Night Objects, Eli Raphael (Review by Cassandra Van Drunen)

Rating: 4.0/5 Stars

Secret Societies, Private Schools, and Death – oh my! 

Underneath the glittering stars, Eli Raphael sets the stage for a dark mystery on the beautiful coast of Washington State. Meet Lenny – a fifteen-year-old girl transplanted from Miami to a houseboat on the other side of the country. Living with her mother and stepfather, she slowly starts to settle into her new surroundings, even finding a new friend in Sara. However, tragedy strikes shortly after Lenny’s arrival when her mother dies after a star-gazing trip gone wrong. 

Battling inner turmoil, Lenny is shipped off to Blanched, an elite boarding school. She quickly becomes immersed in a world completely unlike her own. Quickly befriending fellow student Vikram and Nico, Lenny begins to try, with varying levels of success, to acclimate to her new surroundings. Sloan, her new roommate, is not exactly team Lenny and an elite secret society known as the Pascalianum Club (aka “PC”) is (surprisingly) very interested in recruiting Lenny to join their ranks. It doesn’t help that her new woodworking class partner Henry is the beloved leader of PC. Between her new school life and struggling with the loss of her mother (and potentially her stepfather, Yip), will Lenny survive a dead body entering her orbit?  

This debut novel is an incredibly vivid and dark tale that quickly draws readers in. I greatly enjoyed the cast of characters developed by Eli Raphael and her poignant writing on loss. She also tackles classicism and wealth, highlighting how these elements can greatly change the course of your life. It is important to note that this novel does contain sexual assault of a minor and may not be suitable for all readers. 

Overall, I enjoyed immersing myself in Eli Raphael’s literary orbit and I can’t wait to see what she writes next!