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Nothing Out There
Not yet published
Expected 10 Mar 26Poise. Obedience. Purpose.
Within the walls of a secluded facility that reforms troubled girls into obedient daughters—there are only two graduate, or disappear. Erased and rebuilt from the ruins of herself, Maysie knows little about the future she’s training for, let alone the world outside. Daily sedatives, posture drills, and the constant reminder to smile shape the only life she’s ever known.
She tells herself she’s lucky. She has friends who keep her calm, rules that keep her safe, and a future she’s been told to want. If she looks past the armed enforcers and leering mentors, the Advancement Program seems perfect.
But perfection never lasts. The facility's careful facade is starting to crack, and she isn’t the only one to see it. Dreams bleed into memories of a girl they claim no longer exists. Unexplained outbursts tear her friends away one by one. Two mentors’ quiet rivalry pulls her into a game she can’t afford to lose. Every memory she uncovers threatens the version of her they’ve built—but the Program only has one way of handling girls who know too much.
And this time, they won’t stop at her memories.
Within the walls of a secluded facility that reforms troubled girls into obedient daughters—there are only two graduate, or disappear. Erased and rebuilt from the ruins of herself, Maysie knows little about the future she’s training for, let alone the world outside. Daily sedatives, posture drills, and the constant reminder to smile shape the only life she’s ever known.
She tells herself she’s lucky. She has friends who keep her calm, rules that keep her safe, and a future she’s been told to want. If she looks past the armed enforcers and leering mentors, the Advancement Program seems perfect.
But perfection never lasts. The facility's careful facade is starting to crack, and she isn’t the only one to see it. Dreams bleed into memories of a girl they claim no longer exists. Unexplained outbursts tear her friends away one by one. Two mentors’ quiet rivalry pulls her into a game she can’t afford to lose. Every memory she uncovers threatens the version of her they’ve built—but the Program only has one way of handling girls who know too much.
And this time, they won’t stop at her memories.
- GenresFantasy
Kindle Edition
Expected publication March 10, 2026
19 people are currently reading
1045 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Review of advance copy
This is after reading the arc this book was absolutely amazing i spent the whole day reading and finished it in one day I usually finished books in around 4 days so this shows how wonderful of a book it was highly recommended to pre order and prepare for this masterpiece to hit to shelves counting down till March 10th 📖😊
February 25, 2026
This is a review from an advanced ARC copy:
Okay so… this YA book HOOKED me!! It’s like female maze runner with a bit of princess academy thrown into a singular plot. It’s 100% meant for teenagers in the greatest ways possible without being too innocent or too edgy. All of the characters are great. The world draws you in. There’s an eeriness to it all that’s perfect for the dystopian fantasy it is.
Pros:
- Maysie our FMC is great! She’s smart and snarky and learns how to be brave. She is a little too outspoken for the setting to be still a live imo (I’ll get to that in cons) but I definitely could see her with Tris, Katniss, and Thomas in the dystopian universe of 2010s.
- the setting: the controlling dystopian etiquette school with watchful eyes and sedations and strict policies and mysterious mentors who contradict one another… *chefs kiss* again it felt like a female Maze Runner with the girls relationships in the beginning and the amnesia
- the first half of the book is incredible. I read like 70% of this book in one sitting cause I couldn’t get enough and couldn’t wait to find answers
- Colt and Vincent are 10/10 the best is all I’ll say
- there’s no romance… and for this type of world I’m actually glad
Cons:
- for a book constantly reminding us the girls are under camera surveillance and strict duties/expectations they sure have a good amount of time to goof off and say what they want and somehow get away with it like 85% of the time without consequences. It dulled the tension mid book when it kept going despite threats cause most of the threats weren’t followed through. There’s also lots of weird holes and gaps that aren’t explained whatsoever the entire book about the organization but aren’t really given clues to to keep us interested in knowing why random things are just functioning the way they are.
- Maysie has TOO much plot armor. I won’t say much more so I don’t spoil anything but yeah it’s a bit like I said before where the worlds own rules break/bend too much to feel threatening. It gets rid of any tension. The worst that happens to her *most* of the time is an injury or she gets depressed.
