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Afterworld Academy #1
Dearly Departed
All great stories start with a death.
In this case, it's my own.
Instead of the pearly white gates and yellow brick road leading me to Heaven, my soul is chosen to join Afterworld Academy - an exclusive boarding school to train selected souls on how to manage the Afterlife.
Ghosts, Demons, Reapers, and Angels.
Classes on how to fly. Studies on the proper way to select souls. Weaponry. Premonition. Oh, and field trips to Hell.
Sounds peachy, right?
When souls turn up dead, I must work with my four sexy-as-sin mentors to uncover the truth of my new reality.
Things are about to take a deadly turn.
Welcome to Afterworld Academy where the price of admission...is your life.
Dearly Departed is book one of a four book series by bestselling authors, Loxley Savage and Katie May. This is a reverse harem romance meaning that the main character won't have to choose between her love interests. This is medium-burn and does contain strong language and sexual themes. Oh, and death. Lots and lots of death. Book one will end in a cliffhanger.
*Note from Authors
The main character does pass away from cancer (which is how she ends up in the Afterworld Academy). Please keep this in mind while reading, especially if that may be triggering to you. We would love for you to read our book, but we want you to take care of yourself.
In this case, it's my own.
Instead of the pearly white gates and yellow brick road leading me to Heaven, my soul is chosen to join Afterworld Academy - an exclusive boarding school to train selected souls on how to manage the Afterlife.
Ghosts, Demons, Reapers, and Angels.
Classes on how to fly. Studies on the proper way to select souls. Weaponry. Premonition. Oh, and field trips to Hell.
Sounds peachy, right?
When souls turn up dead, I must work with my four sexy-as-sin mentors to uncover the truth of my new reality.
Things are about to take a deadly turn.
Welcome to Afterworld Academy where the price of admission...is your life.
Dearly Departed is book one of a four book series by bestselling authors, Loxley Savage and Katie May. This is a reverse harem romance meaning that the main character won't have to choose between her love interests. This is medium-burn and does contain strong language and sexual themes. Oh, and death. Lots and lots of death. Book one will end in a cliffhanger.
*Note from Authors
The main character does pass away from cancer (which is how she ends up in the Afterworld Academy). Please keep this in mind while reading, especially if that may be triggering to you. We would love for you to read our book, but we want you to take care of yourself.
308 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 12, 2019
1219 people are currently reading
1748 people want to read
About the author
Katie May
99 books2,619 followersKatie May is a romance writer of numerous genres! She writes everything from horror to fantasy to contemporary. #whychoose
She has a gorgeous tabby cat who she adores, and she’s obsessed with coffee and horror movies.
She has a gorgeous tabby cat who she adores, and she’s obsessed with coffee and horror movies.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 202 reviews
October 4, 2019
I was only two chapters in, and I was not enjoying myself. Hadley is so crass for no reason. She admitted to doing terrible things and brushed it off like it’s no big deal. She is accepting this whole academy thing waaaaayyyy too easily too. This feels rushed honestly.
The writing is so crass and immature. It’s like a middle schooler is trying to sound like an adult and write sexy and flirty scenes but has no experience to back it up. It's like they are trying too hard. That might sound harsh, but damn. I got 25% of the way in and just had to throw in the towel. Just not for me.
The writing is so crass and immature. It’s like a middle schooler is trying to sound like an adult and write sexy and flirty scenes but has no experience to back it up. It's like they are trying too hard. That might sound harsh, but damn. I got 25% of the way in and just had to throw in the towel. Just not for me.
September 24, 2019
Right, okay.......
This book went from, oh f yeah, to hmmm okay? to ugh!
I'll eventually write a proper review once i'm less annoyed at it 😒
This book went from, oh f yeah, to hmmm okay? to ugh!
I'll eventually write a proper review once i'm less annoyed at it 😒
November 17, 2019
At this point Katie is an autobuy for me
June 24, 2021
Much better then I expected. I really liked this one. And the ending made me want to throw my kindle across the room. I need to read the next one!
April 6, 2022
Another one of those books I already had for ages on my Kindle, but now I've gotten the paperback I all of a sudden had to read it RIGHT NOW. I'm a huge fan of Katie May. Her writing style and what I like to read align perfectly. And so far when I read one of her collaborations with other authors I ended up reading the entire backlist of those other authors too. I was therefore quite excited to jump into this new world.
And what an amazing world did May and Savage create in this book! They really thought about everything. I have to admit that at some point - especially during the finale - it felt like there were a few too many explanations and descriptions, and there was no way I was gonna remember everything to begin with, but I'm quite excited to explore the rest of the world and to play around in the world we've gotten to know in this first book.
