Arcana Academy: A Whirlwind of Magic and Mystery (4/5 Stars)

Elise Kova's Arcana Academy is a fun, fast-paced read that throws readers headfirst into a world of elemental magic and hidden dangers. The story follows a group of gifted teens as they navigate the treacherous halls of Arcana Academy, a place where mastering your abilities is crucial for survival. Kova excels at creating a compelling protagonist in the form of a newcomer who's thrust into a world she doesn't understand, forcing her to quickly adapt and learn the ropes. The supporting characters are equally engaging, each with their own unique personalities and magical talents, making for a dynamic and interesting ensemble cast.

The plot is a rollercoaster of twists and turns, keeping you guessing at every corner. The mysteries surrounding the academy and the source of the characters' powers are intriguing, slowly unraveling to reveal a larger, more complex world. The action sequences are well-written and exciting, showcasing the characters' developing magical skills and keeping the pace brisk. The romantic subplot adds a layer of sweetness and tension, though it sometimes takes a backseat to the main plot.

What truly shines in Arcana Academy is Kova's world-building. The magic system is well-defined and creative, and the descriptions of the academy itself are vivid and immersive. You can easily picture yourself walking the hallowed halls and experiencing the thrill of learning alongside the students.

However, the book isn't without its flaws. At times, the pacing feels a little too quick, leaving some plot points feeling slightly underdeveloped. While the characters are likeable, some of their motivations could have been explored in more depth. Additionally, some of the dialogue occasionally felt a bit clichéd.

Despite these minor shortcomings, Arcana Academy is an enjoyable and captivating read for fans of YA fantasy. It's a perfect blend of magic, mystery, and action, with a touch of romance thrown in for good measure. If you're looking for a book that will transport you to a world of wonder and keep you on the edge of your seat, then Arcana Academy is definitely worth checking out. I'm eagerly anticipating the next installment in the series to see where Kova takes these characters and their magical journey next.

Arcana Academy by Elise Kova is a masterpiece! I loved everything about this book. Such a rich story. The characters are fantastic and the storyline is immaculate.

Arcana Academy is the first book in Elise Kova’s new series, and it’s a wild ride from start to finish. In a world where magic is wielded through tarot cards, we meet Clara Graysword, an illegal arcanist who’s been locked up for a year. Enter Kaelis, the second prince and headmaster of Arcana Academy, who helps her escape in exchange for her help. Their deal? Clara pretends to be in love with him, a fake engagement to help him secure the ultimate card—the World, which can rewrite reality. In return, he promises to keep her out of prison.

The magic system here is hands down one of the coolest I’ve read. Tarot cards as the basis for magical powers is fresh and unique, and Kova does a fantastic job of making it easy to follow while still feeling deep and complex. The world-building is rich and immersive, pulling you into a setting that’s dark, magical, and full of secrets. There’s so much going on with the system, and I was honestly hooked by how it all worked.
As for the romance—it’s definitely slow burn with a good dose of tension and angst. The forced engagement trope between Clara and Kaelis is great for adding a bit of heat and suspense, but it’s not the main focus. Their dynamic keeps you on your toes, especially as the book progresses and more layers are peeled back. It’s clear they have chemistry, but the romance takes its time to develop, which might leave some readers wanting more one-on-one moments between them. That said, the chemistry is there, and you can feel the potential for what’s to come in the later books.

If you’re into dark academia, slow-burn romance, and a unique magic system, Arcana Academy is a must-read. While it might not fully deliver on the romance right away, the book sets up a ton of potential for future books. It’s got twists, turns, and enough mystery to keep you hooked, and I’m already counting down the days for the next one

Firstly, a huge thank you to Elise, Del Rey and NetGalley for providing me with an opportunity to read this eARC of Arcana Academy.

Elise does it again! Wow. Blown away by this book. I loved the unique magic system and how intricately detailed it is. From the different houses to the spells cast by different cards. It was wonderfully done and so immersive.

Clara, our FMC, is fantastic. She’s brave and loyal, with a fiery and independent side that’s borne out of what she’s had to face in her life. I loved her character arc and following her story as she has to try and toe the line in the academy, hiding her true identity and playing a dangerous game of politics and magic that could cost her life.

