Shadow Trials

Firstborn Academy #1

by Isla Frost

Ever since magic stormed the world, the price for human survival is surrendering your firstborn to the monsters.

But this year it's Nova's turn, and the monsters better watch their backs.

I am the firstborn in my family. The first of three. And today I will pay the price for my siblings' lives by surrendering control of my own. I will step through the runegate, and I will never see my family again.

What the others do with the firstborn is shrouded in mystery. All anyone knows is they are never heard from again.

I will step through the runegate willingly.

But I can keep secrets too. And I'll do whatever it takes to bring the others to their knees...

Fans of Harry Potter, Shadowspell Academy, Harley Merlin, and The Hunger Games, welcome to a magical new world packed with adventure, intrigue, romance, and characters you'll fall in love with.



Trilogy Reading Order and Release Dates:

Firstborn Academy: Shadow Trials (Book 1) releases September 2019
Firstborn Academy: Shadow Witch (Book 2) releases October 2019
Firstborn Academy: Shadow Reaper (Book 3) releases December 2019

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Magic, Dystopia, Fiction

274 pages, Paperback

First published September 23, 2019

About the author

Isla Frost is a bestselling fantasy author who loves apple pie. She writes about strong heroines in fast-paced stories full of danger, magic, and adventure that leave you feeling warm and satisfied...

Kind of like eating apple pie.

Reviews

[Jeanny · Rating 3 out of 5]

A potentially great 💡. Hoping the second book is better than the first, bc at the moment I’m feeling apathetic. I’m not necessarily in love with any of the characters & know little about the world itself but the series has unfulfilled potential. Potential I hope we will make progress on in the second book. Should I go on to the second book it’ll be a decision based on hope alone. So yes, hope for potential would be my motivation to continue & that is not enough to recommend this series. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I have serious doubts this review is beneficial to anyone at all being it’s all a circular reasoning, which we all know is filled with pragmatic defect. (I.e book 1 is only worth the read if book 2’s potential is fulfilled & I’ll have to read book 2 to make the determination; Therefore, wasting that time should it fall short of expectations. I know... don’t judge.)

3 just average stars

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm slightly conflicted about this one. It was enjoyable: a quick, easy read with a likeable enough main character. I finished it in no time at all and definitely did like reading it.

It also lacked depth and contained many of the cliches found with YA. The main character herself was a bit of a cliche, although a likeable one. Very much 'not like other girls', whilst everyone else her age is worried about romance and popularity, Nova doesn't have time for all that silliness! She has a much better understanding of what's at stake (even though everyone else has lived through the exact same trauma) and she's determined to train harder and defeat the evil whilst every else is preoccupied with high school drama.

All that being said, overall the friendship formed between Nova, Ameline and Bryn was very heartwarming and led to some sweet moments. The premise was interesting and despite being a cliche Nova is smart and fiercely protective and provides a nice point of view.

[Tess · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent plot & Characters

As a lover of all things paranormal in YA fiction (despite my age being a number of years in excess of youth 😀 !!) I was excited to try a new author...and I was right to be excited. I couldn't put the book down from the minute I started reading. Nova is a feisty and intelligent young lady with an agenda...her friends fit her brand of crazy (one sweet the other unpredictable) & you get pulled into the story from page one! Definitely worth a read!

[Nila (digitalcreativepages) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was exciting to read as Nova had to enter the unknown and learn how to navigate the minefield where the Walkers were the magic wielders and the humans had to stay a step ahead. I enjoyed the spark of excitement that unfurled in me when I got to know the trials ahead of her. Each one was more dangerous than the previous.

The Good
Fast-paced, I was pulled into Nova’s new world as even the place she was kept had secrets within its walls. The characters, at least the friends, had a good camaraderie going on. I loved their bonding and loyalty.

The various Shadow Trials were fun to read as the protagonist had to use strength and intelligence.

The Bad - Spoiler Alert - Don't read this if you want to read the book
The tagline said Harry Potter met Hunger Games. And oh boy, the book had a serious hangover of Harry Potter with the classes and magic and spells and wands. Luckily, with 280+ pages, there were no scenes similar to the Quidditch games.