Just like I can't wait to get to know the guys we've met better. In a lot of ways this book was quite clearly the first in a brand new fantasy series. Apart from the world being explored and explained, the authors also took their time to introduce us to their characters. In the beginning there were quite a few names to remember, and I'm really bad at those, but since the authors managed to make every character unique it was easy enough to tell them apart quite soon.
Just like it was easy enough to bond with the heroine of this story. We were quite clearly very different people and therefore I didn't have the intense connection I can sometimes have with characters, but I quite enjoyed how she changed so many things without putting any effort into it, by just being herself and who she is. And it's quite clear that there is more to her than meets the eye and I can't wait to get to see some more of the main plot surrounding her!
And what an amazing world did May and Savage create in this book! They really thought about everything. I have to admit that at some point - especially during the finale - it felt like there were a few too many explanations and descriptions, and there was no way I was gonna remember everything to begin with, but I'm quite excited to explore the rest of the world and to play around in the world we've gotten to know in this first book.
Just like I can't wait to get to know the guys we've met better. In a lot of ways this book was quite clearly the first in a brand new fantasy series. Apart from the world being explored and explained, the authors also took their time to introduce us to their characters. In the beginning there were quite a few names to remember, and I'm really bad at those, but since the authors managed to make every character unique it was easy enough to tell them apart quite soon.
Just like it was easy enough to bond with the heroine of this story. We were quite clearly very different people and therefore I didn't have the intense connection I can sometimes have with characters, but I quite enjoyed how she changed so many things without putting any effort into it, by just being herself and who she is. And it's quite clear that there is more to her than meets the eye and I can't wait to get to see some more of the main plot surrounding her!
October 12, 2019
I tried but I just couldn’t get into this one. DNF at 22%. I didn’t like the MC and although it was multiple POVs, it was pretty much insta-love all around. Not one for me.
July 7, 2020
Better then expected so a pleasant surprise I guess.
January 28, 2020
Dearly Departed was shallow as its characters, a little too simple and lacking in expanding on the Afterworld aspects to dish out an actual plot and not just something for a cliffhanger.
Multi-POVs just brought about the same kind of inner monologues from the guys instead of making them feel like different individuals, they are stuck with bullet point traits. It's like the whole book was about them being a complete goner for Hadley even before she is aware about them. In this process of drooling over her, we get a crumble of plot that's supposed to build up as we progress but frankly it's just finding a dead body every few chapters, being a little disturbed and a vague talk about darkness and then it's back to one of the guys going gaga over Hadley.
By the end chapters I was reaching the line of finally accepting there is nothing to this book than just this insta burn relationships, even those stayed so shallow because we are just told about their feelings. I mean they are literally having the feels in the first scene itself so there is no relationship development when they are ten steps ahead already. The only interesting thing was that the guys who are brothers have had a fallout, that's the only thing that not made me completely bored and quit this.
I kinda feel annoyed about the cliffhanger at the end, it's like here I'm through the whole book trying my best to find the content that bring something interesting to the table beyond the cliches and even a too easy romance that lacks intensity or a world building that doesn't really capture my attention with it's non-creative details and all I get is just a cliffhanger development dropped in the end for a barely touched plot.
Multi-POVs just brought about the same kind of inner monologues from the guys instead of making them feel like different individuals, they are stuck with bullet point traits. It's like the whole book was about them being a complete goner for Hadley even before she is aware about them. In this process of drooling over her, we get a crumble of plot that's supposed to build up as we progress but frankly it's just finding a dead body every few chapters, being a little disturbed and a vague talk about darkness and then it's back to one of the guys going gaga over Hadley.
By the end chapters I was reaching the line of finally accepting there is nothing to this book than just this insta burn relationships, even those stayed so shallow because we are just told about their feelings. I mean they are literally having the feels in the first scene itself so there is no relationship development when they are ten steps ahead already. The only interesting thing was that the guys who are brothers have had a fallout, that's the only thing that not made me completely bored and quit this.
I kinda feel annoyed about the cliffhanger at the end, it's like here I'm through the whole book trying my best to find the content that bring something interesting to the table beyond the cliches and even a too easy romance that lacks intensity or a world building that doesn't really capture my attention with it's non-creative details and all I get is just a cliffhanger development dropped in the end for a barely touched plot.
October 1, 2019
I wanted to love this book...
But for me it was just meh.
Why?
Well let's go into pros and cons.
Pros:
-Saggy Aggy is a riot. The humor in the book is top notch silly humor. Not stupid humor but silly, goofy, wtf humor. Which I always appreciate.
-Hadley is a wonderful character who faces life and death fearlessly, which is to be admired.
-The concept is interesting and compelling
Cons:
-The pacing leaves a lot to be desired. It's great that the guys all like her and everything but...there was just that certain...oomph...missing from their interactions. Like they were superficial when it's clear the author didn't intend them to be
- that setting needs fleshing out. Desperately. I have a hard time visualizing things consistently. Though it's possible that's a me thing.
