Shadowspell Academy Series by K.F. Breene - Reading from 'The Culling Trials 2 (Shadowspell Academy #2)' from July 2nd 2019

[Tiera]

You Don’t Choose The Academy. The Academy Chooses You.

I had no idea how those words would change my life. Or how they’d changed my life already…

Until the day the most dangerous man I’ve ever met waltzed onto my farm and left us a death sentence.

In an invitation.

My younger brother has been chosen for the prestigious, secret magical school hidden within the folds of our mundane world. A place so dangerous, they don’t guarantee you’ll make it out alive.

If he doesn't go our entire family will be killed.

It’s the same invitation my older brother received three years ago—the same place he mysteriously died.

The academy has already killed one sibling. I’ll be damned if they take another.

I do the only thing an older sister can: chop off my hair, strap on two bras to flatten the girls, and take my brother’s place.

Magic and monsters are real. Assassins are coming for me, and the dead are prone to rise. What’s a girl faking it as a boy supposed to do? That’s right—beat the academy at its own game.

Or die trying.

Shadowspell Academy Book 1 and Shadowspell Academy Book 2 end with a cliffhanger.

[Tiera]

25% (view spoiler)[ Not going to lie I'm totally lost. There is almost no world building I really have no clue what is happening. (hide spoiler)]
47% (view spoiler)[ What is this like magic hunger games? Well I like the team we ended up with even it was on accident.. seems everyone else was prepared to team up.. we just kind of lucked into a team.. I feel like each member is going to come in handy. Wally though is an unsung Bad Ass of epic proportions lol. She be spitting numbers like a rapper spits a rhyme.. (hide spoiler)]
85% (view spoiler)[ Ok so even though I still don't know how we ended up here. The whole competition has me absorbed. I still don't get why she didn't get an invitation and never knew about everything till now... Lol she called Sandman.. Sunshine..
At least ole girl is clever. I want to know what exactly she is.
What does it mean to be a shade exactly? (hide spoiler)]
Finished: (view spoiler)[ Really the last line of dialogue in the book is "Boobs?" commence the eye rolling... lol. So despite the really rocky start, I'm sort of down to see where book 2 takes us. It was definitely super hard to get into this. I'm still confused but there at the end I was finally coasting along till bam abrupt ending. I still don't understand what they are doing the culling trials for really... (hide spoiler)]

[Jennifer]

I'll be starting this one tonight! Sorry, I'm a few days late; my trip did not give me as much time to read as I hoped.

[Jennifer]

Ch 4 (22%) - (view spoiler)[ Interesting set up so far. So she's going to pretend to be her younger brother and hopefully get answers as to what happened to her brother - who, I seriously doubt is dead since there was NO body sent home. (hide spoiler)]
Ch 9 (49%) - (view spoiler)[ Could the Sandman be her brother?? I'm fixated on the idea that he isn't dead and could just be so changed physically that she doesn't recognize him. (hide spoiler)]
Ch 14 (78%) - (view spoiler)[ That jackass! Still, I think she might be making the right decision if she is trying to stay under the radar. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - (view spoiler)[ Uh oh, so her secret is already out. Something tells me that the boys will rally around her though (except for Ethan).

It's kind of a weird place to stop the book. I get that it is supposed to be the cliffhanger, but they still have what? four trials to go?? And we haven't really been told what really happens if they pass the trials other than they get to go to a special school for magic users. It would seem a more logical place to end book one after all the trials when she is about to start school. The cliffhanger would have worked equally well there, and then book 2 could be at the school. Whatever, I'm not an author, I'm sure there is a reason and I liked Wild enough to wonder what happens next. (hide spoiler)]

I'm down with book two if you are, Tiera. Maybe we can ask Sarah to change this to a series read??

[Jennifer]

Ch 6 (29%) - (view spoiler)[ Ok Ethan is really bugging me. Do they really have to stick with him? She's not doing a good job of staying under the radar anyway. I say they just leave him tied up in the bus. (hide spoiler)]
Ch 10 (50%) - (view spoiler)[ So was that assassin, the Shadowkiller that everyone has been hinting about? or was it her brother (dun, dun, duuuunnnnnnn!) So good to see Rory laying on top of her to protect her. Does this mean he will be a more prominent character? (hide spoiler)]
Ch 16 (78%) - (view spoiler)[ Argh! I just want to punch him in the face!!! I'm glad she threatened his wand. Ethan would be nothing without it and his daddy. I just don't know why he hasn't figured it out yet - he is not stupid, he must really like his head in the sand. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - (view spoiler)[ I was really hoping we would figure out something about these missing kids by the end of this book. Interesting that Wild is kissing Colt. I think he might be part of the plot to distract her.

