Legacy Academy: Year One (Legacy Academy, #1) (2024)

DNF At 40%

This story had a lot going for it in the best way possible but it somehow managed to fall short. The plot was actually very interesting and engaging from the start. I loved how fast everything kicked off and how the heroine was thrown into a whole new world. I liked that she wanted to know more about it and understand why things happened the way they did.

Onto the bad:

First off all the grammar mistakes made me end up hating every minute I spent reading this book. I can usually overlook grammar mistakes, but with this book. Another pass over this book (grammar wise) would have done so much for it. There was also something about the writing and especially the dialogue that was stilted and robotic. The story didn't have a natural flow either. It was direct and to the point, which I normally don't dislike but just didn't work with everything else that was going on. It was like the main character was following a connect the dots puzzle to the end of the story and not in a good way.

The whole "Just believe in yourself™" and "Just have faith™" drove me up a wall by chapter 4. All this toxic positivity in the face of adversity does not and will never work to uplift me. So having it shoved down my throat in the form of a book only made me dislike the story more.

I'd also love to understand why everyone was introduced with their last names in casual conversation. It's not like I'm going to make a note of these for background character's that we meet for one whole paragraph in the whole book.

Lastly, I disliked how Vivian was mean for the sake of being mean but also how the author put her in the stereotypical character role of the dumb but hot conniving wanna-be girlfriend. Even the professors didn't seem to like this girl. I found myself wondering what her purpose was aside from causing unnecessary drama. The plot was already interesting enough. I didn't need her doing this in-between what I actually wanted to read about.

DNF 32%

It seemed very juvenile. Perhaps a first time writer in need of an editor. It read as too spicy for middle school, but also storylines for that age range.

✴️✴️ONE WILD WHIRLWIND✴️✴️
Fantastic! Guida delivers one skillfully spun debacle, laying out this thrilling unique bent that has this baby rocking harder than the rolling stones, bouncing to its on beat and raising the stakes, wrapping this gem up sleek, shiny and tight. A raging tempest of annoying mishaps and suspicious events, observing the formidable trials and hard fought triumphs, stumbling through the daunting twists and wicked turns, blasting this jewel to life flawlessly. Limitations are heightened and stretched, baring all the harsh facts, ruthless deals and fleeting fiascos, igniting a fierce determination with such intensity and vigor, propelling this jewel to a whole new level. The characters, interactions and charged atmosphere along with qualities and traits that add depth and diversity, blending into genuinely amazing personalities. The scenes are abundantly descriptive with colorful details that blend and flow, creating a majestic backdrop that's so rich and lively it feels like you can just reach out and touch it. Fantastic job Guida, thanks for sharing this little guy with us.

***I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.***

This was the first book I have read by M. Guida and I loved it! Sadly this is not a reverse harem series however, that would have been great if it was! I was getting total reverse harem vibes.

Raven has been thrown into a completely new life. First her mother is kidnapped with no idea what actually happened to her and then she is told she is supernatural! What a whirlwind start. Then thrown in the sexier than can be Royals... She has no idea what new world she has just dived into.

This was a great book and I immediately picked up the entire series!

This was bad in a good way! A fun popcorn read.

great book

I loved the story line and all the characters in this book. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This was a pretty good book. I liked the storyline and it kind of reminded me of the mortal instruments series. I love how she makes a friend on her first day and find it funny that the mean girl is jealous of her immediately. I love how her and the royals become friends and they accept her and help protect her. I don’t like the headmaster and I think he’s up to something but I’m not sure yet. I hate that she thinks she’s being used by the academy.

