Sparrowood Academy (Book 1): High School Bully Romance

What happens when you take a girl, Eden, from the streets, trying to survive, and decide to use her to help find some wrongdoings going on in a wealthy academy? But add in three of her "enemies" from those same street, the 3 boys that actually might be the only thing to protect Eden? And it's not just a wealthy academy for the rich and powerful, it's the boarding school where the worse of the worse go. And it's this academy that is harsher and darker than the streets these 4 teenagers come from. In this dark, enemies to lover, reverse harem, the author, Angel Lawson, gives the reader many great characters. She also writes a strong plot that will being the reader through this Sparrowood Academy trilogy, so make sure to read in order (and all 3 books are out so don't have to wait long to survive the cliffhangers). Every detail and character (even sexy bad boy turned good, Dorian)are important to build the scene of this dark, harsh story, and Lawson does it very well, keeping the reader on the edge of our seats. Warning thou that this is a dark story surrounding some harsh topics that might not be appropriate for all readers. (drugs, sex (both consensual as well as non-consensual), and fighting to name a few the reader will encounter. But if you are fine and proceed past my warning, I highly recommend this book.

Loved this book. Already read a few of A. Lawson's books and I got to say, this hooked me on the first few chapters. Strong heroine and love the guys as well. Currently hooked on RH and this story is a bit on the slow burn but it was a great read. It's a bit on the YA side rather than an adult read but is was still a great book to read for the day.

I liked Angel Lawson's books since the Allendale Four and most recently the Waywood Son's series. I'm a fan to reverse harem books and she writes great YA reverse harem. Eden is a ballsy girl who takes no crap from anyone that means standing up to anyone who gets in her way. The K-Boys, Hawk, Gray and Theo are the fierce protector of their town. When unforseen circumstances happen Eden and the K-Boys are given an opportunity to help versus getting a harsher punishment. This book had me in suspense, rooting for the underdog and hoping that in book two they realize the feelings they have for each other. Also, I wanted to kick a few of the characters! This is a great start to the series and excited for more to come!!

I really wanted to give this 5 stars, yet I feel like even 4 is too many in its current form. I can’t ignore the issues that are easily fixed. So 3 stars it is. The book is in serious need of an editor or at least test readers. Like others have mentioned, it sometimes feels like you’re reading a rough draft where the author made some major changes in the storyline and she is still in the process of correcting it. In this case, it feels like maybe the k-boys were 4 instead of 3 at some point because of the inconsistencies of how many of them there are. In one scene Eden says the 5 of us, but there were only 4 of them in the scene. One of the k-boys mentioned eyes on all 4 of them but he was referring to himself, Hawk and Theo. Maybe Dorian was originally part of the group with the others and was switched to a counselor/older k-boy later on? Or another boy was deleted? There were a few more scenes like that throughout the book and other smaller inconsistencies like eye colors. Spoiler alert: The book did seem so rushed at the end as far as the removal of two students. They brought in 4 kids from the streets when all they needed was a kids phone? And why was Camille kicked out but others just as involved or more only suspended? There also should be a TW for the book on SA, drugs, bullying, etc. Having said all of that, I really did like this very very slow burn RH. I like Eden and the k-boys. Not a fan of Dorian so far though simply because he is in a position of power and trust and shouldn’t be lusting after a 17 year old. I’m willing to keep an open mind about him though. Despite the issues I wrote about above, I couldn’t put the book down and finished it in a couple hours. Now moving on to book two. I do like Angels story telling. I just wish more time was spent on having it edited and maybe some test readers who could’ve picked up some inconsistencies for her to fix. I would have easily given 5 stars.

