4.25🌟

Ok this was so good!! I read this in less than 24 hours and could read 100 pages more. It was full of drama and it was fast paced. There’s something about Elin’s books that pull me in immediately and make me want to keep reading.

The characters in this book are interesting and messy. I kept wanting to learn more about each of them. The drama had me hooked too.

I do feel like there were a couple things that were left unexplained which left me wanting more. I’m so curious!! I need there to be a second book.

I think this would make an entertaining fall read.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company and Netgalley for the arc!

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for access to this title. I am auto-approved by this publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.

I was looking forward to this mother-daughter collaboration set at a prestigious boarding school filled with its secrets, but I just couldn't get into it. A shame, really, because usually anything with Elin Hilderbrand's touch keeps me flipping the pages. There are a lot of characters, but I do believe it was the wordiness that sidelined my reading pleasure. I am not a person who uses the one-star rating very often, but this one left me feeling unfilled.


The ending did make me wonder if Elin and her daughter, Shelby, are planning to revisit some of these characters in the future.




Expected Publication Date 16/09/25
Goodreads Review Date 13/09/25

Thank you to Little, Brown and Company and NetGalley for the ARC! This book was just as good as I would expect it to be! The setting was perfect, and I love the drama. =]

Fans of Elin Hilderbrand will be thrilled to know she hasn’t completely retired, her first collaboration with her daughter Shelby Cunningham continues in a fun new story.

Hilderbrand and Cunningham have expertly captured the boarding school setting with descriptive details to transport the reader to Tiffin Academy. Tiffin has dramatically jumped in the Boarding School rankings from number 19 to number 2 and everyone is astounded at such a rapid rise. To add to the normal high school drama, a new app ZipZap has invaded campus spreading malicious gossip about staff and students. The characters in the novel are written with such detail they come to life on the page. An eclectic mix of students includes an international influencer, a heartthrob with a father bankrolling the entire school and a transfer student determined not to fit in. The staff provides an equally intriguing bunch, the new young history teacher with a secret, a romance between professors and a principal trying to solve the mystery of the academy’s sudden rise in the rankings.

Such an entertaining, fresh novel full of interesting characters and juicy gossip with a youthful slant indicative of the new collaboration. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Let me start by saying: Elin Hilderbrand can do no wrong in my book. I’ve read - no, devoured - everything she’s ever written, and The Academy was no exception.

Set over the course of a year at an elite New England boarding school, this novel had everything I could have hoped for. The shifting POVs between students and teachers brought the story to life, weaving together threads of romance, scandal, and family dynamics that felt both heartbreaking and utterly compelling.

One of the things I loved most was how the endings were tied up. They were neat, but not predictable, which kept me fully invested until the very last page. I truly couldn’t read this book fast enough, and now I’m recommending it to everyone I know. I found myself wishing and hoping that there is a round two of The Academy so I can continue reading about these characters.

This is one I can’t wait to own a physical copy of and add proudly to my personal library. Hilderbrand continues to prove why she’s a master of her craft.

This was a great read -- and perfect for fall! I felt like I was Tiffin with these students -- the drama, the teenage angst, the poor decisions. It was salacious, fast paced and I couldn't put it down!

Wow--I was blown away by this book.. Well done, Elin and Shelby! I have an adjacent connection to the boarding school world and really felt like the authors had their fingers on the pulse of what happens behind closed doors. I'm a long-time Elin fan and a new fan of Shelby and I'm so looking forward to seeing what they write next!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

Well this was just so much fun!! Binged this on a plane ride. If you like Gossip Girl, anything about prep school, and Elin Hilderbrand, you’ll love this. It’s juicy and scandalous but still has depth. So cool that Elin co-wrote this with her daughter too :)

Thanks to Netgalley for the gifted ARC!

This is the story of a drama filled year at the Tiffin Academy, a New England board school. A new app, ZipZap, suddenly appears on the student's phone with blind messages. It seems as if everyone has something to hide and now things are coming out in the open. Bonds are forged, secrets revealed and lives are changed.

This was a fun read reminiscent of Gossip Girl or a non-magical Wednesday. Follow along the stories of both the students and faculty of the number two ranked boarding school in the country. Not sure if this is meant to be a series, but I would continue on if so. A fun mix of characters and perspectives in this story.

