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Nocturnal Academy #1

Nocturnal Academy

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Alice Dibble, about to start high-school, is accepted into the prestigious Nocturnal Academy, a school for supernatural creatures. Alice is both overjoyed and horrified to discover that she is a vampire.

To make things even more interesting, her worst enemy, Toby Thompson, has also been selected. He is a werewolf.

But before Alice can even start at the Nocturnal Academy she must come to terms with her new identity, defeat Toby’s old bully friends who have discovered the truth about her, and expose a local coven that wants to raise the Demon-Lord Vladrakov.

Also available in this series:
Nocturnal Academy 2 - Teacher's Pet
Nocturnal Academy 3 - Immaterial Girl
Nocturnal Academy 4 - The Supernatural Circus
Nocturnal Academy 5 - Mage against the Machine
Nocturnal Academy 6 - The Da Vinci Codex
Nocturnal Academy 7 - School of Thought
Nocturnal Academy Omnibus - Books 1-3

158 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 12, 2009

125 people are currently reading
317 people want to read

About the author

Ethan Somerville

114 books13 followers

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5 stars
250 (49%)
4 stars
129 (25%)
3 stars
90 (17%)
2 stars
17 (3%)
1 star
18 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
Profile Image for tachyna renick.
42 reviews
July 23, 2014
Beginning of a new life

Beginning of a new life

Alice is no ordinary girl, she has black hair and very pale skin, she's called vampire girl. This adventure takes Scholl to a whole new level. It describes almost our real world of bullying, to every detail. Alice goes to a whole other level of bullying when she gets accepted to Nocturnal academy, it turns out it's an academy of monsters! Alice learns shortly after orientation that she's a vampire and one of her bullies is a monster as well, Carla Hightower: werecat. Her new life may not even begin if she doesn't stop her father's girlfriend from awakening a demon that's out to destroy the world. Will she succeed or fail? I recommend this to anyone wanting something involving adventure and monsters
Profile Image for H.M. Irwing.
Author 31 books44 followers
October 18, 2017
Loved it!

Can't wait to read the rest!

Amazing!

I love Alice!

Its good that it all happened at the end of the year. They'll be heroes at Nocturna Academy.
10 reviews
July 5, 2018
Good book

This was very enjoyable book. My client enjoyed it also. Loved the characters and the storyline. It had action and suspense
Profile Image for Elizabeth.
579 reviews
December 30, 2018
I read this on the rave recommendation of my 11-year-old. It was fun. A very quick read with an engaging storyline.
24 reviews
February 9, 2019
It will fast a spell on you

I enjoyed this tail and can't wait to buy the next instalment.
There was a very good plot witch kept me glued to
My reader.
Profile Image for Carmen Gilson.
2 reviews1 follower
June 14, 2019
I like how they have twists and turns on events let alone there own inventions of the books. I like the historical bit about how they find the magic.
Profile Image for Melissa Levine.
1,028 reviews42 followers
July 30, 2018
Who was this story written for? Little kids? The writing itself wasn't that great, there were several grammatical errors throughout. Was this the author's first story, maybe? And I didn't realize this story was taking place in Australia until a third in...I figured it was England.

Either way, the story itself was alright. The main characters, also made me think that this story was written for the way younger crowd.

Questions/Comments:

So Alice is trying to find a high school to go to after she finishes at her current school. Why are the high schools referred to as 'colleges'?

Why is Alice's mother referred to as "Mrs. Dibble" or her father with the 'Mr. Dibble'?

When Alice goes to tell her mom that she was accepted, why in the hell does her mother think that "Alice had broken something OR POURED HOT WATER EVERYWHERE." Is that a normal thing parents worry their kids might do? haha

Mistake here: "Principal McNorton was surprised that one of Appleton's most promising students had been sent to HER office, but HE put her on the bench...."

I seriously couldn't understand why Alice's mother was so mad at her? Although I could say the same thing as to why she never said anything to anyone about the bullies, it had been going on for years!

Her father seems like a dimwit too. When they're at the skating rink and 'the bullies' show up calling her 'Malice'. Her father seriously thought they were friends of hers and 'just wanted to chat'?

Why did Alice not wonder how she became a vampire in the first place?

What happened to the curry that her father had been making?

When Alice and Janice are hiking, I got confused. "Alice starred as her as she spoke, and realised with a jolt that she couldn't read her thoughts!" How would she need to be reading Janice's thoughts, when Janice is talking-telling her a story? "She hadn't put up her glamour, either." Why would she need her glamour up? They're hiking.

Alice mentions how for her 'end of term' test, the teacher asks only a single question, and it just happens to be about something she later needs to know?

When they arrive at the cider place for the field trip, "...made everyone sit down on the grass beside the carpark and have their morning tea." Um...what year is this taking place in? I can't imagine that you would normally stop throughout the day to have tea. Much less, while out on a field trip aka sitting in the grass. Are they passing around a tea pot?
Profile Image for Abbey Reeves.
1 review
March 6, 2013
I am only 3 quarters of the way through, but I thought I would write a review. I'm really enjoying this book, it's a fun, lighthearted read and easy to like. However, it's not a book I would say is AMAZING or a MUST READ, but one I enjoy reading after a long day for a bit of fun.

It's interesting reading a book set in Aust, there aren't many young adult books like this. It's refreshing to see 'mom' spelled as 'mum' and not have to worry about 'freshman' 'sophomore' 'middle school' and the like. It's nice to read about a girl growing up in school life as I did and living in a town not as foreign as most books are set in. I really loved the fact that it was set in my own country. :) It gives a clearer picture on what the story looks like, you know what the phone booth looks like, the school, the roads, the buses etc etc. OH and finally Australian spelling. yay!

