Only the strongest survive … most of the timeRaven may be a shifter, but she’s always felt separate from her wolf. She never knew it should be different. Then, a stranger showed up in her hometown, turning her world upside down and recruiting her for the elite Bloodshed Academy.Everything she’s ever known gets challenged, and Raven found herself in impossible situations. Making matters worse … situations. Making matters worse was the fact that one of the strongest alphas at school caught her eye. And he made her feel things she didn’t understand.
The school may only recruit the best of the best, the strongest in their world, but there was something more about Raven. When push comes to shove, she had to decide if she’s willing to fight for what she’s come to love … or run from a life she couldn’t quite accept.
Vampire Diaries meets Daughter of the Moon in YEAR ONE, a steamy academy romance story for readers that love snark and strong alphas.
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Where do I start with this story?
First, this is the first time I’ve read a book by Jen L. Grey. And promise after reading this story, it most certainly won’t be the last. Secondly, there are not enough words to describe exactly how amazing and fantastic this story is!
Jen’s words lured me in from the very first page and gripped me so tight that it wouldn’t let me go until I devoured every last word of this story. It kept me up until 5 am. But, I am definitely not sorry about that. Because it was worth every minute of it.
Her characters. GOSH, the way she creates them, makes them come alive through the pages. To where you are one with them. You feel what they feel. See what they see. Experience what they experience. And it is the best damn thing ever.
If you want to be taken on a wild ride with amazing characters. Lots of laughs. Lots of sexy times and everything in between. And oh, did I mention fall in love with all the main characters? No? Well, then yeah you’d definitely do that. Because I fell in love and I can’t wait to be immersed back into this addicting world again!
BRING ON BOOK 2!!! Can’t wait for the next adventure!
Again, Fantabulous job well done Jen!
There are not enough words to tell you how amazing this book was. My sister knows when I really enjoy because I start smiling, laughing, and get more comfortable. Trust me you are gonna need to be in a comfy area where noone is gonna bug you.
Brilliant start to a new series.
I love the strong female lead and the interaction between her and her motley crew of friends. The Academy is like Hogwarts with teeth.
Jen L Grey’s world and character building is on form as usual and the story grabs hold of you immediately.
The world that Jen L Grey has created in Bloodshed Academy is addictive. Bloodshed Academy is the mythical magical world of Harry Potter with hints of Divergent & The Hunger Games when they named the Academy Bloodshed they weren’t kidding!
Raven is a small town girl living outside of Nashville in Clarksville Tennessee, with her parents, her next in line to be Alpha boyfriend, & their pack of werewolves. When Greg’s father gets a call that Bloodshed is sending a recruiter out for one of his pack members, he & everyone else jump to the conclusion that they must obviously mean his athletic, territorial Alpha son, but boy are they wrong. They want Raven, the girl who is having trouble connecting with her wolf, but why is she having such a hard time connecting with & controlling her wolf? When Raven bumps into Cole the handsome vampire who smells like cotton candy at the concession stand she’s sure he’s got the wrong girl for Bloodshed Academy & that it’s all just a cruel joke. But Cole promises to be back for her after graduation for the next chapter of her life to begin.
At her graduation Cole brings along friend & wolf shifter Rage who has an undeniable attraction to Raven, but why can’t she keep her eyes off him, & why does he feel like home? Once whisked away to Bloodshed Academy, Raven’s whole world opens up. She has a new BFF & not just frenemies, the 3 hottest guys at the Academy have her back, & will she finally learn to sync with her wolf?!
Jen L Grey takes us on a roller-coaster ride of emotions from start to finish. Raven isn’t the only one that changes throughout the book, we meet her room-mate on her first night at the Academy & Jess shows unshakable loyalty to Raven. The fiery fae’s banter with the lovable but over the top vamp that is Cole is one of my favorite parts. The world of Bloodshed Academy is my favorite of Grey’s worlds so far! I can’t wait to see what else she has in store for us!
I have both read the book & listened to the audiobook & I LOVE the way that Brittany Goodwin has voiced all of the different characters that we’re introduced to! Other than Raven my favorite that she has given an amazing voice to is Jess, Raven’s roommate & BFF, Brittany’s rendition of Jess & her demeanor reminded me of Luna Lovegoods voice (if she were American of course!)
