Shadow Princess (Zodiac Academy #4)

Paige ♠

Rating: really liked it
ME AFTER FINISHING THIS BOOK



MY OPINION OF TORY AS I READ THIS BOOK



HOW I FELT ABOUT MY SLOW BURN TORY+DARIUS SHIP



THE ONE REDEEMING THING - DARCY+ORION



OKAY, THE ONE OTHER REDEEMING THING - GERALDINE



Tory ruined this book for me. I think I'm being harsher than necessary with my rating on this one because I'm just so 🤬🤬 with certain parts of this book right now.

✅ Lots of steamy scenes that were amazing
✅ I loved the profane humor and dialogue
🆗 Action packed but a little repetitive sometimes
✅ Darcy+Orion 4evah
✅ The side characters were all amazing and hilarious
❌ Tory's backward character development
❌ Major lack of communication 😤
❌ Constantly making progress only to go backwards 400 pages again

I definitely plan to read the rest of the series but I think I might need a mental break right now haha

Min-Din Reads

Rating: really liked it
Tory sucks

I don’t know if it was intentional, but I hated Tory throughout this entire story. Her constant pity parties were awful and the only way I could force myself to keep reading was because Darcy was actually compelling to read about. I hope this is just setting up Tory to have a big redemption arc because it was painful (and not in a good way) to read how totally she devolved as a character. She’s shown no growth and apparently has no redeeming qualities, and I’m not even talking about the decision she made at the end, she was awful the entire book. Hopefully something changes in the next book because if not, I’m definitely dropping this series.

Phuong ✯

Rating: really liked it
– 4.25 stars

SONG:
David Guetta - Titanium ft. Sia

That cliffhanger... I knew something bad was going to happen, it was still brutal, but I'm sure everything is going to be fine *send prayers to the stars*

Warning: Big spoilers for the plot in this book or that have consequences for the next books are spoiler tagged. Otherwise I think everything else the spoilers are more regarding to the relationship updates of all the characters. Why are these warnings getting longer, for what.. anyway read with caution.

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➵ PLOT
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I'm going to stop trying to summarise the plot from here on, because it pretty goes like this every time:

In the last 10% of book A shit is going down, book B picks right where A left off and the characters have to deal with the consequences of what happened at the end of A while dealing with their own problems & traumas at the same time.

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➵ RELATIONSHIPS
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↠ DARCY & TORY VEGA. One thing that was solid about this series from the start, is the strong sister bond between Darcy and Tory. It was always them against the world and for the first time the lies and secrets from the previous books are catching up to them and causing a riff. It had to happen, cause it couldn't be 7 books all rainbows and sunshine between them, but I still didn't like it when it happened. It made everything worse, because their riff happened when everything else was falling apart too, so reading that was depressing af and felt wrong. Those chapters gave me a feeling of "doom" like something bad is going to happen any moment and it made me fucking anxious. 😩 Luckily, their rocky relationship was only a smaller part of the book and they made up. The doom still happened, but idk if the Vega twins have e/o backs everything is going to work out somehow.

"Take it in turns. Does one of you want to go first?"
"I will," I said quickly. Darcy frowned at me but I held her gaze, not backing down. "If this is dangerous then I'm not risking you doing it first," I said simply. "You're the only thing I've got that matters to me in this world. If I lost you, I might as well be dead anyway so I'm not arguing."
"Tory..." Darcy replied with a frown. "Don't say things like that."
"It's true." I shrugged. "And it's not up for debate."

↠ PROFESSOR LANCE ORION. Every book I think I cannot possibly love this guy more and he proves me wrong. The fact that all the relationship he has are fantastic just proves what a catch he is. Orion-Darius bromance. Check. Orion-Gabriel bromance. Check. Orion-Darcy romance. DOUBLE CHECK. He's THAT man. He has the RANGE. You know how he keeps being an asshole in class and basically to everyone, but I love how he's trying to be less of an asshole to Tory and build an relationship with her, because he knows how much Tory means to Darcy.

I faced the board, curious as Orion wrote his quote of the day on the board.