Her 18th birthday didn’t turn out the way she expected. On her eighteenth birthday Raven’s mom is acting weird and doesn’t want her to go to a pool party with her friends. But on the way she gets a call and knows her mom is in danger. When she gets home a big being with black wings is taking her mom and Raven is injured. She wakes up a Legacy Academy being told she is a dragon shifter and the only way to find her mom is to learn to use and control her magic. But her first few days are miserable. Every student knows she was raised as a human and knows nothing about the magic world. And several girls threaten and humiliate her. But for some reason the five royal sons attending the academy are intrigued by Raven and befriend her. That just puts more of a target on her back, and the demon Lord who kidnapped her mom is hunting her. Raven is special and no one knows why. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review

This book has potential. I will attempt to read book 2, because I'm curious where it's going, but I don't have high expectations.

A few of the issues are:

1. Proof reader is needed. Most of the issues could have been easily corrected with another read threw.
2. Time did not always make sense. They were at lunch. After lunch they were going shopping. They only had two hours because the last bus to return was at 10 pm...? A few hours after the dance Willie came back to the room. After making sure Raven was okay she asked if Raven wanted to go to the after dinner... That's it...?
3. Sometimes Bo was able to talk to Raven in her head, but the first time they had there private lesson he said that he wouldn't be able to shift, because she wouldn't understand him..?
4. She likes all the guys, but especially Bo... Well maybe especially Lucien. Maybe all of the royals have a crush on her..? Idk.

I really like this story, and will happily read the rest of the series. The world created with dragons, demons, vampires, fae and werewolves hiding among the humans seems like a predictable world, but instead this author does a great job creating something new. It's got a bit of Harry Potter in it, in that the main character grew up with humans and had no clue she was really part of this world, and now she is in a boarding school for the supernatural. But it doesn't mirror HP in any other way, and is uniquely it's own story. I've enjoyed it so far. The only reason for not the 5 stars is just that the writing distracts me from the story from time to time. I'm a bit picky about that. I like to be just pulled into the world and at no time be distracted by the way something is written, but unfortunately there were many times that I felt that things were written oddly or just not smoothly. Otherwise, highly recommend.

DNF - i forced myself to read halfway through but this book is so bad. Where do i begin?

The plot has so many holes. The antagonist allowed her to live in chapter one just so he can hunt her the rest of the book. No one will help her rescue her kidnapped mother because that’s her destiny and mom’s just gonna have to wait until she can save her. If her mother knew the spell was about to break why didn’t she talk to her sooner????

The writing style is something out of middle school. No character development. No real description of the setting. But plenty of description of the food. And don’t forget the “hot guys” and the “mean girls”. This book is written in first person yet we don’t get any of her thoughts and feelings about suddenly being in a world she didn’t know existed. She just quickly accepts her new situation and moves on. Quickly accepts her new bff.

I guess if this book is aimed at middle schoolers it’s ok. But if that’s the case it shouldn’t be mentioning dude’s co*ck.

Okay this book needs so much more respect in it’s genre.

First off, this is the first Academy book I’ve ever read that actually takes place inside an academy and features the characters going to classes!! And-more than that- it wasn’t boring!
Second, this author did her research! She learned how to use a crossbow and how to throw an axe!! That requires effort! Authors in this genre don’t do that!
Third, this had a plot. Let me reiterate: A GOOD PLOT! And it wasn’t focused on the romance! That was only a small element!
Fourth, this book has so many not toxic relationships! Raven has 4 whole female friends! Not every female is seen as an adversary! And she has platonic male friendships! AND those guys girlfriends are confident in their own relationships and are nice to her?! WHAT?!

#goals!

This is a good story and I'm giving it a 3.4 rating there we're some minor editing issues that made it hard to follow if that was cleared up I would definitely give it a 4 star review. Raven has graduated high school but her and her mom disagree on her future then her mom just disappeared after a strange phone call now she's woken up in another school with the kind of people that are usually in fairytales oh and she is one of them. There is plenty of plot some danger and as always and instigator or two and a little bit of developing romance that looks to be getting complicated by the end of the book. So am I interested in the rest of the series yes I will definitely give them a read.

I was allowed to read and advance copy of this book via Booksprout and this is my honest review.

From human to paranormal overnight.