- I need more depth from the characters. No seriously. I need more depth.
- This is more of a pet peeve than an actual con but...THAT CLIFFHANGER THOUGH
On that note, despite the three stars, I'm likely going to read the next one when it comes out because of that cliffhanger. Lol.
It's not an awful book. Just one that needs a bit more finesse. Read it for yourself, of course. This is all just my own opinion.
But for me it was just meh.
Why?
Well let's go into pros and cons.
Pros:
-Saggy Aggy is a riot. The humor in the book is top notch silly humor. Not stupid humor but silly, goofy, wtf humor. Which I always appreciate.
-Hadley is a wonderful character who faces life and death fearlessly, which is to be admired.
-The concept is interesting and compelling
Cons:
-The pacing leaves a lot to be desired. It's great that the guys all like her and everything but...there was just that certain...oomph...missing from their interactions. Like they were superficial when it's clear the author didn't intend them to be
- that setting needs fleshing out. Desperately. I have a hard time visualizing things consistently. Though it's possible that's a me thing.
- I need more depth from the characters. No seriously. I need more depth.
- This is more of a pet peeve than an actual con but...THAT CLIFFHANGER THOUGH
On that note, despite the three stars, I'm likely going to read the next one when it comes out because of that cliffhanger. Lol.
It's not an awful book. Just one that needs a bit more finesse. Read it for yourself, of course. This is all just my own opinion.
February 16, 2021
4.5
I’ve been hedging away from the academy reads lately, mainly because there are so many out there right now! This one, however, slipped through my culling - and thankfully so. Katie May and Loxley Savage make a heck of a pair, creating a world and universe just passed the edges of reality and death, infusing it with love, lust, action and mystery. I suppose life after death is far from peaceful, at least for these chosen few.
Pros:
- World building!
- Good use of multiple POV
- The guys connection and disdain is perfect, though we are still not 100% sure just why yet.
- Great FMC. She lives, even when dead.
Cons:
- Foreshadowing is dropped more like bombs throughout, not the subtle hints I would expect.
I’ve been hedging away from the academy reads lately, mainly because there are so many out there right now! This one, however, slipped through my culling - and thankfully so. Katie May and Loxley Savage make a heck of a pair, creating a world and universe just passed the edges of reality and death, infusing it with love, lust, action and mystery. I suppose life after death is far from peaceful, at least for these chosen few.
Pros:
- World building!
- Good use of multiple POV
- The guys connection and disdain is perfect, though we are still not 100% sure just why yet.
- Great FMC. She lives, even when dead.
Cons:
- Foreshadowing is dropped more like bombs throughout, not the subtle hints I would expect.
December 19, 2021
Great originalty!
Such an original book! Very refreshing!
The setting, Afterlife, and the plot are for me novelty.
You find the classic elements of "academy" books without the bullying and "hate to love" things so no useless dramas.
The FMC, Hadley, isn't described like a super powerful sup but rather like a normal girl chosen to live an afterlife (of course there must be more ;). This makes her more human and realistic.
I like the mystery surrounding the guys, just this make you want to read more!
Hadley's roommate is hilarious even is she is totally "useless" in the story. The author mocks here the traditional BFF/super cool roommate you can find in every "academy kind" books and it's so good!
Such an original book! Very refreshing!
The setting, Afterlife, and the plot are for me novelty.
You find the classic elements of "academy" books without the bullying and "hate to love" things so no useless dramas.
The FMC, Hadley, isn't described like a super powerful sup but rather like a normal girl chosen to live an afterlife (of course there must be more ;). This makes her more human and realistic.
I like the mystery surrounding the guys, just this make you want to read more!
Hadley's roommate is hilarious even is she is totally "useless" in the story. The author mocks here the traditional BFF/super cool roommate you can find in every "academy kind" books and it's so good!
Read
July 1, 2020I couldn't get through much of this. The FMC is horrible. The writing isn't interesting and, at times, it is way too juvenile for me. I'm too old to be reading lines such as:
"At least I can say it came quickly, like a teenage boy jacking off for the first time."
"... rocking back and forth in a fetal position as the devil masturbated in my tears." (Huh?)
"She makes me nervous like a boy who's just touched his first boob."
So in short: not for me.
"At least I can say it came quickly, like a teenage boy jacking off for the first time."
"... rocking back and forth in a fetal position as the devil masturbated in my tears." (Huh?)
"She makes me nervous like a boy who's just touched his first boob."
So in short: not for me.
September 16, 2019
It was Okey. I admit I skimmed alot of the pages. But ok read. The grammar was well written :)
September 28, 2022
Interesting premise but I feel the amount of characters reduced the quality of the story somewhat.
