Not So Well Read | An Academy for Liars
Log in or Sign up
An Academy for Liars
Alexis Henderson
Save to Your Books
100% of affiliate revenue supports Not So Well Read
A student will find that the hardest lessons sometimes come from outside the classroom in this stunning dark academia novel from the acclaimed author of The Year of the Witching and House of Hunger.
Lennon Carter’s life is falling apart. Then she gets a mysterious phone call inviting her to take the entrance exam for Drayton College, a school of magic hidden in a secret pocket of Savannah. Lennon has been chosen because—like everyone else at the school—she has the innate gift of persuasion, the ability to wield her will like a weapon, using it to control others and, in rare cases, matter itself.
After passing the test, Lennon begins to learn how to master her devastating and unsettling power. But despite persuasion’s heavy toll on her body and mind, she is wholly captivated by her studies, by Drayton’s lush, moss-draped campus, and by her brilliant classmates. But even more captivating is her charismatic adviser, Dante, who both intimidates and enthralls her.
As Lennon continues in her studies, her control grows, and she starts to uncover more about the secret world she has entered into, including the disquieting history of Drayton College. She is increasingly disturbed by what she learns, for it seems that the ultimate test is to embrace absolute power without succumbing to corruption...and it’s a test she’s terrified she’s going to fail.
Show more
Get the Bindery app
Posts about this title from Not So Well Read
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Apr 2 2025
It’s no secret that I love academic fantasy books, so after finding Blood Over Bright Haven I couldn’t help but revisit some of my favorites in the genre.
From magic school concepts to post-graduate research these scholarly fantasy books have the perfect #darkacademia or #lightacademia vibes.
Also, there are definitely at least 20 more books in this category, but these are some of the ones that I’ve loved enough to keep physical copies of ✨
#darkacademiabooks #lightacademiabooks #magicschool #fantasybookstagram #fantasybookrecs
11 books
1
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Sep 30 2024
Here's what I read in September... Spoiler it was an incredible month!
7 books
2
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Sep 12 2024
I just got back from a two-week Italian adventure of a lifetime! Here are the books I read while traveling...
6 books
1
Posts about this book from across Bindery
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Apr 26
Join for free
Was Book Con 2026 As Bad As People Are Saying? My experience at Book Con 2026 vs 2019!
Let's talk about Book Con! I would love to hear the experiences of those who went! Obviously this is MY experience and everyone is different, but in this video I go through what Book Con was like in 2019 vs 2026 and how things have changed plus my take on the whole situation.
6 books
12
Ronnica Reads\ \ Ronnica Fatt\ \ • Feb 5
Join for free
Dark academia books by Black authors
Dark academia books by Black authors #darkacademia #bookrecommendations #blackauthors #diversebooks #booktok
5 books
Inkspoken Books\ \ amanda.the.bookish\ \ • Nov 30 2025
Join for free
15 books
6
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Nov 9 2025
Join for free
what makes a good dark academia book? 🕯️🕰️ defining the genre and it's potential
let me know what your favourite dark academia books are!
12 books
7
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Oct 2 2025
Join for free
\ \ Join for free or login](https://boundless.binderybooks.com/item/Bir1FefdRRtacro5RIHP/)
it's my birthday! here are 28 books that have shaped my life 🫶🏾
open for book recs <3
28 books
21
Written Reveries\ \ Krystal\ \ • Sep 30 2025
Join for free
\ \ I was invited to share my thoughts on the Fantasy genre, and Black Fantasy in particular by All Ways Black and Penguin Random House. All Ways Black celebrates Black authors and stories aims to help readers discover incredible authors and books and support the next wave of Black writers. I'm so appreciative for this opportunity and wanted to share it with our community.\ \ You're welcome to check it out here: All Ways Black & Penguin Random House Blog Post : Why Black Fantasy Is Important](https://writtenreveries.binderybooks.com/item/N0i0LpaMh5DojegbnRjQ/)
All Ways Black & Penguin Random House Blog Post : Why Black Fantasy Is Important
5 books
15
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Sep 28 2025
Join for free
the ultimate guide to fall book recs 🍂 30+ autumn books you need to read
let me know what books you'd recommend for the fall!
