CW: consent issues, sexual assault, sexism, blood play, SH, domestic violence, death.

Rosie Miller has been cursed in punishment for her parents' crime. She is a low-level demon who is harmed whenever she makes a noise. When she enters Winterfell Academy, she lets everyone believe she's a mute, but she quickly finds an unlikely trio who befriend her.

This book is a bully-to-lovers story, which isn't for everyone. I appreciated the recognition of bisexual identities, which are often invalidated in romance books, even LGBTQIA+ novels. The cliffhanger at the end took me aback, and I thought it was well-written.

Some parts of the book felt tonally off - like it was written for a Young Adult audience at times with a definitely not-YA appropriate storyline. I do not think I will read the next in the series - I'm by no means prudish in my reading choices but this one felt like it pushed the boundaries of what was appropriate and what wasn't.

Thanks to netgalley, author and publishers for providing a copy. I have reviewed honestly.

This book was everything I love in a dark reverse harem in a fantasy setting! To start with, I love fantasy Academy settings, and this one was, though a little drab and predictable at times, mostly an exciting place to explore. The characters were enjoyable, the boys were sexy and mean, and the FMC was relatable.

Overall, a well written tale that won't be for everyone (Dub con, bullying, etc) but was perfect for me.

The Price of Silence is the first book in the Winterfell Academy series by Elle Mae. I am Rosie Miller and at the age of ten, I was cursed. Because of my parents' debt, I was forced into silence and now every word, every laugh, was a weapon used against me. By nineteen I had come to understand that I would have no choice but to follow in my parents' footsteps. Get a soul-sucking job reserved for low-levels like me, keep my head down, and die alone. That was until I got a letter one day welcoming me to the most prestigious demon academy in the entire country. I knew that when I opened that letter, it was too good to be true. There was no way after thousands of years of separation between high-levels and low-levels that I would ever be given such a golden opportunity. Meeting them only proved my suspicions to be correct. A bloodthirsty gangster. A child of a high-ranking demon official with a penance for blackmail. And last but not least a witch who seems to be called by the power my curse exudes. Becoming tangled with them will probably be the most reckless thing that I have ever done in my life, but will it be worth finally breaking my curse after nine years?

The Price of Silence is a reverse harem paranormal romance adventure. Fair warning, if you do not like that idea, then this book is not for you. This book contains graphic descriptions of violence, sexual situations, and dubious consent elements. Again, if none of that is your cup of tea then I recommend finding a different series to read.

The Price of Silence is a book that ran hot and cold for me. I liked all the individual elements, but am not sure I liked them together. Rosie is dealing with a lot, a curse that has made her life hell for years and getting sent to a elite college out of the blue surrounded by the rich and powerful is just the starting point. I liked her character development and the way the the school and group dynamics are handled. The added level of sexual tension and action was an interesting addition, and while well done and unique on a few levels I think it was unnecessary but entertaining. The levels of deceit, secrets, and mystery surrounding the curse and everyone's plans was complex, and at times a little frustrating. I saw some of it coming a mile away, and never really got resolution for other bits. Then the author leaves readers on a cliffhanger. I am intrigued by some of the connections and world building, and like the work on characters and their connections. However, I felt like the author was trying to do too many things all at once.

The Price of Silence is a book with many great aspects and potential.

This one was not really my cup of tea. Although the concept was cool I was not overwhelmed with the story

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE BOOK
- the plot is interesting (witches, demons/angels, familiars, magic, secret world)
- writing is good disregarding that the tone in some parts are not really age-appropriate
- the spice is piping hot 🌶🌶🌶🌶

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE ABOUT THE BOOK
- At first, I got confused because the tone used in writing is more fit for YA but the content is for 18+. I felt conflicted because it doesn't feel right.
- some key characters were introduced hastily/they didn't have enough integration into the plot to make them seem important.
- the main characters went MIA in the most crucial part of the plot.
- the MC is frustratingly slow to take hints - sometimes it's not even hints but literal in-your-face facts but blind to see because she'd rather be clueless than face truths.
- the plot started to actually roll in the middle of the book which is frustrating because just when it's just starting to get interesting, the book ends.
- THE BOOK ENDS WITH A CLIFFHANGER
- Bully romance that is borderline sexual assault - it feels illegal.

The plus here is that I still want to read the next book in the series because it does sound good so far.

PLEASE DO READ TRIGGER WARNINGS BECAUSE IT HAS QUITE A FEW!

Received an ARC copy from Netgalley for an honest review.

I had to put this down because there were a few things that made me uncomfortable and annoyed. Although from other reviews I heard this was a bully romance, the dubious consent was just not it for me. The main character has refused many times and idk, even for a bully romance it just felt weird for me. I really didn't like Rosie too. The writing wasn't it for me as well. I did like how there were many love interests and that the main character was bisexual, but that's just it for me. Barely understood the plot and I think it needed some more work, especially with the worldbuilding.

Very, very fun book to read!! Loved the story and characters and I will definitely be looking for more to read from this writer!!

“I am Rosie Miller and at the age of ten, I was cursed.
Because of my parents' debt, I was forced into silence and now every word, every laugh, was a weapon used against me.

By nineteen I had come to understand that I would have no choice but to follow in my parents' footsteps. Get a soul-sucking job reserved for low-levels like me, keep my head down, and die alone.

That was until I got a letter one day welcoming me to the most prestigious demon academy in the entire country.
I knew that when I opened that letter, it was too good to be true. There was no way after thousands of years of separation between high-levels and low-levels that I would ever be given such a golden opportunity.

Meeting them only proved my suspicions to be correct.

A bloodthirsty gangster.
A child of a high-ranking demon official with a penance for blackmail.
And last but not least a witch who seems to be called by the power my curse exudes.