Kaelis is a wonderfully complex MMC, who at first is arrogant and cold, but then we start to get some glimpses behind the curtain. I actually feel like he’s the character I understand the least, which I think is intentional. He’s playing the game for so long, I’m not sure he knows how to be truly vulnerable and honest anymore. I’m really looking forward to exploring his character more in future books and uncovering his true motives. I have some theories but keeping my review spoiler free!

Arcana Academy is brilliant. I couldn’t put it down - a well thought out magic system combined with an academic setting, beautiful and intricate world building, politics and court intrigue, romance…I loved it. A superb start to a new fantasy series and I can’t wait for the next book!

HELLO!! This book is incredible. It hits a lot of my favorite dark academia tropes, without feeling too much. I was hooked from the first chapter and found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next. I read this in one day, which is a testament to how much I was enjoying it.

Very few fantasy books really draw me in.

As a fan of the genre I feel like i've seen every faerie, goblin, dragon, wizard, witch, magical realm iterated 100+ times. So when I picked up Arcana Academy it was as a fan of genre, but with the thought that I may like the book but it would feel like every other story I've read before in some way. While it echo other novels (see Celaena Saradothein (aka Aelin) being plucked from the mines and falling for the prince whose crown damned her to the very place, or Harry Potter with it's Wizarding School & it's houses) the magic system being based in the tarot and being locked to an elite class was immediately fascinating.

Clara, our prisoner turned princes betrothed has a lot of history to hide. Why she was inking cards illegally, what her real name was, who her sister is, who her mother is, and that she is a recently escaped prisoner. As she navigates the treacherous halls of Arcana Academy she figures out who it's safe to trust versus who is most likely to stab her in the back. She also gets to figure out what to do with her devious savior turned future-husband Prince Kaelis. Clara's story was filled with enough intrigue, romance, murder, intense fight sequences, and equally intense spicy scenes to keep me wanting more.

I'll happily re-enter Arcana academy again, as long as I don't have to give up my fate to do so.

I absolutely love everything Elise Kova writes, and Arcana Academy is no exception! This first installment in the Arcana Academy Trilogy is a dazzling mix of romantasy, intrigue, and dark academia that grabbed me from the very first sentence!

We follow the MFC, Clara, through an incredible journey—from being imprisoned in the dreaded Halazar for illegally inking tarot cards (yes, you read that right!) to striking a risky deal with none other than Prince Kaelis. In the vibrant Oricalis Kingdom, only Arcanists who graduate from the prestigious Academy can serve the king and noble houses, while rebels or failures face a dire fate. When Prince Kaelis—second of three royal brothers and the Academy’s headmaster—suddenly appears at Clara’s cell, everything changes, setting the stage for secrets, political drama, and magical trials galore!

The world-building in this book is absolutely brilliant! Kova’s unique tarot card magic system—with its major and minor cards for inking, wielding, and reading—is as innovative as it is enchanting. Plus, the Academy’s four houses—Wands, Coins, Cups, and Swords—give off those delightful Harry Potter vibes while standing out in their own unique way. Even with a big cast of characters, each one sparkles with its own personality, making it super easy to follow along!

One of the absolute highlights is the high-stakes Academy trials. Clara’s intense contests to prove her inking, reading, and wielding skills kept me totally on the edge of my seat! Every twist, every turn showcased her determination and the wonderfully intricate magic system Kova has created. And let’s not forget the sizzling enemies-to-lovers romance between Clara and the moody, magnetic Prince Kaelis! Their will-they-won’t-they dynamic is so captivating and full of heart—every chapter left me eagerly awaiting their next move!

Sure, there were a couple of minor bumps (a slightly jarring word choice here and a final section that could’ve been snappier), but they hardly slowed down the whirlwind of fun and excitement! The dark academia vibe, the charming magical lore, and even a few delightfully steamy scenes (a fun first for Kova!) all combine to create a reading experience that is as immersive as it is irresistible.

In short, Arcana Academy is an absolute treat—a sparkling start to an unforgettable trilogy. Whether you’re into intricate world-building, a clever magic system, or a romance that’s both fierce and tender, this book has it all! I’m practically bouncing with excitement for the next installment, and I can’t wait to dive back into this magical world. Thank you, Elise Kova and Kay from Del rey books, for this enchanting adventure—I’m totally obsessed!

Review: 3 ★

Wow ok! Here we go:
As much as I did really like this book, I did not LOVE it and spent a good majority of the story confused. There are a lot (!!!) or characters and cards/powers to remember. I was really impressed by how unique this world was and it has a magic system unlike anything I have ever read before. If tarot cards interest you - this is def the book for you. I think it is a great option for a dark academia/ fantasy read! The romance was pretty good too!