34 books
15
somenoveltea's bindery\ \ Maddie\ \ • Sep 4 2025
Join for free
i seldom do recs but dark academia is my FAVORITE sub-genre of all time. also drop any recs u have bc i'll literally read all of them #booktok #bookrecs #darkacademia #bookrecommendations #darkacademiabooks
16 books
Alyssa’s Library\ \ alyssa\ \ • Sep 4 2025
Join for free
12 books
4
The Bibliothecary\ \ Samantha\ \ • May 11 2025
Join for free
Recent Reads (books 21 -28) | 2025
In which I discuss the books I've read recently...
♡ Join THE BIBLIOTHECARY: https://bibliothecarybooks.binderybooks.com/ ►► Seekers of The Bibliothecary get perks that allow more interaction with my channel and get at least 4 monthly exclusives such as videos about books, witchcraft, and other hobbies, a year long interactive reading challenge, readalongs, and more
8 books
3
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Apr 2 2025
It’s no secret that I love academic fantasy books, so after finding Blood Over Bright Haven I couldn’t help but revisit some of my favorites in the genre.
From magic school concepts to post-graduate research these scholarly fantasy books have the perfect #darkacademia or #lightacademia vibes.
Also, there are definitely at least 20 more books in this category, but these are some of the ones that I’ve loved enough to keep physical copies of ✨
#darkacademiabooks #lightacademiabooks #magicschool #fantasybookstagram #fantasybookrecs
11 books
1
Neon Moons\ \ Keisha\ \ • Jan 13 2025
Join for free
An Academy for Liars was...disappointing? Weekly Wrap- Up and Current Reads 1/13/2025
Everyone!! What are you reading this week? In this video, I detail all the books and comics I read last week and what's on deck for this week! I also talk about how the movie- musical Wicked inspired a new book on my TBR! And finally, I show my new build form this past weekend that I have to fix soon lol!! I'm getting better at building things!! lol
Also, I forgot to add the 90-page novella I will read, Lady Widow: Death Among the Stars by C.M. Lockhart!! It's another revenge plot, and you know how much I love those!!!
If you wish to join my free bookclub at Bindery click here: https://neon-moons.binderybooks.com/
If you want to subscribe to my blog and read my musings on books, literary critical theory, and book lists, click here: https://theblerdlibrary.com/
If you want to find me on socials, click here: https://linktr.ee/theblerdlibrary
#blackbooktubers #booktok #booktube #scififantasy #speculativefiction #wrapup #currentreads
5 books
2
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Dec 31 2024
Join for free
my top 10 favourite books of 2024 ✨ best books of 2024 🎉
My favourite video to make every year—let me know know your top 10 favourite books of the year 💖
🔒 Join my Bindery community for the extended version of this video where I share my TOP 11-20 BOOKS OF 2024: https://boundless.binderybooks.com/
🍉 Palestine / Gaza fundraiser: https://secure.everyaction.com/-73MDOq2iUetglwT5-jUMw2 Thousands of authors boycott https://lithub.com/hundreds-of-authors-pledge-to-boycott-israeli-cultural-institutions/ Full letter + list of signatories: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1KzLMsjcs2Qla--qqzsfJ8iJdHN-nABGdCcYWRcqSyIA/edit?tab=t.0
Pre-order DUST SETTLES NORTH by Deena ElGenaidi! 📕 Preorder campaign: bit.ly/DustSettlesNorthPreorder 📗 Bookshop.org https://bookshop.org/p/books/dust-settles-north-deena-elgenaidi/21660445?ean=9781964721163 📘 Barnes & Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dust-settles-north-deena-elgenaidi/1146012296?ean=9781964721163 📙 Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Dust-Settles-North-Deena-ElGenaidi/dp/1964721164?tag=thisstoryai04-20 📓 Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/216539793-dust-settles-north?from\_search=true&from\_srp=true&qid=A2tCltxUzB&rank=1
links 📕 instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thisstoryaintover/ 📘 twitter: https://twitter.com/jananiekvelu 📗 tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thisstoryaintover 📓 substack: https://jananiekvelu.substack.com/ 📙 goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/thisstoryaintover 🗣️ discord community: https://discord.gg/RQjq5yNHTA 🔖 Fable book club: https://fable.co/club/boundless-book-club-with-jananie-k-velu-111751962292
💌 business/sponsorship inquiries: tamara@smallscreenmarketing.com 💌 anything else: thisstoryaintover@gmail.com
faqs 📇 how do you pronounce your name? JEN-nuh-nee (like a knee!)