Raven is a typical teenager, or so she thought, with all of the teenage angst and parental rebellion. Her mother being taken by demons, she has no choice but to connect with her dragon, master her powers and rescue her. There are your token mean girls, but she has help from several powerful people. I loved how she originally garnered curiosity because of her parents but soon was standing on her own merits. I loved this book! I didn't really like how insecure she was. It made her whiney and irritating, but she did overcome that pretty much. There were errors in grammar but nothing I couldn't handle. I can't wait for the next book.

Action and Evil, Oh My!
“Legacy Academy” has given us a new heroine to root for, Raven. Raven is the only silver dragon in existence. She and her new friends, the Royals, along with her gal pals are working to find out where the demon Ryker is hiding her mom and why he wants her. All this as she tries to navigate her way through her first year at the academy. This first installment in the Legacy Academy series is filled with action, magic, drama secrets, suspense, mean girls, and a budding romance, or two. This should be on your TBR list.
I received a free copy of this book. This review was posted voluntarily

The writing is very under developed. I kept reading and thinking that it sounded like my child’s writing. She is in 5th grade and makes stories. Nothing to do with the actual storyline but the level and quality of the writing itself. DNF

This is book one of this paranormal academy series and covers the first year of the student’s life. The main character is called Raven and she has been raised as a human and had no knowledge of the supernatural world, until her world falls apart on her eighteenth birthday, when her mother is abducted and her home burnt down. She is almost taken, but is rescued by a vampire called Anton, who was headmaster of the Legacy Academy, somewhere both her parents had attended, unbeknown to her. Having just finished high school and not enjoyed it, for the cliquey nature of many of the students and all the studying, she will find the academy is much the same. There are Royals of each supernatural type in attendance and they have a separate table to eat at and are seen almost as gods by all the other students.

It seems her parents are well-known by all in the academy, but her being brought up with humans goes against her a lot, especially with the top girls. A classical bitchy girl fest when it comes to the Royals and lots of new studies for Raven to suddenly get used to. At least it seems she is not quite useless at magic and finds she is a silver dragon, something unknown even by the oldest of the staff, and that’s old! It seems she is part of a prophecy and a demon called Ryker, who went to school and was friends with her parents, until their final year, is after her, for her unusual powers! Raven wants to get her mum back, but can’t do anything until she learns what her powers are and can control them. The demons are circling the academy and will attack at the slightest opportunity.

A storyline of a young woman suddenly thrown in the supernatural world and having to learn that all those beings she thought of as just the usual TV or fantasy book fodder, are actually real. She gets to meet many of them, but learns the very strict rules of never dating anyone other than your own kind, never mixing the races, don’t look at or speak to the Royals and keep away from the human world. Well, she quickly manages to break just about all of them, even when she tries her best to avoid the girls who have already aligned themselves as the Royals partners! Sometimes life takes a different twist and hers certainly has. She has a huge hurdle to overcome at the end of the first semester and this book covers that, not the whole first year. She may be out of her comfort zone, but she is definitely talented in her powers and affinities towards weapons, potions, spells and much more.

This is an easy to read academy story, with a likeable main character and some interesting others. There is a prequel book to this one, which shows you a bit about her parents and Ryker in their final fourth year at the academy and I think makes good reading to see why Ryker is after her and hates her so much, as well as her parents. I wish there was something else to cover their actual lives after the academy and her mother’s role as a warrior guard and more on why her father left them. The storyline almost makes you think this could be a reverse harem type tale, but doesn’t quite go all the way. An interesting read about the many different supernaturals in the academy and the types of lessons the students all have to undertake. I liked the weapons classes and her dragon shifting lessons with Bo the most, as she had to learn to listen to her inner self and her dragon. As well as remember what her mother had always told her, which was to have confidence in what you do and never give up! I look forward to reading the next full book in this series. I received an ARC copy of this book from BookSprout and I have freely given my own opinion of the book above.

