Perhaps I’ll give this 3.5 stars?? I’m not sure. (Probably not.) But to be honest, although this was only a 3 star read for me, this was a very entertaining 3 stars. I was still engrossed in the mystery and tenseness of the time loop from beginning to end! 

Take my enjoyment with a grain of salt, though! Part of that is definitely because I’m a nonbinary person named Drew who’s not much older than the character in this book with my name, and I also kind of related to them. (Either way, they were my favorite of the POVs.) The meta-ness of reading this beginning to end was both delightful and mildly distressing!

With that said, I have my reasons for keeping this at 3 stars. While I appreciate this sticking true to the rules of dark academia and actually critiquing the institutions it takes place in, the commentary was *very* heavy-handed. A lot of it felt surface-level—more like talking points than room for proper discussion, which was a shame, because practically all of its main characters are in the margins and have their own way of being wronged or ignored by Archwell Academy. 

(Also, some of the mystery was predictable.)

And the other reviews have pointed this out before me, but the ending was incredibly abrupt. I have several questions about the altered reality in the end of the novel. And one other factor I won’t name for spoilery reasons. 

Final criticism: Every main character had something to like about them, except for Rory!! I don’t care about her trauma and her reasoning. Her “redemption” was super rushed, her motives for most of the book were just “wanting to be like her mom” because of the power and respect she commanded, despite the harm she inflicted on other students being pretty noticeable throughout the loop, and it got a little repetitive reading that in her POV. And it still feels like an excuse for everything?? Fine, she’s a teenage girl with mommy issues and little knowledge about how her actions hurt people, but…still.

I don’t think I’d recommend this out of the blue unless I encounter a specific kind of YA reader I know would love this story(I’m thinking of a particular friend/cousin figure who might enjoy this, actually), but maybe I’ll pick this up again in the future if I’m looking for a book I’ve already read and know what happens in. (The irony!! But also, reading’s a coping mechanism for me, so you never know.)