Series – World of Bai

Book Review: “Zodiac Academy: The Awakening; As Told By The Boys” By Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

I was trying to follow a specific reading order but I clearly did not check the reading order before continuing the series after the 3rd book. I was supposed to read “The Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac” Series next before moving onto the novellas for this series but completely skipped those before moving on so I have thrown all plans out the window.

I am not too upset by this because I feel like if I deviated away from the main series at this point in time I would struggle to keep going. I am interested in this series but the writing isn’t as great as I would like to see so I am scared that reading a separate series between would make it hard for me to find the motivation to return, especially because it is 5 total books before I can come back and I can really only get 4-5 books done a month realistically.

So maybe all this was a happy accident?

“If only real life bullies could be hot, brooding men with dark back stories who worked through their inner demons for the sake of true love.”
Caroline Peckham, The Awakening as Told by the Boys

Other Zodiac Academy Reviews

Origins of an Academy Bully: Book 0.5

The Awakening: Book 1

Ruthless Fae: Book 2

The Reckoning: Book 3

Shadow Princess: Book 4

Cursed Fates: Book 5

The Big A.S.S. Party: Book 5.5

Spoilers are ahead if you have not read the books up till this point! Proceed with caution.

About The Book

Author: Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

Publisher: Kings Hollow

Published Date: August 30th, 2021

Page Count: 534 Pages

Main Genre: Romantasy

GoodReads Rating: 4.10

Format: E-Book

Synopsis

The Vega twins are alive.

Those five words circle in my mind like an oncoming storm. They change everything about the future we thought had been set in stone. They challenge everything we were raised to be and the stability of the entire kingdom.

They’re coming to our academy looking for the life that was stolen from them, but we can’t let them take it back.

So much hangs in the balance and we can’t risk the arrival of two naïve princesses destroying everything we worked so hard for.

I have trained in dark magic, overcome all challenges and stood in the shadow of Lionel Acrux for far too long already. I won’t let them come between me and his downfall.

Which means they have to go before they discover how powerful they truly are.

This is a retelling of the first book in the Zodiac Academy series from the point of view of Orion and the Heirs and should be read after you have finished the original story. It includes scenes from alternative points of view as well over 50k words of additional content and scenes which have never before been revealed. So prepare to step into the dark minds of the Zodiac boys and watch out for the heartbreak and carnage that will ensue.

Synopsis From Goodreads

“But just as the stars ripped me into their grasp, I thought of her. The girl with the fire in her soul and the power to destroy all I was. When the stars spat me back out of their embrace, I didn’t find myself in my own room. I found myself in hers.”
Caroline Peckham, The Awakening as Told by the Boys

Vibe Rating

Dynamic Rating

Review

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read this book as I was worried I would be reading 500 pages of a book I had already finished. I was pleasantly surprised that this book added a ton of new information to build upon from the first book in this series. It also gave us more insight into what the boys were actually thinking while doing all of these horrible things to the girls. This book felt really necessary for character development.. Without this book I think I would hate the Heirs for all eternity..

Darius and Orion are for sure my favorite male characters in this series and with each and every additional book I read they only get better! I normally don’t love miscommunication in books but I think it works well here cause the boys can’t really tell the Vegas how they feel due to their horrible circumstances. So yes, this may be a slow burn romance, but I think it will truly pay off in the end.

Overall, This series only keeps getting better as I go and I can not wait to see where it goes!

“Fuck, if her hate makes me this savage, one drop of her love would corrupt me to my core.”
Caroline Peckham, The Awakening as Told by the Boys

QOTD: Who is your favorite dark and Broody MMC?

“I felt useless. Because what was the point in rules and codes and morals if they meant jack shit to the people ruling the world?”
Caroline Peckham, The Awakening as Told by the Boys

Book Review: “Zodiac Academy: The Reckoning” By Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

Everyone says once you read book three in this series you will know if you want to DNF the series or continue on. I had some conflicting feelings about book three up until the end and here I am now currently reading the 1.5 book The Awakening: As Told By The Boys. I am following a reading order I found on Tiktok and so far I am glad I am doing that. Who knows if i will read all 20+ books in this expansive world but so far it seems like a trainwreck I can’t stop watching.

