These Mortal Bodies is a new dark academia story by Elspeth Wilson. With themes of obsession, academic pressure and class it has much in common with other books set in a university. But there is a witchy twist as we learn about Ivy’s strange connections to magic.

I think that one of the reasons I struggled to get into this book was the characterisation of Ivy. As the main character, she should be understandable and sympathisable but she came off as too juvenile to me. As a university student, she should really be a young adult but she felt like a very young teenager who acted impulsively and often cruelly. I usually like an unlikable main character, but I think that her personality and friendships leant towards toxic rather than complex.

I also found it hard to get absorbed into the story because of some of the writing choices. For instance, the lack of information about the university and the setting. When it comes to an academic story, I want to know aout all the little quirks of the institution- which teachers to be wary of, the strange name the students call the cafeteria, where they go to talk in private on campus and what the surrounding area is like. But I couldn’t get a clear picture and everything seemed underdeveloped to me.

I’m sad to say that I didn’t love the book because the premise seemed so fun and promising to me. But, it may just be that I can’t relate to young adult fiction as well as I used to? After being out of university for 2 years it becomes a little harder to care about some of the drama. But if the concept interests you, you should still give it a try!

These Mortal Bodies by Elspeth Wilson is an entrancing and dark exploration of obsession, identity, and the complex dynamics of sisterhood within the world of secret societies. Ivy Graveson, a neurodivergent young woman from coastal Scotland, steps into the elite world of a prestigious university with the hopes of belonging. Thrust into a world of privilege, Ivy's determination to fit in leads her to embrace the secretive, enchanting world of a powerful college society — the Coven. As she becomes more involved with this exclusive group, she uncovers chilling parallels between the college's past and her own life, particularly as she begins to feel a deeper connection with the water and a mysterious talisman: a heron.

The story is rich with intrigue as Ivy navigates a year at the university, grappling with the intense bonds of sisterhood, her growing involvement in the Coven, and the unravelling legacy of the Saint Clair sisters, whose deaths during the witch trials echo throughout the plot. Wilson weaves a narrative filled with dark, intoxicating themes of toxic friendship, betrayal, and obsession, where the lines between loyalty, power, and personal growth become increasingly blurred. Ivy is drawn to the allure of the Coven, but as she delves deeper, she must reckon with the potentially destructive forces at play within these bonds.

The tension of Ivy's internal struggle — wanting to be part of something bigger than herself, yet questioning the moral underpinnings of the society she has joined — creates a gripping atmosphere that keeps the reader turning the pages. The world-building is immersive, especially in its exploration of contemporary witchcraft, secret societies, and the eerie connections Ivy uncovers. The exploration of sisterhood is particularly compelling, as Ivy grapples with the question of whether these relationships are genuinely supportive or are instead marked by treachery and toxicity.

However, while the novel excels in its atmospheric tension and compelling central mystery, there are moments where certain plot lines, particularly that of the character Cara, leave the reader wanting more depth. Some aspects of her character and her role in the story feel underdeveloped, which slightly diminishes the emotional impact of her journey.

Overall, These Mortal Bodies is a gripping, page-turning read that combines elements of dark academia, witchcraft, and psychological suspense. Wilson's portrayal of Ivy’s journey into the world of the Coven offers an enticing and unsettling look at how much we’re willing to sacrifice for the sake of belonging. It’s a story that will leave readers reflecting on the nature of friendship, power, and the weight of the secrets we carry.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Felt very true to the university experience with an interesting character voicing the story. The title felt grander than the story itself and I wish we got more of the secret society aspect because, to me, it was the most engaging part of the plot. The characters and their choices felt juvenile at times and the story became stilted as I realised nothing was really happening.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC

Unfortunately this did not work for me. I think we are now starting to see a flood of books written specifically to fill the niche for "dark academia" which is leading to poorer quality. When a line like the following makes it into a book - "Other than me, the sea was her closest friend, just like it's always been for me too" - it does not give you a great deal of confidence that the book has been edited or proofread properly, let alone had a great deal of thought go into it in the first place. If this was a first effort written by a teenager, I'd be impressed, but as a novel from a respected publisher it is very poor.

Absolutely brilliant book!
I am a big fan of this author and love the writing style!
I cant wait to read more!

⭑ ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩

~

I really struggled with this one. I just couldn’t get into it and was just not my kinda vibe. I was finding myself getting really bored and wanting to do literally anything else than read this book.

~

Thanks to NetGalley and Elspeth Wilson for the ARC copy just unfortunately wasn’t for me 🫶🏼

In this review, I want to express my gratitude to Simon & Schuster UK for granting me access to the ARC. When I first received it, I anticipated a dark academy theme. However, as I began to read, I found the narrative to be a bit clumsy and disorganized. The plot and characters felt rather plain for my taste, which ultimately made it challenging for me to finish the book in a timely manner. I wondered if it was the execution that I struggled to grasp, but overall, it just didn’t resonate with me as much as I had hoped.

I really enjoyed this, it was engaging, dark and twisty. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC.