sub count: 📊 101,821
10 books
6
Tattooed Bibliophiles\ \ Zee\ \ • Nov 13 2024
Join for free
11 books
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Oct 30 2024
Join for free
[Today’s post is available for free followers as well because I thought it might be a nice preview into what you’re missing out on if you’re not a paid member and also so I could share my thoughts from this post specifically to a wider net of people. Without further ado…. \ \ Hello folks! You asked for more journal entries so here we are!\ \ I’m hoping to churn these out more often even if that means a quicker/less extensive check-in each week, but I have a decent amount to share today!\ \ \ \ What’s going on with me: \ \ It’s been a wild and hectic month honestly. Between my birthday at the start of october, the new york trip for the Bindery Fall Launch event [full details in this journal post], the busy-ness of my full time job (and its usual corporate woes iykyk), and some personal things going on— I’m honestly exhausted.\ \ However, I’ve been having a lot of great conversations with friends and specifically also with my lovely partner on what is driving me and what I want to focus my time on in this next stage of my life. I think my work with Bindery, the recent new york trip, and some changing circumstances in my personal life have started to help me refocus on what I want out of my time here on this dying planet.\ \ \ \ Some thoughts on youtube, making videos, reading and the future of my channel: \ \ Although I love making videos, and although my youtube channel has brought me incredible joy & drive in a time when I was struggling to keep going with life, I’ve been finding that it’s been bringing me a lot of pain and disappointment in these past couple years. And part of that has to do with the focus on views and my dependency on youtube & sponsorships as an income source for the very difficult financial situation my family has been in these recent years _[this may be news to you & I don’t really like to talk about it, but maybe someday i’ll share more] _but part of it is also the way I've robbed myself of a lot of my joy related to youtube and reading.\ \ These days it takes a lot out of me to edit a video and the concept of filming makes me anxious in a way that I haven’t been before. This isn’t because of any of you or my viewers—y’all are the loveliest bunch. But I think I’ve been trying to fit myself into the type of person who makes certain videos or talks about certain books or posts about certain content and it has been draining me immensely whenever these things don’t have the desired effect. And it honestly shouldn’t be that way! Part of that is the pressure I put on myself to be on par with others, but also me not sticking to who I am and valuing my time for myself.\ \ All this is to say that I want to go back to my roots. I want to read the books that interest me and I want to discover new and emerging authors from marginalized backgrounds who are writing incredible stories that I know need to be shared with the world. And even if that means I’m not reading what everyone else is reading or I’m not making videos that will generate a lot of views, and even if that means the content of my videos becomes more casual and more review focused vs vlog/challenge focused then I think that’s what needs to happen.\ \ I truly feel like the act of making content about books and the business side of it all has really come to ruin my enjoyment of it and also rob exceptional amounts of time from my life that in all honesty could’ve been spent reading!!\ \ So in these next months you may start to notice less intense, production heavy videos and more laidback content like my early days of youtube. You may see a slower video cadence in general—a video every 2-3 weeks—but hopefully you’ll be excited by all of the additional thought and excitement I can bring to your screen as I make room for more reading and thinking.\ \ \ \ Revisiting my soul’s oldest friend: writing \ \ Now we just talked about finding joy and returning to my roots. Something that has always been a part of my identity is writing. As surely as I discovered my love for reading and imagination and critical thought early on in life, I also discovered a passion for writing and working through the things I was feeling by writing my way through them.