YOU ALL PASSED THE RECKONING

I arched a brow, glancing at Tory. "That's almost a compliment." I breathed and she laughed, but our amusement died away as Orion added more to the board.

THE STARS MUST BE FUCKING WITH ME.

Name me a better motivational speaker, I'll wait.

↠ DARCY & ORION. THEY ARE GOALS!!! Darcy and Orion's relationship is risky af, cause of their forbidden student-teacher romance. So many things can go wrong and they keep trying to make their relationship work. Both of them acutally put so much effort in it. There are so many little moments that is making me soft when it comes to them. Their scenes keeps getting better w every book and I'm loving it here. 🥺

"Blue." I smiled dreamily, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
She is everything. Does she know how everything she is?

1. Orion gives Darcy a gift and it's a rose quartz. In Solaria they have a tradition to give a rose quartz that means they want to be exclusive. AHHHHHHH. AHHHHH. AHHHHH. Excuse me while I'm screaming all my feelings into the void, cause I can't deal with these emotions.
2. Orion preparing his date with Darcy. Who would have thought this asshole professor would be so trash for a girl.
3. Darcy giving Orion a striptease. While she's doing it, she has her clumsy moments and it makes it even hotter for Orion. Please they are so precious. 🥺

He is SOOOOO smitten with her. All Darcy has to do is bat her eyelashes at him and he would do anything for her and it makes me want to bawl my eyes out.

Just wear what you like and put an illusion over them only Geraldine can see." Orion shrugged like that was so simple and I gave him my biggest eyes.
"You mean you'll do it for us?" I asked sweetly.
His eyes slid over me. "Yeah of course Blue."
Tory's brows lifted as she gazed at him. "The weirdest thing about all of this is you being nice, you know that right?"

If anything happens to them I'm going to scream!

"I want you like I've never wanted anything or anyone. And I will fight to make you mine, no matter what it takes. No force in Solaria will rip us apart."
I stared at him in awe of his words, lost to the power of them I clutched his hand and nodded firmly. "I'll fight for you too, Lance Orion. Whatever it takes."
"Whatever it takes," he echoed and a clap of power sparked between our hands.

Darcy & Orion out here giving me AVENGERS feeling. 😌

↠ TORY & DARIUS. Here is the thing. I like Darius and Tory as individuals (enough). Tory was hella frustrating in this book, but I was warned by a couple of friends, so I didn't hate her too much. Also, I ADORE their relationships with other people (Tory with Darcy even Orion & Darius with Orion/Xavier/all the heirs), but when they are together, Tory and Darius are toxic. Hell, there are a lot of toxic couples out there that I love, give me toxcitiy anytime to a degree, but Tory and Darius stopped working for me. Their relationship is stagnant and there is hardly any development, because they are both hot-tempered, stubborn and like to see the worse in e/o, especially Tory when it comes to everything Darius-related. In Shadow Princess, we FINALLY get their first real kiss and sex scene after 4 long books and you know what... I FELT NOTHING, because I knew the second it was over Tory and Darius would go back hating and ignoring e/o, saying it was a mistake bla bla bla we've been here many times before and I'm tired.

"You pulse through my blood with each beat of my heart. I live for every scrap of attention you offer me and suffer through every moment you spend ignoring me," he said darkly, holding my eye the entire time.

By the end of this series, people are going to say that Tory/Darius is the couple that made it against all odds, but IMO they had enough opportunities to make the relationship work in their favor, but decided not too, because of their pride, close-mindedness, lack of communication, I could name so many things that is wrong with their relationship and how THEY ARE THEIR WORST ENEMIES.

