C.L. Stone

HOLY CLIFFHANGER, STONE!! I’m only DYING HERE.



DYING.



I just found out that this book was recently published, oh, yesterday? And I FREAKED THE BLEEP OUT. I also happen to feel ashamed that I was unaware of the publication date having passed. I suck.



But I bought it and I read it and let me tell you, this series gets better and better.



I am so inexplicably attached to all of these characters, I can’t even tell you. Okay, so that’s a lie. I’m about to tell you exactly how much I love show more these characters.



Sang is as unsure of herself as ever, and usually in a MC that bothers me, but it never has in this series. Because Sang has more than enough reason to be cautious and indecisive. I mean, she’s only been sheltered to the extreme her entire life and endlessly drilled by her stepmother about how evil the world is, and that you can’t trust anyone. Not to mention the abusive, torturous punishments her stepmother doled out on her.



So yeah, I get her innocence and naïveté.



And because of said lack of experience, her interaction with the guys is torturous. But that wasn’t a bad thing–it made me root for her all the more! She doesn’t know if the boys all care about her and like her because she’s never had experience in this situation and hasn’t really had the chance to witness any romantic encounters because of how sheltered she was growing up. But they all acted like they felt something for her but would never kiss her on the mouth and she didn’t understand why.



Don’t worry, Kota Silas North Gabriel Nathan Luke Victor someone finally mans up and kisses her.



But who?



Because there are so many male leads in these books, we don’t always get to spend as much time with some as we do with others. This time around, I was bloody THRILLED to have Dr. Green and Mr. Blackbourne around more! *doe eyes* We get to see more to them and learn more about them and feel their relationships with Sang grow. Heck, my relationship with them grew, too.



Is there such a thing as being too invested in characters?;)



(Because I LOVE THEM.)



And holy heavy swoons. You think the previous books were all swoony and addicting? Well, yeah they were, but this book tops them ALL!



I felt like this time around the developing romance took the wheel and Academy business took the backseat. The focus was more on the characters and their relationships than on the issues going on at Ashley Waters High School. We do find out more about the real reason The Academy wants the boys at Ashley Waters to begin with, and we find out about how the synthetic drug JH14 is affecting the school–a tie-in to the Scarab Beetle series. But the swoons took the lead on this one and I will never complain because I LOVE ALL THESE GUYS.



I doubt there will ever be an Academy book I won’t love, and I can NOT wait for the next book to release this fall! I have no idea how many books are going to be written in this series, but honestly? I hope they never stop. Keep ‘em coming, Stone, because I can’t stop reading them!





5/5 STARS;) show less

I have gotten very into reading Reverse Harem novels lately because of this series. It's super hard to find decent ones that don't just read like fan fiction and this series is quite good actually. This series is really good though, it is slow to develop but that allows for more books in the series which is a good thing. Both the characters and the story are fully fleshed out and well written. I'm enjoying becoming invested in this world and pleased that I discovered this author.

I have gotten very into reading Reverse Harem novels lately because of this series. It's super hard to find decent ones that don't just read like fan fiction and this series is quite good actually. This series is really good though, it is slow to develop but that allows for more books in the series which is a good thing. Both the characters and the story are fully fleshed out and well written. I'm enjoying becoming invested in this world and pleased that I discovered this author.

This had potential, but for me that ended at 48% in. My interest had been falling for a few chapters, but when the MC claims girls as teammates bring too much "drama"? When the boys she's with are hardly robots?

*taps MC on the shoulder* Listen, Kayli. Since these guys are hardly drama-free, that means that you, the common element, are the actual problem.

And I question whether the author was aware of that, given the other MC traits she used but never explored, such as Kayli's attraction to show more every guy she's near, and loving to roughhouse with the boys. Traits that aren't supported by history read as empty. That, on top of some confusion over who's who, a meandering plot, and often-annoying MC inner monologue? Bah. Done.

As usual, YMMV. show less