plot is nothing spectacular, I would have loved if it were a bit more focused on the thirst of knowledge and how that spirals into madness, which is my favourite thing about dark academia. Aside from the characters, this book is not very dark academic, to be honest. I am curious to see how the story evolves in the sequel, even if I hate paradoxes and the title is literally The Atlas Paradox, lmao. I will be reading to know what happens to the characters and how their relationships evolve. I hope Gideon (which is, of course, my fav) will play a bigger role, but probably not...

Is there a line you wouldn't cross to gain knowledge and power?

Six powerful magic wielders are invited to join a secretive society with access to unfathomable archives of books and lost knowledge. The catch? Only five of them can make it through the initiation. Cue mind games, fragile alliances and displays of extraordinary power. But knowledge comes at a cost, and all six will have to decide what they're willing to pay.

The Atlas Six is filled with murky morals and ethical dilemmas - with a host of morally ambiguous characters to ponder them. It's told from multiple viewpoints where everyone has their own agenda and motivations. Not everyone is easy to like (in fact I'm not sure there was anyone I really liked at all by the end?!) But that didn't mean I didn't enjoy reading about these characters. I liked Libby and Nico's rivalry as it made for some great arguments, and Parisa and Callum's chapters were always full of internal surprises.

This novel has a lot of clever world-building, with so much depth and history to explore. There are some good twists and plenty of moments where it was hard to put this down. Book two is set up really well, although it's difficult to work out what, exactly, is going to happen next.

Olivia Blake never fails to surprise me. This book was everything I could have hoped for: romance, relationships, sibling relationships, and WITCHES? I was speechless the entire time, and even though I finished it last night, I can't stop thinking about it. The writing was lovely, and the characters were all fantastic. While I would have liked to learn more about Marya and Sasha's relationships with their other sisters, I adored theirs and the way Fedorov's brothers' dynamics changed throughout the story. I wholeheartedly recommend this book; it was never dull from beginning to end.

There are many different things I tend to like about books. But selfish people in an academic setting, competing, sleeping with each other and other people and a healthy dose of backstabbing and magic is a formula that never fails to grip me. And The Atlas Six can compete with the best of them in that regard. It is the sort of book you just have to devour once you get stuck in, the kind that makes you stay up far later than you’d like because you simply need to know how it ends. And now I am eagerly waiting for book two…

It is not highbrow or necessarily the most creative story out there. It is made up of a slew of tropes, but I think that’s exactly where this book’s charm lies. It takes many of the elements from books we’ve all read and loved growing up and turns them into pure entertainment. In some ways, The Atlas Six is a The CW show of fantasy books – glossy, full of beautiful people who really are horrible, and compulsively readable, pure escapism. And for me personally, that’s exactly what made it resonate so much. Taking these shiny elements that made it fun, adding a good pinch of escapism and combining that with the magic school and library setting that I click with as a book nerd? You’ve got a winning formula there.

And despite the characters all being objectively terrible and selfish people with moral issues, I loved basically all of them. For me, that speaks to good writing – because them being interesting mattered more than them being actually likeable, and they charmed their way into my heart anyways. I think my favourite was probably Libby, disaster bisexual that she is, with her weird rivalry with Nico, bordering on obsession. But honestly, all I want to do is start rereading the book again. I have a feeling this may become a comfort read…

I realise that this was originally self published and has now been picked up by a publisher and I'm so disappointed in the fact that it still reads like a self published piece. Clumsy, overly ostentatious and pretentious writing, with a total disconnect to the characters.
This has the makings of an amazing series of books but when every review I've seen talks about how it's hard work but worth it, I just feel sad. So much potential but it was TOO much like hard work and I think I'll just wait for the TV show.