When the end happened and Tory and Darius got (view spoiler)[their Divine Moment and Tory rejected the mating bond... I saw that coming. I hurted for Darius, bc how much he wanted the bond with Tory, but at the same time I'm like dude.. you could have worked harder for it. You could have done so many things differently before that moment. You couldn't have chosen a worse timing to apologise the first time everything you've put Tory through. As for Tory, I understood why she rejected the bond, but girl I wanted to shake her so badly too. I can write a whole rant about how frustrating she is, but I wasted enough space on them already. Thanks to their bad decisions, now the stars are LITERALLY against them and they are star crossed lovers... (hide spoiler)]

↠ THE HEIRS. I jinxed myself.. here I was saying that I started to like Seth and in this book he shit all over that again. No no go fuck yourself werewolf. The way I had hopes that Seth and Darcy could end up besties, but after this book... ahahahahaha it's still possible, because there are still 3 more books, but Seth better makes up for all the pain he caused in Shadow Princess. If he's the reason something happens to Orion.. it's on sight.

Caleb somehow was less annoying in this book too. Ngl I even felt bad for him, because he clearly cares about Tory and she's giving him the cold shoulder.

CALEB: Hey, sweetheart. Do you wanna hang out tonight? X

I watched as the red ticks illuminated to let me know she'd read the message. She was probably trying to think up the perfect thing to say back to me. Agonising over it, debating it with her friends and trying to figure out how best to respond to me.

TORY: No.

I'm shipping Max and Geraldine so much. It's beautiful to see how she wouldn't even think about giving him any attention, which makes him crave it even more. I can't wait to read their novella.

↠ ORION & DARIUS. This bromance is the best. I love it so much. They remind me of Johnny and Gibsie (Binding 13 & Keeping 13) another amazing bromance. It's never not hilarious when both of them get so touchy with each other and feel so happy when the other is around.. it's so untypical for their orders. Also their banter is top notch. Darius is jealous of Gabriel & Orion's friendship and it's so funny. LOL.

Darius stood up, pulling me into a tight embrace, his muscles looking around me. The bond between us grew sharper and I clutched onto him. "I'm gonna miss you," i said out loud, even though I'd meant to say it in my head.
"As much as Gabriel?" Darius asked, his forehead knocking against mine.
"You guys need to get a room," Tory interrupted and we stepped away from each other.

↠ SIDE-CHARACTERS. Protect Xavier at all cost. Geraldine is a QUEEN and a SAVAGE. I want to be her when I grow up, even tho I don't understand half of the shit that comes out of her mouth. 🤣

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➵ FAVORITE SCENES
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↠ Orion's birthday when he went out with Gabriel, Darius and meet Darcy and Tory at the club and they played the 'Dare' game. Drunk Orion is so funny. 😭😭

↠ Tory, Darcy, Orion, Darus, Seth, Max, Caleb & Xavier having a snowball fight!!!! One of the best scenes in the whole series hands down. I was waiting for something like that for so long!! If they could all see the bigger pictures and work together to fight off the bigger evil, they would be unstoppable.

↠ ALL THE DARCYORION SCENES. MY HEART IS SINGING.

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➵ CONCLUSION
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This series has been great so far. It has great romance, great friendships, great bromance + an interesting plot. All the things I love, but the reason why I can't give any of the books 5 stars is because I'm not invested enough in half of the couples.

┍━━━━━━━━━━━━━┑
SUPERNATURAL BEASTS AND BULLIES SERIES

#0.5 Zodic Academy: Origin of an Academy Bully – 3.75 stars
#1 Zodiac Academy: The Awakening – 3.5 stars
#2 Zodiac Academy: Ruthless Fae – 3.75 stars
#3 Zodiac Academy: The Reckoning – 4.5 stars
#4 Zodiac Academy: Shadow Princess – 4.25 stars
#5 Zodiac Academy: Cursed Fates – 4 stars
#5.5 Zodiac Academy: The Big A.S.S. Party – 3.5 stars
#6 Zodiac Academy: Fated Throne – 4.25 stars
#7 Zodiac Academy: (...) – tbr
┕━━━━━━━━━━━━━┙

Mareeva

Rating: really liked it
[No but fr they better pull an uno reverse card on that Divine Moment real quick or imma not be so cheery anymore. (hide spoiler)]

Iqra

Rating: really liked it
(No spoilers)

Edit: 𝐈’𝐌 𝐂𝐑𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐒 𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐌𝐘 𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐊𝐒 𝐒𝐎𝐁𝐁𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈 𝐀𝐌 𝐈𝐍 𝐈𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍

my brain is crying.

