Endless Anger by Sav R. Miller is a dark academia romance that’s the first in the Monsters Within trilogy, a series of interconnected standalones. This trilogy is a spin-off of the Monsters and Muses series, which was a BookTok darling a few years ago, following the children of the original characters, now all grown up.
Asher Anderson and Lucy Wolfe have been best friends since they were babies. Asher is Lucy’s protector, and Lucy is Asher’s peace, the only person who can soothe his anger.
As adulthood approaches, Lucy and Asher are confronted with feelings they have no idea how to handle, and complications that could rip up the friendship neither of them knows how to live without.
Lucy has her heart set on Avernia University, an elite and mysterious college with a sinister history. Asher has no choice but to follow her, despite the dangers the school poses for him, given the lore that demonizes his family and the lengths the school would go to in order to keep the Andersons out.
While Lucy and Asher try to reckon with the turmoil in their relationship, students are dying on the Avernia campus in suspicious and violent ways. Even worse, the deaths all seem connected to Lucy. Asher would do anything to keep Lucy safe, but the secrets and corruption at Avernia threaten everything.
My favorite part of this book is how relatable Lucy was as a character, and I imagine that would be even more true for readers who have ADHD, like she does. She’s an outcast and an introvert who loves dogs. She struggles hard to fit in. When she drinks, she’s prone to rants about social injustice. I very much connected with her and loved her for it.
It always feels like I’m trying too hard or not hard enough, and I’ve never been able to strike a balance. I’ve spent my entire life watching, absorbing, and mimicking, only to feel like a total fraud anyway.
Asher and Lucy are childhood best friends, and he’s always loved her but is afraid to act on it, thinking she doesn’t feel the same. But she does. In a social media post, the author called this story idiots-to-lovers, and it is the perfect way to describe the character dynamics in this book.
Given that neither of these characters is capable of communicating about their feelings, this book is a slow burn while they sort their shit out. When they do, the spice is the perfect level, and there’s such emotion between them that speaks to the friendship, devotion, and love between Lucy and Asher. She’s bossy, and he loves it, and the dynamic between them is a sheer delight.
Time moves fast for the first quarter of this story. Every few chapters, a year or more has passed, giving the readers Lucy and Asher’s backstory before things pick up in the present day. This is a book that can absolutely be ripped through in a weekend. It’s an absolute page turner.
Endless Anger is a dark academia romance, which means there is, naturally, an institution of learning that has something mysterious going on. There are cult-like organizations on campus that fit perfectly with the mood the author is trying to capture at Avernia.
Dark academia is about the vibes, yes, but it also shines a light on institutional corruption and elitism in a way that is always so satisfying to read, and this book is no exception.
I adored Endless Anger. Its characters, its mysteries, and its romance all made for a book that was exciting and so much fun to read. I can’t wait to continue with this series when the next book, Jealous Rage, arrives in January 2026.
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