In a time of the Afterworld, when Heaven and Hell have come to Earth, Wen White has taken to dealing Angelescence to survive and to buy out freedom from the demon who owns them, for her and her friend Sara. With execution coming up, Wen decides to up her ante, but it only stands to get her arrested by Godric, the most powerful Nephilim in history, Heaven’s most ruthless soldier and assassin. After facing trial, Wen's sentence is Conscription to Celestial Academy - with Godric as her tethered mentor. Both hate the outcome, but it is one that it will change both their lives forever—and possibly the fate of existence itself.

Celestial Academy: Essence HAD. IT. ALL!
If you've ever loved the Fallen series by Lauren Kate, Crescent City by Sarah J. Mass, Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead or The Bonds That Tie series by J. Bree - this would be the perfect read for you.
Welcoming a new world with the Afterworld was amazing. The beginning really took it's time shaping and carving out its own new place in our places we would love to see. Our MC's are created to be the perfect enemies to lovers, with a slow burning relationship that left me frustrated for both of them, but chasing down the next interaction with so much anticipation. Olivia Pharos has done a fantastic job with her debut novel and I see her jumping up very quickly into my favourite author slots. This one releases December 15th, 2022. Make sure you add it to your list, this is one you don't want to miss.

What could persuade you more?
✔️ Slow burn romance
✔️ Enemies to lovers
✔️ Forced proximity
✔️ Found powers
✔️ Kickass FMC - who doesn't take crap from anyone!

Thank you so much to Olivia Pharos and Seventh Wonder Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

All those reviewers who said this was a phenomenal book...they're SO right. I adored Wen, the main character and our narrator, and the slow burn enemies-to-lovers between her and that moody, lethal, gorgeous hunk of nephilim Godric is killing me. The writing flows like whitwater, the pace is break-neck yet satisfying and detailed, the chapter endings literally force you to read on, and that EPILOGUE from Godric's POV? A KILLER!

It actually distresses me that this was an ARC and I can't click pre-order a hundred times on the next book. I'm not happy right now knowing I have to wait MONTHS for the upcoming installment, but SO happy I discovered this gem of a series, and my new auto-buy author.

Easily the best and most addictive book I've read in years. I was caught from the very first sentence (I mean.."The angel in the three-piece suit"?" How could I not read on after that?
Pharos has a way with words, of pacing, or ending chapters, that makes it impossible to put down the book. And I didn't, until I gobbled it up (unless you count the kindle falling on my face when I lost the fight to keep my eyes open so I could read just one more chapter...)

Wen, our heroine, is everything. Witty, brave, loyal and and incredible mind to be into and to take us through the series (though I heard will be getting multiple POVs in the next books) Godric is definitely my new book boyfriend. He's everything, too. Grumpy, moody, deadly, sexy as...Heaven, and his slowwwwww burn with WEn is killing me. I can't wait for book two to see the explosive promise of their incendiary chemistry ignite!

All the other characters are unique and vivid, and I can't wait to explore their dynamics and histories further as the story unfolds over the next four books.

Now, the only problem is I have months to wait for the next book, and I honestly don't know how to wait for it. I have already reread this book, and it gets even better the second time. I foresee memorizing it by the time NEXUS comes out.

All I want to say now, hurry and pre-order this. And Pharos, hurry and GET THAT SECOND BOOK OUT!

Thank you net galley for an arc of this story.
Heaven and Hell brought their battle to Earth and now angels and demons live among humans. Wen is an orphan and was sold into demon slavery. To escape she will need to buy out the contract for her and her best friend and turns to selling a self made drug created from Angel’s Essence. She is caught by Godric a soldier of heaven and sentenced to attend Celestial Academy. Godric is tasked with tutoring her in mastering her abilities but their relationship is full of intense emotions they are trying to understand.
To be honest I found this a little difficult to read at times. It took a while to get into the story, then I was immersed and then lost focus again towards the end.
Wen has a lot of internal monologue that I found a distraction at times and slowed the story down. I would have liked more story at the academy and some more world building.
I do like the premise of this book that Angels and Demons live among us and that although there is a truce this is likely temporary. Unfortunately I’m not sure I would continue this series as I didn’t feel connected to the main character.