There are several series about magical schools, but this one looks at what one might call postgraduate study. Magic is known and used in this world, and can be studied to university level and employed in everyday life.
The beginning of the book introduces the main characters and the offer they are given - the opportunity to study in the Library of Alexandria. In this universe the Library was not burned but chose to hide itself, and access is only permitted to selected magic users.
The six chosen to compete for places in the elite Alexandrian Society have different physical and mental magic, and how they use their skills is one of the most interesting aspects of the book.
Because there is no set form of study (as there might be in a school) the book doesn’t have a recognisable progression. Instead different threads come together as the story requires, and how former Alexandrians have used their study becomes important and rather surprising.
The book did come to an abrupt end, which might seem better when the sequel appears. I enjoyed this book and its fresh ideas, but it felt a little disjointed to me. Other readers might not have this impression.

I had a copy of this book early through NetGalley.

The first thing you might think is, "MAGICAL COMPETITION? I am expecting epic magic battles on every page". And you'd be wrong. The Atlas Six is a multiple POV novel that is fueled by character development. Once you've re-framed your expectations, you are treated to a story which allows you to know each nook and cranny of a character. To hear what makes them tick, to see the secrets they try to hide on their surface. If you love rivals, people hiding from their own secrets, trying to escape boredom, and discover answers, then this is for you.

Once I got accustomed to the slightly slower pacing - because we keep switching between POVs - I ended up sinking into my fascination for these characters. Talk about a fantastic set of diverse characters as well! By the end of the book, I became fully committed. Not only are there breadcrumbs, clues, and pieces of a character that bloom, but also The Atlas Six ends up concluding with an explosive finish. Blake takes the time to have readers get to know the characters. All the magical talents, untapped potential, and puzzles as they figure out the secrets of the Alexandrian society.

wow! where do I even begin with this book? From the start, this dark academia story filled with morally gray characters drew me in slowly but surely until I could not put the book down. I'm in awe of Olivie Blake's ability to make you hate and love characters in such a short amount of time. Beautiful storytelling and a gripping tale in itself. Libby and Nico have captured by soul but all these characters have a special place in my heart. This is not a release you want to miss!

Characters - 7/10
The Atlas Six is mainly character-driven, and usually, I don't mind character-driven stories. However, I minded this one. The only two characters that were even remotely interesting to me were Nico and Libby. I wish this whole book was just their POVs. They have the most interesting dynamic, they are (hopefully) the enemies to lovers we deserve. I enjoyed their POVs the most, and I wanted more from them.

The rest of the characters are pretty meh in my opinion. I liked Reina, Parisa and Tristan enough. I absolutely loathe Callum. The first three have potential and their stories have potential, but mainly as side characters. Give me more Nico and Libby, please.

Atmosphere - 6/10
The Atlas Six was originally fanfiction. There's nothing wrong with that, fanfiction is addictive and I love it. However, in the case of The Atlas Six, Blake needed to do more. This book needs more worldbuilding, a lot more. I went into it thinking we'd get the Library of Alexandria, major dark academia vibes, and some sort of lore or mystery. We didn't get much. What we got was mostly dialogue without any action. I couldn't tell you much about the world or how the society works. It just needs more, and I'm hoping we'll get more in the sequel.

Writing - 7/10
Blake's writing wasn't bad, and some parts really gripped me. However, because this book was so dialogue-heavy, I feel like her writing didn't have a chance to shine. I haven't read the indie-published version of this book, only the traditional published version, so I can't compare. But I think with some editing and more room to grow, Blake could be an amazing writer.

Plot - 6/10
The Atlas Six has a "head empty, no thoughts" kind of plot. It is mostly about the characters and their powers, but it makes it monotonous in some way. I can only sit through so many philosophical discussions in one books. It needed more action, maybe even more intrigue.

A lot also happens in the last 10% of the book. I wish it had been done differently, more consistently throughout the book. The big twist could also have been a great cliffhanger, with more of Ezra and Atlas' story being revealed in the sequel.

Intrigue - 6/10
I hate to admit that I was bored throughout most of this book. The only characters to intrigue me were Nico and Libby. We don't see enough of the library. The characters learn some cool things, but once again I was expecting something different.

