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jessicarosee's review against another edition
4.0
A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik is the first novel I have read by this author, and lets just say I was thoroughly impressed by this work. So much so that what I thought was going to be a 1-2 star read for me has turned into a 4 star, bordering on a 4.5.
I had read a few reviews for this novel saying that it was boring; that El was boring, that Orion was boring, that the Schoolomance was boring, that the plot was boring - you get it, but honestly I couldn't disagree more.
I understand how the plot may be considered boring; while the actual conflict in the story is high stakes (aka the death of like 800 graduating students), I think Naomi Novik does not do the best job at showcasing how important it is for El and Orion to go through with the graduation day plan. Besides this, I really loved Naomi's writing style. I thought she did a wonderful job at creating a main character that is very morally-grey, snarky and ultimately quite rude to a lot of people (especially the enclavers) while still having a big heart and human desires like wanting to be accepted. I loved El's friends and alliance buddies Liu and Aadhya - I think they were necessary to let El grow into the character she is at the end of the novel who, despite still being very standoff-ish, is starting to let people in to her life and care for them.
I loved El and Orion's relationship. I loved how Orion tries so hard to be kind to El even when she is telling him to leave her alone or making a rude jab at him. I loved his human-ness (??? does that make sense?) when he sometimes can't take it and makes a jab back at her. Their banter was so lovely and despite mother Higgins warning at the end of the book, I hope Orion and El never stay away from each other. #Oriel (that's a good ship name....right?)
This book also discusses classism in an incredibly intriguing way. I liked how it was subtle yet still a major driving force in how certain characters acted and the quality of life they had at the Schoolomance. Chloe, Magnus and the New York enclavers have their practically unlimited mana supply through their power sharers; Orion is even more so oblivious of his privilege, being shocked to find out that El has maintenance shifts when some lesser down student has been taking care of his. Students without the luxuries of having a guaranteed spot in an enclave are forced to basically slave away for them to even have a chance at an alliance. I think this is an area that Naomi really succeeded in pushing home for me and I learnt a lot from it.
Anyway, I'm stuck between giving this a 4 and a 4.5. I think before you read this book you should read a few of the goodreads reviews which go into some of the diversity issues in this book. I know Naomi said she was cutting out the insensitive dreadlocks comment in future republished editions of A Deadly Education, but my copy had it in there still. I found that most of the reviews talking about diversity were from white women, like myself, and so I placed more weight on Black and other POC opinions of this book, both positive and negative, and ultimately decided I still wanted to read this book. https://www.goodreads.com/questions/1936497-hearing-tell-of-some-incredibly-racist <<<< that is a link to a question someone asked about the racial problems in this book that helped me decide that I did ultimately want to read it. The issues brought up in these reviews must be acknowledged and looked at and analysed and called out for what they are. Overall I did enjoy this book, I can understand why some sections are problematic and I'm very glad Naomi Novik is being called out for it and that she has acknowledged her mistake. I would still recommend this book but I would just be aware and do some research for yourself. I'm looking forward to the next book!
I had read a few reviews for this novel saying that it was boring; that El was boring, that Orion was boring, that the Schoolomance was boring, that the plot was boring - you get it, but honestly I couldn't disagree more.
I understand how the plot may be considered boring; while the actual conflict in the story is high stakes (aka the death of like 800 graduating students), I think Naomi Novik does not do the best job at showcasing how important it is for El and Orion to go through with the graduation day plan. Besides this, I really loved Naomi's writing style. I thought she did a wonderful job at creating a main character that is very morally-grey, snarky and ultimately quite rude to a lot of people (especially the enclavers) while still having a big heart and human desires like wanting to be accepted. I loved El's friends and alliance buddies Liu and Aadhya - I think they were necessary to let El grow into the character she is at the end of the novel who, despite still being very standoff-ish, is starting to let people in to her life and care for them.
I loved El and Orion's relationship. I loved how Orion tries so hard to be kind to El even when she is telling him to leave her alone or making a rude jab at him. I loved his human-ness (??? does that make sense?) when he sometimes can't take it and makes a jab back at her. Their banter was so lovely and despite mother Higgins warning at the end of the book, I hope Orion and El never stay away from each other. #Oriel (that's a good ship name....right?)
This book also discusses classism in an incredibly intriguing way. I liked how it was subtle yet still a major driving force in how certain characters acted and the quality of life they had at the Schoolomance. Chloe, Magnus and the New York enclavers have their practically unlimited mana supply through their power sharers; Orion is even more so oblivious of his privilege, being shocked to find out that El has maintenance shifts when some lesser down student has been taking care of his. Students without the luxuries of having a guaranteed spot in an enclave are forced to basically slave away for them to even have a chance at an alliance. I think this is an area that Naomi really succeeded in pushing home for me and I learnt a lot from it.
Anyway, I'm stuck between giving this a 4 and a 4.5. I think before you read this book you should read a few of the goodreads reviews which go into some of the diversity issues in this book. I know Naomi said she was cutting out the insensitive dreadlocks comment in future republished editions of A Deadly Education, but my copy had it in there still. I found that most of the reviews talking about diversity were from white women, like myself, and so I placed more weight on Black and other POC opinions of this book, both positive and negative, and ultimately decided I still wanted to read this book. https://www.goodreads.com/questions/1936497-hearing-tell-of-some-incredibly-racist <<<< that is a link to a question someone asked about the racial problems in this book that helped me decide that I did ultimately want to read it. The issues brought up in these reviews must be acknowledged and looked at and analysed and called out for what they are. Overall I did enjoy this book, I can understand why some sections are problematic and I'm very glad Naomi Novik is being called out for it and that she has acknowledged her mistake. I would still recommend this book but I would just be aware and do some research for yourself. I'm looking forward to the next book!
kimmartins's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ddeenniissee's review
3.25
I had higher expectations, especially since the author is one of the founders of AO3 !! Was it a lot of info dumping in the middle of conversations with other characters?? YES !!! it was giving knock off Harry Potter with a really interesting but badly described magic system or maybe it was just all the info dumping that I really struggled to picture the school in my head. & also was giving Drarry (which I’m not even mad about) 😗 overall my attention was kept throughout the whole book. I really love the main characters development and sunshine/ grumpy trope but the man is sunshine and the girl being grumpy is a trope I never expected to love as much as I did. The ending will most definitely have me reading the next book.
emptykatze's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
booksbydann's review against another edition
5.0
Siniestramente brillante.
No esperaba que este libro me guste tanto pero me dejó FASCINADA. Voy a escribir una reseña más extensa en los próximos días pero ahora lo único que puedo decir es que no hay nada en este libro que no me haya gustado. Ni siquiera los capítulos largos, descriptivos y con poco diálogo me persuadieron (porque en realidad fue un elemento que amé), definitivamente estoy enamorada de la pluma de Naomi Novik.
No esperaba que este libro me guste tanto pero me dejó FASCINADA. Voy a escribir una reseña más extensa en los próximos días pero ahora lo único que puedo decir es que no hay nada en este libro que no me haya gustado. Ni siquiera los capítulos largos, descriptivos y con poco diálogo me persuadieron (porque en realidad fue un elemento que amé), definitivamente estoy enamorada de la pluma de Naomi Novik.
ledade503's review
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
World-building was fun and didn't feel dragged on. Social politics were interesting, characters were lovable, and I want to immediately go pick up book 2.
lfellin83's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
fiizso's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
gsyed1120's review
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25