Release Date: September 14th 2021
Publisher: Titan Books
Pages: 400
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review
Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Synopsis

When Tess and Eliot stumble upon an ancient book hidden in a secret tunnel beneath their school library, they accidentally release a devil from his book-bound prison, and he’ll stop at nothing to stay free. He’ll manipulate all the ink in the library books to do his bidding, he’ll murder in the stacks, and he’ll bleed into every inch of Tess’s life until his freedom is permanent. Forced to work together, Tess and Eliot have to find a way to re-trap the devil before he kills everyone they know and love, including, increasingly, each other. And compared to what the devil has in store for them, school stress suddenly doesn’t seem so bad after all.

Review

The Devil Makes Three is one of those books that I read at the absolute perfect time and I got completely wrapped up in the story. This YA fantasy/horror follows Tess, an assistant at the Jessop Library – home to a large collection of ancient (and dangerous) grimoires. Eliot is the headmaster’s son is desperate to get his hands on some of the most restricted texts in the library. When Tess and Eliot accidentally stumble upon a secret tunnel in the library, they find a strange book that releases an ancient devil from his prison. This leaves Tess and Eliot no choice but to work together to find a way to put the devil back before it destroys everything they know and love.

This book had me hooked from the very first page. I’m a big fan of dark academia and this book felt so well crafted. The story had tons of atmosphere and the writing was so vivid and beautiful that I could not put the book down. I loved the library setting and I was so fascinated by the magic in this book. I loved the way Bovalino blended both fantasy and horror – it meant I was never quite sure what to expect. The story was pretty quick paced and I ended up glued to the book long into the night.

The Devil Makes Three is an incredibly impressive debut and one I think fans of V. E. Schwab and Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House will absolutely adore. Bovalino has some really well-crafted characters and it was so compelling seeing Eliot and Tess work together to put the devil back. I really liked both characters and they both dealing with complex pasts and complicated family lives. This spooky book is an absolute must-read and is perfect for getting lost in on a dark winter night. I have no doubts that The Devil Makes Three is going to be a high contender for one of my favourite books of the year.