4.5

Ex Marks the Spot is perfect if you are a fan of academic settings and a good tense romance (Sapphic Historians anyone???). Obviously I can't say this is dark academia, there is nothing about this that is dark. But the Oxford setting is so atmospheric, the feeling this book gives is what I associate with dark academia - bundled up cozy in a warm library while its dark and gloomy outside, a hot cup of coffee in a cute cafe with someone you have hidden passionate feelings about, big academic secrets that impact every decision the characters make and how they evolve with one another.
Evie and Nic had a brief but very impactful relationship during their first year of Uni at Oxford that quickly spiralled into a bitter rivalry for their remaining years. We meet them both roughly 10 years later, in very different places in their careers. It's immediately obvious to the reader that there are still feelings on both sides, and the tension between them is delicious from the get-go. Throw in a highly coveted, long lost treasure hunt, intricate puzzles that needed our historians to knuckle down on their academic teamwork, some miscommunication, great side characters and an evil organsiation that wants to find the treasure before our heroins do and you have a great action packed romance novel.

I particularly loved the focus on Evie's growing disillusionment with academia and her struggles with realising the life she might always have envisioned for herself might not be right for her anymore. I feel like this might strike a cord with a lot of readers of a similar age to Evie!

(Oh and I squealed when Lily and Phil from the The Great Orchid Heist turned up - it was fun to spend time with them again!)

Thanks to Netgalley and Headline for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I will always read anything written by El, the way they're able to weave together romance, mystery and humour is magical, and this book is no exception. I loved the vivid Oxford setting, and while I'm not usually a fan of ex's to lovers again, the slow reveal of the facts surrounding the main character and love interests break up prior to the beginning of the book, and the way you genuinely believe that they have both changed and grown enough to make sense again now still made this one a winner for me.
I would highly recommend to anyone who likes a cosy mystery with very healthy dashes of romance and the classic El Vendrell wit.

4.75/5
My theme for 2026 seems to be hot nerds, and Ex Marks the Spot delivered! I was hooked from the dedication, and I didn't want to put this book down!
We follow Nic and Evie, two academic rivals who end up having to work together on a treasure hunt. I absolutely loved the tension between these two as they work together to solve the treasure hunt, as well as sort through their feelings from the past. I also really loved how the book approached Evie's struggle with academia, her DPhil, and the impact it had on her mental health - it felt very relatable for anyone with people-pleasing tendencies in higher education!
The treasure hunt was also so much fun, and the author's love for history, and particularly Oxford, really shone through in the story. I will fully admit that I wouldn't have a chance of solving it, even though I tried really hard to put the clues together.
The found family of Evie's house also has my heart. I adored Ash, Bruno and Evelyn and I really want a book about each of them now. I also squealed with excitement at a particular cameo that we got!
I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys funny, fast-paced sapphic stories with academic rivals and delicious tension!

Gay historians!!!! Gay historians!!!!! Run don’t walk to preorder this friends because this book is about GAY HISTORIANS!!!!

The minute I started this book and saw it was dedicated to ‘all the hot bisexual nerds’ and quoted both Red, White and Royal Blue and Julian of Norwich I knew this was going to be a fun time. And I was not disappointed.

I love history. I love history so much. I love the work of history as a process, as a discipline, for what it can tell us about the past- for what it can teach us about ourselves. For how it should, when we as historians do our jobs, be for everybody- be for all of us.

This book is a love story between the two wonderful and loveable main characters but to me it also read as a love story to history. A celebration of the stories from the past that touch us, that we want to find out more about and share with others.

Truly this book is a joy. If you love history or even like it a little bit- if you love chaotic queer nerds- this book is for you. Evie and Nic are great- but the diverse cast of supporting characters are wonderful too. I particularly liked Ash- I just felt really happy anytime I was reading about them!

On a slightly more serious note this book also really spoke to me as someone who could be thought of as a ‘failed academic’. Unfortunately Evie’s experiences of lack of support in academia felt way too real to me and mirrored my own a lot. I also really appreciated that this book explored the paranoia that academia sets in to you. How it can make you see people who should be your allies and friends as rivals, because the entire system is set up so you see your cohort as competition. I felt really seen by this book and felt it was very realistic to a lot of people’s experiences.

Overall, this is a fantastic read that I can’t recommend enough. Thank you so much to Mountain Leopard Press and NetGalley for this arc!