Outlaws

Royal Academy Rebels #2

by Jen Calonita

The second installment in a brand-new series from Jen Calonita, set in the world of Fairy Tale Reform School! Not everyone born royal is meant to rule…

After being banished to the Hollow Woods following their discovery of Headmistress Olivina's secret villainy, a note from an ally urges Devin and her friends to go in search of Red Riding Hood, who they believe can help them figure out what to do next.

Instead, they come across a troupe of fairytale vigilantes, including a former Royal Academy princess, Robin Hood, a pirate named Corden, and more. Alongside their new vigilante friends, Devin and her crew come up with a plan to expose the truth about Olivina to all of Enchantasia, or risk their homeland falling under villainous rule once and for all…

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Fairy Tales, Fiction, Young Adult, Audiobook, Adventure

256 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2019

About the author

Hi Goodreads!
I'm Jen Calonita, a MG and YA author who loves what I do because it lets me connect with all of you (and no, I wasn't intending for that to rhyme!).

I've been writing ever since I can remember, but it was fourth grade when I put my "three wishes" for a genie down on paper. They were:
#1. Buy all the Cabbage Patch Kids in the world and give them away for free (because apparently that was how I rolled).
#2. I wanted a mansion, limo, lake house, pool and speed boat (still sounds quite nice).
#3. I wanted to be an author for young readers, which I am!

I love writing novels for teens (and for savvy grown ups who know that YA rocks at any age). My first series was "Secrets of My Hollywood Life" and it followed a teen star named Kaitlin Burke who struggled with the fame game. I have also written the stand-alone novels Sleepaway Girls, it's companion book, Summer State of Mind and the Belles series.

I've been writing middle grade too and am having so much fun with my series Fairy Tale Reform School! The fourth book in this series about a school run by former villains is called Tricked and will be out March 2018. Ever wonder what it would be like if your parents got a job with someone like Taylpr Swift? My other middle grade series, VIP, follows super fan Mackenzie Lowell as she tours with her favorite band, Perfect Storm.

I promise to give book updates here, and on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or my website. I hope I hear from you!

xo
Jen

Reviews

[Jean Bengtson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a delight to read. I loved the characters and the antics that get into. I would recommend it to anyone who still believes in fairy tales.
Jen Calonita

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let me start by saying that I love all books written by Jen Calonita and as soon as I saw this book on Netgalley I knew I had to request it.

Outlaws continues right where Misfits left off. Devin and her friends have been banished from Royal Academy and are determined to find Red Riding Hood in the hopes that she will help them. Instead, they come across vigilantes who have their own stories and secrets to hide and share. Can Devin and her friends learn how to work with these vigilantes to expose Olivina? More importantly... can they be trusted?

Similar to Misfits, this was a very fast read. I look forward to continuing this series along with other books by Jen Calonita.

[Janelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

me when I realised there was no 3rd book:
noooOooooOOooOoooOoooOoOOo :(

[Dilayra Verbrugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Perfect for fairytale lovers.

[Darla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really loved "Misfits" and was looking forward to seeing what happens next for Devin and her fellow outcasts. There were some really great plot developments in this second installment, but I found myself a bit bored and confused at times. What was with the kobolds? I just did not think they added any value. My favorite thing about Devin is her ability to converse with animals and that is what keeps me from rating this below a 3.

Thank you to Sourcebook Kids and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Gracie Dix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great adventure, strong female characters, and re-imagined fairy tales - yes please! I love all of Jen Calonita's books, and Outlaws was no exception! I can't wait for the next one to come out!

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interest Level: 3-6; Reading Level: 4.7

What would you do if you were kicked out of school, banished to the middle of the forbidden forest, and brought shame to your family? This is what has happened to the Royal Academy Rebels - Devin, Sasha, Logan, Heath, and Raina - all because they disagreed with how the fairy godmother was running the academy. When this group of friends suspected that Olivina was in cahoots with certain villains, Olivina did the only thing she knows how to do when she is being opposed... banish them. This is not the first time she has banished someone from RA, but it is the first time she has done it as a group, and it is the first time she has done it to siblings of the royal court. When these five find themselves in the middle of the forest, they face many challenges. Devin thinks if they find Red Riding Hood then she can help them find a way to get back with their families and not bring shame to them. Not only do they find Red, they also find a group of others who have been banished from RA. Their first challenge is to get Sasha's article printed in the Happily Ever After Scrolls. This is a problem because the HEAS are published by ogres, not humans, and Olivina has her hand in everything that goes on there. Can they sneak in and get Sasha's article out to everyone and expose the wicked Olivina? Their second challenge is to sneak back into Royal Academy for the Masquerade Ball, one of the biggest balls of the year. Will these five misfit kids find a way to redeem their family name? Can they find a way to finally expose the evil Olivina? Or will Olivina win and the kids will be exiled from the school and their families forever? Read this incredibly exciting second installment to the Royal Academy Rebels series!!

