Deadly Little Lessons — Danielle Valentine
Title: Deadly Little Lessons
Author: Danielle Valentine
Genre: YA Thriller | Mystery | Dark Academia | Suspense
Format: eARC
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ — 4.5/5
Synopsis
Lia Michaels has spent years bouncing between foster homes and juvie, becoming particularly skilled at sneaking into places she shouldn't be and picking locks along the way.
Then she's offered a place at Luminary Prep, an experimental school designed for teenagers with unconventional backgrounds and exceptional abilities.
For Lia, it could mean a chance at the future she's always wanted, including attending the same university as her late mother.
But Luminary isn't exactly a normal school.
Students are cut off from the outside world, the rules are incredibly strict, and classes involve challenges that seem increasingly dangerous. Those who fail are supposedly sent home... except they seem to disappear completely.
And only five students will be allowed to graduate.
As the tests become deadlier, Lia begins to wonder whether graduating from Luminary actually means succeeding academically...
Or simply surviving.
My Thoughts
Luminary Prep is not your average school.
Like...
REALLY not your average school.
The students are basically a collection of juvenile delinquents who all happen to excel at one skill or another.
And our FMC Lia?
She's VERY good at getting into places she isn't supposed to be.
After spending years bouncing between foster homes and even juvie, Lia has become quite the master at sneaking around and picking locks.
So when she's offered the opportunity to attend Luminary Prep, with the promise that succeeding there could eventually get her into the university she's always dreamed of attending—the same one her late mother attended—you can imagine why she jumps at the opportunity.
Except...
Luminary is sus.
Very, very sus.
The rules are ridiculously strict.
No phones. No leaving campus. Almost no contact with the outside world.
Aaaand then there are the classes.
Because apparently normal Chemistry exams weren't stressful enough, so Luminary decided:
You know what these teenagers need?
REAL EXPLOSIVES.
Ummm...
EXCUSE ME??
The entire school is basically one giant survival test disguised as education, and students who don't pass are supposedly sent home.
Except “sent home” starts looking suspiciously similar to...
vanishing into thin air.
And there's one other tiny detail.
Only five students will graduate.
At which point Lia understandably starts side-eyeing the entire establishment like:
Graduate as in... graduate?
Or graduate as in...
SURVIVE?!
And from there, things get increasingly intense.
I really liked Lia. She's smart, resourceful and exactly the kind of character you want stuck inside a school where every other lesson seems designed to murder somebody.
I also really enjoyed the survival aspect of the story. As the students slowly realize that something is VERY wrong at Luminary, the tension keeps building, and I loved seeing how they tried to figure out what was actually happening and eventually find a way out.
A Little Romance Situation...
We also have a little romance situation happening.
And at first...
Is that a love triangle I smell?
Side-eyes because everyone knows how I feel about those.
Initially, Lia is more interested in Rani, while Ian St. Clair is firmly sitting in the annoying-hometown-enemy category.
He's the one person at Luminary who already knows Lia from back home, and these two aren't exactly delighted to see each other.
Thankfully, since this is YA and the romance isn't the main focus, the triangle never became overwhelming.
The survival mystery remained much more important to me, which is exactly what I wanted.
HANK!!
And I have to give a little shout-out to Hank.
HANK!!
The local cop who has dealt with Lia and her various... activities... enough times that they're already on a first-name basis.
I was SO glad he was on her side when it mattered.
Having someone outside Luminary who knew Lia, understood her and knew exactly what needed to be done made the later parts of the story even more satisfying for me.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I had such a good time with Deadly Little Lessons.
The school itself was fascinating, the increasingly dangerous lessons kept the stakes high, Lia was a great FMC, and once the survival element really kicked in, I was completely invested in seeing how the hell these kids were going to get themselves out.
It's dark academia with a much more literal interpretation of academic pressure. 😂
Apparently Luminary Prep believes education builds character.
And if that doesn't work...
Explosives.
That'll do it.
4.5⭐
ARC Disclaimer
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Young Readers Group for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. All opinions are my own.
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