No Place Left to Hide

No Place Left to Hide is a mystery thriller that falls under the dark academia subgenre of young adult (YA) literature. In general, “dark academia” is an aesthetic that can apply to anything: Clothing, décor, music, art, food, and photography can all include scholarly, moody, gothic-themed elements that represent dark academia. In literature, dark academia comprises a subgenre of plotlines centered on class, ambition, and mystery within academic settings. Though many examples of dark academia literature use neo-gothic tropes inspired by Ivy League schools, upper-class boarding schools, and traditional school uniforms, these elements aren’t essential. 

The main elements of dark academia in fiction include a somber, moody atmosphere and a romantic focus on school or literature. Plots often include horror and the supernatural, like 18th- and 19th-century gothic fiction, from which the aesthetic draws. In Lally’s novel, Brooke and her friends attend a prestigious preparatory school in the Pacific Northwest, with its somber, moody atmosphere. Brooke intends to attend Yale, evoking another gothic, scholarly setting. Coupled with the mystery of Brooke’s past and the book’s focus on family class, wealth, and status, the novel offers all the key elements of the dark academia subgenre. 

According to an interview with The Nerd Daily, Lally was influenced by Stefanie Meyer’s novel Twilight to create dark YA novels, all set in the Pacific Northwest (especially her hometown of Salem, Oregon) to build on the naturally rainy, overcast atmosphere of the region. No Place Left to Hide was inspired by a real-world experience when Lally was followed by a large vehicle on a secluded road, making her wonder what it would be like to be a teenager in that situation.

Dark academia developed as an aesthetic in the mid-2010s and has become popular as a subgenre in both YA and adult fiction. A scholarly clothing style, curated objects, and settings using gothic and library elements emerged on the blogging site Tumblr in the mid-2010s as a unified aesthetic movement. This aesthetic combined with certain books to create a literary trend. For example, the 1993 Donna Tartt novel The Secret History regained popularity through the dark academia aesthetic and set many tropes of the subgenre. This includes a focus on and romanticization of academic life, depicting it as a complex world of intrigue and ambition. Many of the conflicts and jeopardy of the plots arise from the academic environment or social circle surrounding it.

Obsession is common theme of the dark academia subgenre, with either the protagonist or antagonist—or both—consumed by obsession over a person, a passion, or an event. Often, this feeds into another convention: mystery. The insulated social structure of academic life lends itself to secrets and intrigue, and unraveling these knots is central to many plots. Elitism and competition are central to the setting of Ivy League or private schools, and the focus of wealth, family, and class harken back to the gothic literary genre that inspired dark academia. In these novels, the past is always destructive, and the stories are cautionary tales about the high price of power.