The 4 main male leads all have slightly different physical characteristics (as they are quadruplets) but essentially the same personality. Quick-tempered, horny and obsessive.
The female lead is confusing; one minute she’s a strong independent woman who has never needed a man to validate her and then the next she’s a fragile little flower in need of rescue.
Most of the jokey anecdotes in this book left me either raising an eyebrow in confusion or making me cringe myself inside out. One that stands out to me is when the demon brother entertains the idea of getting naked in Hell but decides against it as he doesn’t want his penis to be ripped off by a hellhound and his response is simply “I like my dick.”
Truly an iconic line.
The book ends on a cliffhanger and sets the scene for book 2 but I cannot muster the energy to trudge through another 2 books filled with the musings of these 5 very oddly named (Karston? Auston?) lead characters.
It’s a no from me.
The 4 main male leads all have slightly different physical characteristics (as they are quadruplets) but essentially the same personality. Quick-tempered, horny and obsessive.
The female lead is confusing; one minute she’s a strong independent woman who has never needed a man to validate her and then the next she’s a fragile little flower in need of rescue.
Most of the jokey anecdotes in this book left me either raising an eyebrow in confusion or making me cringe myself inside out. One that stands out to me is when the demon brother entertains the idea of getting naked in Hell but decides against it as he doesn’t want his penis to be ripped off by a hellhound and his response is simply “I like my dick.”
Truly an iconic line.
The book ends on a cliffhanger and sets the scene for book 2 but I cannot muster the energy to trudge through another 2 books filled with the musings of these 5 very oddly named (Karston? Auston?) lead characters.
It’s a no from me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 27, 2020
It was "ok". I liked the female character and the guys were interesting but lacking depth. There isn't a back story so you don't really know what happened and why the brothers do NOT get along. I was hoping that towards the end of the book something would be revealed about that. The ending was a good cliff hanger. I will read the next book and hope the author goes into more detail. Overall the concept of the story is good. 3.5 stars
February 1, 2021
Katie May is quickly becoming one of my favourite authors, and having read almost all of her other books, this was one of the few left/ And it didn't disappointed. It was really good.
Hadley dies and is given the choice to go to the Afterworld Academy to become a reaper, a ghost, a demon or an angel after her first year. She's given mentors in each type of creatures, but what she didn't expect was for her four mentors to be a quadruplet and to be attracted to all of them at the same time. Moreover, the Darkness is coming back and students are turning up dead on school's grounds.
It was a nice and quirky reads, with a lot of LOL and sexy parts. However, I thought that calling the evil being the Darkness and just consider it the evil of all evil was quite lame.
Hadley dies and is given the choice to go to the Afterworld Academy to become a reaper, a ghost, a demon or an angel after her first year. She's given mentors in each type of creatures, but what she didn't expect was for her four mentors to be a quadruplet and to be attracted to all of them at the same time. Moreover, the Darkness is coming back and students are turning up dead on school's grounds.
It was a nice and quirky reads, with a lot of LOL and sexy parts. However, I thought that calling the evil being the Darkness and just consider it the evil of all evil was quite lame.
December 1, 2019
Wow
I did not see that ending coming! Like at all! What a whirlwind of a book 📖 cannot wait to see what these authors come out with next
I did not see that ending coming! Like at all! What a whirlwind of a book 📖 cannot wait to see what these authors come out with next
February 20, 2022
Let me start by saying I love Katie May. She’s one of my favorite authors and an instant buy for me at this point so I was beyond disappointed when I picked up dearly departed. The main character is annoying, whatever she’s young and has a chip on her shoulder, I can get past that. The guys all already love her we don’t get to see any of that develop or grow in the story at all. Her roommate Aggie literally sexually harasses everyone, fondling herself in front of the main character, constantly making crude jokes, and at one point even pretending to lick a teachers asshole in front of the entire class to which there are no repercussion and everyone acts like it’s fine. You can’t tell me for a minute that if a man commented about wanting to spank his female teachers “tight ass” and pretended to lick her ass that there wouldn’t be serious repercussions because it’s harassment and it’s not funny.
The actual quotes:
“Aggie raises a hand in the air. “If I go first, can I ride your stallion and spank that tight ass of yours,” she questions seriously. Dominic’s eyes widen slightly, almost imperceptibly, and his hands go to cover said ass. Of course, that just draws the crazy old woman’s gaze to it, and she quite literally stalks around him like a lion hunting a gazelle.”
“He claps his hands together once more, ignoring Aggie who’s on her hands and knees, her tongue hanging out as she pretends to lick him. Well, lick his asshole.”
And scenes like this with Aggie are commonplace and supposed to be comedic relief. It’s not funny.
