Loved this dark academia collection of short stories from some of our absolute favorites (Olivie Blake and M. L. Rio!). Each story was unique and twisted in its own way, found myself preferring some over others but was overwhelmingly devouring each one.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

3/5 stars overall

This fits the vibe and I like it! I feel like overall though I am not an anthology girlie but this was a nice dip into the pool. Obviously some stories were better than others but overall it wasn't the most amazing thing Ive ever read. My favourite was Weekend at Berties by M.L Rio becuause she is definitely one of my favourite dark academic writers while my least favourite was The Unkowable Pleasures by Susie Yang. All in all, I think there is something for everyone in here!

An excellent collection of stories that fit the Dark Academia vibe. If you're looking for stories that will transport you to isolated campuses filled with predatory men, literary references, and cramped student housing, you've found your goal. The vibe comes alive, especially in stories about dead Poe scholars trapping their assistants in a morass of cliches from his work, to stories about the AI in the basement that has fallen in love with a grad student.

Thank you Titan Books & Netgalley for this ARC!

If you've been around here long enough, you know that dark academia is one of, if not, my favorite subgenres in literature. I love the nostalgia of school days, especially the ones where you find yourself handed this newfound independence surrounded by different groups of people and ideas, coupled with the supernatural or somewhat nefarious goings-on. It is cozy even when it's disturbing. And reading this short story anthology from some of the best in the game did not disappoint.

I was most looking forward to reading works from two of my favorite authors, namely Olivie Blake and M.L. Rio. Blake's Pythia spins the concept of AI on its head while Rio's Weekend at Bertie's walks us through two colleagues planning a money heist on their dead boss. And while I knew I'd love these stories, it was the new-to-me authors I was blown away by.

Here are the other stories that left their mark:
1000 Ships by Kate Weinberg was a solid opener to this story. It's your typical student-professor forbidden love situation and a woman scorned is not one to be trifled with.
The Hare and the Hound by Kelly Andrew was a spooky (why does it always have to be bunnies?) revenge story that left me feeling unsettled by my feeling of triumph.
The Professor of Ontography by Helen Grant just left me in horror.
Finally, Phobos by Tori Bovalino was my favorite. A secret, elite society with hazing gone too far? I'm sold.

Overall, this anthology was the best way to get me into the autumnal mood. I highly recommend for dark academia lovers, both new and well-versed!

In These Hallowed Halls: A Dark Academia anthology is out September 12!

A mixed bag like most anthologies, but made doubly frustrating by the fact that none of the stories seemed to grasp what dark academia actually is about??? Most of these stories just threw ivy-draped, vaguely spooky academic institutions in as a backdrop rather than actually engaging with academia in any significant way, just overall a very frustrating reading experience that did not even manage to capture superficial dark academia vibes.

Also, MAJOR CONTENT WARNING because my e-arc did not include it: "Four Funerals" is about the aftermath of a school shooting, which I was not aware of and not expecting. I dnf'd that one, it genuinely lowered my enjoyment of the anthology as a whole. I sincerely hope the publisher includes a content warning in the final copies of this book.

I was not as big of a fan as this collection as I had hoped I would be. A couple of the stories really worked for me, Pythie by Olivie Blake and Phobos by Tori Bovalino, the rest I felt were just okay and didn't really get my attention. I guess this sub genre just isn't for me.

I always find it difficult to review anthologies because it's rare for me to come across ones where I like all the short stories however In These Hallowed Halls proved me wrong because I enjoyed each one of these and felt that they were all really well written and had me hooked! This anthology also had stories from a lot of authors I haven't read before so I'm super excited to dive into more of their books! ⁣
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𝐌𝐲 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬:⁣
1000 Ships | Kate Weinberg - 4 stars ⁣
Pythia | Olivie Blake - 5 stars⁣
Sabbatical | James Tate Hill - 3 stars⁣
The Hare and the Hound | Kelly Andrew - 4.5 stars⁣
X House | J. T. Ellison - 3.5 stars⁣
The Ravages | Layne Fargo - 4 stars⁣
Four Funerals | David Bell - 3 stars⁣
The Unknowable Pleasures | Susie Yang - 3 stars⁣
Weekend at Bertie’s | M. L. Rio - 4 stars ⁣
The Professor of Ontography | Helen Grant - 4 stars⁣
Phobos | Tori Bovalino - 5 stars⁣
Playing | Phoebe Wynne - 3 stars ⁣
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I really recommend picking this up if you love Dark Academia or anthologies in general! ⁣
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Thank you to NetGalley and Titan books for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A dark academia anthology which is great for the autumnal season. Some stories I naturally gravitated to more than others, but that's to be expected. Be wary that because this is dark academia, there are dark themes discussed. I would recommend it to fans of the genre!

