I really enjoyed reading this book, it was fantastic and well written.

Thank you NetGalley and to the publisher Sourcebooks Bloom Books for the chance to read the first book.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. The writing was lacking substance and it made it hard to care about the characters and connect to the world.

DNF @48%

This is just a basic romantasy. Nothing about it feels creative or different. I don't like the characters, the potential romance, or the writing.

Leia Stone does a fantastic job in writing fantasy book and this was no exception, I really enjoyed the way the characters and world were presented and developed. It was everything that I wanted in a opening chapter and was glad it was everything that I was looking for and am excited for more in this world. It uses the angels and demons perfectly and had that feel that I was looking for and was glad it was so well done.

This is I think the 4th series by Leia Stone I've started. I've read Matefinder, King of Avalier and Gilded City. And I think that this book falls into the same type as all of the books. I feel like Leia Stone has her own style, and it works for her, and it makes it easy for me as a reader to decide when to read this book, if it makes sense. I'm a 100% reader. I need to be in the right mood to read the right book, and for me, this book hit the spot when I was craving this kind of easy to get into romantasy.
I'll be honest, this was not the kind of book that will stay with me, and that I will think about regularly like some other books I've read. But this was the perfect fix when I wanted to escape for an afternoon into a different world. This is what this book was for me, and I think that if that is what you are looking for, this might be the read for you.
I'm looking forward to continuing this series (which I will definitely do at some point), because I want to know what will happen with Brielle and Lincoln, and their world. If you've enjoyed Leia Stone's other work, it is worth picking up.

Fallen Academy: Year One was fast paced and fun and followed the formula for a fun paranormal romance. It was definitely a quick read.

From the moment this author referred to “enemies” as “baddies,” I just knew from that moment that this book would be cringe-worthy. Also, who the frick says “YOLO”? Like everything was there for the characters, romance, and world, but how the author executed it. Just made it so, so, so cringe, which eventually gave me the ick.
2.5

I absolutely flew through this book! Great easy read and I found it very interesting Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book.

The Fallen Academy by Leia Stone kicks off an exciting and imaginative series set in a post-apocalyptic world where angels and demons have battled on Earth—and the fallout has changed humanity forever. With people now born with either angelic or demonic powers, the story centers on Brielle, a girl whose unveiling ceremony reveals a rare and shocking fate: though demon-bound, she’s also angel-blessed, making her a celestial with black wings—something that shouldn’t be possible.

Told entirely from Brielle’s perspective, the story dives deep into themes of loyalty, friendship, family, and self-doubt. Her internal struggles feel real, especially as she navigates her identity and the forces pulling her in opposite directions. The world-building is solid, and as the first book in the series, it focuses on laying the groundwork for bigger things to come.

The romantic tension between Brielle and Lincoln was one of my favorite parts—full of chemistry and slow-burning interest—but the spice was pretty minimal once their relationship progressed, which felt a little underwhelming. I also found Brielle’s voice to be on the immature side for a young adult protagonist, and it occasionally pulled me out of the story.

Still, The Fallen Academy is a fast-paced, original read with a lot of promise. The twists, the supernatural lore, and the emotional stakes had me hooked, and I can’t wait to see where Brielle’s journey goes next.

I was just drawn into this wonderful story and I just couldn’t get enough of it. It was just so easy to get lost in this great story. I just didn’t want it to end. I just lost myself in and I just couldn’t get enough of these interesting characters. I can’t wait to see what’s next from this author.

I absolutely love the characters and their story. Definitely held my attention from page one. Can’t wait to read what will happen next. Another amazing book by Leia.

Fallen Academy by Leia Stone
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
Fallen Academy kicks off a high-stakes, addictive urban fantasy series set in a world split between angelic light and demonic darkness. Leia Stone delivers a fast-paced, snarky, and emotionally engaging ride that centers around Brielle Atwater, a fiercely loyal and sarcastic heroine who’s been dealt a tough hand in life—and then discovers she has powers no one saw coming.

The setting is gritty and charged with conflict: angel-bloods and demon-bloods are constantly at odds, and Brielle finds herself caught in the middle. The academy setting gives classic dark

Fast-paced, addictive, and impossible to put down!

The world and magic system were super unique, and I loved the tension between the FMC/MMC—especially with the forbidden mentor dynamic.

While I enjoyed the concept and characters, it did feel a bit rushed, and I wanted more development and clarity around the bigger picture. It leans more into early college vibes in the second half, which younger readers will probably love.