Don’t worry it gets worse. After the main character is attacked by a creature that licks and gropes her Aggie’s immediate response moments later is to ask “Did you at least get some monster cock?” And while this is followed by the main character claiming to think Aggie is concerned for her so she doesn’t mind that doesn’t make it ok. It’s disgusting actually.
Forgetting Aggie and how much the old woman (oh yeah she’s like 60 because her being old make it all better right? Not.) frustrated me the story itself had little character development and I’m left feeling like I don’t really get to know anything deeper about the guys beyond their base personality types and their love for the main character.
There are also various inconsistencies that should have been caught in editing. For instance it’s mentioned that some of the guys have watched over her since her cancer diagnosis but then they’ll know things about her from before then, furthermore no time dilation was explained in the book and yet these third year academy students have somehow been able to watch over her on earth for four years? When they said most don’t even get their charges until their third year? Make it make sense. Inconsistencies are also common in the characters own thought process. One moment she’ll be anxious about seeing a (spoilers sort of) dead body and the next she’ll be thinking about sex. Or one moment she’s mad at a character for a comment they made and the next she’s saying she wants him and is making out with him.
Overall the writing quality wasn’t consistent with what I’m used to from Katie May and I found it overwhelmingly disappointing that she would use sexual harassment as comedic relief.
Rant over, thank you.
The actual quotes:
“Aggie raises a hand in the air. “If I go first, can I ride your stallion and spank that tight ass of yours,” she questions seriously. Dominic’s eyes widen slightly, almost imperceptibly, and his hands go to cover said ass. Of course, that just draws the crazy old woman’s gaze to it, and she quite literally stalks around him like a lion hunting a gazelle.”
“He claps his hands together once more, ignoring Aggie who’s on her hands and knees, her tongue hanging out as she pretends to lick him. Well, lick his asshole.”
And scenes like this with Aggie are commonplace and supposed to be comedic relief. It’s not funny.
Don’t worry it gets worse. After the main character is attacked by a creature that licks and gropes her Aggie’s immediate response moments later is to ask “Did you at least get some monster cock?” And while this is followed by the main character claiming to think Aggie is concerned for her so she doesn’t mind that doesn’t make it ok. It’s disgusting actually.
Forgetting Aggie and how much the old woman (oh yeah she’s like 60 because her being old make it all better right? Not.) frustrated me the story itself had little character development and I’m left feeling like I don’t really get to know anything deeper about the guys beyond their base personality types and their love for the main character.
There are also various inconsistencies that should have been caught in editing. For instance it’s mentioned that some of the guys have watched over her since her cancer diagnosis but then they’ll know things about her from before then, furthermore no time dilation was explained in the book and yet these third year academy students have somehow been able to watch over her on earth for four years? When they said most don’t even get their charges until their third year? Make it make sense. Inconsistencies are also common in the characters own thought process. One moment she’ll be anxious about seeing a (spoilers sort of) dead body and the next she’ll be thinking about sex. Or one moment she’s mad at a character for a comment they made and the next she’s saying she wants him and is making out with him.
Overall the writing quality wasn’t consistent with what I’m used to from Katie May and I found it overwhelmingly disappointing that she would use sexual harassment as comedic relief.
Rant over, thank you.
November 19, 2023
Eh... after reading Prodigium by Katie May, which I loved and definitely recommend, was quite disappointed in this one.
Good
1) The world-building is unique and its ideals fascinating
2) The settings were well-done
3) The series arc was clear established
4) The reaper love interest was adorkable
5) The mystery involving the love interests' animosity towards each other was compelling
6) Lila was lovely
Mediocre
1) Not a stand alone novel with its own plot, more of the introductory installment of a serial
2) The female lead was generic
Bad
1) Aggie smacked of some serious ageism
2) That is not how you test or teach someone's fighting skills (why is this stupidity in every reverse harem?)
3) The angel, demon and ghost love interests were one-dimensional placeholders
4) The relationship-building from the love interests' side took place off-page
5)
Am going to try the next one.
ETA: gave up at chapter 23 out of boredom
Good
1) The world-building is unique and its ideals fascinating
2) The settings were well-done
3) The series arc was clear established
4) The reaper love interest was adorkable
5) The mystery involving the love interests' animosity towards each other was compelling
6) Lila was lovely
Mediocre
1) Not a stand alone novel with its own plot, more of the introductory installment of a serial
2) The female lead was generic
Bad
1) Aggie smacked of some serious ageism
2) That is not how you test or teach someone's fighting skills (why is this stupidity in every reverse harem?)
3) The angel, demon and ghost love interests were one-dimensional placeholders
4) The relationship-building from the love interests' side took place off-page
5)
Am going to try the next one.
