So, this novel was quite a ride, and I think it was very well done. I didn’t know what to expect going in, somehow I was still wrong, but regardless this was a great novel. This one is emotional and put me through the ringer. I think evoking an emotional response is a clear sign that a novel did something very right, which was definitely the case here. The characters were well written, complicated, and had clear and distinct voices. Once I got into this novel I had trouble putting it down as I needed to know what was going to happen next and were the story was going.

This was much less of a “fantasy” novel than I expected given the title and blurb, which worked very well for me as fantasy isn’t my favorite genre. The characters attend a “school for magic” but the novel is focused significantly more on the characters relationships and personal struggles as opposed to their course material (and the trouble class is calculus, SO relatable!). This novel was much darker than I expected (and I figured it would be dark, I mean look at the title) with a large part of the novel focused on a protagonist facing and then working to overcome their abusive upbringing. I thought that the author did an excellent job depicting this dark and complicated situation from the victim’s point of view, handling the topic realistically yet with sensitivity and care. The writing was insightful, vivid, and evoked a serious emotional response.

This novel would benefit from a solid round with a good editor, but was perfectly fine as-is. The pacing was a little unexpected and strange at times, but it honestly worked very well in the end. I wish the ending part was a bit longer, just to fit in better with the rest of the novel, but the ending was satisfying and took place at a good point in the story. I hope that the author writes the sequel they are thinking about because I would absolutely like to read it.

I am giving this one a low 5-stars. I think it is absolutely worth the read and I would recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I think this book has a lot of potential! At its core, it explores toxic relationships, guilt, pain, and self-sabotage. The main character goes through some intense trauma and I appreciated how the repression formed as a result of the trauma is portrayed in such a realistic manner. The writing is quite skillful, but the lore is given to the reader in huge info-dumps, which causes the otherwise very interesting worldbuilding to come across as somewhat boring. I wish we had more time to explore the arcs of the supporting cast of characters, since their traits are defined almost entirely by their proximity to royalty and the extent of their magical power, and it causes them to come across very flat. I would’ve liked to learn more about the world (it feels like a D&D campaign!), but since this is setting up to be a series, I suspect we will learn more about that in later books.

This book isn't really what it advertises itself as. Wizard med school sounds awesome. Troubled academic rival lesbians sounds awesome. A psychological coming of age with these elements sounds great. That's not really what I was getting. Elise and Alfia's relationship already seemed established, skipping the rivals to lovers part. The dark academia vibe was not achieved really, and instead it felt like a light historical novel maybe, with the very polite picnics and the class politics. Additionally, the back of the book makes no mention of Casne. She's a perspective character. She should be mentioned. How does she fit into it? Why does her perspective seem to outweigh Elise's, despite Elise being listed as a main character? Casne is not a very likable character. She's a bit annoying, and juvenile. I just wasn't sold on this book.

This book has strong sexual content but no graphic scenes and very little violence. The story begins with two little girls who have entered a school for healing magic. It’s definitely a story not so much about magic as it is relationships both familial and romantic. I found it a slow starter because it’s well into the book before we are told the story of one of the main characters. Before that point, I found myself floundering and losing interest. However, after that point the story moved right along and I was glad I had continued.

I received this book as an advanced review copy