Freestyle: 1 (Academy of Stardom)

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I myself am not a dancer in any sense of the word. Like I literally have two left feet which is embarrassing bc am Hispanic and we are known for knowing our way around the dance floor but not dear old me 😒😒 However, this book just made everything flow easiy and it was understandable. Also, the music playlists are 🔥🔥 This book was definitely going for a dark tone and I just couldn't believe it. I just never managed to buy in to the danger of the situation. I don't think the author ever managed to pull of the dark tone. This could definitely be a me thing; maybe I've just been exposed to too many dark romances, but this just felt more childish at times, with all the swearing and over-the-top reactions, rather than dark. Like the namesake, Lyrical is an emotional purging- about the catalytic expression that will make or break the Breakers. And Bea is somehow able to capture these key emotive moments with words. This story does NOT work if we do not connect to the dance- Lyrical is told almost entirely through it. But damn, it works- somehow I can see it as if I were watching it live. But more importantly, I FEEL it. It is riveting, captivating and the mark of a truly gifted storyteller. And we aren’t the only ones who “get it”- every character has at least one key dance moment, a moment of raw and unabashed expression. And that is how they are able to reconnect and heal- dance allows them to SEE each other.

Now they do have a lot of new enemies and people who are after them. They are the ones who they need to watch out for. Let's see if they can overcome these battles or not. This book continues off right where the first one ended and It was much more angsty than the first book too. The breakers have now realised that things are not as simple as they seem. That their Pen might have betrayed them , but she broke herself in doing that. The reason why it didn't hold my interest was because nothing interesting was happening , it was too plain for me in the beginning and now I am too bored to continue it further. I am planning to leave this series here. I really loved the first two books of this series so I'll definitely read a few of the other series of this author because she does write some amazing books , but for this series , I am done. The tone and pace of Lyrical is markedly different from Freestyle- and that is because this is a story about pain, a story about the messy act of reconciliation, a story about the weight of healing. And as such, Bea brilliantly creates a story that carries that weight- there is a permeating melancholy, an emotive sentimental that threads the narrative. While we have a few snippets of jaw dropping action, for the most part, the story is more insulated- quiet and focused- and with good reason. Because Lyrical is not about defeating the bad guy, getting all the answers, or confronting the enemy- Lyrical is about confronting your own pain, facing your greatest hurts and insecurities, and finding the inner strength to work through them. And for these characters- that means finally facing each other.

Their Obsession Duet

Freestyle is unlike any book I have ever read before and that cliffhanger at the end is so incredibly brutal, more brutal than I’ve experienced in a long time. My heart feels like it has been literally carved from my chest and I’ve felt every agonising second of that procedure. I couldn’t be more stunned by the events that occured within the last 20%. This book was high-octane, the reveals were done so well, the twists kept me on the edge of my seat, the love between Pen and her Breakers was magical, and to see them create this found family was beautiful. The ending is heartpounding and I won’t give it away, just know they get their HEA and we get a sneak peak into the next book in the shared world (which was The Masks duet btw). And again like I said the side characters stole the show at some points (which is not a complaint whatsoever, I loved them to pieces and the villains were done well/evil so I appreciated their place in this story haha) and I cannot wait to see if Lena and her bodyguard maaaaaaybe become a thing. The sparks of something maybe starting in this one. Only time will tell if more things happen haha. Overall Opinion : I will admit that I liked the first two books of this series and was really looking forward to this one but I am so sad to admit that this book did not hold my interest at all. I don't know what was wrong with this book or was it just that I was distracted , but I couldn't complete this book and left it in between. Maybe someday I'll try to read it again but for now it just didn't hold my interest. As always, Bea brilliantly matches tone and pace to her immersive character journeys- so we can truly immerse ourselves. While I know we are THIRSTY for the take down of the big and scary bad guys, Breaker is not the finale- this is setting the stage for it. The story has some action, but for the most part, our action keeps the focus on the true task at hand- bringing the harem together. Getting everything out in the open (oh yes, there is more to reveal), re establishing trust, and exposing the depth of their love so that they can learn to operate together again. And that is harder than it seems- because these characters have changed so much, and they are still changing. They are no longer the young adults in a basement experiencing first love- they’ve loved and lost, they’ve done horrible things to protect each other, they’ve experienced immense, character defining pain and sadness. Lyrical freed their emotional trauma and let us/them sit in it, Breakers is about them figuring out the path forward, redefining their individual relationships but most important defining the relationship they never actually truly had romantically- the harem. And Bea gives us this incredible gift tonally and with the pace. She really slows things down, she allows us to marvel at their new-found reconnection, and, GASP, let’s us soak up their happiness, their intimacy, the joy they have to be exploring what they thought was forever lost. Our story starts slow and sweet, Bea mutes the urgency some. Not what I was expecting, and at first I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. But, then I realized, THIS Is the very heart of this story. These 5 coming together- THAT is really its heart, and I love that Bea respects its magic, gives space for its beauty, and recognizes that dark, gritty danger aside, these moments are this story’s steady beat. I mean okay, Xeno is like the lider of the group, but if the guys really love her, how are they so okay with that ultimatum?