ETA: gave up at chapter 23 out of boredom
February 7, 2021
Amazing Series 😍
Ok so I read all 3 books in 2 days.....yes it was that addictive!!
It was soo different with the focus being on a school on the the big what if after death question that it brought a whole new aspect to the academy genre.
The boys are all mine...just saying 😜 the villain to lover dilemma was explored really well and her relationships with the brothers was really heartfelt.
The balance of the multi-povs really helped the story! So often the majority is taken up by the FMC but this have a real balance to all the characters (which helps you love them all even more!)
A wonderful series from two fantastic authors 😄😄
Ok so I read all 3 books in 2 days.....yes it was that addictive!!
It was soo different with the focus being on a school on the the big what if after death question that it brought a whole new aspect to the academy genre.
The boys are all mine...just saying 😜 the villain to lover dilemma was explored really well and her relationships with the brothers was really heartfelt.
The balance of the multi-povs really helped the story! So often the majority is taken up by the FMC but this have a real balance to all the characters (which helps you love them all even more!)
A wonderful series from two fantastic authors 😄😄
March 24, 2020
Three is generous
This wasn’t a bad read per se, some of the banter back and forth is a little childish, the book itself is kinda kid-ish with adult themes. My big hang up with the book was when Braxton made a comment about how all of his brothers have been watching and protecting her and falling for her. I thought that was a huge bomb to drop, and the main lead h completely ignores it? Idk that was too big for her to ignore which was a little dumb. Book needs to evolve a bit.
This wasn’t a bad read per se, some of the banter back and forth is a little childish, the book itself is kinda kid-ish with adult themes. My big hang up with the book was when Braxton made a comment about how all of his brothers have been watching and protecting her and falling for her. I thought that was a huge bomb to drop, and the main lead h completely ignores it? Idk that was too big for her to ignore which was a little dumb. Book needs to evolve a bit.
September 15, 2019
Omg I love this story!!!
Wow this was an amazing story!!! Could not put it down. These 2 author's did such a great job with this book. Omg that ending!!! I seriously need the next book. Storyline was phenomenal. Hadley i absolutely love. The 4 guys I can't choose I want them all!!! Can not wait to read what happens next
Wow this was an amazing story!!! Could not put it down. These 2 author's did such a great job with this book. Omg that ending!!! I seriously need the next book. Storyline was phenomenal. Hadley i absolutely love. The 4 guys I can't choose I want them all!!! Can not wait to read what happens next
Read
September 30, 2019Dnf 18% - just not feeling it
January 28, 2022
Didn’t finish, got bored.🤷🏼♀️
February 8, 2021
Well, okay then.
Be prepared to have your mind blown with that freaking cliffhanger!
Luckily, the other two books are already out so you won't have to wait long in order to figure out what happens next.
This story begins with death.
If you have a trigger involving death, mainly cancer, please be advised that this might not be the book for you.
Our main female lead, Hadley, dies and is brought to the Afterlife, but it isn't anything like what she had expected.
She was prepared for her death, welcomed it even, but she wasn't exactly ready for what was chosen for her.
There are souls that work in the Afterlife. Chosen by Fate for certain aspects of the world.
That's where the mentors come in.
Each dearly departed soul gets one mentor from each section: ghosts, demons, reapers, and angels.
After a year, whichever section you excel in will determine where your focus will be shifted.
However, for dear Hadley things are a little bit complicated.
That's where Hadley's mentors come in.
Preston is her reaper mentor. He is a complete goofball, complete with clumsiness.
Auston is her angel mentor. Some describe him like ice, mainly because of his appearance, but also personality.
Braxton is her demon mentor. Broody is only one way to describe this man.
Finally, we have Karston as her ghost mentor. He likes solitude.
Each of these guys knew Hadley prior to her becoming a dearly departed.
What's was is that they are all....
Just kidding, I'm not giving that away now.
I don't want to say this is a slow-paced, or a fast-paced book.
There are some steamy times though.
It's middle of the road timeline wise.
I think everything plays out exactly as it needed to without feeling rushed or like it was dragging.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and definitely curious to see what will happen next.
Would definitely recommend it.
Be prepared to have your mind blown with that freaking cliffhanger!
Luckily, the other two books are already out so you won't have to wait long in order to figure out what happens next.
This story begins with death.
If you have a trigger involving death, mainly cancer, please be advised that this might not be the book for you.
Our main female lead, Hadley, dies and is brought to the Afterlife, but it isn't anything like what she had expected.
She was prepared for her death, welcomed it even, but she wasn't exactly ready for what was chosen for her.
There are souls that work in the Afterlife. Chosen by Fate for certain aspects of the world.
That's where the mentors come in.
Each dearly departed soul gets one mentor from each section: ghosts, demons, reapers, and angels.