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗨𝗖𝗞?! Please. Help. Me.
MY HEART IS BROKEN 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖 𝙬𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙘𝙧𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚. Please why did that have to happen?!!!!

𝗠𝘆 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗰𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱

𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐔𝐏 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐄.
SEND HELP.

𝑯𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒐?! ʷʰʸ ᵈⁱᵈ ʸᵒᵘ ᵈᵒ ᵗʰⁱˢ ᵗᵒ ᵐᵉ (;´༎ຶٹ༎ຶ`)

WHAT THE FUCK I'M NEVER GONNA TALK AGAIN I CAN'T HANDLE THIS PAIN

𝗜 𝗔𝗠 𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗢𝗜𝗡𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗡𝗢 𝗥𝗘𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗡 𝗜 𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗟 𝗡𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗣𝗟𝗨𝗖𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗘𝗘𝗧𝗛 𝗢𝗨𝗧 𝗪𝗢𝗨𝗟𝗗 𝗕𝗘 𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗣𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗙𝗨𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚

I AM SOBBING LIKE A BABY

𝙔𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬 𝙠𝙞𝙙𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙩.

𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲:
𝖶𝗁𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗍 𝗃𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝗐𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖫𝖠𝖲𝖳 𝖥𝖨𝖵𝖤 𝖯𝖤𝖱𝖢𝖤𝖭𝖳 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝗢𝗥 𝗘𝗟𝗦𝗘 𝗜’𝗠 𝗡𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗜𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦 𝗜 𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗟 𝗔𝗕𝗔𝗡𝗗𝗢𝗡 𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗧 𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗦. ‎
GOODBYE.
NOBODY TALK TO ME.
MY BRAIN WILL BE OUT OF SERVICE FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE.

𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀: 🎧 (I didn’t realise it was this many. Wow…)
Control - Halsey
Undone - Sina moonlake
Phoenix- league of legends
Scorpio - DREAMDNVR
SUPERPOWERS - DALLAS
Vicious - Tate McRae
Mind games - SICKICK
Enemies - the score
Phoenix - molly sandén
After you - grey
Monsters - Demi Lovato ft. BlackBear
She knows - J. Cole ft. Amber Coffman, cults
How villains are made - Madalen Duke
Confident - Demi Lovato
Left untold - DHARIA
Blue - Lolo Zouaï
Challenge - Lolo Zouaï
Dangerous love - Justice Carradine
What if - Justice Carradine
Prisoner- Miley Cyrus ft. Dua lipa
Midnight sky - Miley Cyrus
Doorstep - Josh Levi
Lie no more - Josh Levi
All over again - Josh Levi
Unless - Haiden
Fire breather - LAUREL
Doses - RIKA
Lady powers - Vera Blue
FAYF - grey
Eager - Britton
Hurts like hell - Fleurie ft. Tommee Profitt
Fllad - KANITA
Real friends - Camila Cabello
Comme des garçons - Isaac Dunbar
For me - Lo Nightly
Let the rain come - Tawnted
I might run from you - Tawnted
Confident - Kat cunning
Toxic - RealestK
Middle of the night - Elley Duhé
Delusional - Maya Mae
For me (slowed) - lo nightly
Give me a kiss - Lolo Zouaï
Dangerous - Taylor Buono
80-20 - Chloe x Halle

𝗙𝗮𝘃 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:

“𝐈 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐠𝐨 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠. ”
~CRYINGGGG

“𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐬?”
~LMFAOOOO

“𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬.”
~help.

“𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙤…𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝘿𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙨?”
~THIS MANNNN 💕💕

“𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐬𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐥?” 𝐎𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐮𝐩 𝐚𝐭 𝐮𝐬.
~he’s a savage and I love him 🦋💕💗♥️💞💘

“𝐈 𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐦𝐞, 𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐞’𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞.”
~MY HEART ACHES I'M CRYING SO HARD

“𝐅𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮,” 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐝, 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐞𝐭𝐡’𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐭 𝐦𝐞. “𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮.”
𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘂𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁. “𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙛𝙪𝙘𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙨𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙮 𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙤𝙣.”
~this is fucking sending me bye

“𝐒𝐨, 𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠,” 𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐲.
“𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐠𝐨 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐲,” 𝐈 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝.
~ I’m cackling

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦, 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭.”
“𝐖𝐡𝐲?”
“𝘽𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄’𝙢 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙧𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”
~and just like that, I have no solid organs left

“𝐈 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐈 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐟𝐢𝐱 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐡.”
~crying in the bathtub

“𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐨𝐟𝐟?” 𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐝.
“𝐘𝐞𝐬,” 𝐈 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐝.
“𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙢𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝,” 𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘂𝘀 𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱.
~MOUTH OPEN FOR THIS MAN

“𝙄 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥!”
~CRYING SCREAMING SHOUTING PULLING MY HAIR NONONONONONONO PLEASE I'M BEGGING

—————————————————————————
Note to self: ✍️ DO NOT go batshit-crazy over the cliffhanger I’ve been PROMISED will bring emotional damage to my soul.

*nods head to make it stick*

SK

Rating: really liked it
WOW
😭😭😭😭😭
SO DAMN CRUEL (I read the last few chapters with blurry eyes, I also might have screamed a little).

Now that I've had time to process it and my emotions are not all over the place I'll try to review this. (This review turned out to be lengthier than what I was expecting. Sorry). Though there's so much to say I don't know where to start. My initial thoughts were Oh boy, I wanna die but I'm just so glad that I don't get to wait for the next book😂

I loved it. I hated it. But most of all, I loved it.

The book ends with such great emotion, with the words "I need help!" And that's EXACTLY what I needed after finishing this.

This had a lot of ups and downs, in terms of decisions the characters made. Lot of crap went down which could've been avoided (if they could've just listened to me lol, I wish). There was so much of miscommunication it actually did frustrate me a bit due to which I was going to give it four stars initially, but the last 100 pages bumped it up to five. It was definitely all sorts of action packed👀

Coming to the characters, my girl Darcy is the real MVP and I'll fight everyone who doesn't agree. Her character is pushed to the limits in this one and seeing her growth in the last few chapters is amazing.
Seth is a douche, that's a pretty apt description of him. We get to see Max's softer side a bit and I definitely liked that. I felt bad for Caleb in this one throughout the book, he's definitely one of my two favourites of the Heirs; Darius obviously being the second one. Darius' character messed with my feelings and honestly he deserves better😭 No way he was left like that. I want more. He deserves more😭😭 He's the kind of grump you want to be a sunshine for.
Out of all the characters, Tory Vega, sister of Darcy Vega, frustrated me the MOST. I was angry at her throughout this book, especially at the end which was pure heartbreak (for me as well). Not a single good decision from her. I get that it's all part of her arc but what she did was so cruel (I think we all can agree). Her angry persona made me angry. It felt like there were shadows in me whenever she did something messed up.

What about Lance Orion? Perfect. Doesn't need to change. I'm going to overlook his stupid decision that caused the crap at the end because he's Lance Orion🥵
I need me a Lance Orion 👀

Anyway, to sum up, the book challenges the reader in all its ways. It's got action, great plot, characters that are full of personality and fire, drama, love, great laughs and so full of emotions you actually feel what the characters are going through. The perfect recipe to keep the reader hooked and longing for more.

I can't wait to find out what happens next. If something happens to my man I'm going to invent a whole new Order and flip out🙃

Rei

Rating: really liked it
The day has finally come... After having been a member here since 2013 I felt the need to write a review because nobody else has written what I felt about this series.

Now, listen, I am not hard to please. I read a lot and I enjoy it. I can accept editing mistakes and I understand fully the need to write something that you know will please your fans because you follow what they liked on other books and you need to make a living out of this. But you actually have to put work into it to turn an idea to a book.

Let me start by saying this is a good idea for a story. There's a Fae realm (hello S. J Maas), a school for the gifted (hey there J.K Rowling) and a star crossed lovers theme (here's looking at you Laini Taylor). The prose is not bad either, the authors know how to evoke feelings and emotions. What it lacks is proper story progression, world building and character development. To the point that it becomes ridiculous.