Finished albeit grudgingly.
Concepts are interesting but the characters lack development, the writing is poor quality, and the plot uses too many cliches.

Good: The ideas and world building are interesting. The FMC’s inner dragon who is still herself is also really cool. She’s not so overpowered by being an ice dragon, just different and I like that.

Characters: FMC is weird and her motivation/drive is only used for the plot. Her internal struggles are very surface level, and she doesn’t change or develop throughout the story.
Author uses Vivian as the stereotypical mean girl who wants to get with the main love interest. Super one dimensional character with no arc. FMC’s perception of her changes when she becomes sympathetic of her but not really. She’s just mean to drive drama into the plot.

Writing: Many grammatical errors and the flow is very quick but also stiff. Not the biggest fan of how everything is explained through dialogue as the teachers and friends just go ahead and explain everything. There’s little time for action and development of the characters because they just talk and explain for the entirety of the book.

Plot cliches: Oh my god, this book has cool world building elements like ice dragons, vampires, gold demons, etc. but the author doesn’t use it to create anything new and exciting. We have a prophecy (that in my opinion is just a lazy way to give the character drive). We have a love triangle which just doesn’t work. Female main character who is bad at running and fighting but magically becomes better in time of need. Lowkey, the dialogue itself uses cliches answers and responses without giving us a feel for who the FMC is as a person.

Extra: Even though she passes the midterm, it doesn’t feel earned. We didn’t see her struggle, so while reading I thought “oh okay, no surprises there.” because there is no tension! The whole going to the Hallows is so forced. The FMC worries about Anton so much, having panic attacks each time they meet, that it produced the opposite effect. I never once thought she might actually go there. Not continuing one with the series.

I loved it! It was so enticing that I couldn’t put it down, this book grabbed my interest from the very first page. I had to know what happened next. The story is well written with a very good storyline. This story is a slow burn, with a love triangle, forbidden romance, fated mates, and found family. Grab this new romance academy and enroll in Legacy where you’ll met Dragons, Wolves, Demons, Fae, and Vampires. Welcome to Legacy Academy. There are three rules at this supernatural academy. One, date your own kind for mixing with other races is forbidden, two, never speak or look at The Royals, the powerful princes destined to rule each of their kingdoms and three, avoid the human world. Raven has already broken all the rules, there’s something different about her, something that’s not pure. She’s not like the other dragon shifters, maybe it’s because of her human blood. The Royals have noticed her, and every girl at the Academy hates her. She never knew the paranormal world existed until one day she had a fight with her Mom, she came home to find her gone, and poof, she’s a dragon shifter. It would have been nice if her Mom would have told her, but then again, secrets rule her family, but now she’s been kidnapped and Raven has no answers, she has to find her mom. Some powerful demon is after her because supposedly she’s a threat to his power. She doesn’t understand why for she hasn’t been performing well in her classes. So with all that and more this story pulls you in and holds you tight. I can’t wait to see what happens next. I highly recommend to everyone.

This kind of book is definitely my guilty pleasure so the premise and the initial plot were truly enticing. However this whole book lacked structure and bones to hold it all together. It suffers from the classic “show don’t tell” infliction. There was no scene setting, sometimes it took a few paragraphs to show who was in the conversation. It was first person but I could not tell you anything this girl felt. Always the basic “it burned” and “he’s not” never truly showing me any emotional depth. Which was a pity.

Some of the dialogue also truly bothered me, felt very robotic and since there was barely any storytelling in the middle of them, it seemed like there was no relationship buildup or development. Why any of those people liked her is beyond me. The dialogue also lacked emotional connection, and it felt like the character’s grievances were just facts thrown around. “My dad went missing” was answered with “aw” and a whole emotional tantrum and a chance for development was met with “I am tired I ate too much carbs” OUT OF NOWHERE.