\ \ Although for most of my life the fiction I wrote helped me cope with my mental health issues, several years ago that stopped being the case, and if anything my inability to write in the midst of crippling depression became a further drain on my mental state.\ \ So I stopped.\ \ But recently, by the grace of some force in the world or perhaps a more stable and loving environment I’ve been able to cultivate between therapy, medication, and people in my life who add joy and meaning rather than pain and sorrow—I’ve been feeling the itch to write again in a way I haven’t felt in nearly eight years.\ \ This isn’t an announcement post and it isn’t a statement of any success I hope to achieve. It is rather just a moment where I’d like to share that I will be indulging my inner child once more and doing something that excites me in ways I haven’t felt in a long time.\ \ If you’re interested in my writing then I hope you’ll subscribe to my substack here: https://jananiekvelu.substack.com/\\ \ In the tradition of my old blogging days (pre-youtube channel), I’ve been working on some personal essays and articles on the ideas and narratives that have chased me in the wee hours of the night and I hope to humbly share some artfully crafted thoughts into the void and see if the void has something to say in return.\ \ Aside from the nonfiction I've been excited to write, I’m also going to start sharing more here for my wonderful Bindery paid members on the fiction I’m hoping to write. This will include some moodboards and concepts and a regular update on novel writing progress over the next month or so as I try to draft something new. Hopefully this will lead to also sharing excerpts of my novel and/or short stories down the line.\ \ How I’m doing ~ mentally ~ \ \ Honestly I’m watching and reading so much horrible news of continuous death and violence and feeling more and more hopeless by the day.\ \ But I’m chugging on to continue to make change where I can and also hoping to write on this topic soon.\ \ Otherwise, I’m feeling a sense of calm in my recent convictions, and excitement for what’s to come in this next phase of my life.\ \ \ \ What I’m working on this week: \ \
- Youtube: Just finished up two videos that are waiting to be approved by sponsors unfortunately, but those will be hitting your subscription boxes on youtube in the next few days!\ \
- Nonfic Writing: I’m working on an article/personal essay about the idea of hysteria, mental illness, and our conception of emotional women in fiction, as part of the first set of posts I release on my substack.\ \
- _**Fiction Writing: **_I’m working on refining a story concept for drafting over the next few months—some tidbits and teasers to come soon for Inner Circle & Associate Publisher tiers.\ \
- Boundless Press publishing: We’re currently in the process of trying to secure praise blurbs for Dust Settles North! This involves emailing a lot of connections and authors we admire and seeing if they’d be up to read_ Dust Settles North _and potentially provide an endorsement of it in the form of a short quote/blurb of their thoughts.\ \ \ \ \ What I’m reading: \ \
- I just finished _**Academy of Liars by Alexis Henderson **_and I am SHOOK. This one is a new favourite of all time and I have so many thoughts to share, more to come in a dedicated review post for Bindery paid members\ \
- Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad — I am a little behind schedule with this one but will be finishing it this week and am already in awe of the writing. If you didn’t know Enter Ghost is the October pick for my book club on the Fable app, The Boundless Book Club. Please download the app for free and join here , we’re currently voting on our November pick.\ \ \ \ \ What I’m watching: \ \
- A Virtuous Business — y’all I’m OBSESSED with this show. My partner and I started watching it the other day and have been hooked ever since. A Virtuous Business is a Korean drama that follows four women in the 1990s who get into the business of selling lingerie and adult products to keep themselves afloat. The show is a commentary on conviction, what we find shameful, and is a beautiful celebration of female friendships. It’s both funny, heartfelt, and gripping and I hope more people will check it out!!\ \ \ \ \ OK, that was a long one, but I hope you were able to take something meaningful away from this post! Let me know how you’re all doing, what you’re reading, and one thing thing that’s bringing you joy this week 💜\ \ \ \ Join for free or login](https://boundless.binderybooks.com/item/aiNpbt71sY50pzpiORMF/)