I mainly wanted to read this because M.L. Rio has a short story in this book as well. And because I am a big fan of the dark academia aesthetic. I did enjoy most of the other short stories as well, though. They were very well written and I am happy to have found some new authors to read, Some of the stories were misses for me, but that is to be expected in a book with so many short stories!

Thank you to NetGalley and the team publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I love dark academia, so this was an interesting read. I love anything that might have a spooky vibe or a good twist, and these stories had that as well! There were a few familiar names as well as some new ones, so I was very happy to learn some new authors to read. All in all this was a dark and twisty book full of stories for those who crave the university atmosphere but also want a good plot.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early copy. This was an engaging and enjoyable read that kept my attention throughout with some brilliant authors showcased.

A short story collection of dark academia. Contributing authors include JT Ellison, Phoebe Wynne and Olivie Blake.

*Special thanks to Netgalley and Titan Books for this e-arc.*

This didn't deliver what I was looking for out of dark academia. The vibes and intrigue were missing from the whole collection, and there wasn't a single story I really enjoyed. The dark academia theme was applied very loosely here.

Like any anthology book, no one person is going to love every story, that's not to say any of the stories are bad, just that an anthology features a plethora of different authors, and stories, all with their own unique spin. In ones such as this, they all follow a similar theme - Dark Academia - but all in their own way.

In a quick summary, we have...

* 1000 Ships... a prequel story about an affair between student and teacher. By Kate Weinberg.

* Pythia... a story of a doomsday supercomputer told in an interview between a police officer and a therapist. By Olivie Blake.

* Sabbatical... an old professor comes hunting for a person long missing. By James Tate Hill.

* The Hare and The Hound... a prophecy of a white rabbit may come true in the strangest of ways. By Kelly Andrew.

* X House... a teacher joins an elite school where there have been a few mysterious deaths of late. By Jt Ellison.

* The Ravages... what happens when you cheat on a patient witch. By Layne Fargo.

*Four Funerals... hard hitting. A teacher attends the funerals of students killed in a shooting, wondering if he could have done more. By David Bell.

*The Unknowable Pleasures... a student teacher relationship is obsessed upon from the outside. By Susie Young.

*Weekend at Berties... is it a victimless crime to steal the Inheritance of someone who has no one. By ML Rio.

*The Professor of Ontography.... two students in love come across a creepy hidden department they know nothing about, and want to find out more. By Helen Grant.

*Phobus.... what would you do to be part of a group that can give you what you dream of. By Tori Bovalino

*Playing... a church organist provides comment on a flurry of deaths where she works. By Phoebe Wynne

12 stories here, some haunting, some creepy, some dark themed, some quirky and seemed unfinished, and I would have loved to keep reading some of them.

But that's the nature of short stories, short and pack a punch. All in all a great collection here, the Standouts for me being 1000 Ships (as it made me want to buy the next book it leads onto), X House short and nice wee tied up story, the Unknowable Pleasures as it was easy to see the obsession grow and wanted to know where it ended up, Professor of Ontography was creepy and weird, and Phobus as anything with a deadly competition hooks me.

Some authors I was already familiar with but a lot new to me and would seek out more of their work for sure.

Thank you to Titan Books for the chance to read and review this early, although my options are not changed by the early copy.

Out 12 September so not long for you to get your hands on it now, and perfect for this time of year!

Thanks NetGalley for approving me for this ARC. A easy good read, kept my attention throughout and enjoyed.