After a year, whichever section you excel in will determine where your focus will be shifted.
However, for dear Hadley things are a little bit complicated.
That's where Hadley's mentors come in.
Preston is her reaper mentor. He is a complete goofball, complete with clumsiness.
Auston is her angel mentor. Some describe him like ice, mainly because of his appearance, but also personality.
Braxton is her demon mentor. Broody is only one way to describe this man.
Finally, we have Karston as her ghost mentor. He likes solitude.
Each of these guys knew Hadley prior to her becoming a dearly departed.
What's was is that they are all....
Just kidding, I'm not giving that away now.
I don't want to say this is a slow-paced, or a fast-paced book.
There are some steamy times though.
It's middle of the road timeline wise.
I think everything plays out exactly as it needed to without feeling rushed or like it was dragging.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book and definitely curious to see what will happen next.
Would definitely recommend it.
June 8, 2022
2.75
This was funny at times, but unfortunately saggy Aggie couldn't save it for me.
This was a supernatural story about a girl (hadley) who finds herself chosen to go to the in between instead of heaven or hell. The souls chosen for the in between attend an academy for four years to train to either be a demon, angel, reaper, or ghost. Each newly departed is assigned a mentor from each of these categories. Hadley finds herself assigned to quadruplets that don't like each other. This is where the story begins to go wrong for me.
**Spoilers below**
Tropes I don't enjoy:
1. R.h.'s that feel like cheating. Hadley catches feelings for each of the brothers and takes the relationship further with two of them without them really knowing.
2. Characters that are TSTL. Hadley know the darkness is killing people at the academy, but insists on going alone to round up the mmc's. *Eye roll* which doesn't even make sense because wouldn't she walk back with the final guy to the meet up location? Why yes she would
3. Where characters are able to be taken over or possessed by the big bad. Yes, this is where the book ended. This cliffhanger was the reason my 3 stars dropped to 2.75 stars.
What I did enjoy:
1. The concept was interesting
2. The side character were freaking hilarious.
This was funny at times, but unfortunately saggy Aggie couldn't save it for me.
This was a supernatural story about a girl (hadley) who finds herself chosen to go to the in between instead of heaven or hell. The souls chosen for the in between attend an academy for four years to train to either be a demon, angel, reaper, or ghost. Each newly departed is assigned a mentor from each of these categories. Hadley finds herself assigned to quadruplets that don't like each other. This is where the story begins to go wrong for me.
**Spoilers below**
Tropes I don't enjoy:
1. R.h.'s that feel like cheating. Hadley catches feelings for each of the brothers and takes the relationship further with two of them without them really knowing.
2. Characters that are TSTL. Hadley know the darkness is killing people at the academy, but insists on going alone to round up the mmc's. *Eye roll* which doesn't even make sense because wouldn't she walk back with the final guy to the meet up location? Why yes she would
3. Where characters are able to be taken over or possessed by the big bad. Yes, this is where the book ended. This cliffhanger was the reason my 3 stars dropped to 2.75 stars.
What I did enjoy:
1. The concept was interesting
2. The side character were freaking hilarious.
May 17, 2021
This book sucked me in right away! It's got a bit of everything: some darker themes, laugh-out-loud moments, delicious steam, mystery, etc. This one does has a fantastic cliffhanger. I do love them, but I was so glad that the series is already completed because I was NOT ready to leave this world and these characters! I'm not always a big fan of academy, but this one leaves out a lot of the immature drama that is usually included in the genre. I can't wait to devour the next two books! I'm basically obsessed...
Quick & Dirty Details:
- Hadley - 20yrs old, sassy FMC
- Reverse Harem (5 guys) - identical quadruplets (demon, reaper, ghost, and angel) and an addition later in the series
- PNR Academy
- Steamy - fast burn, high heat
- Multi POV
- Completed trilogy
- Triggers
Quick & Dirty Details:
- Hadley - 20yrs old, sassy FMC
- Reverse Harem (5 guys) - identical quadruplets (demon, reaper, ghost, and angel) and an addition later in the series
- PNR Academy
- Steamy - fast burn, high heat
- Multi POV
- Completed trilogy
- Triggers
March 14, 2021
4 stars
I have a few thoughts...
It Was interesting
Saggy Aggy is ummm interesting
The timeline of her illness, how long the guys have “known” her is all confusing.
She got sick her freshman year and she graduated online since she was too sick to go to school = 4 years, right?
The guys are third year students so that means they actually have only been dead two FULL years.
Hadley found time while being in the hospital and on chemo even if sick at home to party and have a threesome with frat guys.