Then came the Hunger Games. And all the humans were sent to the forest to deal with different monsters and beings. The characters were not developed well to etch them in my brain, and the ending was wrapped up pretty quickly. I guess I wanted not a Harry Potter look alike, but something that was original in its delivery.

The Conclusion
It was still a good read. Till 60% of the book, the mystery was kept. The secondary plot lines were written in to keep the atmosphere tense. Maybe the second book in the series would be great.

[Daisy Delfin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pages: 276
My rating: 3.5

Edit: I do not know why I thought this is a rh series, but it is not. It is mainly fantasy with little romance at the end of book 3 of this series.

Br with the #cakeeaters of RHR
I liked the first book of the series Fristborn Academy. Earth is a dystrophin world now. And there are SiFi elements in the book too. It got to me from the first page and it was an entertaining read, which I can recommend to read. In the first book there is no romance. But I think there might be more in the next two books.

I liked that you could see the growth in the characters. Also how Nova, Bryn and Ameline builded their team and stood up for each other. Nova also rescued Noah and showed compassion for the other human kids even though she just met them and did not know them.


The Characters: Names and descriptions of the persons

Nova: first child of her family, has to go through a runagate after she turned 17, does not know what to expect, but plans to bring the walkers down and so earth can be free of the walkers and monsters.
Reuben, Mila, Dad: Nova’s family, who loves her and cared for her, when her mother distanced herself, Nova looks after Mila and Reuben.
Ameline: firstborn, best friend of Nova and same age too, leaves with Nova
Bryn: firstborn, meets Ameline and Nova in the waiting room, is streetsmart and had to take care of herself, because her father is a drunk. Can crave wood and used to blow up thing to find treasures to sell.
Theus: walker, he pairs up with the human kids in the first trial, he is called the prophesied by a fellow walker, most of the other walkers ignore him. He tries to get to know Nova a little better and Nova agrees to be more friendly with him, mainly so that she can gain information
Lirielle: walker, friend and follower of Theus, can see at least a little of the future and is different than other walkers. She teams up with the humans in the first trial. She is a fierce fighter.
Glennis and Glenn: goblins, work for the firstborn academy, they were saved by the walkers and work for them
Millicent: Name of the building of the firstborn Academy, the building has an own conscience and it prefers to be called Millicent than building. Millicent for example controls the access to the dorm rooms, also helps to guide the new students to their classes by showing different animals on the wallpaper pointing out the way. Makes Bryn’s and Nova’s life difficult, because they created footholds and handholds into the wall of the waiting room.
Invermoore: Walker and healer
:



Summery: detailed, lot’s of spoiler

The world is ruined, no electricity, none of the devices like mobiles, computer, cars working. Because the walkers came to earth and with them they brought monsters, who took over the world, destroyed Europe and only the USA seems to be alive. The richer people left earth with spaceships and founded a colony on Mars. Many people died, there was not enough to eat and survive on until 37 years ago the walker made a deal with human kind. Walkers provide for the humans and keep them save from the forrest but in exchange they have to send their firstborn through a runagate never to be seen again.

Nova is the oldest of three siblings. She is close to her father, brother and sister. But because she knew her fate from the beginning of her life, she trained herself to be the best. Her mother distanced herself from Nova so she did not feel the pain of loosing Nova when she has to go into the runagate. They live in what used to be Los Angeles in one of the buildings that remained intact after the takeover.
All the firstborns go without complain, because 30 year ago a family broke the Agreement and three generations were whipped out.

World Walkers look almost human but they process powers that are not human (e.g. magic).

At the beginning of the book, Nova and her best friend Ameline have to go through the rungate, not know what will expect them. They end up in a room without doors and no entry to the runagate. After they enter, Bryn another firstborn joins them. They try to get out of the room and the only way they see is to make footholds and handholds in the wall and climb trough the window. But when they look out of the window they no longer know what to do. Glennys and Glenn enter the room, to show them to their dorm. Glennys and Glenn are a being with two heads, because after they found their life mate in each other their bodies fused into one body with tow heads. Their race is called goblins and they were saved by the walkers.

At the entrance of their dorm they meet Millicent who takes some of their blood so she can be sure that they are allowed into the room. Millicent is angry with Bryn and Nova because they destroyed her wall and she bullies them until they make it up for her.