Celestial Academy kept me guessing what was going to happen next. I enjoyed the female lead's banter and the male lead's background was very interesting to me. Fantasy and dystopian clash in a good way here.
I'm excited and look forward to read what happens in the future.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read Celestial Academy: Essence by Olivia Pharos before publishing.
All thoughts spoken are my own.

GR rating: 3 ⭐'s
My rating: 3 ⭐'s

Set after an Apocalyptic War, an orphan, Wen, is demon owned. A slave. Wen is determined to buy her and her best friend Sarah out of their service, and does so by peddling a new drug in the sly. Angel Essence. During a routine deal, Wen is set up and caught by Godric, an immensely powerful angel.
Wen is served her punishment. She is sent to attend Celestial Academy while leashed to the bane of her existence, Godric. Now she must navigate not only him, but classes, snarky roommates, and a mysterious growing power within her. But another apocalypse is brewing, an internal war is started, and now Wen is at the center of it all...

I wanted to like this book. I really did. The description, it's comps, I was excited. But it took me over a week to get into it. I just wasn't grabbed from the start. Eventually I did get more interested, but it wasn't what I had hoped it would be.

The story is told from the POV of the MC, Wen. It felt like it was an internal monologue, and rambled. I would have loved to see more from her. I think the author had a lot of solid ideas but needed to maybe spend a bit more time getting everything clear and concise.

I would really like to have some better world building. To be shown, not told about everything going on. About Thom well. For me, this is a solid YA book. I don't not find that it fit in the MA category at all.

I think this book could really benefit from another round of edits/revisions to really buckle down on the story.

Releasing December 15th 2022

2.5 stars
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book is set in a post-apocalyptic future where angels and demons have reached a stalemate in their war and have both settled on earth.
It’s written from the perspective of the MC Wen, who is an indentured servant to one of the demons now on earth.
I found the writing extremely rambling and repetitive, it is basically one long internal monologue from the MCs POV, we don’t get much dialogue or even description of her surroundings.
The plot was reasonably interesting and I finished so I could find out what happens.

This novel is a slow-burn romance set in a fantasy realm where following an apocalyptic war, Heaven and Hell reside now reside on Earth and humans are at their mercy.

Meet Wen, our feisty, demon-owned slave who is determined to buy her (and her best friend Sarah’s) way out of servitude. To do this? She accidentally figures out how to peddle a new drug - essence of an angel. In getting caught, she is swept away to the world of angels and demons and leashed to a powerful (and of course handsome) angel. Godric and Wen are forced together. Despite the enemies to lovers trope being one of my least favourite, they pull it off - their initial disdain and hatred morphing slowly (painfully slowly!!) into something more. As Wen navigates the Celestial Academy, her roommates, her worries and fears, and figuring out relationships, we are immersed in a world of magic, power, and politics.

The descriptions of the world were beautiful and well done and transported me there immediately. The pace of the novel was fairly decent and it was definitely a binge-read (less than 24 hours). The characters were an interesting mix and I personally love when everyone feels a bit grey - nothing is ever truly black and white is it? And of course, we’re left with a delicious cliffhanger from Godric’s point of view that enters in additional mystery and intrigue and leaves me wanting more.

All of that said, there were a few things I had trouble with.
* As a demon-owned slave, Wen’s life is awful but we don’t get a lot of insight into what that means. What does her current life look like? I would have preferred to be shown rather than told.
* Her relationship with Sarah is precious to her but I don’t fully understand their relationship or bond. At times, it feels a bit controlling or jealous.
* While the characters have some clever banter, it was a bit immature with the excessive name-calling and bullying-like behaviour. It made Wen seem much younger and childish than I would have liked from the feisty and strong woman that I wanted her to be.
* Questions, questions, so many questions. Wen - please stop asking so many questions.

All that said, it was a fun read and I am curious about what comes next.

#CelestialAcademyEssence

Thank you to Netgalley and Seventh Wonder Press for an ARC of this book!

I’ll be honest - at first I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy this book. Wen, the main character, has a very abrasive personality. It’s understandable, due to her circumstances while growing up, but being in a character’s head that you don’t like that much can make reading the story itself less enjoyable.

