As a member of the Royal Court of Ever King, I’m able to ARC read the academy of Villains books when they are ready to be proof read. I’m so blessed with the opportunity to do so.

Trigger warnings in this book are sexual tension and dark magic.

This book is the second Academy of Villains book called “Lessons in Loyalty” and will be released on the 24th of June and is categorized as a Greek mythology / dark fantasy novel. I loved the first book, uncovering heartstrings and unlocking them for all of the other people out there. A heartstring is a bit like a soulmate but on another level, a tether of sorts. Dark magic roaming the kingdom, a king that’s nothing more than a vessel. Kiara and prince Lucian are the main characters in book 1.

In this book, we still follow Kiara and Prince Lucian, but have a new pair of Main characters. Lyla, the girl from the greenhouse and Bastian, alchemist and member of the raven society. This storyline is also enemies to lovers but the story from the first book progresses. With the king being possessed by a God named Moros, and the Darkwing Bloodline being nothing more than a vessel of sorts, Lucian is struggling, is his father truly gone? Lost to this god?

Lyla, Kiara and Octavia are studying about star warriors and how to access their pendants but also train with Bastian to learn how to fight in combat and how to be more confident in casting magic. The way the greenhouse is described is so magical. The butterflies… Surreal. I really liked to get to know Lyla better and how misunderstood Bastian really is. How the love progresses, or lust?

Bastian is a guy with soooo many secrets, with the number of secrets and the danger of some of them coming to light or the danger of people getting hurt he keeps everyone at arm’s length, no one truly knows him, not even his “brothers” from the raven society. His association with the beast of thorns and how deep his tasks for the king are. He will open up, eventually.

The story is somewhat slow paced, it’s really story building with a lot of. How do I say it? Extended descriptions? Let me explain, if a read a few lines and close my eyes, I can actually imagine seeing it in my mind.

This quote was my favorite, Bastian is the one that says it “better to die chasing something extraordinary than live ordinary.”
The line that actually made me roll my eyes because this line is used way to much in stories by all different authors is ” I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding ” or a variety of it. It’s in this book 3 times (maybe more) I really dislike that line.
But the story, the backstory, the fantasy, the details and the enemies to lovers keeps me hooked.

A solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5 star rating from me.