“Everyone knows, Karmas a bitch. And today her name was Tory Vega”
Caroline Peckham, The Reckoning

Other Zodiac Academy Reviews

Origins of an Academy Bully: Book 0.5

The Awakening: Book 1

The Awakening: As Told By The Boys: Book 1.5

Ruthless Fae: Book 2

Shadow Princess: Book 4

Cursed Fates: Book 5

The Big A.S.S. Party: Book 5.5

Spoilers Ahead: Do not read unless you have already read this far into the series!

About The Book

Author: Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti

Publisher: Dark Ink Publishing

Published Date: October 4th, 2019

Page Count: 561 Pages

Main Genre: Fantasy

GoodReads Rating: 4.34

Format: E-Book

“I watch you and hunger for you and ache for you. It torments me like I torment you.”
Caroline Peckham, The Reckoning

Synopsis

The answer to your question will be revealed on the Lunar Eclipse. But when finding the truth, don’t let the shadows take you.

The week of The Reckoning has begun. And senior students have been tasked with making the freshmen’s lives pure hell as they prepare to take their fateful assessment.

With the Lunar Eclipse on the horizon, Tory and Darcy have more to worry about than just passing their exams. A dark plot is unfolding and the shadows are drawing closer…

Synopsis From GoodReads

“She wasn’t just a girl though. Not to me. She was the one girl I shouldn’t want, the one I couldn’t have, the one I didn’t need. And yet I did.”
Caroline Peckham, The Reckoning

Vibe Rating

Dynamic Rating

Review

I would like to start off by first saying that these first three books could have been one maybe two books. Stretching it through three books was ridiculous. We hardly passed through any time, The world building was added upon but I don’t see why it wouldn’t have fit into two books and also I felt like the character growth was minimal and honestly I didn’t find I was liking one character more than another throughout the three books. Normally in a series I find that the characters grow on me as we go, but I still feel pretty indifferent about each character in this series.

I struggled through the first 50% of this book. Much like my review for the second book I didn’t feel like we saw a lot of growth with them working on their powers, I felt like they just kept getting lucky when the time was needed to use them. This could be due to the small amount of time that seems to pass between the three books, yet they somehow pass the reckoning with flying colors. I want to see the character and power growth and not see them just be lucky cause they are the chosen girls. I did like that they know they are stronger together and can pull more power and control when linked to one another so that was a bit of growth I saw. I am hoping that now that they know their order forms they can actually focus on their powers and we can see them learn more.

Regarding the power and magical system in this book, it feels way to convenient. I feel like these Fae can do really anything they desire with their power and it just feels way too OP. I would like to see some more struggles, but maybe this is only because we follow the perspectives of the most powerful Fae in all of Solaria. It just makes it less fun in my eyes if they can do anything and everything their heart desires with their powers. Like other than the power being drained when being used, what hinders them?

These girls being Phoenixes makes a ton of sense but damn… Can’t they be two different orders? I get that they are identical twins but again I want some difference between the girls! Why have two characters when they are the exact same people besides a few personality characteristics. It would make it much more interesting to follow if we have some more differences. It all comes down to convinces again, probably much easier to write.

The writing and grammar was still not great in this third book either. I seriously hope these errors start getting better or at least less noticeable. It is kinda sad haha.

I gave this book a three and a half vibe star rating so clearly all my thoughts can’t be negative right? Lets talk about the things I did enjoy!

Darius and his family are all dragons except for his brother who happens to be the cutest dang Pegasus to ever live. This was an interesting mix due to his father being so ruthless, everyone bends at his will yet he now has a son who he views as lesser than. This is heartbreaking to see but causes character growth in Darius as you now see some of his motivations to making the girls leave. He needs to protect his brother! The scene where Tory finds out about this was probably my favorite scene in the whole book! She finally let down her guard and had fun and then she acted in the most humane way when she did find out about the Pegasus form and it made me excited to see where this would go in the future.

The love triangles still get on my nerves but I am hopeful for some resolutions. We got to see more chapters from Darius and Caleb and got to hear more of their inner monologues which made the love triangles less annoying. This is a serious slow burn and I think I am mostly annoyed because I am dying to see where this all goes! The boys are truly going to snap soon! Darius has a Temper and he seems to be Territorial!

I guess this is me saying I like the Boys more than I like the girls lol. The boys have the most character growth in my eyes and they are way more interesting as they are all different to one another. They seem to bounce off each other really well even when they are butting heads, they can set aside their issues for one common goal. Even if their one common goal of destroying these girls gets muddled by the interesting lust they seem to have for them.

