Effy and Arlo are just two of the students at their boarding school who are chosen to enter a prestigious writing program during their January term at an isolated estate. The program is led by Meredith Graffam, a legendary writer, actress, and director with an eccentric teaching style who everyone admires. At the end of the program, one writer will have their dreams come true-- but not everything at the estate is as it seems, and the competition is fierce. It might even be deadly.
When We Were Monsters by Jennifer Niven is the perfect mysterious dark academia read. Told in two alternating voices (Effy and Arlo), we really get to care about the characters and their relationships with each other as they try to survive a writing program with an instructor who is hiding some deadly secrets. The twists made me eager to keep reading, and I finished the book within two days. A five-star page-turner with beautiful prose and interesting characters, When We Were Monsters should be on everyone's TBR list this fall.
-Michelle J, Teen Services