There are not many books that grab me and won't let go, but this is one of them! If you have read my blogs before then you know that I am not a super fast reader. So when I say I read this book in just a few hours because I couldn't put it down, you know it's a great one! Jen Calonita weaves such an amazing story that includes Disney princes and princesses and fairy tale characters. The Royal Academy Rebels can not be missed!!! (and a quick note to Jen Calonita - please make a book three!! I am not ready for these characters to end! I want to see and hear more about them as they grow and develop in their talents!!)

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[Meghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book as an ARC from Sourcebooks Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I an a fan of the Fairy Tale Reform School series even more now because of this book. I have always been a life long lover of fairy tales especially fairy tales with a modern twist just like Jen Calonita put on red riding hood in this series. While reading this book I could not help but imagine the TV series Once Upon a Time and how this book sounded so familiar which to me made it more enjoyable and not wanting to put the book down.

We will consider adding this title to our JFiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

[Moriah Chavis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great edition to the fairytale world Calonita has created!

This is a great series for upper elementary and middle school readers. I love fairytales, and as an adult I love them as well! I began this series to have books to recommend to my students and add to the library and have not been disappointed.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 2nd book in the Royal Academy Rebels series. This book picks up right where the first one left off. Devin and her group of friends have been banished to the Hollow Woods. They must figure out how to get back to Enchantasia and stop the evil Headmistress Olivina from misleading anymore Royal Academy students. Along the way they meet new characters and uncover dark RA secrets. Can Devin and her friends find a way to work together, after all, who knows who you can trust. This was a fun book and I enjoyed it, though I must say I did not like it as much as the first RAR book, Misfits. I would recommend.

[Cindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this series and the Fairy Take Reform School books are set in the same place and have the same royals I wasn’t sure if the characters from the two series would connect but now I’m really hoping they do! I really liked this book although it was very misleading as I thought Red Riding Hood would play a bigger role in this book. Definitely a good second book in this series and I’m so excited for the future books!

[Felicity · Rating 3 out of 5]

I rate it 3 1/2 stars.Better than the first one, I liked how they talk about fairytales and how they happened. I think it is so creative how the fairy godmother is evil and created the tragedies that happened and found the Prince to save them just to make the princesses believe they needed her.

[Jill Jemmett · Rating 4 out of 5]

After Devin and her friends were banished from the Royal Academy after discovering that Headmistress Fairy Godmother Olivina is a villain, they escape to the Hollow Woods. They’re instructed to find Red Riding Hood, who will help them. They end up meeting some other vigilantes who eventually begin working with them to reveal the secrets of the Royal Academy. Devin and her friends have to figure out the smartest way to expose the truth of Olivina before their home of Enchantasia is destroyed.

This fairytale themed story was fast paced and concise. Though there are a lot of characters in the main cast, they’re each distinct and well developed. They all have a fairytale background, and some even have dark secrets that they’re hiding.

There was only one problem I had with this book, but I didn’t count against it in my rating though I thought I should mention it. I read a digital copy of this book from the library, and it had many typos and mistakes. I know there are often a couple of mistakes in a book, but there were many spelling and punctuation errors. It’s especially important for a children’s book to have correct spelling and punctuation, because they are just learning to read. A spelling error can completely change the meaning of a sentence, which even confused me a couple of times. Spelling errors are one of my biggest reading pet peeves, particularly in books for young readers.

Outlaws is a really good fairytale themed story.

[Joy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. Skip this and read the Lunar Chronicles. Cinder is a good book. I tried to listen to this on audio because my kids and I were going to be in the car for 8 hours. Even with a captive audience, they wanted me to turn it off.

[Mildly Mad Hatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, but it felt like there was less on them actually fixing the problem and more on them fighting each other.

