KIERAN’s Reviews > The Awakening > Status Update

After they tried to kill the twins, the Heirs have FINALLY gotten some form of consequences for their actions! In the form of... detention.

But still. When creepy-ass Orion is looking like the good guy in this scenario, you know you screwed up writing your male leads.

Ordinarily I'd disagree with Creepy Caleb being the most chill out of the 4 guys but Darius actually said "you need a lesson in respect" to our heroine. The pure misogyny of that statement...

On second thought, they've ALSO told her they dont want to be queens of Solaria and yet she made Silver badges for the pro-royalist side anyway. So she doesn't care about boundaries any more than the rest of Zodiac Academy does. Still doesn't condone wishing the Heirs would bully her tho

The way they treat Geraldine is really mean and hypocritical. Geraldine is awkward but sincere and that apparently makes it ok to treat her like a creep. Meanwhile at the same time they are portrayed as friendless losers. Plus, they TOLD her they wanted to be her friends, so...

Darcy is bizarrely jealous of what is undoubtedly the Nymph being with Orion. Which is weird bcuz it's made clear she considers teacher/student sex gross. Not to mention, Orion is one of the perpetrators of the non-con, so...

Well, yeah, someone is going to betray you/is lying to you. We already knew that.

The question is, who? The monarchists? Sofia? Diego?

Those are the only three people who have actually been "friendly" to the twins in a way that is meaningful. And no, the fire professor doesn't count.

Also the Nymphs are indeed the bad guys so far. At least, that's what it appears. My money's still on "both".

Well, somebody finally offers to teach the twins how to block mind control.

We finally have a plot beyond the heroines' boundaries being violated. Someone is dead and it's a news event.

Also, three guesses that the Nymphs are either an oppressed race or they're hyper dangerous. Possibly both.

We are subjected to reading more about how the heroines' (sexual boundaries) have been violated. But at least this time Tory gets to punish the person who posted lewd photographs of her.

So the authors understand that posting people's nakedness without permission is bad/not sexy, but not hazing.

If the Heirs are just villains (not LIs) then I may give this book a second star. It's going in the one-star bin.