Series: Scholomance #2
Release Date: September 28th 2021
Publisher: Del Rey Books
Pages: 400
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 5/5 stars

Synopsis

A budding dark sorceress determined not to use her formidable powers uncovers yet more secrets about the workings of her world in the stunning sequel to A Deadly Education, the start of Naomi Novik’s groundbreaking crossover series.

At the Scholomance, El, Orion, and the other students are faced with their final year–and the looming specter of graduation, a deadly ritual that leaves few students alive in its wake. El is determined that her chosen group will survive, but it is a prospect that is looking harder by the day as the savagery of the school ramps up. Until El realizes that sometimes winning the game means throwing out all the rules . .

Review

The Last Graduate is the eagerly awaited second installment in Naomi Novik’s Scholomance series. A Deadly Education was one of my favourite books of last year so I was incredibly excited to continue the series. The story follows El and her peers as they battle through their final year in the Scholomance. As graduation looms, El discovers there might be a way to help other students survive, but will she make it out alive?

Book one ended on a massive cliffhanger and The Last Graduate picks up right where A Deadly Education finished. The reader is immediately transported back into the world of the Scholomance and I was immediately hooked. The story did feel a bit slower-paced than the previous installment but I was completely engaged with seeing El and the other students work to figure out how they will survive graduation. I really enjoyed Novik’s writing style and it was so easy to get completely wrapped up in the story for hours at a time.

My favourite thing about this series is the characters and I absolutely love El and Orion. El is such a grumpy, prickly character but she’s still determined to do what’s right. Orion is also brilliant and the way their relationship developed was really well executed. Like A Deadly Education, this book ended on a massive cliffhanger and I cannot wait to see where Novik takes the final book in the series. If you’ve been intrigued about this series I’d definitely recommend picking it up as it’s definitely one of my favourite books of the year.