Still, a fun read overall—perfect for fans of Divergent, The Hunger Games, or YA Fantasy of that nature. I’m excited to see where the series goes next!

o this seems to be a re-release with new covers and I am not sure if there were any edits made by the author to the original release in 2018. I received this advanced readers copy from NetGalley and will be reviewing it as a new read, convenient, since this is my first time reading the first book in this series, and all opinions that follow are my own.

This book is intended for the YA audience, but I think anyone can enjoy it. I am definitely older than the target audience. This book was so much fun to read. A rich fantasy, set in a world where Angels and Demons are fighting on earth and everyone has either received a demons powers or an angels gifts. The only thing they did agree on, was that children could live as normal a life as possible whether they live in Demon City or Angel City until they are 18.

At age 18, there is a ceremony that revels whether they were demon or angel marked. Our FMC, Brielle, had a little bit of an unexpected and maybe an unwelcome surprise. She wasn’t expecting what she received and the future, her future, that she had planned with her family, including Shea, who is like a sister to her, now seemed impossible.

The only thing I can say is read the summary. Anything else would contain spoilers and this book is just too good to ruin it for anyone.

If you like the summary, I can almost guarantee you will find yourself escaping into a world that is so rich, has so many twists and turns and if you are like me, you will find yourself wanting to escape into Brielle’s world again.

I gave this book a 3.5 stars. I did enjoy the characters and the concept but I felt that it was rushed and there wasn’t much character development.

I really enjoyed the tensions and dislike between the love interests. The fact that he was her mentor gave it a forbidden element which I loved.

Overall it was a great concept with an interesting story line.

*Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this book. It was fast-paced, funny, cute, and most importantly, entertaining. I think a lot of people forget that books like this one are supposed to be entertaining. So, maybe the backstory was a little vague, and maybe some of the plot points didn't line up, but none of that really matters if you had a good time reading it, which I did. I read the whole thing in one day, and I cannot wait to get my hands on the next one. This book was everything I needed at the moment: a fun, easy book with an engaging plot and an enemies-to-lovers that was both funny and romantic. Angels, demons, hot guys- I mean what more could I ask for in a book. Overall, this book was awesome and if you want to read a fun and engaging book that has just enough fantasy to keep it interesting, this one is for you.

This was a fun book with a beautiful cover. But it definitely read more YA than adult which hampered my enjoyment somewhat. I do see this having a devoted fan base though because what’s not to like about hot angelic men and kick ass fmc’s.

Brielle is heading into a bad situation. To try to save her father, her family is in debt to demons. When a chance to enter the Fallen Academy puts her on the opposite side, no one trusts her and her teachers are hiding something too.

Interesting characters with a somewhat predictable plot. Big revelations at the end of the novel spark my curiosity to explore the next title.

3.5⭐️
I can honestly say I consumed this book within 24 hours of picking it up! And no lie, for the first half I didn’t realize this was a YA! It feels slightly unfair for an adult reader to critique a YA, but this book will appeal to late teens more. After about the midway mark it leans much more heavily to early college hijinks. Overall, this was a fun read! And a little bit confusing for me on the nostalgia scale…

Set in an urban fantasy, Bri is 18 years old, just entering college, and she’s surrounded by hot hot hotty angels and demons as her new powers begin to manifest. Though war rages just outside the city, academy dances, hitting up clubs, and a beach party still occur and this teen gets to live her best life and newfound adult freedom! This was a romp, and a fun form of nostalgia to my own college years! The writing lends itself to a lot of millennial specific tropes though, possibly on accident. For instance, at one point the term “va-jay-jay” is used, which was absolutely part of my vernacular circa 2009 to 2015. And a reference is made to Thor’s hammer, and how an archangel doesn’t know who that is. As an aside and in truth, I was a little apprehensive this would head towards an old stigmafication of the “gay best friend” trope, but it doesn’t, thankfully! And instead there is a surprise sassy favorite side character that appears and steals the show for me! Crossing my fingers for a movie production and release on this one - I do think it has potential to be a newer generations version of Vampire Diaries. Thank you to Leia Stone and Bloom Books for allowing me to receive an ereader copy!

I went into this book just looking for an enjoyable, quick read. What I got was what felt like a night spent on Wattpad or WeInk. Not to say that everything on those apps is bad, but many times the editing is off, plot lines are weak, and character arcs are lacking. This book was inconsistent and confusing. It was like being a monkey on crack bouncing from one limb to another then falling to the ground. I just didn't enjoy it like I thought I would. However, this author does have enjoyable books. And I don't want to give the impression that because I don't like this book I am trashing the author - I just don't think it was the best representation of her works.