This is an upcoming release due out July 16th 2025, perfect for fans of Dark Academia (think the Secret History) and girlhood/witch influence, we follow Ivy navigate her exclusive college and getting to know people from less humble beginnings than her own. There are themes of toxic obsession, love, grief and just how much do your friends mean to you? I found this book enthralling, engaging and perfect for an autumnal read!😍🍁 I loved the mixing of the past and present with history of witch covens playing as themes throughout with darker magic

I was really hoping to enjoy this one as the description sounded right up my alley. I have two main disappointments that I think really affected my reading experience. One of which is the fact that nothing really happened throughout the book? There were moments where I thought it was going somewhere, but the execution fell flat for me. Secondly, and perhaps even more importantly, none of the characters were likeable enough for me to truly be motivated to read. I can forgive a so-so plot if the characters feel authentic, relatable and real, but unfortunately I didn't feel like any of the characters matched that description. Their motivations and relationships were surface level, and I couldn't connect to any of them.
This one was just not for me, unfortunately, but I really appreciate the chance to read an advance copy thanks to NetGalley.

Thank you for providing me with an early copy of this book. Unfortunately I just couldn’t get into it and really struggled to get passed the first 40ish pages.

Elite university, mysterious social society, academia all sounds like the makings of a great book. This isn't great but I think that may be the gap between my age and the main character who, at times, I found annoying. The writing is good and the book is pacy but it wasn't quite the dark thriller I was hoping for.

I reached for this book on the NetGalley UK list because one of the characters is described as being neuro divergent . to be honest, I can’t see the evidence of neuro diversity the first half of the book anyway
There are paragraphs of a witch based Story at the start of the chapters to begin with. It was hard to see how these were linked to the story. I did understand it eventually but was rather flummoxed initially
I made an assumption that this book is set in modern times because of this the behaviour of the students in the drinking club seems somewhat anachronistic. it might have been better as a novel in the 80s or 90s when these drinking clubs actually existed as some of the revelations about our politicians revealed in the media
One of the things that I thought was a pity was that the novelist sat in an unnamed British university which I took to be Oxford or Cambridge by not using a definite university the author Mrs out on the opportunity to really set something perfectly geographically. The resulting university seems rather generic and wonder if this had been done to make it more approachable to non-British readers Americanisms in the description of the universe that also seemed to place a British setting
I think it was these oddities in the setting which resulted in me giving low score then I might’ve expected. The writing is good as is the characterisations I just couldn’t get over the strangeness in the description of the university
I read an early copy of the novel on on NetGalley UK the book is published in the UK on the 15th of July 2025 by Simon & Schuster UK
This review will appear on NetGalley UK, Goodreads and my book blog bionicsarahSbooks.wordpress.com after publication. It will also appear on Amazon UK.

Found the idea of the plot and atmosphere very intriguing but struggled at times to keep engaged as the plot was a bit slow for my liking.

I really enjoyed the idea of the book but don’t know if it’s how it transferred to my kindle but I really struggled to make sense/follow the book. What I did get was good but was quite a slow burner and lacked structure. I love an academia book! Thank you publisher, author and netgalley for allowing me an ARC for this book.

What would you do for sisterhood?
This book takes freshers to university academia and envelops them in a world of secret societies and relationships of sisterhood and brotherhood.

Our main character ivy enters still slightly upset having lost her only friend before university, but before she knows it she’s wrapped in love from martha and prim, who she loves like best friends and sisters and her new boyfriend George.

The secrets behind these societies make for a rocky relationship and trust issues between many, but the general message stands that sisterhood can survive anything and your sisters should always come first.
Alongside these societies we also unravel a mystery of local witch trails and the introduction of women accessing academia and the way this may all be intertwined with the societies we’ve met is truly mindblowingly out of this world.

Despite the grief and anxiety we see our characters deal with in various ways, the message of sisterhood stands throughout and I truly fell in love with our little trio of main characters.

anted to love this but just couldn’t get into it at all. I found the main character vapid and annoying; the language was confusing and I kept having to pull myself back into the prose instead of having it pull me in and become engrossed.
I didn’t attend oxbridge and didn’t understand a lot of those references / lost on me perhaps. But as a grad of a UK university you’d have thought they’d be somewhat familiar. Hated the ‘bop’ term.
And the story just sort of didn’t go anywhere for ages. I found the interactions between characters shallow.
Just no. I’m sorry.
Thank you to netgalley and publishers for the ARC of this book. Maybe next time!

Giving gothic university vibes this book is peak dark academia.
The focusing of the plot around secret societies gives the book a thriller supernatural vibe which I loved!

Leaving behind her childhood in coastal Scotland, neurodivergent Ivy Graveson arrives at a prestigious university and throws herself into the deep end of life on campus.
Though her fellow students all seem to come from money and to have known each other their whole lives, outsider Ivy is determined to belong. She embraces the world of secret societies, and as she discovers the legacy of her college, the parallels between its past and her present become striking. Because however hard she tries to ignore it, Ivy has always felt one with water and her own personal talisman, a heron, is never far away.
In just one life-changing year in these hallowed halls, Ivy will have to decide how much sisterhood means to her and how far she’ll go to become the person she was destined to be.

Whilst I did struggle to finish the book, I did and it was OK.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC!

Dnf at about 20% probably more of a me problem as I am slumping at bit atm but this just didn’t hook me in and I found it a bit too bland to hold my attention