Teen Villains: School of Evil Paperback – January 30, 2023

Liked that it changed pov , so you had an idea what was going on but the book is not predictable.Can’t wait to read the 2nd one.No cheating. Action. Mystery. Cliffhanger.

Teen Villains is the first book in Elisa S. Amore’s and Kiera Legends’ School of Evil series. After Gwyn leaves a party, the last thing she expects is to hear someone or something whisper her name. The draw to investigate pulls at her, so she comes upon a mysterious old house where one should not belong. What does it mean? What is this mysterious glass orb that she finds and why does her caretaker force her to touch it with her bare hands? Well, brace yourself because Gwyn is about to be taken on a wild ride.Teen Villains has a promising blurb that doesn’t fully translate into the first half of this book. The story stumbles like a youngling deer learning how to get to its feet for the first time. Things feel all over the place without a clear sense of direction until further on in the story. Then there is Gwyn’s name. Why is it “Gwyn White” and then “Gwyn Avalon?” There is no explanation or correction concerning the name that she gives the Headmaster and what he calls her. It’s strange.Gwyn’s sudden appearance, the quick acceptance of the other students she encounters, and the lack of clear direction leave you to muddle through the story until the pieces start to come together. Some names you’ll see will immediately indicate who they are or are meant to be. Others, not so much.After the halfway point the pieces begin falling into place, and the storyline starts getting more interesting. There is some “insta-romance” or fast-blooming romance. Things are kept PG, but there are hints that things might get a touch steamy for a YA novel. We’ll just have to see, but hopefully, things stay PG or PG-13 at most.This series has potential, so let’s see where things go from here.This book rates a soft 4 (3.8) out of 5 stars.

This is an interesting twist on our favorite fairy-tales. Gwyn has been raised in an orphanage and trained to do some very interesting things. She grabs something she probably shouldn't, and wakes up someplace strange. Enter the other characters that are just as confused as she is. I listened to the audiobook, the dual narrators are amazing

Kept me guessing. I love the twists in this book and look forward to reading what comes next. Do they get a second chance? Why was glass ball created? Will Gwyn triumph over the out of this world challenges? I can’t wait to find out.

I was a little hesitant since there was no indication of a romance, I need some romance and there is the start of something. 😉 It’s been interesting trying to figure out who’s who, still unsure of a couple characters. I’m pretty sure about one from the start of his powers, the line “All the better to kiss you with, my dear.” - was kind of a clue and I’m 97% sure. Off to book 2!!

Love the twist to childhood story villains. This series gives you the pre-villain story and makes you root for them to make the right choices and win.

Gwyn grew up in an orphanage run by Morgan Le Fey, trained to be a master thief. After she and the other girls had worked a party one evening, Gwyn was drawn to an abandoned house where she found a most unusual sphere. She's sucked into the sphere ending up at Wickmore Academy in another dimension. It's a castle housing some of the most famous fairy tale villains. Only, they aren't villains yet. They are teenage orphans just like Gwyn. And she may be able to alter their entire future. Let the game begin.I was excited when I learned of this new series. What a wonderful premise! Sky High for fairy tales. However, it was a bit of a letdown. Most of the book could be considered worldbuilding and story set-up. The characters were introduced but I didn't connect with any of them as I hoped. I struggled to become immersed in the story despite my love of fairy tale re-tellings. I'm definitely not giving up on the series because I do believe in its potential but I do wish there had been more relationship-building, allowing for more of an investment in the story and the characters.

A friend of mine asked me to read this first, and I jumped on it. At the core, this is an interesting story.Gwyn, our leading lady, has been trained by her guardian (somewhere between six and ten years) to be the perfect thief. She knows her art history, can defend herself, and has a wicked slight of hand to nab the best items without being caught. However, something feels off on one particular night. She can’t shake it and winds up sneaking out and going exploring. A mysterious house draws her in and she finds a magic ball, one that when she touches it, throws her into a different realm…a different reality…at the site of a school.There, she doesn’t have any memories of where she came from. The knowledge is there, she’s an orphan, who lived in New York, and she’s 16, but that’s it. Gwyn teams up with a group from the school to not only unlock her own mysteries, but also theirs.Sadly, I could not lose myself in the story. There weren’t enough descriptions, so it was hard to picture what was going on. The cast is also fairly large, and I kept losing track of who was in a scene. The plot moves along fairly quickly, yet doesn’t seem connected from one chapter to the next. (Example: There was this big dance that wasn’t mentioned until it was needed as a punishment for the group, but we only spent a few moments at said dance and it wasn’t brought up again.)The best part, was connecting which characters grew into which villains. Seeings them as teens, and watching as they come to realize the horrible people they may become, loved that.

I always immerse myself in books as if I'm in a movie or am there. Neither happened here. Very slow getting to a point that I had guessed about half way through. Disappointing story weaving, not what I expected from others of this genre I read. Sorry ladies but for the first time I can't in all honesty give a 5 star review. However, I'm committed now so hope book 2 is a little less sedate.