I found the world building very interesting and can definitely see how fans of Crescent City and Zodiac Academy would like this book, as they are marketing it. That’s what pulled me in! It is an urban fantasy dealing with angels and demons, and all sorts of other supernatural beings.

I really enjoyed going deeper into the angel lore, with the archangels, nephilim, angels, seraphim, etc. The real world combined with the angels vs demon storyline was interesting to see as well.

While Wen continued to bother me throughout the whole story, I found that she became more tolerable the more she trained and came into herself. From the Divining on, I found myself more excited to read this book and find out what happens.

It is obvious the author is talented at writing and crafting a compelling story. By the end I became pretty invested and I’m interested to see where the story goes from here! The rating really came down to the character’s personality, which I’m sure a lot of people wouldn’t be affronted by, so I definitely recommend this story!

I read this based on reading fans of another series would make this their new book obsession in the description, and was not disappointed. It is not an understatement to say I could not put this book down and read every free minute I could. This is a forced proximity and slow burn fantasy romance that had enough tension between the characters to keep that part of the storyline relevant to the plot. This is definitely my new favorite post apocalypse book and can't wait for the rest of the series!

The FMC Wen is my type of person with her sarcasm and lack of filter. There is no doubt what she is thinking at anytime and all of those around her know exactly how she feels about the situation. While the MMC Godric quickly shot to the top of my book boyfriend list. Hello dark and broody angel with a bad attitude! He is attempting to protect Wen from everything but him, and possessive with just a peak at a soft inside under that hard outside.

This book started out slow, I wasn’t sure I would get into it. But having finished I can say I am impatiently waiting for the next book! This series is truly one I cannot anticipate, such a new story in a world unimagined before. I love it! For anyone starting and saying the world building is slow, just know it is WORTH IT to power through and get to the meat of the story. Amazing first book in a series, sets this world up for wonders.

All fantasy readers know that feeling when you read about a world so incredible that it seems to alter you in some way. When I finally finsihed Celestial Academy: Essence at 3 last night ( no doubt after binging it for 2 days straight) I realised this one did that to me. I picked it up because I like reading about angels and demons and the academy trope is one of my favourites but the story and plot is so unbelievingly brilliant it sucked me right in.

I adore Wen to the point of obsession, she's my baby. I love how vicious she is and can never hold her tongue even with the threat of death or 'fates worse than death' hanging over her. But what branded her character into my heart is that she came from nothing, no powers, no privilege and survived purely on grit, determination and will. And then she got conscripted into the Academy and she became something more. The cherry on top is that this wasn't any divine awakening that gave her muscles of steel overnight, she did all that on her own, with Godric at her side.

Speaking of Godric, that man is the epitome of perfection, I know I say that about every MMC I like but Death Jr (as dubbed by Wen herself) is something else. The sexual tension and slow burn between him and Wen was literally maddening. I haven't read a better enemies to lovers in a long time. Godric, insufferable and godawful (another of Wen's 'endearments') as he is, their interactions have never been of outright hatred. Olivia Pharos did an excellent job of building on mutual resentment that gave way to other emotions. To me, that's what makes or breaks enemies to lovers, there's a fine line to toe. You can't make the MCs be evil to eachother and then just bring them together with a badly written excuse as to why they acted that way, it doesn't work like that. Pharos, like I said, aced it.

I also really loved the Unitas, Jinny, Aela and even Cara. The one person I couldn't stand was Sarah. She didn't even fight and her friends were dying and would've done just that to protect you. It makes me furious at her that Wen and Jinny would worship the ground she walks on if they could. I tell you, I don't like this girl one bit.

Lorcan is cute I guess but I bet there's going to be a dark twist in his story and Gideon and Tory are okay too and they'll probably have more screentime in the next book.

Pharos is a genius with her debut book. Celestial Academy is going to take you on a vivacious, wild ride of heaven and hell, apocalypse and another impending apocalypse (?). I cannot wait to read the next book in the series, Nexus which I hear is going to be available for pre-order soon.

I'm also so happy that Net Galley provided me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Olivia, for providing me with a new series to look forward to!

Olivia Pharos has created a world that is complicated and rich. This world is so different from our own, that it took me a moment to orientate myself, but from the first word, I was unable to put it down.