------------------SPOILERS BELOW & MODERATE PROFANITY------------------------

It is laughable that these two 18 year girls that have been dragged to another realm only to find they are princesses and pretty much the most powerful fae alive, not at any point do they go to the fucking library to read a book about the history of said realm.

It is laughable that these girls have not tried to get a basic grip of what their powers entail. As in GO TO THE FUCKING LIBRARY and get yourself a book on basic spells so that you can maybe heal yourself? Get your hair to grow? Or maybe make your pan fry your bacon on its own? Or how about concocting a potion so that when vampires attack you for your blood they will get repelled by it?

It is laughable that the authors throw at us the notion of Elysian mates and then think that they would surprise us with Darius and Tory being destined for each other. A 10 year old could see through that.

It is laughable that these two girls would swoon and look at the abs of the men that tortured them, humiliated them, circulated nude pictures of them and tried to kill them.

It is laughable that these girls have not asked even basic questions about their family and heritage. I mean shouldn't they have at least a cousin or two? Where are they? Shouldn't there be a guardian or something of their heritage? Didn't their parents have parents, siblings or friends?

It is laughable that the girls are trusting their powers and their lives to the hands of shady Orion who has repeatedly told them that he doesn't want them to get the throne and that he won't help them there.

It is laughable that after everything that has happened to them they are still the same people they were on book one.

I really don't want to be mean and I think I'm failing at that. The fact that I have so strong opinions and writing a review is proof enough that the authors have talent in writing. If only they would stop fan serving and actually use their skills to create a world around this school and interesting characters to inhabit it. At this point it cannot be saved. But it can get better. Best of luck with that and I will be here for book #5.

zaraa

Rating: really liked it
3.55/5

orion at the general public: 😒😐🤬😡😠🙄🤮😴👺🔪

orion at darcy: 😍🌈🐣🧡💚💙💗🤩😏👅😩

the RANGE that Lance Orion's character has, it's absolutely chef's kiss . my dumbass idiotic very hot grumpy comedian's back probably hurts from carrying these books on his back. <3

and honestly him and Darcy are my only reason for continuing this series because i could care less about the plot or any other character except for maybe Max and Geraldine who are the clowns of this series please.

Francesca ☾ (rereading ToG)

Rating: really liked it
I'm ugly sobbing in my room and I don’t want to talk about it

☀︎El In Oz☀︎

Rating: really liked it
5/5

Officially a Darius Acrux and Tory Vega stan page, complete with emotional turmoil! So if half this review is about them I’m really sorry in advance 😭

Darcy was in the plot way more again because I felt like she was sort of not doing as much in the last book, but here she was amazing again. I love her characters development and how she actually is using her more aggressive side now more than ever, and I just am really happy that we have a fantasy MC who actually is trusting and kind to people. It’s refreshing honestly how genuine and kind Darcy is.

My favourite girl, Tory!! She was amazing in this book. I know lots of people don’t like her but her abrasive side and tough decisions and the pain she puts herself though just draws me towards her character. She’s not sweet and kind and she’s just so complex and layered. I loved reading scenes where she was talking about herself or in her POV where after something happened she would be trying to explain to herself why she did it to justify it and not being able to. She’s a difficult person but as I read more books I’m beginning to realize I prefer difficult characters to read about. Let them mess up and be cruel and fiery and not care, because the development is so satisfying when they see their full potential. I know Tory is definitely not going to be okay for a while but I am so in love with her 😭

The plot was top notch. It was a bit looser in pacing compared to the other ones but this book is long (over 600+ pages) and I read it in an entire day. It’s addictive because every POV is so intriguing and gives the characters and their actions + motives more layers. It’s hard to stop because these characters are so damn likeable. Hard to confess, I know, but I’m so attached to most of them <3

DARIUS!! ❤️ ACRUX!! So as no one is surprised if you’ve seen my status updates, I am in love with him. I just think that his multi layered character personality and his development and lack of it at times makes him so compelling. And his POV is 10000% my favourite. I just can’t say enough in his praise. He has so many different sides and I just enjoy how they’re all explored. It’s so interesting to see how he deals with his past terrible actions. Plus, the saving your love interest trope is one of my favourites ever and he’s done this waaaay too many times in this series. I swear the fact that he’s going to Tory’s door in the middle of the night and just pulling her out of the shadows in case she gets too far into them and always looking out for her is so sweet 😭 Tory does too many reckless things and I know he’s going to have a heart attack soon over it .