Grey created one fascinating world in this new book. We meet Raven which has been raised in one backwards shifter community. On top of that she has problems containing her wolf. Her douchy boyfriend doesn’t help either. I wanted to smack him quite a few times. He thinks he is going to be recruited to the elite Bloodshed Academy so it is a surprise when they want Raven instead. This opens a whole new world for her as she makes friends, enemies, and learns what she can really do. A wonderful first year that sets things up nicely for Book two. A great read. I totally loved it so I give it 5/5 stars.
Year One (Bloodshed Academy Book 1) by Jen L. Grey this is a start to a brand new series written by an amazing author that I love reading. I started reading this story and I could not put the book down till I was done with it I has that hooked on it. Now I sit here trying to patiently waiting for book two to come out so I can continue this amazing story. I highly recommend this story to everyone who loves reading about shifters, super naturals and paranormal romances then this story you will NOT be disappointed in.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book
Ok first of all let me say this book was completely unexpected from this Author. Completely different from anything she has ever written that I have had the pleasure to read. That being said like OMG! This book was phenomenal. I absolutely love these characters she has brought to life. The banter between them flows so effortlessly. Raven is a shifter who has issues with her wolf and is dating, Greg, the future Alpha of her pack. Bloodshed Academy, a school for the top supernatural prospects, sends a recruiter to recruit Greg. Or so they thought. Then enters Rage, a wolf shifter, Cole, a vampire, Damien a bear shifter, and Jess, a fae. I don’t wanna give too much away, but its named Bloodshed Academy for a reason. I am absolutely foaming at the mouth for book two!
bloody good!!this academy will make you or break you!
Must read!! This academy ONLY accepts the best of the best! This story has the best friendships and drama! Awesome fighting skills and Laugh-out-loud verbally COMEBACKS! the flirting will have you laughing and swooning hard!! Buckle up buttercup its a bumpy ride! #ColeisMybestFriend#RageIsMine#Damien
This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believeable.
Great suspense and action with wonderful world building.
Can’t wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Awesome series
Bloodshed Academy is my first book by Jen L. Grey. The blurb is what attracted me, and even though it was an enjoyable read, I was a bit underwhelmed in the end.
Summary:
Raven Wright is proud of her shifter heritage, but she’s always felt that something is missing. It may be that she’s a female and was raised to believe a she-wolf couldn’t be ranked or it may be that she’s always felt a disconnect with her inner beast. She’s not sure, but with high school graduation approaching, she’s unsure of where her future will lead. That is, until what she thought was impossible happened. Raven’s world and all she’s known is quickly turned on its ear when a recruiter from the elite school, Bloodshed Academy, offers her a choice she can’t refuse. Bloodshed Academy is an environment Raven never thought existed, but here she is finding herself in all sorts of unexplainable and complicated situations. And the strangely intense chemistry between her and one of the strongest alphas at the school, doesn’t help. Raven has some decisions to make. And fast. Can she succeed in a place where only the strongest survive?
After reading the blurb, I was eager to see what seemed to be a sheltered female wolf rise above the condescension and gender inequality around her and become all that she could be. In a way, some of this did happen, but nothing to the extent that I was thinking or hoping for. Raven was a pretty cool chick. Her struggle with both her faked timidness and her wolf was a draw, because I wanted to see her break free of the chains she’d obviously grown up with. The storyline had a lot of potential, but I don’t feel it was put into action in a way that gave it that little extra oomph I was looking for. I was happy to see the bonds between her and the guys and her and Jess, but every other relationship for her just seemed to flap in the wind. I do believe Gregg should have been handled a lot sooner, and then maybe the scene we got could have been that bit of extra drama. The way it was laid out just didn’t quite connect with me. The same with Rage. I actually felt her relationship progression with Cole and Damien were pretty fluid and natural, but with Rage, that deeper connection was just missing. It was more of a situation that I was told it was there instead of me feeling it. Jess was awesome, and I do hope there is more with her history, circumstances, and romance in future books. As for the storyline, I feel like nothing of consequence was really answered, and so much more could have happened before the would-be villains of book two were revealed. The incident at the end seemed a little forced when things on that front were quiet for much of the book. Not to mention, a major time jump was included and I felt the meat of the story could have been developed during that time instead. Considering her struggle with her wolf bond was a major concern, I think any obstacles that prevented that end should have been resolved in this book. In my opinion, it was not. In the end, I did enjoy this short escape into a different world, but I find myself feeling more confused than satisfied with the story, and left with more questions than when I started. I’m unsure if I’ll be moving on to book two. I want a little more anticipation and action while getting at least some answers.
