I alternately couldn't put it down and wanted to savor every minute of this richly portrayed world.

Avaline Hall survives. I was going to say what she survives, but there are so many things: grief, the mystery of her mother's past, hard work and humiliation and the terrors of the Triangle Factory fire. By the time I got to that point in the book, I already admired her strong spirit and intelligence, and the story had barely begun. Blythewood is a wonder; the school, the book, the new mythologies within. There are weak points, but I frankly don't care. It's a ripping good story: well set, well told, and I look forward to more. ( )

I try to express only my most honest opinion in a spoiler-free way. Unfortunately, there is still always a risk of slight spoilers despite my best efforts. If you feel something in my review is a spoiler please let me know. Thank you.

After her mother dies and she survives a fire at the factory where she works. Ava is attending Blythewood. Afraid she won't be able to fit in with all the rich people and worried about her own sanity. She begins to make friendships, but Blythewood is more than just a school. It's a whole different kind of world.

Likes:
~Forbidden romance
~Mysteries within mysteries
~A bit spooky
~Interesting ending

Dislikes:
~Took forever to get into
~Bit boring at times

I was over 75% of the way through this book before it got interesting. I honestly only stuck with it as long as I did because I loved the author's Demon Lover series that she wrote under a pseudonym. However, the last quarter of the book was really good and I enjoyed it. All in all, I give this book 3.5 stars. I will be continuing the series. ( )

Really enjoyed this one. It took a while to get going but ran like a freight train once it did. Looking forward to the next one. ( )

Can't wait to read Ravencliffe!! ( )

At only seventeen Avaline Hall is now an orphan. Never knowing her father, Ava grew up with a mother who weaved her love of Blythewood, the boarding school she was suddenly expelled from, into every story she told her daughter. But after Ava's mother abruptly commits suicide, and then Ava herself almost perishes in a terrible factory fire, Ava finds herself accepted into the very elite Blythewood Academy her mother so mysteriously was expelled from. Ava is driven by her desire to find out what happened to her mother and who her father was. What Ava finds at Blythewood Academy is even more than she could have imagined. This was a truly atmospheric and exciting read by one of my favorite authors in her first young adult novel that any age will enjoy! I was not disappointed, and immediately grabbed the second novel in this trilogy: "Ravencliffe".

Sarah M. / Marathon County Public Library
Find this book in our library catalog.

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