Willa has handled the trope of Bully Romance in a very refreshing way. Enough to keep me intrigued and invested, who stays miles away from this trope. What an interesting turn for the usually sweet and softer Willa Nash! Ivy is an edgier and soapier story than I’ve read before- but I really enjoyed the wild ride. New adult characters means new adult emotions- it’s a bit campy, full of juicy secrets, and quite entertaining a la other new adult favs like Pretty Little Liar.s Not quite what I expected from Willa Nash, but a treat nonetheless. I loved the book, couldn't stop reading it and would've loved some more of it. Another spectacular Ivy Leaf in Willa's crown

There's nothing really great about it though. It seems to attempt in it's moral to promote acceptance of difference. That's a fine moral.The first in a mesmerising boarding-school mystery series, with five more brilliant books to discover. Cassia is running from the past and lands in a luxury manor as roommate of Ivy and Elora. Unlike the other two, she's poor and focused on finishing college and moving on. She meets Edwin Clarence (Ivy's twin brother) and their connection is instantaneous. Edwin is so cute and sweet, and while he has the tough demanding side too, he took his relationship with Cassia really slow, first becoming her friend and showing she could trust him. He gave her time and space and was always very respectful. Cassia Collins is the latest victim who seems to have wandered in this poisonous den to be devoured by Ivy. A crazy ride into the world of young adults struggling to balance their academics, life, peers, bullies and all sorts of secrets they're hiding. This one took me a while to get through and I just left kind of underwhelmed, maybe just “whelmed” is the better way to put it. 🤷🏼‍♀️ This is said to have Pretty Little Liars vibes, I’ve never watched that so I don’t know. Basically we follow 3 college age women: Ivy, Elora, and Cassia. 2 of which are from uber wealthy prestigious families. They all are living in the same off-campus manor together that Ivy’s family owns. Ivy and Elora have been friends since they were children, while Cassia is the new-to-the-group roommate who transferred colleges in her senior year. Along the way we meet the men in their lives: Tate, Zain, and Edwin (2 of which are Ivy’s brothers). So we get kind of 3 romances happening in this which was fun. We have lots of secrets, scandals, family secrets, lots of chapters ending on somewhat suspense-lite moments.

Elora Eldorado just sits on the sidelines, munching popcorn and watches the drama unfold every time.

Although they're as much a spectators as Cassia, soon things begin to unravel and unhinge pretty fast. cassia impressed me with her mettle and sass, Eldora with her broken heart but Ivy really turned over to show me a vulnerable side of her. And it was humbling and endearing at the same time For fans of Jessica Day George and E. D. Baker comes a charming young fantasy about a girl, her grandmother, and an animal hospital devoted to fantastical creatures. Then a three-legged griffin crash lands in their garden, asking for help, and a dragon appears the next day, also requesting help. Both have been driven out of the villages they reside in or near because the residents wanted to clean up the towns in advance of the new Queen’s visit.

This was a cute, charming chapter book, perfect for young readers. It was told in a simple to read manner with enough description to provide setting without the text becoming difficult for young readers. Despite being told in a simple, storybook manner, it was filled with surprises. Many of my predictions came true. Cedric did save the town to the delight of the queen, but I forgot about the dragon mentioned at the beginning of the book. I, also, didn’t predict that [spoiler] the townsfolk would abandon their fussy, priggish ways so that they could preserve their town’s reputation as the new Queen’s favorite fun town. We have a trio of heroines that center this story- and a barrage of all things new adult that makes for all the good drama. Young love, school life, bullying, elite world responsibilities, and lots and lots of secrets. While this certainly is a bully romance with a ample amount of mystery and suspense, it also still has that Devney/Will flair- amazing characters, meaningful connections, a well constructed and steadily meted plot, and butterfly moments, too. Ivy, Cassia, and Elora are all intriguing leading women, each with their own secrets and agendas. Different parts of their stories and character arcs resonated with me in different ways, but what I love most of all is how distinctly they drive this story. We have plenty of romance and some yummy leading men- but the girls are the queen bees. Ivy is the puppet master. She knows everyone's secrets. She loves to be in control and have everyone playing the roles she set for them. Something in the past changed her making her mean and nasty. But then Tate (Zain's friend) comes around and if there is something he demands is control. He won't set for less but have Ivy wanting and obsessing over him like he's with her. He pushed her buttons, he didn't fall for her knife like tongue or her games. He wanted her, the real her and not the brat she was comfortable being. And it was good to see Ivy let go of her facade and growing up. The first unputdownable mystery in the thrilling and bestselling SCARLET AND IVY series, perfect for fans of MURDER MOST UNLADYLIKE, SINCLAIR’S MYSTERIES and THE SCHOOL FOR GOOD AND EVIL.And by “it,” I mean the secrets, the lies, suspense, twists, turns, betrayal, sex, love…what a wild ride! I would love to see this author write some more stories like this one! It wasn’t “dark,” but it has some definite edge!! But it also highlights that no matter how much you try to put on a facade there will always be people who will see right through you and will tear down your walls and accept you for who you are. But the day Cassia bumped into Edwin Clarence who was perfection personified and drop dead gorgeous her life went upside down. she found herself wildly drawn towards him and consumed by him. The more she tried to free herself from all of it , distance herself from everything the more she found herself getting pulled into the lies and secrets of all these strangers.