Anthologies are so hard because my enjoyment of the stories varied so widely. Additionally, I have to mention that I'm generally not a huge fan of the short story format, but I was really excited about some authors I love who are included in this anthology. It's not terribly surprising, but most of my favorites in this collection were by authors I already loved (J.T. Ellison, M.L. Rio, Suzie Yang). An author I've been feeling somewhat meh on surprised me with how much I enjoyed their story, and an author I've never read before (Helen Grant) had perhaps my favorite of the stories. However, there were also several stories that felt like a slog, and I'm not entirely convinced that all the authors fully grasped the dark academia assignment. This might be because of the nature of the short story format and limited space to develop the tone.

This collection really varied in quality and consistency. The main problem with this book is that the majority of the books don't feel like dark academia. I've tried to do a quick review of each story below:

1000 Ships by Kate Weinberg - 3.5 stars - There was a nice twist to this story and it would have worked really well in a longer format. Being a short story, you didn't get to see a lot of the relationship between the characters which would have made the finale so much more powerful.
Pythia by Olivia Blake - 2.5 - I find it so embarrassing when authors use young-people speak and couldn't get past that. The twist was interesting but I had no idea what was going on for most of the story.
Sabbatical by James Tate Hill - 2 - Supposed to be shocking but was just dull. More 'Treehouse of Horror' than dark academia.
The Hare and the Hound by Kelly Andrew - 3 - Interesting concept but I don't think the execution was great. I didn't realise it was possible for a short story to drag but this proved me wrong.
X House by J.T. Ellison - 2.5 - What was the motive for anything that happened in this story? I appreciate that it's a short read but it didn't make much sense.
The Ravages by Layne Fargo - 4 - I felt genuinely afraid at times in this. The setting was really unique and it was a lot of fun. One of the best stories in the collection.
Four Funerals by David Bell - 4 - This one will hit close to home for some people and is the most difficult read of the lot. I wouldn't really call it dark academia. Although this is a tough one it was a really well-written story about blame and grief.
The Unknowable Pleasures by Susie Yang - 2 - This just bored me. Considering it was about obsession and the characters were the most similar to other dark academia characters I expected something much more interesting.
Weekend at Bertie's by M.L. Rio - 3.5 - Really slow, but M.L. Rio's writing is so evocative that I couldn't give it a low rating. I'll be honest, hearing that M.L. Rio had written a story for this collection was the main reason I wanted to read it.
The Professor of Ontography by Helen Grant - 4 - I really enjoyed this one! Very spooky and I felt really invested in the story.
Phobos by Tori Bovalino - 3.5 - It kept my attention and there was a good twist at the end. This one felt like an actual dark academia story.
Playing by Phoebe Wynne - 1.5 - I really didn't enjoy this story. The characters didn't feel real and the twist was obvious from the start.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

In my time chasing after the inimitable after-effects of novels like "Babel," "The Secret History," and "If We Were Villains," I've found that true dark academia is both commonly-attempted and commonly-fumbled. As so many short story collections tend to be, "In These Hallowed Halls" is an intriguing package of both the noteworthy and the (mostly) unexceptional. As such, I find it best to review its parts rather than its whole and worthwhile to mention that its noteworthy dark academia names (Rio, Fargo, and especially Blake) fell utterly flat for me, while names I didn't hold high hopes for soared to new heights.

Beguiling and sinister not so much, "In These Hallowed Halls" is further testament to the fact that I simply might not be the right audience for short stories. I always find them, dare I say it, too short, and I long for a connection to their characters that they simply can't offer.

1000 Ships, Kate Weinberg, 3 stars: Promising, dark, but too on-the-nose academic; abruptly short and made for a clunky beginning to the collection. An odd choice as a starter, to say the least.

Pythia, Olivie Blake, 1 star: A complete swing-and-miss with an intriguing prose setup that left me feeling completely detached from the story. Superficial and blithely unoriginal, a letdown from Blake.

Sabbatical, James Tate Hill, 2 stars: Another clunky tale that felt like it was forcing the necessary tenets of dark academia. I began to lose hope after this one.

The Hare and the Hound, Kelly Andrew, 5 stars: Hope restored! I wanted so much more of this eerie, suspense-laden story. These characters felt like those of the world of "The Secret History." A beautiful snippet of true dark academia.

