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3.5
The Incandescent
ByPublisher Description
A Deadly Education meets Rivers of London in this captivating contemporary fantasy from Sunday Times bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.A Deadly EducationA Deadly Education meets Rivers of LondonRivers of London in this captivating contemporary fantasy from Sunday Times bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.
Dr. Walden is the Director of Magic at Chetwood Academy and one of the most powerful magicians in England. Her days consist of meetings, teaching A-Level Invocation to four talented, chaotic sixth formers, more meetings and securing the school’s boundaries from demonic incursions.
Walden is good at her job – no, Walden is great at her job. But demons are masters of manipulation. It’s her responsibility to keep her school with its six hundred students and centuries-old legacy safe. But it’s possible the entity Walden most needs to keep her school safe from, is herself . . .
Dr. Walden is the Director of Magic at Chetwood Academy and one of the most powerful magicians in England. Her days consist of meetings, teaching A-Level Invocation to four talented, chaotic sixth formers, more meetings and securing the school’s boundaries from demonic incursions.
Walden is good at her job – no, Walden is great at her job. But demons are masters of manipulation. It’s her responsibility to keep her school with its six hundred students and centuries-old legacy safe. But it’s possible the entity Walden most needs to keep her school safe from, is herself . . .
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3.5
“"Everyone fails. Everyone. What matters is how you meet failure, and how you face up to it. How you learn."
I honestly had little clue what to expect from this. I knew it was a fantasy set in a school, and focused on a teacher, but other than that? Clueless. I only picked it up because a) it was on sale and b) a Booktuber I trust had said she'd really enjoyed it. Did I enjoy it? Yes. So much, yes.
Full disclosure: one of the reasons I loved this book so much is because I've been a teacher (pre-school through adults) for the past twelve years and so much of this book is actually commentary on teaching. I don't care what kind of school someone works at; it can be private, public, boarding school, or the after school lessons popular here in Asia. There are some teaching experiences that are universal, and Tesh manages to put them into words. I was either laughing or internally sobbing at how accurate certain scenes were. Photocopier not working? Check. Students having relationship issues and forgetting you're in the room? Check. The copious amounts of meetings and training and endless paperwork? Check, check, check. I felt so seen reading this, and I'll definitely be recommending it to all my teacher friends who love fantasy.
Aside from that, I really enjoyed the setting and our characters. The boarding school is a mix of new and old, and THANK THE STARS Tesh manages to avoid making this feel like a comparison to a certain series. In fact, miracle of miracles, it isn't mentioned or referenced at all, which is a breath of fresh air. This boarding school is magical, but the magic in it is the kind that is extremely dangerous, and those dangers evolve over time. I loved reading why personal electronics weren't allowed or were heavily secured. This is set in a familiar modern day world in a school that seems out of time.
In addition, the characters really feel fleshed out. Walden, the true MC, is especially so and she's the kind of character you both laugh with and also, at times, want to give a good kick. Our secondary FMC, Laura, isn't in the story as much as I would love her to be but I lived for every moment she was on page butting heads with Walden. Walden's four main students, certain faculty members, even certain demons -all of them felt like real "people" to me by the end of the story, and that's really a good sign of an author's talent.
Tesh also did a great job with the magic aspect. She never got too technical, never tried to add pictures or diagrams to explain the magic going on. She just naturally assumed readers would be able to think and put together what the characters were doing without any handholding.
I really, really loved how queer this book is. Our main FMC is bi, the secondary FMC is lesbian, and there's so many other identities mentioned throughout the story in the form of students or other teachers. There's also more diversity among the characters (especially the students) than expected, which I fully appreciate.
There are two reasons this book isn't five stars.
The first is that the climax of the book was a little too fast. Months are skipped over, and then given brief explanations later. It makes the reader question a certain plot point, and how the characters involved came to those conclusions. (For anyone who is going to read it, if you want to know what I mean as you read, it starts on page 364). I would have liked to see more of that particular point, more of what was going on, before the climax truly hit and finished.
The other is that the main romance was very fast. A lot of the interactions happened before the book starts, so readers get there when the attraction is already there and we're just seeing the other side of it. And the two characters so rarely interact throughout the book that the attraction doesn't really feel real.
Still, despite that, I really enjoyed every moment of reading this novel. If you enjoy reading about magical schools and want one from a teacher's POV, if you want a great queer fantasy about magic and demons, this is a must read.
Content/Trigger Warnings: Discussions of death, Violence, Blood, Amputation (nongraphic), Mild body horror, Non-graphic sexual content, Discussions of privilege (through wealth or whiteness)”Start a Book Club
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