I thought that was a bit better than the first book. Yet, I'm still frustrated with the ambiguity of what the hell the trials are doing. I get trying to weed out the best of the best for school, but killing off the weaker ones doesn't seem to make sense, nor does covering up the disappearances and deaths. And what is so great about this school that kids are willing to DIE to get into?

I'm just a little lost. I keep reading the synopsis for book 1 and going to the author pages to see if this is a spin-off and I just haven't read the series with all the explanations - but nope! It is what it is. I'm already two books in, I might as well keep reading.
I hope Ethan will get his ass handed to him in the next one, that would make it all worthwhile. (hide spoiler)]

[Tiera]

The Culling Trials
20% (view spoiler)[ "Cheat. Hoodwinker. Scam artist," ... "Deceiver. Liar. User. Jerk....Morally bankrupt Whoreson--" YEAH get him Wally!! Ugh I can't stand Ethan I really hope we loose him somewhere along the way. (hide spoiler)]
44% (view spoiler)[ Wait what is going on.. I don't understand. Who is the assassin and why is he after Wild? And why are students dissapearing? Think they will be the final house trial? Maybe having to rescue on of your team mates? (hide spoiler)]
67% (view spoiler)[ "Ohmygod, ohmygod!!.. This is such a great day. The best. I could die happy now!" Wild seeing the unicorns and Alicorns was the best scene ever. I was practically jumping up and down in excitement for her lol. (hide spoiler)]
84%(view spoiler)[ Oh boy looks like the cats really out of the bag now... I love how Wild seems to have all the traits.. I wonder what she will have of the vampire house? (hide spoiler)]
Finished: (view spoiler)[ Dangit what the heck is happening here! Why are kids marked missing before they actually are? Why are the trials happening so differently this time? I have a feeling "Maribel" is going to volunteer herself to go into the "missing" to get Gregory out. This book was super fun and funny. I'm growing to love it more and more the further we get into it. (hide spoiler)]

[AℳY♔Queen of Fat cats♔Ain't no lie Baby Byebyebye]

I need to start this!!!!

[Jennifer]

Ch 5 (27%) - (view spoiler)[ Ok, these trials are getting intense! I would still like to know why they are targeting her though! (hide spoiler)]
Ch 10 (48%) - (view spoiler)[ Well of course she is captured now! What did she think was going to happen if she followed the path all alone?? (hide spoiler)]
Ch 15 (75%) - (view spoiler)[ Huh, I am a little surprised that they chose to save Ethan, but I guess it would mess up the dynamic without a House of Wonder. I still don't like him though. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - so wait, (view spoiler)[ she's all happy to be going off to the House of Shade now? I thought she was here to pass and get out, and protect her siblings in the process. I still don't fully understand what is going on here. Can someone explain? Does she have the power of all the houses, or does she just siphon off other people's powers? And if it is the later, will she definitely become what the Principal became? I assume that we are going to get a new series with stories from the academy and perhaps some of these questions will be answered??? It sure would be nice to have it just explained in plain English. (hide spoiler)]

[Tiera]

Starting book 3 tonight!

[Tiera]

The Culling Trials 3
25% (view spoiler)[ Well its pretty obvious that Wild has all the gifts somehow. I still don't understand why someone is after her though. (hide spoiler)]
58% (view spoiler)[ I refuse to believe Rory is gone.. absolutely refuse to believe it. (hide spoiler)]
75% (view spoiler)[ Well..I'm still a little lost at what the heck is going on. Why is noone taking this threat against Wild seriously? This is ridiculous. Also.. douchebag.. I'm kind of glad we saved him. I knew Wally was an unsung Bad A... I like that even though Wild is the FMC she is a really great support for the greatness of her team too. (hide spoiler)]
Finished: (view spoiler)[ How can this series possibly be finished? is this like a prequel series? Is it even going to go further? I mean it seems so unfinished. Not going to lie I would probably follow this if it kept going. I do feel like I spend alot of time lost in these books though.. This one wasn't as good as the last one to me. I think it was because of the unicorns.. there weren't any in this one. (hide spoiler)]