On their first night they meet the other students in the dining hall. One of them, Jayden thinks that he will escape because his father will come to get him out of the academy. He tries to get other kids to join him.

Their three month training starts and the kids get lessons in PE and fighting, Magic, other creatures, who are deadly foes for them and their weaknesses and other subjects. They have shared classes with walkers, but the walkers already have learned some of the stuff since they were little. So it’s just repetition for them. They also have to to trials starting on the first day. Humans and Walkers are supposed to work together but before the humans start to cross the dangerous forest all walkers are already headed back to Millicent, only Theus and Lirielle stayed behind. Nova walks up to Theus and introduces herself and ask if they will team up with them. She also convince the humans to stick together and fight as a group. With the help of the Walker they survive the first trial.

Besides school and the trials Novas starts snooping around the Mansion to find out more about the secrets. After here first exploring, where she has to free herself from a cupboard she meets Theus and he offers her to show Nova her siblings. He only wants Nova to have no fear and act more friendly towards Theus. Nova agrees and is happy to get a glimpse of her brother and sister.

When she returns to her room and wakes up in the morning Ameline is onto her, to tell her never to go exploring on her own and Bryn joins in. They agree that they will do the exploring together from now on and that Bryn and Nova should get Millicent to forgive them. So they Bryn makes a wooden M for the front door and with Nova’s help they transfer it to the wall above the front door. Millicent forgives Bryn but not Nova. Nova tries to find a way to do something nice for Millicent but instead of helping out by repairing the squeaky steps, Millicent is unhappy because she uses the squeaky stairs to express herself and Nova has to undo it. In search of a way to placate Millicent, Nova finds a worn out rug and has the idea to magically turn the rug into a as good as new rug. In this attempt Nova passes out and finds herself in the infirmary, because she used too much o her magic and was drained completely and the body shut down to keep her save.

The lectures and trials go by until they are on their last day of their three month. Their last trial has arrived. They are allowed to choose their team and of course Nova, Ameline and Bryn stick together. They have to cross the forrest and return to Millicent. With a team effort and some minor injuries they pass the forrest, but before they can return to Millicent one of their professors come to them and opens a runagate under their feet and they are thrown somewhere, where they have to face two fierce beasts. With little chance to survive this encounter Bryn runs at the beast with some seedpods which have paralysing effects on human and the beast when set free. She takes one of the Beasts and herself down by opening the seed pod and disabling one of the beasts and herself. Nova runs up to the second beast, thinking she is keeping Ameline save, but Ameline surprises her by running with her and asking her for a knife. While Nova climbs the second beast Ameline tries to distract it. Nova gets injured by the tail which the beast smashes into her ankle and a spike to her gut, making her bleed a lot. But still she manages to kill the first beast. Ameline goes to get Bryn so she can cauterise the gut wound. But the second beast starts to stir and Ameline kills the beast. Bryn uses the last of her magic to cauterise the wound and Ameline takes her unconscious friend through the runagate to Millicent and the healer.

Bryn and Nova awake the next morning and Ameline gets them out of their beds, to see the list. All three passed the trial and move on to the next step of the academy. They get the instruction to go back to their dorm, drink the stuff Glennys and Glenn give them and find their inner peace. When they arrive at their dorm room Theus is waiting for them. He offers them to answer their questions, as far as he is allowed. And all three already know that the next step is a transformation step, which they already found out while snooping. And Theus gives them some insight to the process. At the end he gives Nova a note from Lirielle, which states that she is one of the magical wildcards and she will be a strong magic user after the transformation. The book ends with Nova being knockt into a deep sleep in the transformation chamber.

[Mummy's Naughty Corner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that was a good start. I liked the creatures within the book and I liked the trails. It'll be interesting to see what Nova can find out and whats so special about her. I liked the friendships that were formed and that final trail was epic.

[Addy · Rating 2 out of 5]

YA Fantasy really isn't in my wheel house, but this was a gift so I felt that I should read it. It wasn't something I'd choose on my own, but it was okay. I will not be continuing the series, however.

[Sristy]

It was a YA. I should have known better. 😞😞
I guess this marks the end of my Exceptionally Lucky & Exceptionally Rare Hat Trick in YA (ELERHTYA™).