X House, J.T. Ellison: 4.5 stars: Hope further restored! Another story that would've have developed flawlessly into a full-fledged novel. A remote, all-girls school, unsolved murders, sinister characters. It checked all the boxes.

The Ravages, Layne Fargo, 2 stars: An oddly-executed story of relationships and revenge riddled with characters I was fully-averse too. Not even remotely the Layne Fargo I came to love in "They Never Learn," sadly.

Four Funerals, David Bell, 4 stars: An incredibly heavy, difficult read about the aftermath of a school shooter and the professor who's held partially responsible for the tragedy. Certainly an odd and academia-adjacent choice for this collection; well written but felt starkly out of place.

The Unknowable Pleasures, Susie Yang, 3 stars: A story of excellence, obsession, and possibly-forbidden romance. The pieces were there, but again, some odd choices throughout the story made this one fall flat. Had it gone a different direction, it could've been brilliant.

Weekend at Berties, M.L. Rio, 2 stars: Saved by Rio's writing alone, and even that barely did it. My heart! Another story that felt as if it had no business being in a dark academia collection; this felt unformed, strangely-empty, and tedious to get through.

The Professor of Ontography, Helen Grant, 4.5 stars: Hope restored after a slow descent with the previous stories! Dark academia-meets-American Horror Story--mysterious, creative, and not for the faint of heart.

Phobos, Tori Bovalino, 4.5 stars: I'm biased, I'll admit it! But a dark academia set at the University of Pitt with multiple accurate references to Pitt college culture? This one hit the right notes and would've been even better had it been longer.

Playing, Phoebe Wynne, 3 stars: Its lack of true mystery detracted from what could've been greatness here, but this story of a lonely, gifted organist was still a delight. Not the strongest end-note for the collection, "Phobos" would've been far better.

It is no secret that I adore the Dark Academia genre and this anthology is packed full of some of my favourite writers in the genre. These Hallowed Halls is delectable reading, especially perfect for the autumn season as nights grow colder and that chill starts to settle in your bones.

As always, anthologies can be a mixed bag but I loved this one. I’m going to run through my favourite stories, but I genuinely felt like this was such a solid anthology. We kicked off with 1000 Ships by Kate Weinberg, which I really enjoyed. It was a slick, sickening look at power, manipulation and changing your odds. Unsurprisingly, I adored Olivie Blake’s story - Pythia. It was such a cool concept and the story took so many twists and turns. Blake packed a lot of characterisation and conceptual intrigue into a very short space.

Similarly, The Hare and the Hound by Kelly Andrew was a story I really love. This was a dark and twisty tale of fate, revenge and rabbits. It proved to me that between this and The Whispering Dark, Andrew is an author I must keep my eye on. X House by J T Ellison was another one that threw me for a loop. It was highly enjoyable, thriving in its tight atmosphere and claustrophobic setting. The pacing was excellent, with a deliciously twisted ending.

Four Funerals by David Bell was one that really struck me. It explores the aftermath of school shooting and survivor’s guilt. For me, it was affecting and moving. To no one’s surprise, Weekend at Bertie’s by M L Rio was one of my favourites. I loved the characterisation here so much and thought it was so well written. Finally, Phobos by Tori Bovalino was such a standout. Bovalino’s writing is darkly entrancing and this is a story I loved, with an excellent concept and great twists.

These Hallowed Halls is perfect for all Dark Academia fans, with clearly established favourites of the genre and sparkling gems to discover.

In These Hallowed Halls is an immersive, atmospheric collection of short stories that takes us through all the shades and facets of academia, ranging from themes of the obsessive and unforgiving nature of academia, the deification of academia, student/teacher relationships and power dynamics, mental illness, secret societies and more. Professor of Ontography by Helen Grant, Phobos by Tori Bovalino and Pythia by Olivie Blake were some of my favorites, but I think there’s something for everyone within this collection. While some stories certainly stand out more than others, all the authors within this book succeed in maintaining that particular ambiance characteristic of the dark academia subgenre consistently throughout. I think fans of the genre will have a lot of fun with this one, and it comes out just in time for fall, which is, arguably, THE dark academia season.