What a kick butt feast for the eyes!! Nothing better than a fierce, smart female who won't back down or take any guff from anyone else. Especially alpha male sadistic bullies and their sidekicks. Eden's life hasn't always been rough... Originally her family lived in suburbia UNTIL her dad vacated his position as husband/father and therefore losing their home and safety. Eden and her big sister Hope, along with their mum moved into a sketchy part of town while her mum numbed herself with anything that helped. As long as she had Hope, Eden would be fine. Until one day when Hope suddenly vanished without a trace. Eden did everything she could think of to uncover leads of her sisters whereabouts. Which leads us to Eden and three out the most powerful guys in her neighborhood ending up in a holding cell together hearing some person in a suit claim they can pass GO and go directly to a rich boarding school. Uh huh..sure, and what's the big shiny catch? Turns out some serious shady biz is going on in this boarding school. Nobody knows exactly what's happening, but the higher ups DO KNOW it's far from good. Crazy social scheming, bullying galore, secrets, lies and human chess moves are constantly happening. Who is friend or foe? Can these people lead Eden to her ultimate end game...Hope? The school itself also has crazy layers of secrecy within. Let's hope Eden and her friends succeed in unfurling many of those secrets, and possibly bring down a titan or two! Three cheers for Eden, I for one can't wait to see what happens NEXT!!! bring on book two 😊💗

Angel Lawson's books stand out for me because she is capable to write characters that come to life and whose background and ARC go often beyond than her books' world and story. Many authors can only create characters for the immediate plot of their stories but this author is one of my favorites because of her strength to make you want to root for her characters and see their point of view. Anyway, Sparrowood Academy is again a real gem in the sea of titles on KU. Eden our main character is had to live through tough situations, but these made her resistent and the reader immediately roots for her. Her sister Hope is nowhere to be found, because she got in with the wrong crowd. Eden investigates on her own to find her. Hope used to hang out at "The Park" where the K-Boys essentially "run" the scene. They are unreadable, moody and somewhat scary, but they seem to actually care about Eden and look out for her. Do they really have a soft spot for her or do they have some other motifs? The boys and Eden end up protecting each other on the grounds of Sparrowood Academy, where they have to deal with worse people than on the streets. After finishing this start of the series, you cannot help but immediately want to pick up book 2.

This little book packs a lot of punch! Eden is a strong heroine who grew up on the wrong side of the tracks. She wants nothing more than to find her missing sister, Hope. But when she gets herself in trouble while trying to track her down, the police give her an ultimatum. Go to juvenile detention, or enroll at an elite academy. There have been rumours that the academy has a drugs and bullying problem, and administration needs an informant. Eden takes the deal, but she has no intention of being a rat. And then it turns out that three boys she knows–who also grew up in her neighbourhood–were offered the same deal. Their leader, Hawk, is partially responsible for whatever happened to her sister. She can’t trust him. But when they’re thrown into the viper’s nest called “Sparrowood Academy”, there’s no one else she can trust. This is a slow burn, why choose romance, as Eden can’t trust the “K-boys” at first. The book has suspense and a little bit of steam, which picks up in the next two books. This series gets a little dark, but never quite tips over into dark romance, in my opinion. It feels like a romantic suspense. That said, check out the content warnings.

Eden sister went missing, since then she’s desperate to find her or any lead that can unravel the mystery of her disappearance. The k-boys supposed to look after her but only took one mistake and she’s went gone. Eden and the K-boys don’t see eye to eye in many things. Where they came from it’s a jungle with predators in every corner, until a proposal is made. Go to Sparrowood Academy, find proof of the ilegal activities, deliver the heads to the counselor in exchange they don’t have to fulfill their time in juvie. Seems easy enough, but working together it’s tougher than they thought. She and the guys have to work in to mingling with the brats and have each other’s backs at the same time and for that they have to put their differences behind. Everything went south when they have to pretend to be in a relationship and when Eden least expected, she’s helping Theo getting clean, falling hard with the charming Gray and being forced to face the attraction she has toward Hawk. In the world where money talks more than the justice, they have to get creative e work as an unit and being their street smart to the table!!! Gahhh amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh this is a exciting series so far, a posh snobby school that has kids from all kinds of rich filthy backgrounds, they think they hold the power, control and take anybody on, no matter where your from. One thing I absolutely love about this series so far is a girl trying to make it while her mum abuses herself with drugs, a missing sister and a home where she doesn’t belong. She’s given a chance to change her life by being offered a deal with the snobby school, with the added bonus of the 3 boys she hates until they work together to take the rich bullies down. Oh it’s binge worthy and if you love high school bully romance with a game changer your gonna wanna dive into this bad boy

I couldn't put this book down, one of those just one more chapter at the end of each chapter type of book. Eden is one of my favorite MCs I've came across and I can't wait to read more of the mystery begin her sister! Definitely one to pick up, you'll love it!