The Incandescent
- Author Emily Tesh
- Narrator Zara Ramm
- Publisher Little, Brown Book Group
- Publish Date 13 May 2025
- Run Time 12 hours and 24 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Contemporary fantasy.
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What to expect
'A searingly brilliant fantasy. This is magical school with teeth . . . an unmissable read' Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne
'Fans of Naomi Novik's Scholomance series won't want to miss this' Publishers Weekly
Dr Walden is the Director of Magic at Chetwood School and one of the most powerful magicians in England. Her days consist of meetings, teaching A-Level Invocation to four talented, chaotic sixth formers, more meetings and securing the school's boundaries from demonic incursions.
Walden is good at her job - no, Walden is great at her job. But demons are masters of manipulation. It's her responsibility to keep her school with its six hundred students and centuries-old legacy safe. But it's possible the entity Walden most needs to keep her school safe from . . . is herself.
A Deadly Education meets Rivers of London in this captivating contemporary fantasy from Sunday Times bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.
'Emily Tesh captivates me the way few authors can, and she can do it in any genre and any world. The Incandescent is a delight from start to finish - it bewitched me, body and soul . . . A wholly perfect book'
Olivie Blake, author of The Atlas Six
'The grown-up answer to the magical boarding school tale . . . Fantastic in every sense of the word'
Freya Marske, author of A Marvellous Light
'An absolute flex of a book, empathetic and passionate and deeply thoughtful'
Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun
Five-star reader reviews:
'love this book so much I want to get six copies'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Genius - easily the best magical school book . . . ever'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Emily Tesh looked into my heart and pulled this book out!! . . . I cannot praise this book highly enough!!!!'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I couldn't have set this book down to save my life . . . If you enjoyed A Deadly Education, The Magicians, or any other classic magic school series, you'll love The Incandescent'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I loved the whole thing and cannot wait to hug my pre-ordered copy!'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'This is a magnificent book. A magic boarding school, seen from the teacher's lounge, is already my jam. This exceeded my expectations by a wide margin'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'An absolute triumph, a breathtakingly beautiful novel that captivates from the very first page . . . Emily Tesh's storytelling is nothing short of magical'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'This is definitely my favourite read of the year so far, and has solidified Tesh as one of my favourite authors'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Fans of Naomi Novik's Scholomance series won't want to miss this' Publishers Weekly
Dr Walden is the Director of Magic at Chetwood School and one of the most powerful magicians in England. Her days consist of meetings, teaching A-Level Invocation to four talented, chaotic sixth formers, more meetings and securing the school's boundaries from demonic incursions.
Walden is good at her job - no, Walden is great at her job. But demons are masters of manipulation. It's her responsibility to keep her school with its six hundred students and centuries-old legacy safe. But it's possible the entity Walden most needs to keep her school safe from . . . is herself.
A Deadly Education meets Rivers of London in this captivating contemporary fantasy from Sunday Times bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.
'Emily Tesh captivates me the way few authors can, and she can do it in any genre and any world. The Incandescent is a delight from start to finish - it bewitched me, body and soul . . . A wholly perfect book'
Olivie Blake, author of The Atlas Six
'The grown-up answer to the magical boarding school tale . . . Fantastic in every sense of the word'
Freya Marske, author of A Marvellous Light
'An absolute flex of a book, empathetic and passionate and deeply thoughtful'
Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun
Five-star reader reviews:
'love this book so much I want to get six copies'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Genius - easily the best magical school book . . . ever'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Emily Tesh looked into my heart and pulled this book out!! . . . I cannot praise this book highly enough!!!!'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I couldn't have set this book down to save my life . . . If you enjoyed A Deadly Education, The Magicians, or any other classic magic school series, you'll love The Incandescent'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I loved the whole thing and cannot wait to hug my pre-ordered copy!'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'This is a magnificent book. A magic boarding school, seen from the teacher's lounge, is already my jam. This exceeded my expectations by a wide margin'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'An absolute triumph, a breathtakingly beautiful novel that captivates from the very first page . . . Emily Tesh's storytelling is nothing short of magical'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'This is definitely my favourite read of the year so far, and has solidified Tesh as one of my favourite authors'
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Critics Review
The Incandescent is the grown-up answer to the magical boarding school tale, a glorious shout of vindication for those of us whose necks hurt in the morning now and for anyone who has ever worked in education. But it's also, to put it simply, a really bloody good story. Every book Emily Tesh writes is a magic trick, and this is no exception: with one hand it delights and entertains you, and with the other it's slowly unfolding a set of huge feelings and ideas to illuminate the underside of your mind. Fantastic in every sense of the word
A searingly brilliant fantasy. This is magical school with teeth. Warm-hearted, terrifying and clever, Tesh's examination of magical school through the eyes of an unforgettable - and properly grown up - heroine is an unmissable read
A must-read; a magical, sophisticated and razor-sharp story of education and power
If magical boarding schools existed, they would look very much like this one: volatile cocktails of hormones, demons, and generational wealth, kept afloat solely by the labour and expertise of several very tired grown-ups. If you, like me, are a very tired grown-up, The Incandescent will hit you right in the heart
The Incandescent has immediately become my favourite magic school story: a book filled with teenagers that's for and about grown-ups, in the most compelling and convincing sense possible. The joys of seeing Tesh's protagonist succeed at her job of preventing children from making terrible mistakes are only exceeded by the joys of watching her make even worse mistakes, and I loved every page of it
An absolute flex of a book, empathetic and passionate and deeply thoughtful. Above all, Tesh will make you care: about place, self, and the brave, impulsive, vulnerable, curious, incandescent young lives that are our future. A gorgeous evocation of what it means to have a calling
Emily Tesh captivates me the way few authors can, and she can do it in any genre and any world. The Incandescent is a delight from start to finish - it bewitched me, body and soul. Part competency porn for teachers, part harrowing tale of flirtation with your colleagues, part heartwarming demon infestation. A wholly perfect book
Walden makes for a fascinating and often humorous narrator . . . Fans of Naomi Novik's Scholomance series won't want to miss this thoughtful exploration of privilege, power, and private school education
A clever twist on a familiar fantasy story, starring a winning, flawed, undeniably grown-up heroine
This is a brilliant novel, one that marries the energy and verve and peril of the best of the fantasy genre with the understated, literary examination of interior and professional lives. It marries the fantastical to the mundane with great deftness and deep appreciation for both. It's been justly praised by others. All I can add is: It took my breath away
Powered by instantly relatable characters, peppered with the witty ironies of adulthood and growing up, and scattered with tangible imagery, magic tattoos, vape imps, and possessed school printers, this stand-alone fantasy will be an instant classic among former fans of Professor McGonagall of Harry Potter fame
'[A] mature, emotionally complex dark academia fantasy novel . . . A veritable cornucopia of dark delight'
If you loved A Deadly Education and The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door, The Incandescent will sear its way into your heart
A book to fall in love with
User Reviews
12/06/2025
05/06/2025
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