Something to keep in mind also: it is quite a loooong book (or at least it felt that way). I felt like I was chugging along and making great progress and yet…it had only been 10%. And that is not a negative thing, but did make the book feel like it was dragging on in my opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a ARC!

I really enjoyed this title. The pacing was great and you get sucked into the fantasy world. The plot concept is interesting and I enjoyed where the story went.

Wow. Just wow. This will be a top fantasy of 2025. Do not sleep on this book. Elise Kova has created a really interesting world here surrounding tarot magic. Its unique system drew me in and I savored every page. The pacing is on point and there were a lot of characters to connect with. I really enjoyed the slow burn. I think this book will be BIG when it drops and I personally cant wait to have a copy for my shelf. If youre a Elise Kova fan def grab this one. Thank you to Netgalley and Delrey for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Arcana Academy by Elise Kova is a fantasy inspired by tarot card magic. I loved the uniqueness of this fantasy world, but I think its complex nature sometimes gets in its own way. I would’ve benefited from having a glossary or index at the front of the book, because I found the magic system to super complicated and hard to follow. However, I loved the concept of it.

As for the characters, Clara was definitely a flawed FMC, she made certain choices. I personally did not like but I also think that makes her a very three-dimensional character, one who is interesting to read about and see what she does next.

The romance was OK for me, not my favorite to watch develop, but still fun. And I thought the ending happened rather abruptly and without a lot of answers, just more questions.

Overall, I think this is a great fantasy book, but the execution was a little sloppy for my personal taste. I will probably continue the series, and since this is an ARC, things could change before the final release!

We follow Clara through the world of magic by tarot cards which is controlled by the crown and the clans as she tries to learn the truth about what happened to her family.

This was well written, well paced, interesting and just the right length as well as the killer ending.

This is going to be huge on release. An absolutely incredible fantasy book.

This was so good! The characters, the storyline, the relationships, the school. Just all of it. I have way more questions than I have answers and I'm dying for the next book but this was amazing and I loved it. 100% would recommend.

I think this has an incredible premise and fantastic writing but ultimately the idea of tarot card magic wasn't something I resonated with and could not get further than a few chapters in

I would say when I pick up a romantasy, I enjoy it maybe 25% of the time. Sometimes they're fun and stupid, and this one was just straight up FUN. I loved the academy setting and the romance was predictable but also delightful. I was so hooked on seeing what was going to happen, and even though Clara IS that classic romantasy MC who's so badass and damaged, she managed to do it very well.

The plot twist at the end had me GAGGED!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. I loved this book. I really loved the magic system based on tarot. It is very refreshing and new. I also loved the main character who is strong and smart. If you enjoy books with fake relationship, magic, and romance, then you must read this book.

3 ☆
Firstly, I'm so grateful to have been approved for this ARC - it's certainly on my list as an anticipated read for 2025.

I really, really wanted to love this book. But i'm afraid it just wasn't my up of tea. It had so many elements I was looking forward to as I adore fantasy, and enemies to lovers/arranged marriage tropes. I also think the main characters and the general premise really intriguing, alongside the idea of the magic/tarot system. I have no doubt that this book will be devoured by many.

However, I found it incredibly descriptive and not in the best way that resonated with me. It often felt as though you were figuring things out as you went along or the magic was explained along the way. But so much had to be explained with such description, to the point where I felt like I had to memorize every card/what it meant/the power and I just stopped having 'fun' or enjoying what I was reading.
I found it quite difficult to keep up with who each character was/what they contributed and felt like I should have taken notes to have appreciated the pay off.

Also I couldn't wrap my head around the 'headmaster' being around the age of 20, and students not being far off this age. I may be being a little picky with a few plot elements there.

Its certainly worth a read if you also love the tropes mentioned above, as many others seem to really have loved this book. I'm just gutted it didn't end up being a 5 star read for me personally.

More like 3.5. I've read quite a few of Elsie Kova's books and I had pretty high expectations here. I think the premise was strong and interesting and the characters were pretty easy to root for if frustrating at times. In my opinion, though, there were a few issues with the pacing and propulsion of the plot.