- there’s so so so so so so so many character introductions in the first three chapters. Like nine to be exact. It’s a bit overwhelming at first but I eventually got adjusted— doesn’t mean I remembered what anyone looked like though because there’s only so many descriptions of characters one can read before you get glassy eyes
- the plot thins out by 250 pages in. The last third of the book is fairly uneventful and I kept bracing myself for a big twist and honestly walked away a little disappointed. Hence I can’t give it five stars. I am excited for the next book don’t get me wrong but it just wasn’t the build up I was being promised in the first half.
- the chapter breaks— omg these made NO SENSE. It would just cut at a weird point and either start somewhere completely new or like the scene never changed. But the chapters that did flow into the next didn’t have the typical cliff hanger or something… it just ended and then kept going under a new name/chapter number. It started getting annoying mid book cause I’d expect the scene to continue but no we’re two weeks later or I’d expect a scene to be over but no we’re still having the same conversation it’s just chapter 65 instead of 64 (or something)
Listen, I put a lot of cons, but in the long term it’s my personal grumpy opinions as a picky reader. But this book has solid writing, great characters, a unique plot that also feels familiar, and kept my attention in the span of 48 hours. For a debut, this author is going somewhere.
3.5 stars rounded to 4 ❤️
Okay so… this YA book HOOKED me!! It’s like female maze runner with a bit of princess academy thrown into a singular plot. It’s 100% meant for teenagers in the greatest ways possible without being too innocent or too edgy. All of the characters are great. The world draws you in. There’s an eeriness to it all that’s perfect for the dystopian fantasy it is.
Pros:
- Maysie our FMC is great! She’s smart and snarky and learns how to be brave. She is a little too outspoken for the setting to be still a live imo (I’ll get to that in cons) but I definitely could see her with Tris, Katniss, and Thomas in the dystopian universe of 2010s.
- the setting: the controlling dystopian etiquette school with watchful eyes and sedations and strict policies and mysterious mentors who contradict one another… *chefs kiss* again it felt like a female Maze Runner with the girls relationships in the beginning and the amnesia
- the first half of the book is incredible. I read like 70% of this book in one sitting cause I couldn’t get enough and couldn’t wait to find answers
- Colt and Vincent are 10/10 the best is all I’ll say
- there’s no romance… and for this type of world I’m actually glad
Cons:
- for a book constantly reminding us the girls are under camera surveillance and strict duties/expectations they sure have a good amount of time to goof off and say what they want and somehow get away with it like 85% of the time without consequences. It dulled the tension mid book when it kept going despite threats cause most of the threats weren’t followed through. There’s also lots of weird holes and gaps that aren’t explained whatsoever the entire book about the organization but aren’t really given clues to to keep us interested in knowing why random things are just functioning the way they are.
- Maysie has TOO much plot armor. I won’t say much more so I don’t spoil anything but yeah it’s a bit like I said before where the worlds own rules break/bend too much to feel threatening. It gets rid of any tension. The worst that happens to her *most* of the time is an injury or she gets depressed.
- there’s so so so so so so so many character introductions in the first three chapters. Like nine to be exact. It’s a bit overwhelming at first but I eventually got adjusted— doesn’t mean I remembered what anyone looked like though because there’s only so many descriptions of characters one can read before you get glassy eyes
- the plot thins out by 250 pages in. The last third of the book is fairly uneventful and I kept bracing myself for a big twist and honestly walked away a little disappointed. Hence I can’t give it five stars. I am excited for the next book don’t get me wrong but it just wasn’t the build up I was being promised in the first half.
- the chapter breaks— omg these made NO SENSE. It would just cut at a weird point and either start somewhere completely new or like the scene never changed. But the chapters that did flow into the next didn’t have the typical cliff hanger or something… it just ended and then kept going under a new name/chapter number. It started getting annoying mid book cause I’d expect the scene to continue but no we’re two weeks later or I’d expect a scene to be over but no we’re still having the same conversation it’s just chapter 65 instead of 64 (or something)
Listen, I put a lot of cons, but in the long term it’s my personal grumpy opinions as a picky reader. But this book has solid writing, great characters, a unique plot that also feels familiar, and kept my attention in the span of 48 hours. For a debut, this author is going somewhere.
