THE DOLLHOUSE ACADEMY
"Deliciously sensational...
What could be more fun? As if the wives of Stepford went to the Valley of the Dolls."
— Kirkus Reviews
From the NATIONAL BESTSELLING author of GMA Book Club Pick
OONA OUT OF ORDER, a novel about two best friends
and aspiring actresses who join the Dollhouse Academy,
where stars are made and dangerous secrets are hidden.
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Ivy Gordon is living on borrowed time. For the past eighteen years, she has been the most famous star at the Dollhouse Academy, the ultra-secretive, elite boarding school and talent incubator that every aspiring performer dreams of attending. But now, at age thirty-four, she is tired of pretending everything is fine. In secret diary entries, Ivy begins to reveal the sordid truth of her life at the Dollhouse: strange medical exams, mysterious supplements, and something unspeakable that’s left Ivy terrified and feeling like a prisoner. Is something truly sinister powering the Dollhouse’s success?
Ramona Halloway and her best friend, Grace Ludlow, grew up idolizing Ivy. Now both twenty-two, neither has made much headway in showbiz until a lucky break grants them entry to the Dollhouse. They’re enchanted by the picturesque campus and the chance to perform alongside their idols—though nothing prepares them for the fiercely competitive training boot camp. When Ramona begins to receive threatening anonymous messages, it’s easy to dismiss them as a prank from a rival. Her bigger concern is Grace’s skyrocketing success, while Ramona falls ever further behind. As the messages grow more unsettling, so does life at the Dollhouse. Can Ramona overcome her jealousy and resentment to figure out what’s really going on? Will Ivy finally find her voice, before another young performer follows her catastrophic path?
With dark academia twists and enormous heart, The Dollhouse Academy is a novel about the complexities of friendship, our desire to be seen and understood, and the true cost of making our dreams a reality.
Praise for THE DOLLHOUSE ACADEMY
​​​The 36 Must-Read Books of Winter 2025 | Town & Country
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Anticipated Book Releases Hitting Shelves in 2025 | The Nerd Daily
Most Anticipated February 2025 Book Releases | Beyond the Bookends
9 Books Combining the Gothic & The Glamorous | CrimeReads
​11 New Mysteries & Thrillers for February 2025 | Book Riot
"Twisted fun... a darkly enjoyable takedown of the entertainment industry."
— Publishers Weekly
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"Deliciously sensational... [W]hat could be more fun? As if the wives of Stepford went to the Valley of the Dolls."
— Kirkus Reviews
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"This book blew my mind."
— CrimeReads
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"Exceptionally inventive author... Superstars and wannabes reveal the impossible price of fame in this wildly inventive, convincingly plausible takedown of the entertainment industry."
— Shelf Awareness​
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"The Dollhouse Academy cleverly succeeds at everything it tries to accomplish. Through its depiction of a cult-like organization, it magnifies the perils of fame while at the same time putting the concept of true friendship to the test in the face of promised stardom at the cost of everything else in your life."
— BookReporter
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"Blending elements of various familiar stories like Fame, The Stepford Wives, Valley of The Dolls, and Stranger Things, Montimore explores the tensions between celebrity and privacy, performance and reality, memory and inspiration. Fans…will appreciate this book's intrigue and ripped-from-the-headlines feel."
— Booklist
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“Consider this twisty novel dark academia meets the dark side of entertainment―with plenty of references to Hollywood's Golden Age and the studio system.”
― Town & Country
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"Kept me hooked until the very last page... If you enjoy dark twists of academia, slight edge of mystery, and lessons that characters learn, I highly recommend reading this."
― The Gloss
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"For fans of friendship drama, fame, diary entries, and things-are-not-as-they-appear suspense!"
— Book Riot
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"David Lynch meets Disney in this thoroughly original dark academia novel... Montimore’s smart, surreal new novel masterfully shines a spotlight on everything from the costs of fame, to competitive female friendships, to the pleasures and perils of commodifying yourself. Believe me: you have no idea where this wild ride is headed, and you’ll never look at your favorite celebs the same way again."
— Layne Fargo, author of They Never Learn and The Favorites
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“Montimore does it again! This time she sets her sights on female friendship, creating a protagonist we can’t help but feel for. Add in a shadowy entertainment school-slash-studio, a headmistress with a god complex, plus a star desperate to escape, and you have all the ingredients for an unputdownable novel. The Dollhouse Academy manages to be both dark and feel-good, a story that demands your attention.”
— Stephanie Wrobel, bestselling author of Darling Rose Gold and The Hitchcock Hotel
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"The Dollhouse Academy will change the way you think about fame forever. Margarita Montimore’s wildly creative novel is a page-turner full of surprising twists, vivid details, and characters worth rooting for."
— Laura Hankin, author of The Daydreams
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