From the author of Shadow and Bone, now a hit NETFLIX series.
The smash New York Times bestseller from Leigh Bardugo, a mesmerizing tale of power, privilege, and dark magic set among the Ivy League elite. This program includes a bonus conversation with the author.
"The best fantasy novel I've read in years, because it's about real people.... Impossible to put down." —Stephen King
"Bardugo's latest is a must-listen, introducing a haunting, Yale-based occult world populated with gloriously complicated characters.... A win-win-win, honestly." —Paste, best audiobooks of 2019
Galaxy "Alex" Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale's freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug-dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. In fact, by age twenty, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she's thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world's most prestigious universities on a full ride. What's the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale's secret societies. Their eight windowless "tombs" are the well-known haunts of the rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street's biggest players. But their occult activities are more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive. They tamper with forbidden magic. They raise the dead. And, sometimes, they prey on the living. A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.
From the author of Shadow and Bone, now a hit NETFLIX series.
The smash New York Times bestseller from Leigh Bardugo, a mesmerizing tale of power, privilege, and dark magic set among the Ivy League elite. This program includes a bonus conversation with the author.
"The best fantasy novel I've read in years, because it's about real people.... Impossible to put down." —Stephen King
"Bardugo's latest is a must-listen, introducing a haunting, Yale-based occult world populated with gloriously complicated characters.... A win-win-win, honestly." —Paste, best audiobooks of 2019
Galaxy "Alex" Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale's freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug-dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. In fact, by age twenty, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she's thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world's most prestigious universities on a full ride. What's the catch, and why her?
Still searching for answers, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale's secret societies. Their eight windowless "tombs" are the well-known haunts of the rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street's biggest players. But their occult activities are more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive. They tamper with forbidden magic. They raise the dead. And, sometimes, they prey on the living. A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books
A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.
Reviews-
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Starred review from August 12, 2019
Bardugo’s excellent first fantasy novel for adults (following her highly regarded Six of Crows and Shadow and Bone YA series) introduces an antihero who is just the right person to take on rising dangers in an elitist society. Galaxy “Alex” Stern’s early life was wrecked by her unusual ability to see “Grays”—earthbound ghosts—but that same ability gains her admission into one of the magic-based houses at Yale. As she struggles to adjust to college life, she’s forced to confront evil powers swirling under the thin veneers of tradition and ritual. When a young woman is killed, Alex becomes determined to find the murderer, even if it means dodging attempts on her life and striking eldritch bargains. Alex is the story’s gritty, rock-solid heart. While other characters refuse to admit what’s happening, too insulated by their own privilege or distracted by banal needs such as funding, Bardugo gives Alex a thoroughly engaging mix of rough edge, courage, and cynicism, all of which are required to get things done. Much of the book’s white-knuckled tension comes from the increasingly horrific flashbacks revealing Alex’s past, which is still very present in her mind. Fantasy readers, particularly those who love ghosts, will hungrily devour this novel. Agent: Joanna Volpe, New Leaf Literary. -
Lauren Fortgang and Michael David Axtell team up to narrate this dark fantasy in which a girl has just been murdered. Alex Stern must investigate whether magic was somehow involved. Fortgang commands most of the narration in this audiobook, using low, chilling tones that add irresistible intrigue to the occult activities of Yale University's most secret societies. Voicing Alex at a leisurely pace, Fortgang creates a believable persona for a woman who is unlikely to be a student at Yale, considering her dark history. Axtell's depiction of Darlington, Alex's mentor, who has disappeared, is expressive yet straightforward, matching the character's altruistic bent. An interview with the author at the end offers fascinating insight into her writing process and the inspiration behind the novel. A.K.R. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