[Carolinem · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited about this in the middle but I think the ending was underwhelming, with the fairy godmother disappearing after she’d been exposed as corrupt and there being two pages of story after that. I’m sure it’s meant to lead you into the next book of the series as a cliffhanger but I borrowed this off of Bridget’s shelf and probably won’t be reading next one

[Wysteria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Warning: Read Fairy Tale Reform School before! The entire series! Because lots of spoilers in this series!

I am breezing through this series!

I feel like the story line is ever better than the Fairy Tale Reform School. I still can't believe their wasn't a warning that you had to read that series first because there are so many spoilers in this series.

Also this whole series has a very feminist agenda in it. I appreciate that the author made strong females. I like that they boys have gifts like fashion and cooking and baking. But I don't like that because females are taking charge we can't listen to boys at all. I liked that the author brought this up at one point when Devin was being obnoxious but I would have liked that to be put in the story more.

I didn't like the characters in this book as much as the first. Devin seemed to be obnoxious. Tara clearly had walls up. Prue was so cool in this book! Corden wasn't a very deep character. He just kept making the costumes and I assume because Devin wasn't with him almost ever we just never saw much of his character. Logan was awesome! I love how much he grows in this series! Heath and Raina don't have much character depth. Brynn is such a wonderful girl although I assumed we would see Devin's original lady in waiting but apparently not. Sasha is pretty cool! She doesn't know when she probably shouldn't be talking considering she just gets them in trouble instead.

Pet Peeves: It said they had fought gargoyles before they ever did.

Content: clean

I did NOT receive a complimentary copy of this book. I got it from the library.

[CR · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was another great story by Calonita!! I need more right now! The story one was of her best yet and I could not put it down. The characters were amazing and it was just so good.

[Oscar · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great sequel we got for this great series. This books picks up right where the last one ended which I liked very much. I loved the new characters so much and that house I wish I had in irl so much. Our OG characters were as lovable and entertaining as usually and I liked learning and meeting some new old fairytale characters that we didn’t meet in FTRS. The plot twist at the end hand me definitely wanting more here’s hopping the 3rd is as good as the first 2.

[Liv Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book from Jen Calonita! Can not wait for the next book in the series to come out! 👏👏👏

[Jessica Geil · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book series is incredible!

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story misfits are about a girl named Devin who is able to talk to animals and some animals are their friends. Devin is selected to go to the Royal Academy with princesses and princes and she doesn't want to go. She makes a grand entrance when she arrives at the Royal Academy and meets a boy named Heath who escorted her to the Royal Academy. Later, in the story, she meets Logan, Brynn, Sasha, Raina and Harpies attack the castle so she fights them but finds out they were a test. The fairy Godmother Olivina gives her a warning, she gets 2 more because ladies are supposed to wait for their prince charming to help them not fight. Finally, she gets two more warnings, and she and her friends are banished from the kingdom and transported to the forest. I think the theme of the story is not let other people make choices for you or try to make you into something you are not. In the story, the fairy godmother is changing the students and tries to change Devin. What I don't like is that she doesn’t accept how the students are. To add on, I think the theme is also, to have the courage and stand up for what you believe. What I like is that Devin stands for what she believes in and tries to find the truth of the fairy godmother. The godmother Olivina is trying to build the world as to how she envisions it. She tried to change Devin and how she acted but, did it in private which is weird and mysterious. What I didn't like was how the Fairy Godmother controlled everyone and mostly everyone didn't mind. In the story, the fairy godmother becomes a fairy nightmare to Devin especially. She becomes a nightmare by always correcting Devin on how she does not act as a damsel in distress. Devin says ¨I´m not fluent in squirrel yet.¨ so she is still trying to learn to understand squirrels. Devin is surprised to find ¨...Glitter headbands with bows….¨ in her trunk because she doesn't like to wear dresses. When Devin and her friends arrive in the forest ¨..how are we going to clear our names ...Sasha asks.¨ Some similar books to Misfits are The Forget-Me-Not Summer, Tyme series, Stealing Magic, and 100 dresses series. I give the book a 5-star review and if I could give it more I would.

[Sharon Tyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Outlaws is the second book in the Royal Academy Rebels series by Jen Calonita. It is currently scheduled for release on October 1 2019. I do highly recommend having read the first book in the series before this one. It would be good to have read the Fairy Tale Reform School series as well, but that is not quite as important as Misfits.