Logic - 5/10
I have so many questions about the magic system. I have a preference for hard magic systems. In my opinion, magic works well with rules and structure. We get very few rules and structures in this book. I would have liked it if Blake delved more into the magic of this underground world she created. There's always the next book.

Enjoyment - 6/10
Overall this isn't a bad book. I did enjoy it at times, however, I was expecting there to be more to it. Perhaps I let the hype get to me. I will be continuing with this series though, and I am eager to see where it goes.

DNF at 21%.

This is probably the final nail in the coffin for me realising that I just don't enjoy dark academia, so please take this review with a hefty pinch of salt: I *hated* this book, but it's not you, it's me. If you're a fan of unlikeable, ambitious characters, philosophical musings, and the kind of writing that is perfect for pulling quotes out of and making very dramatic moodboards with, then you are probably going to love this book. I personally found it unbearable.

The Atlas Six is what would happen if you put The Secret History and Six of Crows in a blender, then added a hefty dose of Marauders fanfic. TikTok is going to go wild for this book, but I'm past the point in my life where snark and Deep Thoughts will pull me through a book where I genuinely dislike all the characters. I pretty much read this whole thing with a raised eyebrow at how seriously it seemed to be taking itself. It's sixth-form amateur philosophy and psychology presented as if it's the most original thing ever; at the point I DNFed, there was pretty much no plot to speak of, just a series of interminable scenes of each character assessing all the others. I'm sure I'm just not the target market for this (which makes me feel very old), and I'm disappointed I couldn't enjoy it; however, it does what it's supposed to be doing, and I'm glad it's getting the praise it deserves.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

When the email landed in my inbox that I’d been approved for this ARC, I couldn’t describe how excited I was for it. The amount of amazing things I’ve heard about this book, meant that I was in for a treat, for sure.

When books because “famous” on social media platforms, especially TikTok, everybody wants to know if it really is worth the hype. And to be honest, I’m not sure. The book in itself I really enjoyed, however it isn’t really as rememberable as I thought it was going to be.

But I did really enjoy it. The characters were the highlight for me. Each were dynamic and intriguing in their own way, dealing with different situations in their own lives but also being thrust into this society and having to deal with the complications that come with it. I loved the way the author dealt with balancing all of these elements together and weaving a plot line in between all of that.

I really enjoyed the diversity represented in this book and some of the actions the characters take, I would perhaps love to see more development in those areas and see where it goes in the sequel.

That being said, the start did feel a little slow and it was quite confusing to understand what was happening to begin with. Once I’d found my feet within this book, it then became an easy read.

This was such a great book. I can't believe I hadn't read it sooner!! I was gripped from the start, and it is incredibly well written. I am lucky enough to be getting the fairyloot version of this book, and can't wait to have a hard copy

Thank you to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for this ARC!

'The Atlas Six' is a dark and twisting story following the world’s best magicians who have been invited into the secret Alexandrian Society to explore and guard its ancient archives using their own specialities.

In a captivating blend of dark academia and fantasy, Olivie Blake has brought together a memorable cast of characters that all stand out equally. And despite there being six perspectives we hear from, no character gets forgotten or pushed to the side; each of them are well-realised and explored throughout the story from beginning to end.

I really enjoyed the writing style. Whilst I did occasionally feel there were moments that were slightly overwritten and dragged on, I loved how intelligent it was, and it only further enhanced the characters and their perspectives, leaving a feeling like I was truly in each of their heads. The tensions and conflict between the characters was present from the beginning and constantly moving along with the changing relationships and ties within the group. The academic nature of the writing lends itself greatly to the deep, almost analytical observations each of the characters make of one another.

Even though I felt I wanted a more driven and focused plot, the characters entirely took hold of the story. Blake uses each of them to delve into and play around with large-scale ideas in physics, philosophical questions, the intricacies and the power of illusion as well as seduction. 'The Atlas Six' is a killer of a novel, an enthralling page-turner with a gorgeous aesthetic that readers of both fantasy and dark academia will love.