Jen L Grey wrote an amazing start to this series. Contains alphaholes, hilarious hotties, and some surprises.
*WARNING* has adult content
Raven has no clue who she really is, I think. There is so much still hidden in this story. I think this is a great start to what’s going to be an exciting series. This first hints to many things being buried in this academy. I can’t wait to find out more!
Jen L. Grey created an irresistible world with an intriguing plot that gives us characters that frustrate, entertain and are delightfully delicious!
I loved this beautiful book so hard!! This was humorous with plenty of action and characters that are positively captivating! The snark, the banter and the steam were all equally addictive!
Raven is surrounded by 3 guys who will each make you sigh in the best of ways. Each one has a distinctive personality. I was highly amused by Cole and all of his inappropriate ways. Rage is the total broody male who rocks those alpha vibes. Damien is a little bit more reserved but he’s just as trustworthy as his friends. Their group dynamic is pure awesomeness!
Jess is a fricking fairy! She is the ultimate bestie and I wish I could magic her out of this book to hang with. I loved the heart that she brought to the five. She is the light of this book and I could not imagine a better gal pal for Raven.
I’m excited to begin Year Two because I’ve got so many theories and questions! I found myself craving this book whenever I had to set it aside. I know that I smiled my way through most of these wonderfully written words. I was totally immersed and didn’t want this to end.
5 Cranky Stars
What a great start for a new series. This story has shifters, vampires, fae and other supernatural creatures. They live among us and are inconspicuous. You would never know when you were talking to one. The group of wolf shifters live close together in one neighborhood. The kids go to school with regular humans. They are just normal kids but do tend to stick together. The Alpha’s son, Greg is the star baseball pitcher and has his hopes set on admission to Bloodshed Academy. It’s the final week of school and the last game. When the recruiter doesn’t show, he is mad. All he can hope is that he shows up at graduation. His girlfriend, Raven has no desire to attend Bloodshed Academy. She knows very little about it and wants to break away from Greg. However, the parents won’t let them break up. What happens next is a good example of what kids go through with bullying in school. When college starts, it gets worse by the day. The recruiter showed at graduation but things didn’t go as planned. Then Raven tried to break up with Greg but he kept calling and texting her. The author did a great job of making this story feel very real. The relationships are true to life. I can’t wait for the next book in the series, thus, I gave it 5 stars.
*** I’m volunteering to review this arc ***
I enjoyed reading this book. I loved the story line and the characters. I look forward to reading the second book. Raven wanted to go to college and figure out how to control her wolf. She wasn’t expecting to be going to Bloodshed Academy. Will the Bloodshed Academy be able to help with her wolf? Will she find her mate? Will she be able to serve the academy?
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is book 1 of the Bloodshed Academy series. What an amazing start for this series!! I loved the storyline which had a great flow. The character work is great and I loved the characters. This was a hard book to put down and Im excited for the rest of the series! I would recommend reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A surprising and entertaining story that had me hooked from the beginning. The characters are fabulous as was the storyline. The author was able to create an immediate connection between the characters and myself by making them relatable and likable especially given the paranormal aspect. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Raven is board angry and just wants out of her home town in Tennessee shes about to graduate and go to college and hopefully her boyfriend Greg will be gone too as up and coming Alpha he just knows he’s destined to go to Bloodshed Academy. Raven can’t wait for it too happen but when the day comes ots not her boyfriend they want. Now she’s going to a school were everyone is the best and she isn’t even in sink with her inner wolf. But theres lots of drama due to 3 guys who have started to pay her attention Cole, Rage, and Damien this is going to be a problem. With lots of humor a new bestfriend and secrets about herself and others this is going to get interesting.
I was allowed to read and advance copy of this book via Booksprout and this is my honest review.
This book was amazing. It was full of snarky characters and drama, both of which I love. It also has some mystery to it. It kept me entertained all afternoon. I loved it and I am anxiously awaiting for the next book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.