I enjoy Hildebrand's writing style and will be missing her Nantucket books - but this is a great new addition! It could almost read as a YA novel, but a very well-done one.
The tricks are familiar - speaking for the whole student body as she used to speak for the people of Nantucket in some chapters, to show the public opinion or general events; introducing a cast of privileged but highly likable characters, and creating some low to middle level drama that mostly resolves by the end of the book.
I am too old to know if the way kids speak in the book is authentic enough, but it did not rub me the wrong way whatsoever - I thought both authors did a great job creating the atmosphere of the private school.
The way the novel ended clearly points to a possibility of future installations, and I look forward to reading them.

Overall, a cute, easy read - exactly what you would expect from Hilderbrand.

Thank you, NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company, for providing an early reader's copy in exchange for my honest review. The book is out on September 16.

I was so excited to dive into The Academy, especially knowing Elin Hilderbrand co-wrote this one with her daughter—it gave the story such a fun, fresh energy. The book is everything I love about an Elin read: glossy, gossipy, full of secrets and drama, and impossible to put down.

Charley quickly became my favorite character—sharp, layered, and so easy to root for. The setting and ensemble cast made the whole book feel like being dropped right into a world of juicy whispers and shifting alliances.

That said, not every storyline wrapped up neatly. A few plots felt like they were left hanging, which makes me really hope this is the first in a series. There’s so much more to explore with these characters, and I’d happily follow them into another installment.

If you love fast-paced, character-driven stories with plenty of gossip and intrigue, this one delivers—and fingers crossed for a sequel!

am a huge fan of Elin Hildebrand and was crestfallen when she announced that she was retiring from her Nantucket novels. I am so happy that she wrote a new type of book with her daughter, Shelby Cunningham. The Academy is set in a boarding school and I really enjoyed the interaction between the students and the staff. It was set in a New England town and the FMC was a book lover's dream. I certainly hope that there is a sequel to this novel!

Synopsis:
It’s move-in day at Tiffin Academy and amidst the happy chaos of friends reuniting, selfies uploading, and cars unloading, shocking news America Today just ranked Tiffin the number two boarding school in the country. It’s a seventeen-spot jump – was there a typo? The dorms need to be renovated, their sports teams always come in last place, and let’s just say Tiffin students are known for being more social than academic. On the other hand, the campus is exquisite, class sizes are small, and the dining hall is run by an acclaimed New York chef. And they do have fun—lots of parties and school dances, and a piano man plays in the student lounge every Monday night.

But just as the rarefied air of Tiffin is suffused with self-congratulation, the wheels begin to turn – and then they fall off the bus. One by one, scandalous blind items begin to appear on phones across Tiffin’s campus, thanks to a new app called ZipZap, and nobody is safe. From Davi Banerjee, international influencer and resident queen bee, to Simone Bergeron, the new and surprisingly young history teacher, to Charley Hicks, a transfer student who seems determined not to fit in, to Cordelia Spooner, Admissions Director with a somewhat idiosyncratic methodology – everyone has something to hide.

As if high school wasn’t dramatic enough...As the year unfolds, bonds are forged and broken, secrets are shared and exposed, and the lives of Tiffin’s students and staff are changed forever. The Academy is Elin Hilderbrand’s fresh, buzzy take on boarding school life, and a thrilling new direction from one of America’s most satisfying and popular storytellers.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company for the advanced digital copy of the book that will be published on September 16, 2025.

Like many, I was fumbling around early on this summer going through Elin withdrawals. She’s been such a staple in my kick-off to summer reading and I was not okay. But, I was lucky enough to get my hands on her latest novel co-written with her daughter, and it did not disappoint.

When Tiffin Academy skyrockets seventeen spots to land as America Today’s second ranked boarding school in the country, celebrations ensue. But not for long…Tiffin is turned on its head when the other boarding schools start calling for an investigation regarding the mysterious jump in ranks, and a new app called ZipZap brings scandalous blind items on phones across the New England campus. As if high school wasn’t dramatic enough, throw in an international influencer as a student; a new, young history teacher; a transfer student determined to not fit in; and an untouchable heartthrob whose dad just may be bankrolling the Academy, and you have yourself a deliciously fresh take on boarding school life from the queen of storytelling.

Elin and Shelby captured the New England boarding school vibes so well. It felt like many of Elin’s other novels filled with interesting characters and juicy gossip only she can tell, but with such a fun, fresh and youthful take. I found myself getting an education along the way too (thanks, Shelby!), and am all in for the next installment. This will be the perfect bookend for summer readers gearing up for the new school season!

