The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik: Book 2 review & characters

Written By Esta Pinto

The Last Graduate (The Scholomance #2) synopsis/summary:

A budding dark sorceress determined not to use her formidable powers uncovers yet more secrets about the workings of her world in the stunning sequel to A Deadly Education, the start of Naomi Novik’s groundbreaking crossover series.

At the Scholomance, El, Orion, and the other students are faced with their final year—and the looming specter of graduation, a deadly ritual that leaves few students alive in its wake. El is determined that her chosen group will survive, but it is a prospect that is looking harder by the day as the savagery of the school ramps up. Until El realizes that sometimes winning the game means throwing out all the rules . . .

The Last Graduate characters.

Galadriel Higgins again narrates the second instalment of the Scholomance series in her signature snarky, dry style. We, of course, see the return of favourite major supporting characters, including Orion Lake, Liu and Aadhya, plus we get to know more minor supporting characters from the first book a lot more, including Chloe Rasmussen, Nkoyo, Jowani and Cora.

On top of that, we get to meet a few new characters who come into Galadriel’s world (I’ve marked these with an asterisk).

  • Galadriel Higgins

  • Orion Lake

  • Aadhya

  • Yi Liu

  • Chloe Rasmussen

  • Precious (El’s familiar)

  • Xiao Xing (Liu’s familiar)

  • Pinky (Aadhya’s familiar)

  • Mistoffeles (Chloe’s familiar)

  • Nkoyo

  • Jowani

  • Cora

  • Nadia*

  • Magnus Tebow

  • Ibrahim

  • Yaakov

  • Gwen Higgins

  • Aaron

  • Alfie

  • Liesel*

  • Sudarat*

  • Guo Yi Zheng* (Liu’s freshman cousin)

  • Min (Liu’s freshman cousin)

  • Khamis Mwinyi*

  • Hu Zixuan*

  • Wang Yuyan*

  • Sunita*

  • Jingxi*

  • Rakesh* (Sunita’s older brother)

  • Leigh*

  • Fareeda*

  • Ravi*

  • Jamaal*

  • Hideo*

  • Sarah

  • Brandon

  • Myrthe Christopher*

  • Tomas*

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The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik review.

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
5 stars.

Spice level: 🌶 -1 out of 5.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into the middle book of The Scholomance series. But as soon as I had read a chapter or so of The Last Graduate, I knew I was in trouble because work, social obligations, all that humdrum jazz etc. was gonna get in the way of gobbling this book up faster than a maw-mouth on a rampage. I have finally finished this masterpiece, and I’m shook, exhilarated, thrilled and slightly dazed. I’m not even exaggerating. I’d interpret that as if you enjoyed A Deadly Education, you’re likely to enjoy this one even more.

Things get even wilder than they did in book one while retaining the same razor-sharp, snark-infused narration of alleged dark sorceress, Galadriel Higgins, plus immersive, cut-away exposition and world-building (you’ll either love or hate it), clever parallels to real-life in class and privilege, a gorgeous diverse cast full of authentic culture and languages, and a whole lot more of Orion, Aadhya & Liu. 

Beyond that, The Last Graduate was a surprisingly lot more emotional read for me than A Deadly Education. I really cared about El’s character growth, her relationships, and her choices. The book really builds up to one of the biggest crescendos I’ve ever experienced and I’m so darn relieved I don’t have to wait for the third book to come out to find out what happens because I would not know how to cope.

My heartfelt thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey and author Naomi Novik for the opportunity to read this work in exchange for an honest review.

View The Last Graduate book review here.

FAQs.

🚨🚨🚨 Please do not read this section if you would like to avoid spoilers. 🚨🚨🚨

Is The Last Graduate a sequel?

Yes, The Last Graduate is a sequel to A Deadly Education and is the middle book in The Scholomance trilogy by Naomi Novik.

Do El and Orion Kiss?

Short answer: Yes.

Is The Last Graduate spicy?

In a very mild way, The Last Graduate does have one non-gratuitous sex scene, quite low on the spice scale.

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Esta Pinto
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