Dark Academia is one of my most adored fantasy sub-genres and the intense character exploration and trippy metaphysics discussions have launched it toward the top of my list. I was so so excited to see where these characters, and the plot, would go in book two. While I wasn’t fully satisfied, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I received an audio ARC for book 2 and I think I experienced the equivalent of ‘movie casting is not my mental picture of a character’ for audiobooks. Parisa’s voice felt too ‘high school mean girl’ and the narrator for Nico/Gideon felt kinda… wrong? Not what I’d imagined? Each POV has it’s own narrator so the accents were a little inconsistent when voicing the other characters. Admittedly, it was certainly something I got used to as the book went on.

Blake returns to two of my favorite aspects of TA6, the character interplay and the long metaphysics discussion. In Paradox, our cohort of six turned five have graduated from exploration and reading to pursuing questions and drawing preliminary avenues, and boy are some of those absolutely wild. Without going into spoilers, fans who enjoyed that aspect will be very pleased. One element is will say it is one thing to write plausibly believable metaphysics, it’s another thing entirely to convince the reader of specific conclusions these characters arrive at. I loved TA6 because it was clear Blake did her research for the themes she explored, but I definitely did some eyebrow-raising with this one.

Those who know me know that the Callum/Tristan interplay, one that ended in, well, shambles, was perhaps my favorite part of TA6. I was hoping for more aftermath, but sadly it wasn’t meant to be. On the other hand, we do get a lot more character development and screentime for both Callum and Reina. Blake again pairs off the characters: Callum and Reina, Nico and Tristan, with Parisa floating about while Libby’s off doing her own thing. I do wish we got more interaction outside the pairings, surely their manor is only so big, but that might just be the style Blake prefers.

Where this book struggles, however, is in opening up the world. I commented that TA6 has surprisingly little actual plot beyond the academic exploration and that was a good thing. However, there was a lot of setup for greater intrigue, between Ezra and Atlas’s scheming, the Alexandrian Society against the Forum, and Libby trying to fix her situation. Paradox brings that scheming to the forefront, honestly, it was the least interesting part of the novel. Somehow, I felt like the scenes with the Forum had no stakes.

Part of this, I think, has to do with how Blake writes characters. TA6 was a masterclass in how to turn a trope into a fully fleshed-out character. However, when secondary characters don’t get the screentime to be fleshed out, all you have is a generic trope-y character with no strong individuality. Additionally, some of the events of the ending simply felt in part anticlimactic and in part just pointless.

Overall, I rate this book a 4/5. Blake remains strong with the metaphysics and the character work, which makes this book a delightful read, but it didn’t seem Blake quite knew what to do with the intrigue and the overarching plot beyond six academics locked in a room. Still, fans of The Atlas Six will enjoy the sequel.

This series needs to have an orgy. That’s the only thing I’m taking away from the second book. Nothing happens for a long time. Not much plot. Many of the pages are characters interacting and drawing conclusions about each other. There’s this odd tension between all of the characters that I feel would resolve in an orgy.

I still enjoyed listening to it, but in the end, I had to think about if anything had happened in the book.

The audio cast was a delight and might have helped me get through this book as quickly as I did.

This review is based on an advanced reader copy provided through Netgalley for an honest review.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for sending me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

Just when I think this series couldn't intrigue me more, there it goes! I think my favorite part of this book was the character development. There is so much growth for all of the characters, whether it's for good or for bad. My favorite arc was definitely Libby's and how she can't seem to find who she wants to be - it was something that resonated with me so much. The way that all the characters have such unique stories but are all still so relatable is one thing that amazes me about the book and the way it can worm its way into your life.

I am simultaneously annoyed by and in love with the way that the book leaves you with as many new questions as ones it answered. It is infuriating to not have any idea what is happening but at the same time I felt like the book kept my attention in a way that so few can. It is so immersive and the time really flies by as you try to put all the pieces together. But when the pieces come together you discover there were more pieces all along.

If you're a fantasy lover, you're definitely going to want to make sure to check this series out!

Honestly, this was pretty disappointing. It has a bad case of second book syndrome. There's basically no plot for a significant portion of this, and it seems like Blake over-explained a lot of the elements in this.
If you really love the characters from The Atlas Six, you will probably still love this. But, if you just liked the characters and really want a plot, you will likely be disappointed by this sequel.
I do plan to give the third book a try when it comes out, but this was a pretty disappointing sequel.

