5/5

For fans of: libraries, secret societies, character-driven plots, incredibly flawed characters

The Big Questions:

• What genre is this in? Fantasy

• Are there any swoon-worthy characters? When I tell you everyone is swoon-worthy, EVERYONE IS SWOON-WORTHY

• Is it spicy? Fade to black, but the seduction is immaculate

• Is it violent or gory? There’s violence, but not gore

• Should I buy, borrow, or pass on this book? BUY

Synopsis: The Alexandrian Society is a secret society of magical academicians, the best in the world. Their members are caretakers of lost knowledge from the greatest civilizations of antiquity. And those who earn a place among their number will secure a life of wealth, power, and prestige beyond their wildest dreams. Each decade, the world’s six most uniquely talented magicians are selected for initiation – and here are the chosen few...

- Libby Rhodes and Nicolás Ferrer de Varona: inseparable enemies, cosmologists who can control matter with their minds.
- Reina Mori: a naturalist who can speak the language of life itself.
- Parisa Kamali: a mind reader whose powers of seduction are unmatched.
- Tristan Caine: the son of a crime kingpin who can see the secrets of the universe.
- Callum Nova: an insanely rich pretty boy who could bring about the end of the world. He need only ask.

When the candidates are recruited by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they are told they must spend one year together to qualify for initiation. During this time, they will be permitted access to the Society’s archives and judged on their contributions to arcane areas of knowledge. Five, they are told, will be initiated. One will be eliminated. If they can prove themselves to be the best, they will survive. Most of them.

Review: Whewwwwwww what a character-driven rollercoaster of a ride this is. If you know Olivie Blake from her fanfic writing, you know you are in for some of the best character-driven stories out there. This book is dark academia competition to the EXTREME. Our six candidates, where do I even begin. I know, with my favourites: Libby and Nico. These two clearly Dramione-inspired characters are just everything you love about incredibly smart and driven competitors who are absolutely blind to the fact that they are soulmates. Their push and pull is delicious for my romantic heart and I can’t get enough of their interactions. Reina is as simple as it gets and I love her straightforwardness. She plays no games and allies herself with whoever she needs to get what she wants. Tristan, with his daddy issues, is the sucker of this group. So easily manipulated and my least favourite. Parisa, I can respect for her ruthlessness. She terrifies me to no end. Callum is a jerk but that man knows how to manipulate and I enjoyed his powerplays the most. He kept everyone on their toes. I love a bored psychopath.

Very much like most school-setting fantasy stories, we follow the six as they go through their year learning from the Library, its teachers, and each other, pushing each other in various magical subjects and projects. What they are all capable separately is fascinating, but what they can do together is terrifying. They very much toe the line of mad scientists, with personal morality and societal ethics seemingly the only restraint to what they can achieve.

If you like complex conversations, manipulative characters, a refreshingly different magical system, and the psychology of power, this is right up your alley. The questions, conversations, the mystery of the Alexandrian Society and its impact on the world, it all makes for one hell of a ride trying to figure out who to trust, who can push who, and what these extremely powerful people are truly capable of in their unending quest for more.