After being banished to the Hollow Woods following their discovery of Headmistress Olivina's secret villainy, a note from an ally urges Devin and her friends to go in search of Red Riding Hood, who they believe can help them figure out what to do next. Instead, they come across a troupe of fairytale vigilantes, including a former Royal Academy princess, Robin Hood, a pirate named Corden, and more. Alongside their new vigilante friends, Devin and her crew come up with a plan to expose the truth about Olivina to all of Enchantasia, or risk their homeland falling under villainous rule once and for all.

Outlaws is a good follow up to Misfits. Devin and her band of friends face fresh dangers and discover more about themselves, each other, and the world they live in. The addition of Tara and her friends make things more complicated, but so much more fun and interesting. The skills of the new teens added to the story were very cool, and I liked getting more of the back story of how things reached the point where Devin and gang were banished. I enjoyed seeing the adventures they jump into, and the way they solve things with quick thinking, friendship, and being good people rather than brawn or deceit. I think the dangers and problems they face were well done, and I liked how they did not always handle themselves perfectly but figured it out as they went, just like most of us do with much more mundane issues. I found the conclusion to be satisfying, while leaving plenty of curiosity for what what might happen next but not dangling on a cliff. I look forward to following this series on to its conclusion.

Outlaws is exactly what I was hoping for and expecting from Calonita. I love the world and character building she does, and I think fans of the Reform School series will love this follow up just as much.

[Mora Shum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh. My. Gosh.

Plot twist! I did NOT imagine that Oliviana was, like, sabotaging the royals! At the worst, I thought maybe that Oliviana would be trying to control something, at the least. Or I thought she might be under the spell of Rumplestiltskin or Alva (Gottie, too, technically)... apparently not! And even though Tara switched sides at the end (no pun intended), she was still a traitor! And I, for some reason, ship Heath and Devin more than I ship Gilly and Jax, which is weird. I feel like Gilly and Devin are so similar because:

A) they both have longer names and choose to shorten them (Gillian => Gilly, Devinaria => Devin)
Bj they’re both SUPER rebellious and don’t NEED a prince in their lives
C) they both like causing a bit of trouble
D) they attend a ‘boarding school’ (FTRS for Gilly, RA for Devin)

Heath and Jax are more similar too!

A) they both are related to a princess (Snow White for Heath, Rapunzel for Heath)
B) they’re both more rebellious than shown
C) they probably both have crushes on the main characters of the books
D) they both are “sidekicks” of Devin and Gilly respectively

I really ship Heath and Devin, ‘cause we saw in the first chapter of Misfits that Heath said that he wasn’t looking for a princess YET. Cue word, yet. And I ask myself, why did he tell that to Devin, not Clarisa or whoever? Those giggling girls who held up a Heath banner? Why Devin? Well, I honestly think it’s because Heath has a crush on Devin, but wants to keep his charming ways and keep his dignity with him. And I can tell that Devin probably has a crush on Heath too, but she’s more oblivious and doesn’t know it... I mean, look at the way that she describes Heath!

Ugh, this book is too good for my wanting! Now, look how much I ranted! I love all the RAR books, and pretty much all of Jen Calonita’s work (maybe except for Cursed, it was a good addition but I had to say that I was a tad bit disappointed....). But Outlaws blew me apart. It was simply... can I say it was swaesome? Sweet+Awesome? Okay, now this is the end of the review, people! You can go back to doing whatever you were doing.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

The previous book in this trilogy was everything I had wanted it to be. The Royal Academy fitted me better than the Fairytale Reform school. Mostly because I've always been some kind of princess, or well, wanted to be one. I liked the setting, I also liked the message in the book and the villain. I was however slightly nervous about this book. I was quite sure we were not really returning to school and I wasn't entirely sure if I was gonna like this change of setting.

It seems that I had nothing to be nervous about. Even though I liked this setting less than the setting of Royal Academy, I did still enjoy the characters' journey. Although this book is clearly the middle book, the characters are dealing with the consequences of the first book, while looking for a way to solve their issues and deal with the villain of the story, it never got boring. And that's mostly because some new characters were introduced and some familiar faces had a small cameo.