With a backdrop of a post apocalyptic style world unlike you’ve ever read before, the hate-love-hate relationship with Wen and Godric has a perfect balance that leaves you never quite sure if you should be rooting for their relationship or not.

This book did not feel like a debut novel. It was very rich and full of complex characters. I can’t wait for the other four books in the series. Well done Olivia!

First of all I want to thank @ and @ for letting me read the arc of this book✨
🪐 If you love Crescent City and Zodiac
Academy and you like the angel/demon element this is the right book for you! As first of five books its very introductory and descriptive towards the World Building. In fact, I appreciated the attention that the author gave to the details and the descriptions precisely because the world she built is complex and full of new informations that are provided to us by hand. So trust me when I tell you that you will not struggle to find yourself in a post-apocalyptic land where angels, demons and humans live together!
🪐Personally I loved Wen: she is a sarcastic, impulsive, loyal and.. human. And for that very reason, in a world of supernatural creatures, her only weapons turn out to be his grit and smart mouth that often made me smile.
And then what about Godric.. he’s definitely grumpy, morally gray, a little villain and initially it's definitely bullying so how can I not love it?! 🪐The book is described as a slow burn enemies to lovers and what I found was just that! The two immediately have a crazy chemistry that between insults, fights and hidden smiles has done nothing but grow up making everything wonderfully frustrating.
✨ In conclusion, it is a fantastic start to a new saga for which I now have high expectations. In fact, the author managed to create a complex, smooth and never boring story with an ending that made me wish to have the follow-up already in my hands!

First of all, I want to thank Netgalley for this ARC!

So now, the book. This book, for me, was a bit rough to get into at first but I immediately fell in love with Wen and stuck it out. Boy am I glad that I did! Wen's honesty to herself, and her unfailing ability to be herself no matter the situation or the person are awe-inspiring and I love her sass. The romance element to me was a bit faster than I usually like, but I do like enemies-to-lovers which this would be classified as and I'm really hoping to get more insight into Jinny in the next book! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves enemies-to-lovers, fantasy, and supernatural. If you like the show, you'll like the book. It's not the same but it gave me those vibes.

Wen White has had it tough, found in a burning building when she was a child and then becoming demon-owned she doesn’t have much going for her. That all changes when she gets caught dealing angelescence, a drug only she can make and gets sent off to Celestial Academy for 4 years. Which is fine, because that means her best friend and roommate Sarah will be free and can pay off her own indenture to her demon, until Wen walks into her new dorm room and finds out she is also going to be a student, as well as her 3 other roommates that seem to hate her for no reason other than that she exists. To make matters worse she also has an insufferable tutor, the ridiculously attractive nephilim who was the one that caught her, and thinks she is nothing and an abomination. But despite all this, Wen can’t help but lust after him. Wen must find the answers to all the questions she is asking and try not to die in the process.

The book was a great introduction to the series. It does have zodiac academy and crescent city vibes to it. There was a lot of world building and plot set up going on in this book that will make for an interesting series.

The MC asks a LOT of question and has a lot of thoughts, which some might not be able to read but it is my personality and thought process down to a T so I really enjoyed it. She is a hilarious and witty and does not have a filter even when talking to beings that could kill her with a thought.

Overall this book was great, a lot of details to absorb but I will definitely be continuing this series and can’t wait for the second one!

I adored this book!!! 🥰 It’s a very slow burn romance and is fairly plot heavy with lots of world building, which I actually love in a book.

It’s a post apocalyptic adventure. Twenty years before the story begins, angels and demons battled on earth, killing one billion humans in the crossfire. Years later they signed a ceasefire of sorts, and an uneasy truce created a Cold War between the forces of Heaven and Hell. Angels and demons set up shop on Earth, and other supernatural races came out of the woodwork, leaving humans at the bottom of the totem pole.

Enter our heroine, Wen (short for Gwendolyn). Enslaved to a demon and determined to buy freedom for herself and her best friend, Wen discovers a gold mine; she can collect the essence of angels and turn it into a drug. One night her drug deal goes wrong, and Wen is arrested by a Nephilim, Godric (our broody, sexy main character). Taken before the archangels, Wen is sentenced to Celestial Academy to join the army of heaven, and Godric is tasked with finding out how she is able to collect the essence of angels.

