I’ve read this book twice since it came out in September. The first time was because I love Naomi Novik’s books and this sounded great. The second time was because it was great and I just couldn’t get it out of my head.

It’s everything dark about Harry Potter and that was just what I was looking for. A bunch of kids are locked up in a school for their own protection while monsters squirm in through the cracks and try and eat them. The main character is destined to be an evil sorceress and trying very hard not to be one.

It is a little slow to start, focusing a lot on world and character building and less on an overarching plot, and I’ve a friend who gave up on it because it wasn’t answering his questions (annoyingly enough they were answered like three pages later.) I personally like the build up but your milage may vary. And I found that, when things did start happening, the book got a lot faster paced and it was very satisfying.

If you’re a fan of magical school stories and were looking for something a bit dark then this is definitely for you.