I didn't went past 40-something-%.
I am definitely relieved sad about DNFing this! Thank God!!

I am gleefully sombrely
crossing this series from my TBR.

[Dallass · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unknown enemies are very frustrating

I liked the premise that all firstborn children get sacrificed by their families and sent to this ‘other’ place to be trained to fight in some secret war against God knows what. The characters were interesting, and I did like Millicent and her grudges.

My only cons were that it is very insular with only a small amount of ‘students’ at this training camp, yet were got to know hardly any, and the mysterious endgame that has been teased a few times. Not a fan.

3 stars ⭐️

[Zen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

If I had to describe this book in one word, it would be meh, which is more of a feeling than a word, I suppose.

[Devz Milady · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is for the first two books of the series.
I dropped this series part through the second one.

Briefly, this book goes with a 'Save the world' theme and the concept of an all evil villain and the too-good heroine. So Nova and her friend Ameline are send off to an unknown place as the first borns of their family based on a decades old treaty with a super-human group. They discover that the 'unknown scary place' is an academy where they are trained and put into trials and made into something more magical. The ultimate purpose is revealed to be to train to fight and defeat Malus, an entity so evil taht it destroyed the whole continent of Europe (Ahem..., someone missed their geography lessons if they thought that Europe was physically a single continent instead of being lined to Asia and Africa)

Problem with this book and with so many other YA books is that the heroine is either a brash uncouth aggressive bully or an irritatingly holier-than-thou idiot who thinks she knows best.
Nova belongs to the latter group.

She comes to a supernatural academy where beings more powerful than her are in charge.
In the first book she is mostly smart enough to stay quiet and learn more so she gets a chance at revenge.
In second book, the whole repetition about revenge and walkers being terrible starts getting old and boring. It is made worse by how horribly Nova behaves towards the only walkers who are friendly with them - what could be more stupid than antagonizing powerful beings who is nice to you?

Then there is a whole 'only heroine can save the world' theme.
Which kind of convieniently glosses over so many holes in the plot.
Like where did walkers come from? Who are they really?
What is Malus? etc etc etc.
None of these questions gets asked cos our heroine is so focused on how badly she has been treated.

Also i dont know why in these stories YA authors portray human beings as if having the only good emotions or being so amazing as to be the only beings capable of good and noble emotions and intentions. Any history book of any nation is enough to tell you that human beings are generally worse than animals in the forest when it comes to cruelty and malice.

Anyways, overall the holier-than-thou attitude of the heroine and the boring plot kinda turns me off.

[debturk1970_bookvibes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, This Is A Gritty, Dystopian/Sci-Fi Academy Story that's Unique!!😱💚💥 4.5 Stars!🌟✨💕
(Read using Kindle Unlimited)
Firstborn Academy: Shadow Trials (Firstborn Academy #1)

This is a very intriguing & unique academy tale! In a dystopian future the Earth is invaded by Alien beings called World Walkers!😱 After trying to fight back & losing, millions of humans died but the following famines & diseases resulted in the deaths of billions!!😭💔 Eventually the Walkers made an offer to save them but it was at an extremely steep price - everyone's first born child had to be sent through a Rune Gate, never to be seen again, when they reached the age of 17yrs. If they reneged it was on the pain of death, for their entire family!!😳😟💔

Our Main character is a strong willed, feisty & loyal girl. with her bestfriend Amalie. They also meet another girl at intake called Bryn, she's kind of wild but they decide to stick together!!👍 Absolutely no one knows what happens to the first borns. They wonder if they'll be slaughtered immediately, become slaves - the possibilities are endless but what the truth turns out to be is beyond unexpected, terrifying but also quite exciting - sort of!!🙈✨💥

I thoroughly recommend this book because it's so completely engrossing & different from anything else I've read! The closest thing series I can I think of is 'Legion Of Angels' by Ella Summers which I LOVE 😍
( https://www.bookbub.com/books/vampire... )
This is a clever story, it has many layers & so many possibilities ahead. I can't wait to explore what's to come!!🙏🌟

Debbie, 1970, UK

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy the main characters tenacity and large heart. Her trio she is apart of is solid. This books anticipation was slow and steady until the end, but my oh my did it END! Even though I’m up way past my bedtime, I bought the second book to start reading.