Caleb is so sweet as always. The way he’s considerate of everyone is just something so unique. I mean he can be pretty mean sometimes but there’s just something about the way that you can see he genuinely cares about his friends and all that makes him very appealing. He’s so sweet <3

Max getting a personality? Definitely a shocker but Max is so funny. Now that we have more of his POV , it’s hilarious because he has no clue what’s happening 90% of the time, is trying to read emotions to tell what’s going on and just gets confused, and he just gives hilarious commentary because he has no clue what’s going on.

Seth. Why. Every time I read his POV and see his regrets makes me want to sympathize with him but his actions are just not it. I know he’s trying but he genuinely doesn’t try hard enough. But whatever.

Also. Am I possibly seeing a Caleb and Seth thing happening??? I know Caleb is straight but they keep bringing up the kiss they had and the tension? And little things here and there? I don’t know if it’ll actually turn into anything but I’m here for it.

Orion was actually so funny in this book. His POV is always so funny for no reason and I actually am really liking him. Interesting.

The romance. Omg. I actually am very much liking the sweet dynamic of Orion and Darcy. They’re very much in love and it’s super sweet to see.

Darius and Tory oh my god. They’re officially one of my top OTPs. The angst. The scenes of love and hatred. Everything about them. I can’t get too into details because of spoilers, but the end. Noooooo. It’s tragic and the love confessions and hatred confessions and everything is just so well written and I can’t😭😭

Also can I say how good the smut is? I usually find it very awkward to read, mostly because of the scenes commenting on how wet or hard each other is (like??? Ew). But in this series? It’s not awkward with cheesy lines and weird comments. It’s actually well written and pretty darn hot. Darius and Tory having 2 smut scenes finally !!!! But after the end of this 😭 well. I’m glad they could have that sort of happiness.

Anyways Darius <<<33333

I’m onto the next one <3





The Awakening - 4.5
Ruthless Fae - 4
The Reckoning - 5
Shadow Princess - 5
Cursed Fates - 5
Fated Throne - 5
Heartless Sky - 4.5
Untitled #8 - TBR

TJ ☾

Rating: really liked it
3.5 Stars 🌟🔮

🐉 Professor Orion and Boyfriend Orion hit so different but the point is THEY BOTH HIT. I also love Orion and Tory's sibling-like relationship skbldbwibwq he is so dynamic this dude can't miss. He is the loudest, most dramatic asshole teacher just shouting and strutting about but then when he's around Blue he just melts.... I mean the way he adores her 🥺🥺 And how they're always playing around with each other-- ie when she was turning into a bunny rabbit and Orion was lowkey into it lmao I love them

🐉 Moving on from one OTP to another, show me a couple that brings out the worst in each other the way Tory and Darius do. Show me two people who shouldn't be together more than them. Show me a dynamic that is more of a broken record. And show me a person who appreciates it the way I do! I love these two toxic idiots. They embody what these books are best at: being a trash ass mess. Their ending set up book 5 for angst that will almost surely kill me, but pls drag me along for the ride you know I love it, you know I'm a fan. Their future is bleak and so is mine 🤪💓

marwah

Rating: really liked it
no one fucking talk to me

imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay
imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay
imnotokayimnotokayimnotokayimnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay imnotokayimnotokayimnotokay

WHAT THE FRICKITEY FUCKITY FUCK?/?/?/?/?/ I CANT STOP CRYING?/?/?/?:?:?:?:??:?:3

NO ONE FUCKING TALK TO ME NO ONE. I WANT TO DIE I WANT TO DIE. I. WANT. TO. SHRIVEL. UP. AND. DIE.