Even though it's totally possible to read this series without ever having read a book in the Reform School series, it's quite clear that having read both enhances the reading enjoyment. A few side characters of the other series make an appearance in this book and we're also visiting some really familiar places. On top of that, the issues the other characters are dealing with are mentioned and therefore some surprise reveals from the Reform School series are spoiled a little.

Even though Devin and I have not much in common, I would love to be a princess, although... I think I also wouldn't have been satisfied with the way the fairy godmother is running things and putting people into boxes, I quite like reading about her. She's far from perfect. She can be harsh and she's quick to form an opinion and therefore she sometimes messes up. But that's what makes her so great. She's realistic. And since she's also kind, stubborn and fighting for those who can, I still root for her!

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Middle grade fantasy, second in a series. I have enjoyed several other books by this author, so I knew what to expect. I love the original stories with familiar characters. This book takes place immediately after Misfits. Devin and her friends find themselves not only kicked out of school, but completely banished from Enchantasia. As they struggle to find their way through the forest, they find themselves trapped. It turns out there is another group of former Royal academy students out there, but can they be trusted?

This is a revolutionary book, of students taking on the establishment, though of course the establishment in this case is an evil fairy godmother. I loved seeing behind the scenes at "Happily Ever After Scrolls" after hearing them throughout the Fairy Tale Reform series and through this series. I also loved seeing the cameo of a character related to a FTRS character! The author confirmed that there will at least be a short story that features both Devin and Gilly. I will look forward to that and of course keep reading whatever Enchantasia books come out! And as a side note, Reyna's character growth during this book was exciting to hear about.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Princess Devin is not happy with the summons to attend Royal Academy. She has a gift with animals and can even talk to some, and she'd much rather spend her time cultivating her natural talents than learn how to better curtsey and which fork to use first at a formal dinner. But it isn't optional, so off to RA she goes. But when she gets there, she and Snow's younger twin siblings, and Rose's little sister and some other young royals tumble across a deep, dark secret and find themselves banished. Can they get the truth out and save the kingdom before it is too late?

I was really hoping Devin and gang would join up with Gilly and her friends, but though they hear about Gilly and meet some of Gilly's friends, the two groups never cross paths in this one. This book deepens the issues going on in Enchantasia that Gilly and her friends weren't even aware of while they were fighting off Rumpelstiltskin. I enjoyed my time with Devin, but she isn't quite as brilliant as Gilly. Though Devin's dad is pretty amazing. I love how he stands up for her and her natural skills. Still some fun fractured fairytale/boarding school fun. Hand this to readers who can't get enough of their time in Enchantasia.

Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. Some skirmishes that result in more magical mayhem than injuries.

[Manaal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was an amazing fantasy read. I would rate it 3.5 stars. I enjoyed this a lot. It was adventurous, curious and fun. This is a magical school series and it's delightful. This book was a whole rollercoaster for me. A lot of things happened throughout this book. I did not read the 1st series of this book but I just saw the book at the library so I decided to pick it up. I will definitely read the first book to this because I enjoyed Outlaws.

Outlaws is about, there were 5 people who got banished from their school called Royal Academy. They get banished in the woods and they're stuck there for a while. They need to figure out how to survive the forest and escape it. They meet 3 friends in the forest and they help them figure out how to get back to Royal Academy. They got banished because Devin made all her friends believe that the Headmistress of Royal Academy is evil. Will they actually figure out that they're right about the fairy godmother that she is evil. You'll see if you haven't read this. Definitely recommend it to people who like fantasy or magic school type of books, you'll enjoy this.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

Outlaws follows Devin, Logan, Heath, Sasha and Raina after they are banished by Olivinia. They meet up with Tara, Prue and Corden in the forest.
Devin isn’t content to be safe. She wants to reveal Olivinia’s treachery to the royals and the people.
End of the book contains a confrontation and revelation.
This second book was quite a bit better than the first book in the Royal Academy Rebels series.
Here are some moments that get your blood pumping, but the content is entirely appropriate for a middle grade reader.

[Camryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really enjoyable with funny, relatable characters. I love all of Jen Calonita's books, and this one did not disappoint. The plot had almost constant action, so it was an exciting story. I loved the mystery, and the twists at the end were perfectly planned without giving too many clues to the reader. My favorite parts were when Fairy Tale Reform School characters were referenced. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy characters, awesome character backstory moments, and fast-paced plots!