This book has a house and it was so so ready to be so good but it lacked bones and a soul 🥲

P.s: transform into a snowball? Her challenge, as a super rare white dragon, was to transform into a baseball bat? Also why isn’t she not even slightly curious about her parents? Girl help us help you

Ich fand den Auftakt der Geschichte und somit Raven's erstes Jahr auf der Academy wirklich gut. Raven will eigentlich nur ihren 18. Geburtstag feiern. Als sie mit einem blöden Gefühl die Feier frühzeitig verlässt, findet sie ein abgebranntes Elterhaus vor, und die Mutter wurde entführt. Noch dazu die Hiobsbotschaft, dass sie zukünftig die Legacy Academy besuchen muss. Ihr Leben wird in der Sekunde auf den Kopf gestellt. Sie setzt sich von einem Fettnäpfchen ins nächste, lernt die Gepflogenheiten der Akademie kennen und viele Geheimnisse um sich selbst - denn so wie bis dato vermutet, dass sie ein normaler Mensch ist -weit gefehlt.
Die Geschichte ist sehr jugendlich geschrieben, lässt sich flüssig und schnell lesen. Manche Dinge sind etwas vorhersehbar, hat aber mein Lesevergnügen in keinster Weise beeinflusst. Ich bin sehr neugierig wie sie im 2. Band mit ihren aufkeimenden Gefühlen dem oder eher den Prinzen gegenüberstehen wird, wie sie das Geheimnis rund um ihre Mutter lösen wird, und wie mit den dunklen Dämonen umgehen wird.
Cover finde ich auch schön gestaltet, also ich freu mich auf das nächste Schuljahr mir Raven und ihren Wegbegleitern.

A COMPLETE rip-off of the Cassandra Clare, Mortal Instruments series from the very first page: the female lead's 18th birthday, her mother not wanting her to go out and desperately needing to talk to her but having put it off, the girl leaving anyway only to run back to the house on foot, the men breaking into the house while she's at the party, her mother being kidnapped, her not knowing she is a paranormal/supernatural, the institution only other Supernaturals can see, it is all exactly the same as Clare's series, only Cassandra Clare does it 100 times better. I can't understand why this got so many four and five star reviews and why nobody else in the top comments or reviews have mentioned the fact that this is a complete steal from the Mortal Instruments series which was released back in 2007 and has over 2 million ratings to its title.Too bad the only good things about this book are the storyline points the author copied from Clare, and yet still couldn't execute with proper grammar, decent copy editing, and better conceptualization of the plot where it did diverge from the series she ripped-off.

For the whole series: 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

First my bad, I thought this was an RH -- it's not. There is a love triangle but it obviously did not resolve the way I expected.

Ongoing issues:
1. Editing -- SOOOOOO many instances where the wrong word was used or just misspelled. A good editor would have solved this. It was a little ridiculous when the word would be used correctly literally ONE paragraph before. "threw it away", "through it away"
2. World building. While it was overall good, there were some nagging questions. Where does the money come from for the supernatural kingdoms? If our sup kids are going to college and only learning sup things, how does that pay the bills? The whole series everyone has money and never thinks about it.
3. While I don't think the heroine is a Mary Sue, sometimes the supporting characters treated her like one. Anyone who dislikes her is evil or turns evil.

Otherwise not a bad plot and a good ride. Kindle unlimited and engaging enough for me to plow through all 4 in a day. (sick day.)

Wouldn’t recommend

I could even finish it. I have a few chapters a try, really wanting this book to be good. It wasn’t. It was downright awful. No emotional depth in the characters. Everything is told to you. “I put clothes in the closet” “I felt sad” “The smoke was hot”. Come on… The dialogue was awkward. The first chapter had no transition inbetween events. She’s “arguing” with her mom about a party, states she thinks she’s acting weird, they pull up to the party, bam her mom is on the phone in a scuffle, bam she’s back at home, bam her house is on fire, bam she’s at the academy and just accepts that supernatural people exist no questions asked, bam she’s enrolled, and there’s no emotion from her whatsoever that her mother is missing. When she tells another character her mother was kidnapped and house burned down that character’s reaction is verbatim “that sucks”. Absolutely terrible.

