Author: Katie Sise
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary
Source: Balzer + Bray via Edelweiss
Goodreads
Frankie Brooks knows what she wants in life: to become the world’s next great fashion editor. All she needs to do is get into the elite American Fashion Academy in New York City. If she gets in, her life plans will be going right on schedule. Anna Wintour, watch out.Review by Nara
But after Frankie messes up one too many times—hey, it’s hard keeping up with classwork and an acclaimed fashion blog—her parents come up with entirely different plans for her future: Military school. How is Frankie, the least athletic person in the world, who knows absolutely nothing about the military, going to survive a whole semester at the famed—and feared—Academy?
With students who seem to be totally uninterested in her, a course-load that’s even more difficult than at her old school, and the weird athletic War Games competition Frankie has to join—her life is way harder than it used to be. And no one, including her roommate Joni, seems to understand Frankie at all.
As she learns how to cope in about a million drills, a hundred different specialized classes, and is maybe even falling for super-hot and super-smart cadet Jack Wattson, can Frankie prove to everyone that being a fashionista doesn’t mean she can’t succeed?
The Academy was an easy read that I would put more on the younger end of the young adult spectrum rather than a book for everyone.
The main character wasn't necessarily the most likeable, but one thing that was good was that she does improve on her flaws throughout the novel. She has a relatively young-sounding narrative voice, and while I wouldn't go so far as to call it immature, it did feel quite borderline.
I would probably say I did like the novel overall, but I'm not sure that there are any outstanding positives or negatives about the story or characters. It's one of those "straight through the middle" types in terms of commenting on any particular aspect. The story is simplistic but not written in a boring way. The characters are developed to a degree, but not so far that you feel invested in the romance or their further growth.
I think overall, The Academy was relatively unmemorable as far as contemporary novels go, but this may also be because I was not that invested in it in the first place. I would recommend it only to younger YA readers.
Liked it
RatingsOverall: 6/10
Plot: 3/5
Romance: 2.5/5
Writing: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Cover: 2/5