I felt like we weren't told enough about the magic system or world up front and way too much spelling out of the events unfolding on page by Clara's internal monologue. Like I still don't actually know what it means to "ink a card" obviously it means draw out the card you want, but are there precise designs everyone memorizes and follow exactly? Is it more individual, just what calls to the inker on instinct? Can anyone develop skills to do so? It was hinted up front that a more intricate card is more powerful, whats the extent of that? Yet we have pages and pages of Clara over explaining the meaning of events, choices, gestures, words, interactions etc that are happening on page in front of the reader, where I think would be more effective to just trust the reader to infer. Also the book did a good job laying out the injustices the protagonist was fighting against, but they felt arbitrary, why is the world shaped this way, who benefits fro the current landscape and how do they hold power etc.

I also thought we did not spend enough time with Clara and Kaelis in the same scenes to account for the budding love by the end of the book. Don't get me wrong, I love a slow burn, but if we're supposed to infer a love match in the space of the book, they can't go from sworn enemies to in love having interacted mayyyyybe 10 times. Many of the interactions being very brief. Also why couldn't they be aged up? An 18 year old started as the headmaster of an elite academy where the youngest student is 20? An unhoused kid of 17/18 year olf is a high standing member of an underground society and a master forger or whatever? It starts to be a tiny bit silly. I know they were 21/23 during the event of the book, but it made their background timelines ridiculous.

Finally for some kind of prodigy Clara is a little obtuse and incredibly impulsive. I found too much of the plot was propelled forward by her simply doing the first thing that popped into her head. It's frustrating as the reader.

For all that, Clara was witty and interesting, the plot was relatively unique (though I'm seeing a lot more tarot these days), Kaelis was a compelling love interest, and I had a fun time. I'm being picky I guess because I feel like it could easily be a 4.5-5 star read with some edits!

I was provided this arc from NetGalley. From the description alone I was enthralled I knew I needed to read this and I needed to do it immediately.

in starting this book, I was intrigued. Clara’s story of being locked up and wanting to escape and reunite with her sister all the while being forced into a deal in which she has a fake engagement with her enemy- one that is the reason for why she is in prison today and suffering?, sign me up.

This book had all of the makings to be so amazing and for me to love it however, I don’t know if I am not an advanced fantasy reader yet or what, but I did not love this as much as I thought I would and it makes me very sad.

Was the overall story good? yes. do I want to continue even reading the series? Sure. am I going to be jumping to read the second book straight away? not really. I found myself fighting the urge to skim pages to skip over scenes because I felt simply bored by a lot of it. I also feel like this did not need to be as long as it was.

there were so many spells and cards and things to remember, and it felt overwhelming to remember all of these things especially since Clara, the main character, already knew a lot of these things, and she would only add to more knowledge to the things mentioned in passing that readers learned. It just got very complicated to remember, and it took me away from enjoying the story.

there was also so many different characters that would be introduced in the exact same scene and I think it should’ve been spaced out a little bit to make it easier to grasp. this could just be because I am not an advanced fantasy reader and I didn’t realize this was an advanced fantasy book, but I just didn’t find this as easy to read as other fantasies .

Overall, I would recommend for people to read this book. It’s very unique and it is fun. however if you’re looking for something very easy and you don’t have to think a lot to follow. This is not the book for you.

I think the hardest thing for me was I don’t think there was enough scenes with both Clara and Kaelis learning about each other or lingering touches or glances for me to believe that they were falling in love with each other which made it hard to root for them. Maybe this is the point of this first book, but i just needed something to hold onto in this book to make me want to keep going and root for them.

I wish there was more scenes of Clara and Kaelis learning about each other’s pasts to make the reader believe that they care for one another which would help it be a bit more believable. there wasn’t enough tension despite the circumstances of them being “enemies”

i really do love how unique the magic system is, but there are so many moving parts in the book that it makes it hard to follow for my lil old brain. overall i rate this 3 stars.

Fabulous. Really nice, complex magic system, I loved the depth of the female protagonist and her multifaceted story. Huge cliffhanger at the end which keeps me wanting to read the next of the series. It’s dark but in a non creepy way, which I really enjoyed

Thank you, Del Ray and Netgalley, for the eARC!

Rating - 5/5 🌟

First, Elise Kova book, and it won't be the last! HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book!

This world and magic system is based on tarot cards, and it is absolutely stunning, and I didn't want it to end at all!

The MFC is such a strong-willed badass character who is just that! The MMC is just dreamy, and you can't help but swoon!

I need book two now!!