Thank you to Netgally and the publisher for an e-arc of this title.

Hmm…I have no idea what to rate this. I liked it enough to finish it, and I was intrigued enough to finish it, but something about it…bothered me. There is nothing wrong with tropes, tropes are perfectly fine. At some points in this book it felt like there were exact scenes and moments from other books I’ve read. This dampened my enjoyment of it a bit.

Secondly the writing overall needed some more work. While I am aware this is an ARC, I hope the many spelling mistakes and other major grammatical errors are fixed when the book comes out. The other part of the writing that needed work was that it felt stilted at some points, and awkward. The dialogue too was a bit “ehh” at times.

What I did like about the book was the plotlines and the atmosphere the book created. It was touted as a cross between Harry Potter and Gossip Girl. I think it definitely was more like Zodiac Academy. It also had a bit of Hannaford Prep feeling with the type of bullying etc.

This was pretty much your typical dark bully romance with a dark academia theme along with witches. Dark witches. This is going to appeal to a lot of people.

I liked certain aspects of this, especially some of the push-pull of the bully romance, there were parts I wasn’t in love with, but overall I did enjoy it.

The side characters were nice too, they all had personalities if they felt a bit stereotypical. Overall, I’m still not sure how to rate it, so I’m going to stick to 3.5 stars, because it wasn’t a bad book by any means, and I enjoyed it. It kept me engrossed to the end and made me want to read more, but there were definitely parts I didn’t jive with.

I’m not a fan of bully romance or toxic friendships so this book was a tough one for me. I was disappointed in the underdeveloped world building and the rushed plot. The characters were one-dimensional and stilted and everyone was cruel but without purpose. This felt like a YA novel (immature characters) but obviously the steam-level was adult so I’m not sure where it fits. Unfortunately, this one didn’t work for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Before reading: "THERE IS A LIST OF TRIGGER WARNINGS Associated WITH THIS BOOK. THIS BOOK IS 18+."

3.25|House of Pain

A Dark-Romance fantasy set in the world of Inathis, This story follows Alecto, a half-witch who is in the most feared house of snakes. In this year's games, the houses (carter to different witches) will battle to steal each other house book which contains history spells. Stealing any grimoire from the houses will increase the house's status, power and standing in Inathis.

To win this year's game, Alecto and your house's inner circle decide to summon a magical guardian to help them win the deadly game and protect them from the other witches.

Nothing is off the table, including murder and forbidding dark magic, as long as the dean doesn't catch you. And to add action, Alecto is fighting a deadly attraction for her dangerously attractive housemate Blaze. I look forward to seeing where Karolina (Author) will take the story in book 2. Hopefully, we will see more character development for characters and chapters with other house members.

Typically I love dark academia, bully romance, and smutty books, everything about this book should have had me wrapped up into it from the moment I started it, but unfortunately, the characters didn't draw me in, and the games weren't well enough explained in the beginning for me to keep going. I ended up DNFing this book at 20%

Okay, I reallllly enjoyed House of Pain. The whole character dynamic is so toxic but it kept pulling me in! Blaze and Alecto are extremely toxic main leads but I couldn't stop rooting for them and hoping they would get their s*** together because I low-key loved them together. This book definitely focused on the group dynamic/drama over magic BUT I wasn't mad with the magic content. The book kept me intrigued and on my toes the whole time, trying to figure out what was going to happen next. If you are a fan of Gossip Girl, this is the book for you. I highly recommend House of Pain if you like a dark romance, with toxic leads who love to hate each other but also can't stay away, drama and plot twists! Very excited for the rest of this trilogy!! **I did receive this book as an arc from NetGalley**

This took me longer than usual to get through. More-so because the plot felt underdeveloped in order to throw more sexual scenes between the pages.

Now, if you want a steamy, bully romance, dark academia, x rated Harry Potter (minus the intense world building and plot) type book, this one’s for you!

I don’t mind an enemies to lovers romance, but some of the things said between the characters seemed unforgivable to me, so I wasn’t shipping this. The “Guardian”, hot hot hot. However does he really need a big 🍆 to be their Games Guardian?

Some parts made me cringe, some made me angry, and others had me laughing. So the story is definitely engaging.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Xpresso Book Tours for a copy.

House of Pain is a provocative, entertaining and fast paced adventure story which I read with pleasure. Nevertheless, I have mixed feelings on this one. I really enjoyed the pace, the topics and context. My hesitations arise with the repetitions I saw in some of the promiscuous scenes. I also found the flow of the story to be less than smooth during and between certain chapters. Nevertheless I think this story has potential and I look forward to seeing the rest of the books reception!

I was not prepared for the long list (about 10, maybe more) of trigger warnings at the begging of this book. Needless to say it was not for me.

3.5 ⭐️

I’m not gonna lie, this book had me hooked.

It centers on Alecto, a half-mortal, half-witch student at a school of witches who considers her lesser. She is a member of the House of Snakes and is engaging the other Houses in a deadly game while also trying to deal with Blaze Leveau, her arch-enemy.

I liked the relationship between Blaze and Alecto, the setting of a dark academia, the dual points of view, the illustrations, and of course THE SPICE. 🔥 I find some of the writing a little cringey, and the lack of information on the other houses and individuals is also frustrating.

Thank you to Karolina Wilde and NetGalley for the ARC!

3.5⭐️ This book was entertaining and I liked the world the book was set in. I love books with magic, witches, and other creatures so this book was fun because of that. I feel like think book had a lot going on and there were many storylines unfinished, so I am hoping that some of the questions I have will be answered in the next book. This book did feel pretty long, but I still enjoyed it. I LOVED the art that was included throughout the book!

Themes in the book:
-Dark Academia
-Fantasy
-Witches, magic, and other magical creatures
-Boarding school setting
-Bully Romance

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for this eARC for my honest opinion.