Some of the guys reminiscing of their time watching Hadley don’t make sense with her illness. Especially when one of them mentioned being there when she got her diagnosis. So unless girlfriend got sick as a freshman (14-15 years old) and packed in as much life as she could in two years time including graduating high school (last thing on MY mind when I’m dying) and banging strangers for the experience (not a horrible idea tbh) it just doesn’t make sense.
Idk, it just spent a lot of time scratching my head and trying to piece together a timeline.
Anywho, gonna read the next and try not to think about it.
I have a few thoughts...
It Was interesting
Saggy Aggy is ummm interesting
The timeline of her illness, how long the guys have “known” her is all confusing.
She got sick her freshman year and she graduated online since she was too sick to go to school = 4 years, right?
The guys are third year students so that means they actually have only been dead two FULL years.
Hadley found time while being in the hospital and on chemo even if sick at home to party and have a threesome with frat guys.
Some of the guys reminiscing of their time watching Hadley don’t make sense with her illness. Especially when one of them mentioned being there when she got her diagnosis. So unless girlfriend got sick as a freshman (14-15 years old) and packed in as much life as she could in two years time including graduating high school (last thing on MY mind when I’m dying) and banging strangers for the experience (not a horrible idea tbh) it just doesn’t make sense.
Idk, it just spent a lot of time scratching my head and trying to piece together a timeline.
Anywho, gonna read the next and try not to think about it.
December 6, 2022
DD...
Its been a while since I've read a book where the main character dies in the beginning. But even so, I'm not sure if I've read one quite like this...its refreshing. Hadley dies and is brought to after world academy where certain recently deceased people are taught to help run things. You have your angels, demons, reapers, and ghosts. Every division has its own jobs. Right now we've only scratched the surface of after life academy. I love the characters! Hadley is super funny, I enjoy her inner monologue. Preston is super adorable with his clumsiness. Karston is such a weirdo but flirty. We haven't really gotten much from Austin and Braxton but both seem protective and the muscles of the group. I'm so curious to see what else we learn about each of them. But with Darkness lurking, killing souls for their ultimate death and Hadley needing to learn so much still, the question is...will she ever get the chance?
Its been a while since I've read a book where the main character dies in the beginning. But even so, I'm not sure if I've read one quite like this...its refreshing. Hadley dies and is brought to after world academy where certain recently deceased people are taught to help run things. You have your angels, demons, reapers, and ghosts. Every division has its own jobs. Right now we've only scratched the surface of after life academy. I love the characters! Hadley is super funny, I enjoy her inner monologue. Preston is super adorable with his clumsiness. Karston is such a weirdo but flirty. We haven't really gotten much from Austin and Braxton but both seem protective and the muscles of the group. I'm so curious to see what else we learn about each of them. But with Darkness lurking, killing souls for their ultimate death and Hadley needing to learn so much still, the question is...will she ever get the chance?
October 30, 2024
OMG-DIDNT WANT TO PUT DOWN!
So, up front I will warn you: In typical Katie May fashion, it ends on a cliffhanger. I am a FAST reader, so I finished book 1 in 2 (2hr) reading sessions-and was reluctant to put it down. I don’t want to post any spoilers so I’ll give a little summary without any.
FMC-Hadley-BADASS, funny, and quirky
Supporting FC-OMG I haven’t laughed so hard in awhile and some of the Visuals-LAWDY! (Be prepared for mental images of saggy flapping hooters)
MMCs-There’s 4 of them and each one is unique and Loveable in their own way-and you are rooting for ALL of them! Preston-sweet and awkward. Braxton-Dark, Broody, Secretly a softy. Auston-Brawny Jock type. Karston-Curious, Quiet, observant. And together they make the perfect team-because OF COURSE.
There’s of course the “bad guys” but I’ll leave it for you to figure out. And like I said, ends on a cliffhanger-and a twist.
10/10 love it. (Thankfully starting to read it when all books are out!)
So, up front I will warn you: In typical Katie May fashion, it ends on a cliffhanger. I am a FAST reader, so I finished book 1 in 2 (2hr) reading sessions-and was reluctant to put it down. I don’t want to post any spoilers so I’ll give a little summary without any.
FMC-Hadley-BADASS, funny, and quirky
Supporting FC-OMG I haven’t laughed so hard in awhile and some of the Visuals-LAWDY! (Be prepared for mental images of saggy flapping hooters)
MMCs-There’s 4 of them and each one is unique and Loveable in their own way-and you are rooting for ALL of them! Preston-sweet and awkward. Braxton-Dark, Broody, Secretly a softy. Auston-Brawny Jock type. Karston-Curious, Quiet, observant. And together they make the perfect team-because OF COURSE.
There’s of course the “bad guys” but I’ll leave it for you to figure out. And like I said, ends on a cliffhanger-and a twist.
10/10 love it. (Thankfully starting to read it when all books are out!)
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