After I finished The Atlas Six, I couldn't wait to read the follow-up, The Atlas Paradox. Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for my advance listening copy. I wasn't sure what to expect from the sequel, but it exceeded my expectations. The six initiates are down to five as the story begins, since Libby Rhodes disappeared and is presumed (by many) to be dead. If you loved the drama, betrayals and backstabbing in the first book, buckle up because things are not slowing down. Our magicians are once again eyeball deep in mysteries and mayhem, and Libby Rhodes is desperately trying to make her way back--across time. While it definitely answers some of the questions from The Atlas Six, it certainly generates more, leaving us waiting for even more answers from the next book.

The narrators are fantastic! Having different readers for all the main characters helps tremendously in differentiating between them all. Just reading, it can become difficult to remember who it is that's telling the story. (That's one of the downsides to so many perspectives.) I will definitely be picking up the next book once it's out because I have to know what happens to our magicians and the Alexandrian Society.

The following review was posted on my blog today, Sunday, October 23rd, 2 days before publication. It will be shared on Twitter and Instagram between today and the day of publication, and has already been posted on Goodreads. The blog post includes links to order the books and to its Goodreads page, so readers can add it to their to-be-read books.






“If power is a thing to be had, it must be capable of possession. But power is no discrete size or weight. Power is continuous. Power is parabolic. (…) Thus, to gain power is to be increasingly powerless.”

Author: Olivie Blake
Narrated By: Alexandra Palting, Andy Ingalls, Caitlin Kelly, Damian Lynch, Daniel Henning, David Monteith, James Cronin, Munirih Grace, Siho Ellsmore, and Steve West

Genre: Dark Fantasy, Romance
Actual Rating: 4.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 2 fire emojis
Narration: 5 mikes
Content Warning: Once again brings in violent and sexual content.

“The Atlas Paradox” follows the same six magicians from “The Atlas Six” as they hone their powers and discover their abilities, and as they fight against a new organization that wants to tear them—well, Atlas—down due to their omniscient dreams.

Any more extensive summary would have too many spoilers so I’m going to use the “trust me bro” card and let you know that if you liked the first book in “The Atlas” series, then I am 98% sure you’ll love “The Atlas Paradox”.

How has this become one of my favorite series ever in the span of a week? Holy. I have not stopped talking about these books ever since I started reading them.

This book follows up right after “The Atlas Six” and I am happy to say it is just as homoerotic as the first book—everyone is gay for each other, I swear. The characters stay true to themselves, with all their stubbornness and annoying traits that make them just that more believable. The story is still pretty heavily character-driven, although for this second installment, the plot became a major force as well—mostly because it felt like the whole book was setting us up for more Atlas to come.

I was lucky enough to get an advanced reader copy (ARC) of the audiobook recording and I got to listen to the same voice actors acting out my favorite group of characters ever. I am, once again, still a sucker for Tristan’s British accent, but in reality all the voices reflect exactly how I feel the characters in this book would talk.

If dark academia is your style, “The Atlas Paradox” is for you. I would highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy magic and fantasy, and aren’t afraid of some violence and sexual content. Oh, but before you grab this one, make sure to read “The Atlas Six”, this is definitely not a standalone book in a series.

If you click here, you’ll be redirected to Goodreads, so you can add the book to your TBR list.

Or you could click here, and be redirected to Amazon, so you can order the book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and Macmillan Audio in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: October 25, 2022

“Olympus was empty. The gods were already here.”

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing be to listen to this audiobook for an honest review!

Olivie Blake has done it again and brought me back into the amazing world of TA6. Blake has done an amazing job and progressing the plot, characters and world in a way I wasn’t expecting! I cannot wait for the next book so I can jump in again!

The audiobook was narrated by Alexandra Palting, Andy Ingalls, Caitlin Kelly, Damian Lynch, Daniel Henning, David Monteith, James Cronin, Munirih Grace, Siho Ellsmore and Steve West.

I was impressed by how well each narrator was able to capture the characters and tell the story in such a great way! I highly recommend picking up the audio book!

Second books of a trilogy are always tough to nail, but if anyone can replicate the bottled lighting of their series beginning it's Olivie Blake. This follow-up to the Tiktok sensation 'The Atlas Six' delivers all the same delightfully cerebral dark academia vibes, the incredibly in-depth take on space-time, and the down-to-earth humanity of the titular six.

While slow-going in terms of plot, returning readers of the series should know to expect as much, and know that the final payoff will be worth the wait. We get to see even deeper into the hearts, minds, and motivations of our Six— with increased stakes and even more practically applied magic. In particular, I felt like Tristan, Libby, and Callum shined throughout 'The Atlas Paradox.' And with more POV chapters for Gideon and Ezra, the events of the story feel a little more fleshed out, as readers get to see a wider scope.

