Early Reviewers

A Darkly Funny Australian YA Magic Academy Fantasy

Magic is real. Nobody cares.

Seventeen-year-old Clare Duke has always been the weird girl at school—the one obsessed with magic in a world where magic is widely ridiculed. Years of bullying finally explode into a confrontation that gets her expelled, seemingly proving everyone right: Clare Duke’s future is going nowhere.

Until the letter arrives.

Clare has been invited to attend the most prestigious magic academy in Australia.

For the first time in her life, Clare feels like she might belong. Surrounded by students who appreciate magic—and guided by the brilliant and mysterious headmistress, Coccinelle—she discovers the first signs of her magical Fascination.

Then, on her very first day, everything goes wrong.

An anti-magic terrorist group storms the academy, trapping students and staff in a deadly siege. With fear spreading through the school, Clare and her sharp-tongued new friend Sigrid are the only ones who can act.

Under Coccinelle’s guidance, Clare begins a crash course in magic that pushes her further and faster than she ever imagined possible. But as the attackers tighten their grip on the school, Clare realises the siege is more personal than anyone suspects.

To save the future she’s only just discovered, Clare will have to do the one thing she’s always been afraid of: step out of the shadows and become the mage she was meant to be.

A YA fantasy full of magic, danger, sharp humour, and the courage to claim your place in the world, perfect for fans of A Deadly Education.