by Sara Wolf
First published 2020
Lilith Pierce faces upheaval when her mother remarries a wealthy European man. While the newlyweds honeymoon, Lilith gets sent to Institute Le Silvere, an exclusive boarding school nestled in the Swiss Alps. She tells herself seven months will pass quickly enough. But the school holds secrets that make her hypervigilance flare. The surrounding woods seem to pulse with unnatural life. A figure with burning red eyes follows her through the shadows. Village locals mutter about curses that plague the students. Then Lilith meets Ciel Lautrec, whose impossible beauty suggests he might not be entirely human. She also clashes with Alistair Strickland, who appointed himself the school's enforcer and makes her life difficult. As strange forces close in around her, Lilith must rely on the fierce independence that helped her survive her father's disappearance and her mother's breakdown. The forest itself seems to recognize her strength, watching as she navigates dangers both human and otherworldly.
Genres: romance, fantasy, young-adult, paranormal
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Institute Le Silvere, Swiss Alps
446 pages · Paperback · Independently published