Oh my stars, I just finished "Storm of Shadows" and I have such mixed feelings about this one! As someone who practically lives for academy fantasy romances (seriously, my bookshelves are groaning under the weight of them), I dove into this one with sky-high expectations. Perhaps that was my first mistake? Let me tell you, the premise had me hook, line, and sinker - a determined heroine entering a prestigious academy to uncover her sister's mysterious death? Sign me up! But here's where things get complicated. While I was ready for a deep, dark mystery with strong romantic undertones, what I got felt more like... well, imagine ordering a rich chocolate cake and getting vanilla instead. Not bad, just not quite what you were craving. The romance aspect particularly threw me for a loop. As someone who's had her fair share of complicated relationships (don't even get me started about that disaster with the potion master's apprentice last summer), I found myself frustrated with how the male leads were written. They seemed to swing between being utterly magnetic and frustratingly dense, especially when it came to understanding our heroine's perspective. What I did absolutely adore were the friendship dynamics. As someone who values her own circle of magical misfits, seeing those genuine connections develop felt like a warm cup of tea on a cold day - completely satisfying and genuine. However - and this pains me to say - the mystery element felt rather underdeveloped. It's like having all the ingredients for an amazing potion but only using half of them. The potential was there, but it never quite reached the explosive conclusion I was hoping for. Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ (3 out of 5 stars) Would I recommend it? If you're new to academy fantasy romance, you might enjoy this as an entry point. But if you're a seasoned reader like myself who's looking for something to shake up the genre, you might want to keep searching. I'll probably pick up the sequel (because let's be honest, I'm too curious not to), but I'm tempering my expectations this time. Yours truly, Farahilda (Currently nursing a cup of enchanted chamomile tea while contemplating my next read)