Open for a long and a bit more personal update on my life. This is a FREE public edition so followers get a peek into what you're missing 😉
3 books
7
Skies Press\ \ Emma\ \ • Oct 12 2024
Join for free
Books I'm bringing on my NYC trip
5 books
Boundless Press\ \ Jananie\ \ • Oct 2 2024
Join for free
[Hello everyone! This journal entry was supposed to go up over 2 weeks ago but alas here we are 😩\ \ Today is my birthday (yes, i am a very libra baby 😌) and I’m sitting at the crowded cafe on my day off typing frantically away so I can this entry out to you!\ \ First off, welcome to another month, another it’s-almost-the-end-of-the-year-so-i’m-freaking-out moment of the year. Today I am twenty seven years old and in some ways I feel so completely old and in other ways I feel utterly too young to be allowed to take care of myself. Thankfully, one thing that always does a good job of distracting me from staring down the doom of being one more year closer to death is that my birthday is on the beautiful cusp between summer and fall and all I want to is curl up in coziness and get ready for all the spookiness to come this season.\ \ \ \ What’s going on with me:\ \ It’s been a busy few weeks for me recently and in-between lots of personal events, the horrible state of the world, and being ill for a bit I honestly can’t believe how quickly the time has flown.\ \ Over the last few weeks I:\ \
- Finally unpacked the final things in my new apartment\
- Hosted a chill housewarming party with friends\
- Went to the eye doctor after years to find out that my eyesight has regressed badly since my laser eye surgery in 2021. I now need glasses again for seeing things far away (TV, monitor, boards/screens at work, etc), though it’s still not as bad as my pre-LASIK eyesight and my new glasses are cute enough.\
- Thrifted a BEAUTIFUL vintage Moroccan rug and some wonderful art for my library room\
- Attended a friend’s baby shower and then proceeded to read up on postpartum psychosis and came to the realization of how difficult it would actually be for me to ever handle a pregnancy with my mental illness\
- Was in charge of a full day photo & videography shoot for work\
- Listed and sold ALL FOUR of my bookshelves on Facebook Marketplace 🤭\
- HOSTED a baby shower for a family member\ \ \ \ \ \
- Planned and ran a bachelorette weekend cottage getaway for one of my childhood friends—we went to a few wineries and played board games at the cottage and overall had a wholesome time haha\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \
- Planned and HOSTED the bridal shower for the same friend the next weekend (it was Cinderella themed and absolutely adorable if I do say so myself)\
- Got a couple old cavities recleaned and refilled at the dentist 😭\
- Got my 100k subscribers YouTube Play button plaque in the mail!\ \ \ \ \ \
- Had some serious personally stressful things come up which triggered a flare up in my chronic digestive issues which basically left me stuck at home, in pain, and unable to eat properly for a couple weeks.\
- In the downtime I did make some headway on planning the redecoration of my office/library room but was definitely still deeply stressed out by Israel’s recent heinous attacks on Lebanon and have been listening to and checking the news incessantly hoping to not wake up to more death and destruction each morning. My partner is Lebanese so these past weeks have been extremely hard on him and I’m just trying to find the best way to be present for him and support him through this horrible time.\ \ \ \ \ \
- Over the past weekend, with the help of my boyfriend, I finally put up the new shelves, art, and decorations for my library room and I am in LOVE with how it turned out. [see the photos below for a sneak peek]\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \
