A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik

Galadriel (El) is enrolled at Scholomance school for magic which is a bit like a haunted boarding school filled with deadly monsters and you are armed with little more than a wooden spoon. This is not your average school experience and El is better equipped than most there to deal with a graduation rate of 50%. She is angry, anti-social and really tired of trying to fit into the school's more elite cliques. Orion, think Duddly DoRight meets Thor, is one of the school's most popular hero types. He is the one who is ever vigilant, chasing down and extinguishing all those pesky monsters, called malls. It is exhausting and he has taken to saving El which she does not take well at all. Excellent world building which Novik does so well and the perfect snarky but smart main character in El. For those who are searching for the more adult less playful Harry Potter type story or loved GIDEON THE NINTH - this is for you.  4 stars