——————————————-

Four chapters left (?/?/?/.?/?.?) I’m very much terrified pray for me🤠

9/24/2022

why am I scared to start this

booksnpenguins (wingspan matters)

Rating: really liked it
What the fuck peckham. Not cool.

Not

Cool




___

Did I just stop the fourth ZA book in less than a month? Yes.
Will I ever stop multishipping? Never.
Do I need therapy? Probably.

Marti

Rating: really liked it
I still love the series and I'll definitely continue with it.
That doesn't mean I don't have a couple of things to say about it.

This book wasn't my favorite in the series for sure. I thought I'd enjoy it more than I did. It felt like two books in one, not because it's super long (which it is) but because the buildup for the first part comes to an end in the middle, and then it's like we're starting another book.

- It was one of the funniest reads of my life. There are some scenes that made me laugh so hard I was crying. Really. Too hilarious.

- The sad parts didn't hit me as hard. It just doesn't feel like it's permanent, you know? The book ends on a cliffhanger so you NEED to run for book 5 and see what happens, but I already know pretty confidently that everything will be solved at the beginning of the next book. Of course, then they'll throw more pain at us, and we'll see how that one sticks to me. For now, I'm just not worried 😂

*SPOILER WARNING FOR THIS BOOK*

- I'm not into the mate thing. I've read it times and times again, how two people who hate each other end up being mates, and I feel like I've read enough of it. Here, it just seems off. Darius confessing his eternal love for Tory felt a little out of character to me. He was literally begging her, which regardless of the situation doesn't seem like something Darius would do. Unless the story ends up actually keeping Tory and Darius apart (which I don't think it will), it all just feels like a ploy to hurt us. If I bought into the "we'll never be together" crap then it would be a splendid, heart-shattering-into-a-billion-pieces breath of fresh air. Do you imagine? Mates who don't end up together. I would be happy if I actually believed it. But I don't. So I'm not.

- I liked to read more about the twins' interactions with the heirs. The scene with the snow fight was a favorite.

- Geraldine quicks ass. Her relationship with Max throughout the book was just fantastic. She had him like a little puppy begging for attention.

- Tory was annoying as fuck. The whole "addicted to the shadows" thing really didn't sit well with me. It's so sad because she was one of my favorite characters, but she truly annoyed me with her angry attitude, the way she treated her sister through most of the book, and the horribly irresponsible choices she made regarding the shadows. It just seemed like as a clever girl she would see that those were dangerous things she was getting into. I understand that some characters need some sort of regressing character arc, but it needs to feel natural in a way, it needs to be convincing. This wasn't. And here there was something off. There was just something off okay?

- I don't like misunderstandings and miscommunication in books, and here they were really dumb. It felt like if Darcy and Tory had just talked, there wouldn't have been a fight between them. I mean, Tory found out about Darcy and Orion and no consequences came from that... so why couldn't she just have known sooner? Duh.

- Darcy and Orion were my favorite part of the book. Their relationship is super cute and I'm sure we'll see more of them. Yeah, Orion will be fine. You think you can trick me, but I know he'll be fine. I know.

Namera [The Literary Invertebrate]

Rating: really liked it
This book is 220k words long, but it didn't feel like that AT ALL - I tore through it in a day without massively sacrificing my other commitments. Not sure how that happened. Maybe I fell into a time warp...

The heroines were more irritating than they usually are in this one. I thought Tory forgave Darcy way too easily for lying to her, and Tory's stubbornness is starting to grate (but I still prefer her to Darcy). I'm most sad about the fact that I really like Caleb, and I knew I was going to get my heart broken because this is a love triangle and he wasn't going to be the winner, but it still hurts.

This is why I started reading reverse harem... but anyway. I digress.

The plot makes leaps and bounds of progression in this novel compared to the previous ones, though it always surprises me how little interest the twins actually seem to have in researching their Order. Like, if I were them I'd go and devour every book on it in the library, but they're just chilling.

Very, very horrible cliffhanger. Can't wait for the next one, though I suspect the angst content will be ratcheted up.

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