Very YA and a little stupid. I wasn't sure why the made her so powerful and to have everything different with her. Alot of her powers didn't make any sense and the book was really short with no real purpose. While I commend the author for using their imagination to come up with ideas, I don't get the purpose other than to be used at a later date for a set reason. Why else would the main character be able to turn into objects when no one else can?

No sex scenes. She isn't a virgin but everyone else it. Mean girls not liking that the boys are taking a interest in her.

The starting of the book really reminded me of Wattpad creators where the main character goes to a party and then get a phone call from her mother telling her not to come home along with banging and screaming. To which she runs home.

Would I recommend? No
Would I read it again? No
Will I be reading the next book in the series? Also no.

DNF @22%

Like many others, I found the pacing to be...really unpalatable. It was almost like the author had a checklist in order of how events should be and just connected the dots to each one then marked it off. There was no depth to the world, the characters, the story. It was one point and then another immediately after. A prime example is the FMC wanted to go to a party, mom tries to get her to stay, FMC goes anyways, and IMMEDIATELY, calls her mom and runs back home. There was no build up, nothing to add suspense or enrichment.

Additionally, a pet peeve of mine, was a story inconsistency right from the beginning. FMC was jealous that her friend got a car as a graduation/birthday gift and mentioned how the FMC didn't even get a card for her birthday. Yet a few short pages later she talks about how she was given the dragon necklace for her birthday. In general, most of what was written wasn't explained or didn't make sense.

Not great, but not terrible

This was a quick fun read that kept my interest.

What I liked:
1. I'm a sucker for the hidden Legacy books, so while it was not unique, I enjoyed the trope.
2. The storyline had potential
3. I liked that it went into details in the classes she was taking. Too often books are labeled academy, but then the characters don't ever go to class or if they do, we're just told they went, but not given any details.

What I didn't like:
1. There were some TSTL moments
2. I'm not sure the chemistry was there for me.
3. Where this was not a unique storyline, it needed something more with either character development, dialogue, or world building. As it stands, it really just made me crave the books that told this story better.
4. The self doubt and the messaging of "just believe in yourself" and asking her dragon please... It was a little much!

wow that was bad. but in like a “im gonna watch a b movie for fun” kinda way. except the grammar mistakes. author literally used the wrong too/to/two which is like a grammar mistake even a third grader could spot. this book needed an editor bc i swear she just typed it out and uploaded it to kdp without even reading over it again.

the writing is super fast paced and basic. the first half of the book is the first day of school, if that gives any indication of what the writing and pacing is like. it reads exactly like a wattpad story. i thought the writing in twilight wasn’t that good, but this blew me away. i didn’t even know writing this bad could be published. but the writer had a story to tell and tell it they did. in the most fast-paced breakneck speed i’ve ever read a book at.

i got the whole 4 book collection for free and read this one so fast that i will definitely pick up the next one. that’s one good thing about the writing style, it’s so plain and basic i can read this without even using a single brain cell. and everything happens so fast there was never a moment i thought “this is a good stopping point” because the story just plowed straight along.

Legacy Academy is one for supernaturals and has various rules. Her mother is captured by a monster, there are dark demons, shifters, elves, witches and others who she ends up involved with.

At the academy they work to find out the familiar that each student has. Turns out hers was not expected at all.

She ends up verbally bullied by other girls (something which happens in virtually all stories like this) and part of the problem is that there are 'royals' and they take an interest in her, an interest which does not make some others very happy, to put it mildly.

In a weapons class she ends up with a weapon which, at first, might seem to be the weakest of the lot.

Then to make matters more difficult there's the midterm trials and more trouble.

Should we say it's a difficult school to attend?

The story's interesting and the characters we pretty well done.