My favorite part were the characters. Jinny was my favorite. I think I actually liked her more than Wen. I’m hoping the next books have chapters told from some of the other characters points of view. Almost all of the book was from Wen’s point of view, and her snark could feel like a little bit too much at times. It was usually funny, just too much of a good thing, I guess. One chapter at the end was from another character’s POV, which was really nice. Hopefully we’ll see more of that in future books.

Thank you for the ARC of this book! I’m really looking forward to the next one 😃

5 "Come back to me -- Always" stars!!


Celestial Academy is an absolute gem of a find, I don't think I can find the words that accurately describe how I'm feeling about it right now apart from maybe Phenomenal!!!!..... but even then it doesn't quite feel enough and its this authors DEBUT!!!!😱 .......absolutely blown away!!

Not long into the book I knew i was going to love Wen her whit is fantastic and exactly what I needed , her banter with Godric and Lorcan had me laughing out loud so much it was an absolute pleasure to read. Celestial Academy is a story of many layers ,just when you think you've got something figured out a "black hole" is thrown in the works and what you thought you knew goes straight out the window ,I love a story that can keep you on your toes with unpredictability and let me tell you this book has that and more!!

With twists and turns galore, a slow burn romance, lots of LOL moments and parts I thought I'd be needing to scream how cruel the author was 🤣 all together with an amazing set of characters to fall in love with, this will no doubt become your next obsession and I'm here for it alllllll...

"I am the maddening pebble in his shoe. The scraping splinter in his eye. And everything else that will turn his life into a wonderland of aggravation. Silver linings do exist."

Pharos has a fantastically unique way of writing that sets the scene brilliantly giving the reader everything they need to be able to visualise right down to the smallest detail, which in turn leads to a very very exciting and enjoyable read, and I really didn't want it to end.

This debut author has given us a beautifully written story that has all the promise of the start of something very special , I'm so excited for more, I cant wait to see what's going to happen next for everyone and everything in the Afterworld.

"I should have known that in my world, worse always comes. And if what I remember comes true, it just got infinitely more complicated"

And after THAT ending I'm going to be needing Nexus very soon!!!

100000% recommend

This is an absolutely phenomenal debut and the best first installment to a series I've read in years.
I found Wen hilarious, her snark just the right amount and so appropriate for a girl who has nothing but her "big mouth" in a world where she is the weakest being around. It really makes sense that she is mouthing off a lot, since it is her only shield and weapon, and boy, does she use both brilliantly.
Then comes the slow, slooooowwwww burn with Godric. Now THIS is slow burn done right. It is frustratingly spectacular, it has me on tenterhooks waiting for book 2 where I suspect their simmering, agonizing chemistry will ignite and explode. The world building is exquisite, and the characters are all unique and detailed and their interactions are unexpected, and their relationship arcs are going places I didn't expect at all. I expect there will be more twists and suprises to come, and I can't wait! I really am on the edge of my seat with eagerness for more of this wonderful world and characters.
Fully, wholeheartedly recommended.

Thank you to Netgalley and Seventh Wonder Press for the ARC kindle edition. All opinions are my own.

Celestial Academy Essence is a fantasy story where Angels and Demons seem to run the earth and humans. Wen is an owned human - meaning she's a slave to a demon. She is struggling out in the Afterworld, as it's called, and finds herself dealing drugs. Well, one specific drug that only she can make and it's a hot commodity. Things seem to be going fine until she meets Godric. And that's where I DNF'ed.

I really wanted to like this book. And I think the story has good potential. I feel like it needs to go back to editing though. This felt like reading a rough draft. It's very choppy and the prose doesn't flow well. I had to reread many parts because I kept tripping up on the writing. I made it about 20 percent and it was a struggle.
I do appreciate the world building effort, but again it was super easy to get lost with all the information coming at you in a very disjointed manner.
There also should be a balance of snark and banter but our main character Wen is nothing but snark and not in a clever way either. It wasn't enjoyable and I love witty banter usually.
In the end I just couldn't finish the book and was frustrated about it because I think the story has real potential.