You realise (yes, 'realise' NOT 'realize') fairly early that this is a fairly amateur writer with all the grammar and spelling mistakes, but as I was reading it, it was a little charming. You shouldn't take it seriously and just enjoy the story. We are all smart enough to figure out what he was really trying to say.

So all in all give it a go and enjoy the story... don't take every spelling/grammar mistake as a personal insult, but just enjoy it for what it is. :)

EDIT: Now I am up to book 6 and still enjoying every chapter...
Profile Image for Theresahpir.
61 reviews3 followers
November 14, 2013
I don't often go for the paranormal/fantasy genre, nor do I read a lot of YA/middle grade books...but, I received this title as a free ebook and the description looked interesting enough. In fact, I think I actually liked this book better than I thought I would!

12 year old Alice Dibble is used to getting picked on by her school mates and eagerly looks forward to being accepted ANYWHERE other than her local high school for the following year. She gets her wish and is accepted at a mysterious, yet prestigious private school right down the street from where she lives. However, before her tenure at her primary school is even over, Alice already discovers that her new school is definitely not what she thought!

This is a really sweet, cute little book, perfect for the younger reader. Who of the Harry Potter generation doesn't want to be whisked away to a magical boarding school filled with mystical surprises around every corner? It's well-written, the characters are interesting, and I respect the unique paranormal spin. As an actual paranormal investigator and researcher, I had some personal difficulties with the way "ghosts" were portrayed, but as a plot element, it seemed to work. Overall, it was an enjoyable way to lazily spend an evening. I'm looking forward to the other books in the series and the continuing adventures of Alice and her new friends.
Profile Image for Emma.
592 reviews16 followers
November 30, 2014
The cover in my opinion is horrible, reminds me of the sixties for some reason and not in a good way. The book itself was much better you will be glad to hear.

It was quite simply written but since the main character was twelve years old this suited the tone of the book well. I did think that Alice acted too old at times, she was acting more 16 that 12 at times. The storyline was good, flowed well and kept me guessing. I was sure I knew what was going to happen, but I was wrong in some aspects which was good, it was a nice surprise.

It was good to see bullying not tolerated but a stronger punishment would have been nice.

Overall it was a good read, I would highly recommend it and I am looking forward to the next one in the series.

Four out of five stars.
1,577 reviews54 followers
August 17, 2020
This was a funny read. I liked Alice and Toby. It reminded me a lot of In Search Of The Time And Space Machine and my wishes for Max and Toby to get together. So this had a nostalgic feel. It wasn't fantastic but it was a solid fantasy/paranormal read and I think younger kids will really enjoy this.

The plot was interesting and I enjoyed the adventure that Alice and Toby went on. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

Profile Image for Sarah Tigan.
Author 3 books3 followers
April 5, 2015
Nocturnal Academy is while not the book of the year for me, most assuredly a good read. Admittedly it is written for a younger crowd. However to me that is not a bad thing. We need strong writers teaching our children.

The story is very good and engaging, both the world and the characters seem real. For this reader/writer that is one of the most important things I look for in a good book.

I also, on a side note enjoyed the introduction to the world of the supernatural. I will be reading the next in the series.
Profile Image for J.M..
Author 2 books11 followers
November 20, 2014
I read this because my 11 year old enjoyed it so much, she begged for the second in the series. I noticed quite a few errors ("them" instead of "then" etc.) Other than that, it was fine.

It was definitely written with children in mind, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. There is a lot of explanation and introduction to the world of the supernatural.

Overall, a great book for the younger audience, but I don't need to read anymore.
Profile Image for Gabby.
2,543 reviews26 followers
July 13, 2016
An interesting take on vampires and werewolves and the ghosts that you think you seeing. looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Alice seems to be turning things around just by discovering who she is.
Profile Image for tina barrington.
56 reviews4 followers
September 10, 2016
Fun

This story reminds me of public school back in the 60's. I'm referring to the bullying of course and not the magic. This was a good reminder not to play with powers you don't understand because demons do exist.
Profile Image for Patricia Kupiszewski.
21 reviews
November 8, 2013
I didn't know if I would like it because it's for a young reader but actually enjoyed it and wouldn't mind reading the next one.
Profile Image for Makayla Sneed.
6 reviews
January 31, 2014
It could have been more elaborated but wonderfully written. I keep coming back to it I've read it at least five times.
Profile Image for Brenda.
134 reviews
March 7, 2014
Interesting concept. Will read the second book.
Profile Image for Norah.
120 reviews2 followers
May 22, 2014
Amazing

it is an awesome book if you enjoy vampire books than you will love this book
if you are interested in monster books read this book
Profile Image for Hayley Morgan.
Author 1 book10 followers
March 29, 2017
Alice Dibble lives in Appleton, Australia. She's just about to start high school when she gets the chance to apply for a place at the mysterious Nocturnal Academy. At the information night she learns that the world is much more complex than she thought. Supernatural creatures are real; vampires, werewolves, elemental spirits, the lot! Alice is really a vampire and never knew.

I really enjoyed this interpretation of the classic supernatural creatures. Though having many of the classic abilities and weakness the ways they managed these was unique. The vampires use super strong sunscreen for one. I liked the way the students were divided into dorms based on their aspect. It made a lot of sense, vampires and werewolves would need very different sleeping arrangements.

The variety of supernatural creatures was really fun. I especially enjoyed the selection of different weres, like werewolves and were-bears. They are very animal like which I always thought worked best for were-creatures.

This book was very enjoyable. I loved the characters and the variety of creatures, along with the fact that it is set in Australia which is a nice change. I give it 4/5.

Happy reading!

Hayley Morgan
Profile Image for Hannah.
16 reviews1 follower
May 17, 2018
Was a very good story that I didn't want to put down. The only thing that it failed on for me was all the spelling mistakes, and grammatical errors i found
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews

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