8 Dark Academia Novels Set in Art School

What happens when ambition and talent go awry?

Who doesn’t love dark academia? The malevolent architecture and forced proximity cut with the youth and ambition that sets it all aflame? Ever since chancing upon a marked-up paperback of The Secret History in the late ’90s, I’ve been obsessed with dark academia and all the micro-genres contained within it: gothic mysteries, boarding school thrillers, Neo-Victorian suspense, and my new favorite—what I’m calling art school academia. 

There is no better place to find a particular kind of monster than an art school. Imagine hundreds of talented young people sequestered inside a prestigious institution, believing they’re there to master something sacred, only to realize that to be successful, they need to do more than just create. They need to be chosen—lauded by critics, signed by prestigious galleries, hung in museums. To achieve this, to be chosen, they must face public criticism, intense competition, and the ever-increasing pressure of gamesmanship.

My debut thriller, Tell Them You Lied, is partially set in such an art school. When I began writing, I wanted to understand who could succeed in such a pressure cooker—and how? And what happens when all that ambition and talent goes awry? Below is a list of eight of delicious books set in art schools, each with different, and compelling, answers to those questions. 

Read the list at Electric Lit: https://electricliterature.com/8-dark-academia-novels-set-in-art-school/