[NyxShadow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Voici un roman qui m'intriguait fortement - grâce à un résumé intriguant et alléchant. Ce n'était certes pas sans rappeler d'autres histoires. Je savais que ça ne renouvellerai pas le genre, que je ne serai pas surprise mais je me demandais quand même comment cela serait traité, quelle serait les touches apportées par l'autrice, etc.
Puis (longtemps après) j'ai fait le lien avec la version vo que j'avais déjà vu il y a un moment. Aux USA c'est vendu comme un cross Harry Potter x Hunger Games. Je peux effectivement voir le lien ; cela mélange plus de choses mais ok.

Au final que dire ? L'idée me plait. Il y a un côté Dark Academia qui me plait, une touche sombre de mystère (beaucoup de questions sur l'école et les motivations de chacun). Les personnages sont jeunes et pas suffisamment développés, mais ils ne sombrent pas non plus dans une caricature grossière ce qui est appréciable. Malheureusement, je ressors un peu déçue.

L'univers est sombre, un peu post-apocalyptique. Mais nous avons très peu d'information sur ce qu'il s'est passé, pourquoi, comment etc. Nous n'avons que le point de vue de Nova qui n'a que 17 ans. Mais les quelques explications avancées m'ont parues brouillonnes et bien insuffisante. Je ressors sans bien avoir compris la situation et je n'aime pas ça. Alors certes l'autrice ne s'est pas vraiment laissé la place de développer, mais le world building mériterait de l'approfondissement.

Côté personnages, on suit Nova qui nous narre le récit, mais il ne faut pas négliger ses deux compagnes de chambrée. En effet, le trio nous présente différents caractères complémentaires. Comme je le disais plus haut, on survole la personnalité et les motivation de chacune des filles. Mais si elles ne sont pas des caricatures, on est sur des archétypes bien connus (tête brûlée / innocence / puissance cachée/etc.). On pourra regretter qu'en dehors d'elles trois, les autres personnages sont juste "évoqués". Les professeurs et certains camarades auraient apporter du crédit au récit en étant plus que des noms cités ici ou là. On se serait davantage attaché à eux, plutôt qu'à être des éléments d'intrigues à sortir pour faire avancer le récit par endroit.

Mais qu'on ne se méprenne pas, ce ne fut pas une mauvaise lecture ! C'est plutôt fluide, un peu facile, mais pas désagréable. Je reste suffisamment intriguée pour avoir envie de lire la suite (d'autant plus que pour trois tomes ça ira).

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent start to a series. The reviews that consider it a derivative mixture of Harry Potter and Hunger Games are selling the sheer originality of the book quite short. Admirable world-building, even though technically it's our own world, only one that has been transitioned to one suitable for magical aliens. (Kinda of the "opposite" of terra-forming.)
The author does a good job with the characters as well, for once we have a teen-aged protagonist who isn't the one to reflexively make impulsive, bad, choices, just to further the plot (that's what friends are for.) This isn't to say there's not lots of action, there is - but when it happens we learn about the characters, because of how they react - not because they're mixing it up because they got bored, or ansey. (Another new series to take this tack, is Martha Carr's Academy of Necessary Magic, though I think it is modestly better done here.)
Now, I'm off to read the sequel!

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fairly easy read/listen that creates a different and unique world from those I've seen before. This world is built around a more dystopian atmosphere, with the Earth being invaded by magical beings from a different world that culminated in billions of deaths and the complete destruction of our world. Then 37 years ago, there was a treaty established with the other beings - World Walkers - "the First Born Treaty" where they would provide food and necessities to the existing settlements with the provision that each family give up their first born child when they reach the age of 17. It was never known what happened to these children, just that they went through a portal, and never returned.

The female of this book is Nova - a 17 year old girl from what used to be Los Angeles. We find out that the first borns are being sent to an academy type location to be trained....for what? Well, we find out along with Nova and her friends.....

