Even the fantastical elements of the secret societies are rooted in Yale’s academic past the Latin quotes etched in the stone archways around campus - which serve as clues in Alex’s hunt for a doorway to hell - might even be real if searched for hard enough.Īlex’s sharp narration grounds the reader from getting caught in the fantasy of the novel, like when the handsome “gentleman demon” Darlington - with glowing horns and golden irises - is reduced to a monster doing “naked hot yoga” in her eyes.
With every chapter ending with a diary entry from a different member of the secret societies, the reader can piece together their shadowy history. This novel is the perfect catnip for book lovers. Bardugo uses the alluring lore surrounding Yale’s secret societies to create a frighteningly realistic fantasy world. She crosses over to Hell three times throughout the novel and each time is followed back to the mortal realm by demons from her and her friends’ pasts. Instead of the typical study abroad to Paris or Rome, she finds herself on an “exchange program” to Hell. However, unlike most Dartmouth students, Alex is also busy talking to ghosts. Main character Alex is plagued by a cappella members rehearsing in her dorm, roommates dragging her to pre games, perpetual body odor and a chronic lack of sleep – though the last two have more to do with demons than dense Shakespeare readings. She is an associate professor at Yale, and has perfectly satirized the New England university in “Hell Bent.”īardugo’s novel paints a picture that most Dartmouth students can recognize. Leigh Bardugo has asserted herself as a literary force over the past decade, authoring the widely popular young adult fantasy series “Shadow and Bone,” whose Netflix adaptation received rave reviews following its release in April 2021. What if I told you that all of the intersecting pathways on the Green actually formed a protective pattern to ward off evil spirits? In Leigh Bardugo’s new novel “Hell Bent” - the highly anticipated sequel to the fantasy hit, “Ninth House” - that is the uncanny truth behind the central quad at Yale University.
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