Becoming tangled with them will probably be the most reckless thing that I have ever done in my life, but will it be worth finally breaking my curse after nine years?


Before moving forward, please note that the themes in this book can be dark and trigger some people. The themes can include but are not limited to: sexual assault, death, gore, toxic relationships, domestic abuse, and violence.”

Thank you to NetGalley and Elle Mae for allowing me to give an honest review.

So I’m torn with this book. I like the idea of the story, I like (most) the characters. I’m not really sure how I feel towards the bully-ish nature of the relationships but what really got me was the story seemed to be a little - scattered. Not necessarily bad, just there were moments where I felt like the story was lagging with said plot. It wasn’t until near the end where I even truly understood what was happening. Aside from talk of the curse, that was essentially it. But like I said, I do like the story for the most part. I would read the second book to find out what happens with the characters. My only big critique would be that there were times where the sentence structures had me a little confused by what the author meant or the pronoun didn’t match the character. Nothing too crazy but I had to read a few more sentences to understand the referenced sentence. But I’m sure that’s just an editing issue and not the story itself. It was more so my experience with it.

Overall, I did have a decent time reading the story and would like to see where these characters go from here. As of right now, I’m most curious about Rae and her back story. Poor Daxton too.

Also posted at my blog <a href="https://cassieshauntedlibrary.blogspot.com/2021/07/review-arcs-2.html">👻Cassie's Haunted Library👻 </a> and GoodReads.

2.5 stars. I was excited to read a PNR RH with a bisexual lead and multiple female LIs, and the premise sounds like an unusual take on paranormal academy stories. I was disappointed. I probably would have DNF’d if this wasn’t an arc, but around the 50% mark it got a little bit better. I went into it expecting more hurt comfort, and was surprised by the level of bully romance. I enjoy bully romance when I’m in the mood for it, but this didn’t quite scratch that itch for me with the level of dubcon, ongoing bullying and lack of relationship building.

On the positive side, I enjoyed the characters. It didn’t take long for me to warm up to Daxton as my favorite LI (anyone who knows the importance of a good coffee fix is always a winner in my book!). Rae and Eli were also intriguing LIs that’s didn’t fall into your standard trope character models and I want to know more about their pasts. The steamy scenes are enjoyable and largely FF.

The world building is a little confusing and sporadic and left me with a lot of unanswered questions that made the somewhat chaotic plot less compelling. Unlikely I’ll continue with this series. Thank you #Netgalley and Victory Editing for the arc. #ThePriceofSilence

DNF

I mainly couldn't get through this because of the triggers I didn't expect and just lack of interest overall.

I've also just been quite busy lately and don't have the time to spend hours on books I don't really care for.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rosie Miller is cursed. Like, literally cursed. On her birthday 9 years ago, a witch cursed her as retribution for her parents' crime. This curse manifests in the form of cuts or bruises whenever Rosie makes audible noise. When she receives an invitation to attend the prestigious Winterfell Academy, her parents push her to step out of her comfort zone and accept. However, as a low-level demon, she's already seen as an outcast by the students at the Academy, and there's little hope of that perception changing.

When Rosie begins at Winterfell, she lets the entire school believe she is mute, as it's easier than risking the stigma associated with being cursed by a witch. Unfortunately, on her first day at the Academy, she encounters a friend group unlike any other. The trio consists of Eli (a gangster with a secret soft side), Rae (a high-level demon with a penchant for blackmail), Daxton (a witch who seems to be just a tad obsessed with the magic of Rosie's curse), and his familiar Amr (who cuddles up to Rosie every chance he gets). This trio offers to help Rosie understand (and potentially break) her curse. The sexual tension between the four of them is off the charts, making it incredibly easy for the lines to be blurred.

I did enjoy that this book featured LGBTQIA+ characters and did not invalidate the bisexual identity. I also should mention that this book does have a lot of erotic passages, which do feel a tad gratuitous at first, but as the book continues and the reader gets to know the characters, then they become more interesting and engaging. I found the writing engaging and honestly blew through the book itself. The plot twist and cliffhanger for this book did manage to surprise me, which I commend Mae for, as I can typically suss out those things. If you're a fan of the bully-to-lovers trope and the reverse-harem trope, this is the book for you. I would also definitely recommend this book for fans of authors like Meka James.

It is worth noting that this book features themes and scenes of sexual assault, gore, death, toxic and abusive relationships, and violence. Be aware of these triggers prior to moving forward with reading.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I will be reading Elle Mae's other book, Contract Bound, while I wait for Winterfell Academy Book 2.

Overall rating: 4/5

The Price of Silence will be available for purchase starting today (June 29th). Be sure to add it to your Goodreads shelf and see where it's available for purchase. Also, be sure to check out Elle Mae’s website!

I was lucky enough to be able to read this Advanced Reader's Copy through my partnership with NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book wasn't bad. I enjoyed the story line for the most part. The thing I didn't really like was the constant change of POV's. For example, it would switch to a characters POV one time and then it would never be their POV again. The plot itself is well written, but I feel as though some of the characters relationships could use some work as it seems like it is constantly going back and forth.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was really excited for this book because it is marketed as LGBTQIA, New Adult, Sci Fi & Fantasy.

I am so sorry to say that I did not enjoy this book.
The triggers warnings are: lack of consent, sexual assault, rape, bullying, sexism, blood play, self-harm, toxic relationships, domestic violence, and death.

The main character Rosie consistently did not give consent and gave verbal cues such as “no and not now." It is important to note just because a book is labeled 18+ doesn’t give it a free pass to add the following trigger warnings mentioned above. There was no discussion between the characters about these actions/events and they happened and that was that. I really wanted to DNF this book, but I pushed through to provide this review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this publication! I really enjoyed this book! Great work! I will reread this book for sure!