3.5 stars rounded to 4 ❤️
Review of advance copy
Thank you to Mae Harcourt && #HawthornAster for the opportunity to ARC this story. I cannot wait for more from Harcourt.
Nothing Out There by Mae Harcourt hooked me with its atmosphere — but it owned me because of Maysie.
Maysie isn’t just a main character you follow; she’s one you feel trapped beside. Her voice carries that constant edge of awareness — the sense that something is wrong even when everyone insists it’s normal. Watching her try to survive inside the Reform Academy is like holding your breath for an entire book.
Because the Academy doesn’t scream danger.
It smiles. It reassures. It fixes.
The “treatment” for girls with power is wrapped in soft words, controlled routines, and the quiet erosion of identity. Harcourt captures cult psychology terrifyingly well — the repetition, the forced gratitude, the subtle rewriting of reality until the girls begin policing themselves. The Academy isn’t violent in obvious ways; it’s violent in the way it convinces you you’re broken and should be thankful for the cure.
And Maysie feels that pressure constantly — the push to doubt her memories, her instincts, even her own mind. Her resistance isn’t loud rebellion; it’s fragile, desperate, and incredibly human. Every small act of defiance feels monumental because the stakes are her sense of self.
That’s what makes this book linger. The horror isn’t just what the Academy does to the girls’ abilities — it’s what it does to who they believe they are allowed to be.
By the end I wasn’t just unsettled, I was furious in the best possible way. Harcourt created a story about power, control, and survival that creeps under your skin and stays there.
Maysie didn’t just survive the story — she carried it. And I won’t be forgetting her anytime soon.
Nothing Out There by Mae Harcourt hooked me with its atmosphere — but it owned me because of Maysie.
Maysie isn’t just a main character you follow; she’s one you feel trapped beside. Her voice carries that constant edge of awareness — the sense that something is wrong even when everyone insists it’s normal. Watching her try to survive inside the Reform Academy is like holding your breath for an entire book.
Because the Academy doesn’t scream danger.
It smiles. It reassures. It fixes.
The “treatment” for girls with power is wrapped in soft words, controlled routines, and the quiet erosion of identity. Harcourt captures cult psychology terrifyingly well — the repetition, the forced gratitude, the subtle rewriting of reality until the girls begin policing themselves. The Academy isn’t violent in obvious ways; it’s violent in the way it convinces you you’re broken and should be thankful for the cure.
And Maysie feels that pressure constantly — the push to doubt her memories, her instincts, even her own mind. Her resistance isn’t loud rebellion; it’s fragile, desperate, and incredibly human. Every small act of defiance feels monumental because the stakes are her sense of self.
That’s what makes this book linger. The horror isn’t just what the Academy does to the girls’ abilities — it’s what it does to who they believe they are allowed to be.
By the end I wasn’t just unsettled, I was furious in the best possible way. Harcourt created a story about power, control, and survival that creeps under your skin and stays there.
Maysie didn’t just survive the story — she carried it. And I won’t be forgetting her anytime soon.
Review of advance copy received from Author
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 stars
Maysie is the fmc and the author has you feeling every emotion and trapped like Maysie feels. The Reform Academy is beautifully evil and leaves those inside feeling broken and Maysie doubts herself yet she still resists in her own quiet ways. Memory loss, control and some amazing mmc’s that help her along the way.
It is a great book that has you wanting more.
Wonderful debut! Thank you to both the brilliant author and Hawthorn and Astor publishing
Maysie is the fmc and the author has you feeling every emotion and trapped like Maysie feels. The Reform Academy is beautifully evil and leaves those inside feeling broken and Maysie doubts herself yet she still resists in her own quiet ways. Memory loss, control and some amazing mmc’s that help her along the way.
It is a great book that has you wanting more.
Wonderful debut! Thank you to both the brilliant author and Hawthorn and Astor publishing
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Wow what a trip! This book was so intense! Mayse kept me on my toes thru the whole book and now I am left with so many questions and waiting for the next book! A non stop read for me!
Thank you for the arc Mae Harcourt and hawthorn and Astor publishing!
Thank you for the arc Mae Harcourt and hawthorn and Astor publishing!
February 25, 2026
Omg. This book had me captivated from page one. I absolutely can NOT wait for the rest of this series. I’m so curious to learn more about this world.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews