The ordeals A novel

After losing her parents at a young age, Sophia DeWinter grows up under her uncle, known as the Collector, who binds her to him to exploit her illusionist talents. In a bid to break the bond, Sophia competes to enter Killmarth College, a magical academy. To pass the test, Sophia partners with botanist Alden Locke, pairing their magic to make the cut and survive. But admittance to Killmarth is no guarantee of safety, as the hopefuls must compete in challenges to gain permanent admittance. To complicate matters, many students face prejudice and discrimination, depending on their lineage and magical power. Alden is happy to partner with Sophia again, but she's not sure if she can trust him. When hopefuls start being murdered outside of challenges, Sophia wonders if she can trust anyone at all. VERDICT Greenlaw (The Woodsmoke Women's Book of Spells) keeps the excitement, suspense, and romance building throughout to a shocking end, leaving readers eagerly anticipating future installments. Perfect for romantasy readers who love dark academia, such as Elise Kova's Arcana Academy, Leigh Bardugo's Ninth House, or Harper L. Woods's The Coven.--Eve Stano

A young woman must navigate a series of deadly tests to be fully admitted to a secretive school of magic. Sophia DeWinter is no stranger to danger. An orphan, she was raised by a man called the Collector, whom she's been told is her uncle and who controls her with an enchanted bracelet that tracks her movements. Her only hope for freedom is to gain entrance to Killmarth College, the school that trains wielders, people who can use magic. Sophia knows she has a small talent for illusion magic, and if she can get into Killmarth, the enchantments on the school's grounds will destroy the Collector's bracelet, and therefore his control over her. The time and location of the entrance exam, known as the Crucible, is secret, but Sophia manages to overhear a man in a bar talking about it. The man, Alden Locke, happens to be gorgeous, so it's no hardship for Sophia to flirt the information out of him. Sophia is, of course, paired with Alden for the Crucible, and she manages to pass and gain a spot among the Killmarth hopefuls. But while she's able to move to the grounds of Killmarth, and is freed of the Collector's bracelet, she'll have to pass another series of deadly tests, meant to whittle the hopefuls down to the best of the best, before she can secure a place for herself as a scholar of magic. The romance between Alden and Sophia is rather perfunctory and unsurprising. Greenlaw's magic system, where wielders are separated into categories depending on their abilities, could be interesting, but without giving any spoilers, it's always a little boring when the heroine just happens to be the most special of all the special magical people. Fits a bit too neatly into romantasy tropes. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.