A heartbreaking and emotional story. It just makes you feel so many emotions all at once. They went from friends-"lovers"- enemies-lovers and we get to see the transition through every phase and it's just phenomenal.

For a first book in a series, this was fine. Definitely enough to keep me reading but nothing mind blowing. This has a lot of the hallmarks of a reverse harem book and while I'm intrigued, I hope this series starts to differentiate itself more.

Pen on the other hand is sort of done with them. She wants to tell them the truth but the danger of it forces her to keep her mouth shut. So she stays quite. She lets them think that she betrayed them , all the while being broken by their hate. So, I seem to have a pattern when it comes to Bea Paige's books. I love the first two books in the series but the third one is just not it. Fame Academy launched to a great fanfare in the autumn of 2002, just as ITV debuted Popstars: The Rivals, the series famous for giving us Girls Aloud, as the likes of Cheryl, Nadine Coyle and the late Sarah Harding all won a place in the band. While it didn't set viewing figures alight as much as BBC bosses would have liked, Fame Academy did have a loyal fanbase who tuned in every Friday night to see the pupils sing for their place in the competition. I'll be 100% honest, I wouldn't consider this a "filler" story in a series to make a series longer, but I will say this book was more relationship focused while slowly progressing the plot for the final book in the series, which I know will be explosive! And it worked so well! I've read series where there's a book that seems almost pointless. This is NOT one of those. We needed to see the deep connection between Pen, Zayn, York, Dax, and Xeno. I am SO GLAD Bea Paige took this route and decided to add an additional book instead of shortening the growth of these complicated AF relationships. Because it was so good. Oh man, this book was worth the wait! It was everything I had hoped book 2 would be... and it exceeded that! After the cliffy in book 1 the bar was set high. It started out with a bang and never really lost any steam. Book one focused more on the "bullying" where as book 2 focused on the feelings.Lyrical' is the second book of the 'Academy Of Stardom' series by Bea Paige. After that mind blowing cliffhanger at the end of 'Freestyle' , I would have done literally anything to get my hands on this book! Book Genre: Academic, Adult, College, Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Crime, Dark, Mystery, New Adult, Polyamorous, Reverse Harem, Romance, Sports Romance We were 17 when they left me. You see, for kids like us, dance was all we had. Growing up in a rundown housing estate in London with no prospects can make you view the world differently. It can make you choose the wrong path. I chose dance, and they chose crime. It was actually quite funny, as I was reading through this series, a certain character is mentioned, in the first book actually; and it made me realise that I actually already had a series by Bea Paige sitting on my kindle which I had won in a Facebook competition. That series is set in the same world as this one and the characters make small cameo appearances which I thought was fantastic! I'm dying to read that series next as I enjoyed this one so much and I'm hoping that it's just as amazing! I've also kind of been holding off on reading too, I think because I loved this series so much, I want to prolong the anticipation of reading yet another great series from Paige. Honestly, this series was one of those ones I wish I could experience for the first time again, and that's saying something, because it's rare to find a book like that letalone an entire series. Having not read this author before, It is safe to say I am completely obsessed with her. With have only read this book, I am in love with her writing style and this storyline that she has created. I am falling so deep in love with it, it’s not funny. It started off with liking it, then grew into lust, love and then an obsession like no other.

York , Dax , Xeno and Zayn are known as the breakers. There used to be one more person in their group. A girl who betrayed them all. Who turned them all to the Monsters they are today. Now they have her again and this time , it is her who is going to be with the broken heart. The one with the broken soul. This is the second book in what was supposed to be a trilogy but there is 4 books out in the series. We continue right where book 1 ended. This book has a whole new vibe. Where book one was strictly from Pen's POV, we now get all the guys thoughts too. I found this to be a great addition to the story, actually it probably saved it for me. I found myself skimming the dance details this time. As much as I enjoy the dance theme, everytime one of the MCs dance the description is quite long. I can appreciate how hard it must be to explain a dance, but not only do we get intricate step details, but everything they are feeling too for each move. This becomes redundant as it is the main way they are all expressing their feelings. And our harem, the BREAKERS? DELICIOUS. These guys are so well articulated, so intimately defined and developed- unique, dimensional, each completely compelling- which is HARD for RH. Not to mention, Bea so carefully sketches the emotional architecture of Pen to each guy- carefully constructed so that each relationship feels not only intimate and fully realized but also fundamental to the bones of these characters, and fundamental to the crew. The chemistry sizzles. It's squeezes your heart and makes you feel everything. All the good, the bad, the pain, the hurt, the lust, the desperation, the love and the hate.

Brothers Freed Trilogy

Well it was ok, very meh to me. The beginning of the book I was very hard for me to get into and I got really bored. Most of the book was really cringe and I just couldn’t deal. If you love reverse harem, friends to enemies to lovers, dark, and bully romances, then this book is a hundred percent for you. It was me who doesn't like reverse harem but still tried one but ended up failing again. It was me who was frustrated with the main characters because they didn't talk their problems. It was me who wasn't much invested in the story like what I hoped I would be.