This was a good first book and I was invested enough to keep going forward to book 2.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A super fast, easy read that is very YA/tween, with no romance (perhaps the barest of grounds laid for one in the future) but lots of typical fantasy/academy with trials to pass types of fun. Love the sentient house plot line as I always love a sentient house lol. It doesn't go quite as in-depth as I tend to like with this kind of story, but that made it easy to read for young people too. I'll probably finish the series at some point, but I am not in any rush as this is too young for my current tastes.

[DaJa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eigentlich hat mir das Buch gut gefallen. Und da haben wir das eigentlich. Mir waren die Charaktere irgendwie zu blass und ich hatte die Welt nicht wirklich bildlich vor Augen. Mir fehlten viele Details, vieles hätte ausgeschmückt werden können. Eigentlich will ich schon wissen, wie es weitergeht. Da haben wir wieder dieses Eigentlich. Der Welten Aufbau war total interessant, aber ich hätte mir wirklich viel mehr Erklärung gewünscht. Vielleicht wird es im nächsten Teil besser, das Buch endet natürlich mit einem Cliffhänger, aber ich weiß noch nicht genau, ob ich es wirklich lesen möchte.

[Artemissia G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Indéniablement ce début d’histoire m’a fortement rappelé certains traits de Harry Potter. L’académie, les professeurs et tout le reste.

Après que l’humanité ait survécu "grâce" à des extraterrestres dont on ne sait rien, chaque famille doit leur offrir leur premier né. C’est ainsi que débute l’histoire avec Nova. Nova, et sa meilleure amie, se retrouvent à devoir survivre dans un manoir/école et apprendre des cours dont chaque épreuve finale se révèle être mortelle.

J’ai bien aimé, l’histoire se lit vite et facilement. L’idée du Manoir ayant une personnalité et une âme m’a plu. Par contre, j’avoue que je suis sortie de cette lecture dans un flou total. Ce premier tome est très léger, le world building est quasi inexistant et on ne sait pas, même si on se doute, du pourquoi les humains sont entrainés. Tout avance trop rapidement et les actions, les rebondissements s’enchainent sans la moindre révélation et avec un développement trop maigre à mes yeux. Quant à la fin, elle donne l’impression d’avoir été juste coupée.

J’ai terminé ce livre très frustrée d’autant qu’il est court.

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ce premier tome est très introductif et l'intrigue est plutôt rapide. Le développement des personnages ou de l'histoire est assez basique, rendant le côté YA du livre très prononcé, ce qui est appuyé par sa brièveté. J'ai beaucoup aimé l'aspect d'un manoir doué de conscience qui peut interagir avec ses habitants, donnant un côté comique à certains événements. Les épreuves sont assez vite présentes et intenses, et la fin est plutôt intrigante ! Je recommanderais cette saga à des adolescents intéressés par une académie et une découverte de créatures magiques.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great concept liked the characters. Super fast read. Will probably finish series cause either a fast read. Lol. They are also enjoyable. Lol.

[Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good enough

[Catriona Kupper · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather interesting perspective of the future and rather intriguing, certainly a good introduction to personal commderalship, an enjoyable read, looking at the next in series

[Blanka · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in a short series was good. You quickly find out that there is some kind of law that all firstborn children have to go to a special magic school to learn magic and to fight. I loved the sentient school and the war between the MC and said school! This was just fun to read.

[Isabelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't like the writing style, couldn't get into the characters and story line.

[Maria Grace]

This one was completely out of the genres I read and into ones I actually avoid. That being said, I read half of it before I realized it! The characters were fun, including the sentient manor house and the premise was intersting. Will definitely be putting this one on the list for series I want to read more of.

[lysalbr · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gros potentiel mais étant donné que c’est plutôt un schéma classique et que TOUT est prévisible, c’est clairement insuffisant.

[Sabrina Wannet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god, this book run me off my socks. I loved it. Good amount of twists and original thinking. I just had to buy the rest immediatly.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy Effing Thrills And Suspense!!

Firstborn Academy blew every possible expectation from mind and completely enthralled me from start to finish! I'm blown away with the utter uniqueness of this book that subtly combined a few different genres and made it damn near unputdownable! The MC was likeable, the action and suspense was palapable, and the bond of friendship and family is interwoven beautifully with the ever-pressing need for survival. I can't say enough good things about this book and I'm seriously looking forward to book 2!!