First published 2026
Lia Michaels knows how to pick locks and hack computers, but her criminal skills have only earned her a rotation through foster care and juvenile detention. When Luminary Prep accepts her application, she sees a chance to escape her past. The experimental school boasts cutting-edge technology, gourmet meals, and a gorgeous campus. There's one catch: only five students will graduate from her class. The coursework proves more dangerous than difficult. Physics class features a death-trap obstacle course. Chemistry exams involve explosives. Political Science lessons include guillotines. Students begin disappearing one by one. Lia realizes the school's true purpose extends beyond challenging academic conventions. Luminary tests moral fiber, willpower, and human endurance through life-threatening trials. As her classmates vanish, Lia faces a terrifying possibility. Maybe five students won't graduate because they're the best performers. Maybe five will graduate because they're the only survivors.
Genres: dystopia, suspense, mystery, thriller, young-adult, dark-academia
Vibes: dark, fast-paced, gritty, psychological, suspenseful, tense
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family, survival-game, unreliable-institution
Setting: Luminary Prep
320 pages · Paperback · PENGUIN US
Content warnings: death, violence