- Thankfully I was also able to recover health-wise this past weekend and was able to go see Billie Eilish in concert in Toronto last night!\ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \ In the next few weeks I:\ \
- Have my birthday party to plan for next week! [it’s going to be Pride and Prejudice themed 😌]\
- Have a halloween party to plan for the end of the month and will need to figure out my DIY costume\
- Will be flying to New York in another ten days for the Bindery fall launch and will be staying with a friend to make a whole trip out of it!\ \ \ \ How I’m doing ~ mentally ~\ \ As you can tell it’s been a busy time for me [more so than usual lol] but I’m surprisingly holding up. I keep thinking back to this time last year and even years previous, and I have never been so proud of my own growth and how far I’ve come.\ \ Two years ago on my birthday I was wishing I wasn’t alive as I fell deep into my worst bipolar depressive episode to-date. Last year, I was in Paris on my own, traveling and seeing bookstores across the world and figuring out who I wanted to be for myself. This year, today, I woke up next to the love of my life, tried a Pilates class for the first time and struggled epicly with a big smile on my face, and I am now having a quiet afternoon at the cafe catching up on youtube work before a nice dinner out.\ \ I have never been so deeply happy with the small joys in life, and I have never been so grateful for the life I have and the breaths I take, which so many others around the world have been robbed of whether by mental illness or by horrible political powers that seek to wipe them out. If you’re struggling with mental illness, please know that you are in my thoughts ♥️ and if not, I hope you can keep the people of Palestine and Lebanon and Syria and Yemen in your thoughts and hearts and keep fighting against the zionist regime.\ \ \ \ What I’m working on this week:\ \
- Finishing filming my library room redecoration/tour video and editing that to go up next week\
- Filming a vlog reading Intermezzo — I’m sure you’ve seen all the hype for this book and although I’ve had a hit-or-miss experience with Sally Rooney’s books I am hoping that this one will be a new favourite!\ \ \ \ What I’m currently reading:\ \ Academy of Liars by Alexis Henderson — I am already OBSESSED with this book omg. I had an e-ARC of this but only had the chance to start it this past weekend. I really loved House of Hunger by this author which was a wonderful and sumptuous vampire book, but THIS BOOK wow. The writing style and voice in this one is a bit different and definitely more of that contemporary fantasy / thriller vibe and it’s just everything I love — a mentally ill character figuring themselves out and getting into deeper [potentially magical] trouble.\ \ What I’m watching:\ \ I recently finished watching part 1 of the new season of Emily in Paris and it was deliciously stupid and frivolous as usual so it was highly entertaining lol. I still need to find a day to watch part 2 but I’m excited for it.\ \ I’ve also been rewatching Gilmore Girls for the millionth time since fall is here and it’s just the perfect show for cozy season. I’m already on season 2 and am enjoying myself immensely. I do have to say that the first 3-4 seasons are probably my favourite because after that Rory kinda gets annoying lol.\ \ \ \ Alright, that’s all from me! Let me know how you’re all doing, what you’re reading, and what you’ve been up to these past few weeks! 🙂\ \ \ \ Upgrade for $5 or login](https://boundless.binderybooks.com/item/lYZbHujiEehIZoY7hDX7/)
10.02.24 - journal update #14 | it's my birthday! :) let me tell you about my september
It's been a chaotic and busy month and I'm so sorry for the lack of content during this time but rest assured a lot is coming soon!
3 books
6
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Sep 30 2024
Here's what I read in September... Spoiler it was an incredible month!
7 books
2
Boozhoo Books\ \ Naomi\ \ • Sep 26 2024
Join for free
Books We Talked About at Quite Time Book Club
Here are some books we discussed this week. Hope you can join us next Monday at 5pm PST.
12 books
2
Not So Well Read\ \ Courtney\ \ • Sep 12 2024
I just got back from a two-week Italian adventure of a lifetime! Here are the books I read while traveling...
6 books
1