If you liked 'The Atlas Six you will love 'The Atlas Paradox, and with a cast of narrators as talented as this, I absolutely recommend the audiobook version.

Thank you to Netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and Tor for an advanced listening copy in exchange for an honest review!

I didn’t find this nearly as enjoyable as the first book. While it was still interesting, I found myself less and less invested the more I listened. The first 30% of the audiobook was especially difficult for me and I realized that I was just wanting to move on to something else. This book took way longer than it should have to finish, but I’m glad I did finish it because this is such an interesting story concept. It got considerably better after that 30% mark but it is pretty long.

Thanks NetGalley for the ALC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you so much to Tor for providing me with this arc!

I will admit, my expectations were a little too high. The book is excellent, wonderfully written as was the first. It suffered mildly from second book syndrome. Gloriously pretentious. I’m overly excited for book 3 after everything this book set up to happen

The grip this book had on me! I found myself putting off responsibilities to continue diving deeper into this world. Much like the first book the story is told from several POVs and it didn’t always follow a linear timeline. The way the story puts knowledge up against the greater good against the consequences of our choices against the responsibility of having immense power will make you reevaluate how you view the world and then reevaluate again. I could not recommend this book enough if dark academia is your style.

This book starts off with a bang and then slows down until about 1/3 of the way through. I had hopes that the first book was setting us up for a more plot-focused sequel, however I felt that the action was a lot lighter than I was wanting from this book. Similar to the first one, this book is very cerebral, and most of it is spent building up concepts that all eventually collide. It’s an interesting style and it works in the way it’s meant to, I was just hoping for a bit more plot in this second book.

I was really hoping this would be a duology, but I feel that there are too many loose ends for this to be the final book. Will I read the next one if there is another? Yes. Do I wish this book would have been a bit more plot focused and wrapped everything up? Also yes.

This style is a bit difficult in the audio format because it is a book that requires a significant amount of concentration if you want to experience the full effect. I had a hard time tracking with the high-level academic concepts and I’m sure I missed many of the connections because of that.

Gideon is absolutely my favorite character and I wanted more chapters from him. As a multi-POV book based around a cast of anti-heroes, there are many characters and POVs that I don’t love and have a hard time wanting to read about. There are definitely clear distinctions between POVs that I enjoy and ones that annoy me to have to read. This book contains even more POVs than the first one and continues to get more convoluted as the stakes get higher.

Overall, if you liked The Atlas Six, I think you’ll like this book as well. I definitely did despite my frustration about the plot progression. I really enjoyed the way this book makes you contemplate social responsibility and the commodity of knowledge. As a dark academia book that critiques the exclusivity of academia, this book does its job beautifully, bringing forth characters who wrestle with what is right and what is plausible given the selfishness of human nature. I’ll definitely be thinking about this story for a long time.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my early e-arc copy!

I listened to this in audiobook format, since that is what I was gifted prior to the release date. This is a sequel to The Atlas Six, which I did enjoy more than this book. I thought that the book could have wrapped up in the first one, and the fact that it continued on wasn’t necessary in my personal opinion. However, I did like the book enough and I enjoyed the Narration. It was a solid 3/5

What a beautifully written follow up to Atlas Six! I found out before going into this that this is actually a series, rather than a duology, so I’m glad I found that out sooner because I think I would’ve been confused in this thinking otherwise. The Atlas Paradox picks up at the cliffhanger of the first book, so it’s hard to go into plot without spoiling things, but I really enjoyed revisiting these very intriguing, diverse characters. In this extremely character-driven sequel, the six magicians of Atlas Six are all so unique and I just loved their journeys as students and as people. Their interactions were so vivid and I love the audiobook is a full cast to really bring their personalities forward. I have such a soft spot for Tristan and I loved just seeing how the decisions of the characters created ripple effects for everyone else. It’s a slower start and it does take a while for the action to really kick in, but I’m invested in these characters, I really enjoyed the depths of the characters you’re able to get in this story and I’m excited to see where the story goes!

3.5 stars

This series just wasn't for me. If I hadn't listened to it as an audiobook I probably wouldn't have finished. I felt like the majority of the 400 pages I just read was made up of fluff and nothing really happened. The first half of the book was incredibly boring with literally nothing important seeming to happen. The only things that happen in this book is finding out about Libby and finding what Atlas's plans are/ what he wants to do.

Okay okay okay

Excuse me while I compile my thoughts because I am not well after finishing this.

First off, thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the arc of the audiobook and ending my suffering of waiting between books a smidge.