The ending to this book when we found out about the Dragon Lord’s, Lionel, desires to wield the shadows was what really interested me. I knew he was bad but this actually made sense to me. This made me excited to keep reading the series as I need to know how the girls are going to handle this situation. Everyone thinks their memories were erased but they know everything… This puts them in an interesting predicament and it will be fun to see how they handle it. I think it may frustrate me as well because we finally saw the boys care about these girls and now we might go back to the unwavering hatred. I am exhausted, too many emotions!

I will see you for my next review seeing how I can’t put down these books… Hopefully we see some higher ratings coming later down the road.

“There are countless people who would say I’m not allowed to want you,” Darius breathed. “But you make me want to burn the whole world down so that I can claim you for my own.”
Caroline Peckham, The Reckoning

QOTD: Is there a series you pushed through that you weren’t always vibing with that you were glad you did?

“In Solaria blue means royal. And to me, blue means you.”
Caroline Peckham, The Reckoning

Book Review: “Down Among The Sticks And Bones” By Seanan McGuire

I read the first book in this series about a year ago and I immediately fell in love with the writing and just the main story line. I went to start the second book only to find it was following Jack And Jill whom at the time I didn’t care to learn more about so I set the book aside for far too long. I am so glad I finally picked this one up as it truly surprised me.

Make sure to check out my review for the first book in this series “Every Heart a Doorway”.

This Post May Contain Spoilers as this is a second book in a series.

Read with Caution.

“Some adventures require nothing more than a willing heart and the ability to trip over the cracks in the world.”
Seanan McGuire, Down Among the Sticks and Bones

About The Book

Author: Seanan McGuire

Publisher: Tor

Published Date: June 13, 2017

Page Count: 187

Main Genres: Fantasy, YA

GoodReads Rating: 4.15

Format: Audio

“There are worlds built on rainbows and worlds built on rain. There are worlds of pure mathematics, where every number chimes like crystal as it rolls into reality. There are worlds of light and worlds of darkness, worlds of rhyme and worlds of reason, and worlds where the only thing that matters is the goodness in a hero’s heart.”
Seanan McGuire, Down Among the Sticks and Bones

Synopsis

Twin sisters Jack and Jill were seventeen when they found their way home and were packed off to Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children.

This is the story of what happened first…

Jacqueline was her mother’s perfect daughter—polite and quiet, always dressed as a princess. If her mother was sometimes a little strict, it’s because crafting the perfect daughter takes discipline.

Jillian was her father’s perfect daughter—adventurous, thrill-seeking, and a bit of a tom-boy. He really would have preferred a son, but you work with what you’ve got.

They were five when they learned that grown-ups can’t be trusted.

They were twelve when they walked down the impossible staircase and discovered that the pretense of love can never be enough to prepare you a life filled with magic in a land filled with mad scientists and death and choices.

Synopsis From GoodReads

“The Moors exist in eternal twilight, in the pause between the lightning strike and the resurrection. They are a place of endless scientific experimentation, of monstrous beauty, and of terrible consequences.”
Seanan McGuire, Down Among the Sticks and Bones

Rating

Review

As I mentioned above, I wasn’t really in love with these characters in the first book so I struggled wanting to read this one. I had heard this is a lot of peoples favorite book of the series though so I knew I had to pick it up and I am so glad I did! This book really dove deep into why these kids are the way they are and how your parents can really make or break you at a young age. I mean the childhood trauma they have to face… I don’t blame them for finding the Moors a more suitable place for them.

I couldn’t imagine being thrown out of the one place you could call home and felt like you belong just to know you have to go back to these parents who were never good to you in the first place. This book really put the events of the first book into perspective and it all comes full circle!

I can’t wait to read the rest of this series and to learn more about all of these crazy worlds these children find themselves in. It makes me wonder what magical door would have opened for me if this was something that really happens. Probably a door filled with cats, like a world ruled by cats…Ok yeah…I might be a crazy cat lady haha.

I highly recommend this book/series however please read trigger warnings as the events that take place can be tough to read.

“Every choice feeds every choice that comes after, whether we want those choices or no.”
Seanan McGuire, Down Among the Sticks and Bones

QOTD: What Magical Door would you hope opens to you?

“She had tried to make sure they knew that there were a hundred, a thousand, a million different ways to be a girl, and that all of them were valid, and that neither of them was doing anything wrong.”
Seanan McGuire, Down Among the Sticks and Bones