Thank you to Elin Hilderbrand, Shelby Cunningham, Little Brown and Co. and NetGalley for a digital copy of the book for an honest review.

It’s a new year at Tiffin Academy after a spring that brought grief. When the news come out that America Today ranked Tiffin number 2 however, the excitement is real. A jump of 17 spots is huge and nobody can figure out what happened. As everyone celebrates though, an app appears that is ready to spill all of Tiffins secrets. Suddenly friendships are torn apart, and relationships crumble from tid bits shared.

This was exactly the book I needed to read as we went back to school! My brain is not ready for anything serious, and this was brain candy at its best. I didn’t love the definitions of every big word used, but it did match the vibes of the book so while I found it annoying, I understood it as well. This book was so different from Elins normal Nantucket novels, but I enjoyed it just as much! Plus, how cool that she co-wrote it with her daughter? I loved the friendships and relationships throughout the book, and the way it ended was so perfect. I did truly hate Simone, but I think we are kind of supposed to! If you are looking for an Elin fix thats a bit different, look no further!

Thank you to @littlebrown for my gifted copy of this book!

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of Elin and her daughter's first novel together, " The Academy". I am a sucker for anything boarding school, and as I have mentioned before I love rich people behaving badly. This book focuses on Tiffin Academy. a prestigious boarding school for rich children with lofty Ivy League dreams. We follow a few students closely, my favorite being East who I envisioned as Jacob Elordi, as well as the headmaster and some staff members who are all hiding a secret. We see the parallels between students and staff where we are all insecure indiviuals who are all hiding something and yearn to be liked by our peers regardless of our age. I would read directions that were written by Elin( she is one of my favorites and her descriptions of locations are always exquisite) and I loved this book. It was the perfect book to read for the start of the school year as we quickly enter fall.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance ecopy of this title. This is a book co-written by Elin Hilderbrand and her daughter, Shelby Cunningham. It focuses on a mediocre Prep School (that has risen in the ranks, surprisingly), and is told from the point of view of several of the students and staff. It is an entertaining read, and Cunningham shows promise as a writer. Hilderbrand's contributions are evident in the annoying (to me) first person plural point of view she routinely uses, and the brand name dropping, which I always find annoying. The plot is a good one, with only two holes: we never know what is in an email from a student who committed suicide, and we never find out the object of a star football players crush. It was great to get off Nantucket with this story!

TL;DR: it's a departure from her glossy beach reads, but Hilderbrand's latest will still win over fans, old and new. a multi-POV story about the students and teachers at an elite private school, the book has all the trademarks of a classic Hildrebrand book: soap, drama, romance, highly-descriptive scenes of parties and dinners and events. It's like if Hilderbrand did her version of THE OC. I liked it. a lot.

NetGalley

Like many others, I was saddened to hear when Elon Hilderbrand was retiring from writing her classic summer beach novels. Then when I heard she co wrote a book with her daughter Shelby Cunningham called the academy, I knew I had to give it a try!

The academy is different then the classic Nantucket romance since it takes place at a boarding high school. The story follows different students and staff from the school with the trial and tribulations that goes on throughout the school year. As with all high schools, things become dramatic and secrets are shared.

I read this at the perfect time as I am about to head back to another school year as a high school guidance counselor. Going into this I thought it would be more young adult, however this novel was very juicy and not YA material. I connected with a lot of the issues brought up in the story as my high school has some of the same. Although I miss the beach scenery, it was fun to follow a new group of characters in a new location. 4✨

I loved this new book from Elin Hilderbrand and her daughter Shelby Cunningham. The Academy takes you into the world of an elite private boarding school, where everyone is keeping a secret! The story starts with the head of school greeting children and their families on the first day of school and follows staff and students as the year progresses. Much like Hilderbrand’s beloved Nantucket novels, The Academy hosts a wide variety of lovable characters (and characters you love to hate!) and is interfused with chapters in the collective voice of Tiffin Academy, which is absolutely charming.

While some of the plot lines were a little far fetched, the antics of students and staff overall hit the spot for a fun cozy fall read. This is a four star read for me and I’m crossing my fingers we get another year at Tiffin to follow these characters (and find out more about Dub’s secret)!

Thank you to Net Galley and Little Brown Publishing for the ARC of this book. All opinions my own!