Everything feels crazy, but dang was this good. This was such a great extension to the characters we know and mostly love. Diving in deeper in all the right places. I really liked how again the plot is very character driven and vaguely complex. It’s hard to review without being spoilery, so basically if the first book was your jam, you’ll love this. If you didn’t, well, I guess we just have different tastes! But I was very very pleased and devoured this.

I listened to The Atlas Paradox on audio (thank you Macmillan Audio for the review copy), and I really enjoy the production of this series. I feel like every narrator they got perfectly encapsulated the character they read for and I do think it adds to the overall feel and atmosphere.

The Book:

I feel like people are either going to be incredibly disappointed because this book doesn't live up to book one, or they're going to be so in love with book one that they're just going to be so happy to be in this world with these characters again that it won't matter.

I strangely fall into both of these categories. In my opinion, TAP definitely suffers from second book syndrome. There was SO MUCH dialog and inner dialog about the characters and what they were thinking about themselves and each other. About what they might be capable of, or not. About what they should be doing, but aren't. There doesn't seem to be much of a plot to this book, and in the end, the story doesn't really progress much from where it begins. At least not enough to warrant an entire book. And there was definitely potential. Libby's story line could have been so fascinating, but all the interesting parts were kind of glanced over, or told to us in retrospect. Nico and Tristan, who had most of the screen time, and admittedly some good banter, seemed like they were asleep the whole book. In fact that's how I would describe all of them. I know it makes sense with the story, but it doesn't make for particularly interesting reading. They talked A LOT about their magic & magical theories, but we didn't really see it play out.

That being said. It's a vibe. Even though I found myself frustrated, I still finished it in two days and I still want to know what is going to happen next. The ending left me with so many questions and with hope that book 3 will be fantastic. I just really hope the doing outweighs the talking next time because there's only so much vibing and soaking in the atmosphere I can do before it starts to change from unique and moody to repetitive and boring.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to listen to an advanced copy of The Atlas Paradox audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

The Atlas Paradox is a stellar sequel to The Atlas Six, following the characters through their lives after the events of the prior book. The book manages to toe the line of being purposefully very confusing while having a complete chokehold on my attention (despite the fact I have no idea what's going on have the time).

While the book is pretty-fast paced, I feel like the storyline itself is slower than the previous book. I love how Olivie Blakely writes the different character point of views very distinctly and how each character is more fully formed with how they're housemates describe them.

I just recently started listening to audiobooks and I feel like this one SPOILED me, having each characters chapter voiced by a different narrator. All of who did a fantastic job capturing their characters essence through the pace they read and the vocal tones uses. I think my one complaint would be that sometimes the accents uses for characters speaking were distracting. Gideon's narrator in particular would sometimes use a "Quebecious" accent and I wished he would just use the voice he was already narrating his chapter in. The same narrators voice for Nico kinda took away from a very important moment later in the book. I absolutely loved Tristan, Libby and Parisa's narrators though! They voiced those characters perfectly!!

The book isn't even officially out yet and I'm eagerly awaiting the third one. The last section really packed a punch and I really need to know where this is going!

I'm having a hard time finishing the audiobook because of the quality of the audiobook on the NetGalley app. The narrator sounds like a robot unless it's at 1.25 speed and that is way too slow of a speed for me.

I was incredibly excited to get to listen to this a few days early, but at this rate, I'd rather wait until the 25th and enjoy the audiobook experience and not have the sound quality pull me out of the story.

I will be reading and rating this book once it's released. I'd hate to give a review right now based on how little I made it into the book.

***4.0 Stars***

Overall,

This was an interesting follow up to the Atlas Six, which I really loved. Honestly I think I am going to need to reread this book again to fully understand everything that happened. I received and audiobook ARC so I could not tab, or easily go back and reread something. We dive right back into the initiation for the five remaining students. All of them are dealing with the impact of the finale of the last book differently. The initiation was not what I expected, but it did set up a lot of the character arcs for the book. This book is layers on layers of mystery and there are some aspects of the science/magic that I had a little trouble following. I enjoyed this book overall and cant wait for the next book in this series to come out because THAT ending! Hopefully we can finally get some answers!

Audio- The same narrators that did the first book are back. I love that they chose to have the six different narrators giving a real different voice for each character. I would definitely recommend this audiobook.

Recommendation
If you enjoyed the Atlas Six or want to dive in to some dark academia then I would recommend this book to you.

***I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley, Macmillian Audio, in exchange for my free and honest review. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book early #TheAtlasParadox #NetGalley ***

I will also be posting on my Instagram (Aglittercobra_Reads) and TikTok (Aglittercobra_Reads) Once this book has released.