⚠️ BE ADVISED, THERE IS A LIST OF TRIGGER WARNINGS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS BOOK. ⚠️ This novel is for 18+

This is my 400th post and I couldn’t be happier that it is this book.

#harrypotter #darkacademia #dramoine #slytherin #spicy

From start to finish this had me hooked.
The writing is phenomenal and I felt like I was there, experiencing life as a Snake 🐍

The bully romance was intriguing, tho toxic af 😅 This is where you get Dramione vibes ❗️and I loved it ❗️

Some of the things the characters do the “good of the game” are a little mind blowing. This will definitely appease those who love morally grey characters.

I was upset when I clicked the link to preview book 2 and it didn’t work 🤣

Thank you @karolinawilde and @netgalley for graciously allowing me to preview this book. I am impatiently waiting book 2 ♥️ #houseofpain is available Dec 6

Thank you NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

I started reading this one without even remembering the blurb and it was a really really nice surprise. House of Pain is a dark fantasy taking place in the prestigious Venefica academy where we follow Alecto Black, a half-blooded witch in her 2nd year.

It does remind me of Zodiac Academy for a few thing :
- the plot revolved around the different houses competing against each others,
- Alecto and Blake relationship echoes Tory and Darius,
- Spicy, funny, dark academia setting...

Most of the characters are enjoyable, and I really love seeing Alecto finds her place more and more in the house and within the Inner Circle, discovering herself and growing even more fierce, fiery and brave. You really watch her becoming a morally grey heroine, embracing her witchy nature, and it works for her!

The book was around 900 pages and was an easy, fast-paced reading. I really recommend this to anyone who loved Zodiac Academy or anyone who love magic, dark romance and morally grey characters. I can't wait to re-read the book when is out and to discover the sequel as well!

I felt like House of Pain wanted to be a lot of things but did not fully succeed at any of them.

It is a dark, bully romance with morally black characters, enemies to lovers vibes but it doesn’t have enough plot or substance to succeed in all areas.

It’s kind of unnecessarily crude right off the bat. Like it is trying to prove its 18+ rating but it comes off as unnecessary and silly that the characters are swearing at each other every five seconds. Even with the sex angle in the book, for a group of witches that practice “sex magic”, there is not a lot of sex in their magic.

So much of the world building is either dumped on the reader or not explained at all. It felt like I was starting a book 2 or something where the world had already been set up in book 1.

Characters are an array of ethnicities and orientations though the main cast of characters are white and straight. They also aren’t necessarily likeable characters. Think gossip girl chatty and back stabbing. Characters are named and mentioned at the drop of a hat and though all don’t need explanations, some do and you don’t get it as a reader.

The further the story went along, the less of a main character Alecto felt like. So many plot points were introduced and then never touched on again. Some of these had the potential to be super compelling and interesting but without giving the reader a bit more to chew on, they fell flat. It is the beginning of a Trilogy but for me not enough happened with the characters development or with the plot in order to encourage me to read the next book.

This book is touted as 18+ and "extremely steamy," but it felt quite juvenile to me. There was sex, a decent amount of sex, but more so there was just a lot of referring to sex or saying cock or fucking, etc. There was far less actual sex than I figured there would be.

Alecto is a half-witch who comes from the most powerful witch family, and Blaze is a fullblood who comes from what I assume is the second most powerful witch family. They are in the same House together, which is like the same magical sorority or something. The story is pretty much just going back and forth between their perspectives as they live their lives and play "the game." They smoke a lot of pot, they drink a lot, they party, they fuck, and they try to win the game which is essentially them trying to steal the magical grimoires from the other Houses while trying to make sure theirs isn't stolen.

Alecto is a wet napkin. She so badly wants to fit in that it's just pathetic. This is one of the things that makes the book read so young to me. All she cares about is fitting in and gaining approval of her peers. She's incredibly one-dimensional and juvenile.

Blaze is just a douche. His dad is mean to him and makes him play sports, so he treats everyone around him like garbage and tries to make Alecto's life hell because he thinks she's got parental love that he doesn't have, and he's jealous. The choices he makes time and again do not really jive with what we're experiencing from his perspective.

I couldn't really get invested in "the game" because none of the characters are terribly likeable, so I didn't care who would win. The rules for the game also weren't really explained, and it's hard to get into something you don't totally understand.

I did think that the slow burn between Alecto and Blaze was pretty well done, though it could have been better. There were a lot of times that both of them did things that didn't really make sense.

I would have preferred if the author made more use of side characters. The summoned guardian is pretty much nonexistent until it's convenient to move the plot forward. Andro, Val, and Jolene are likewise underutilized. It could have made things a lot more interesting. It also would have been better if there was a more structured/cohesive and less meandering plot. I would have also liked more of the magical side of things. This leaned a lot more Gossip Girl than it did Harry Potter.

All that bitching aside, I read it in a day, and if the next one comes my way, I'll read it too.

4.5*
This book is a dark-fantasy-romance-academia. It's like Harry Potter for adults, if it were focused on the Slytherins and with a lot of spice. This book is about the students from the very prestigious magical school Venefica. Mostly centered around the House of Snakes, particularly Alecto and Blaze during the "Game" which consists of a sort of competition between the Houses that happens each year.

I always thought I hated the "Bully Romance Trope" but maybe this book converted me? I loved Alecto and Blaze's relationship: the hate, the angst, the scheming and the revenge. It was a GREAT time.

This book had me hooked and I couldn't put it down. With morally grey characters, an interesting enough plot and some steam, it was very entertaining. I can't wait to read the sequel!

3.75/5

This is a dark academia bully romance where the two main characters, Alecto and Blaze, cycle between enemies to FWB back to enemies and so on. Despite their physical chemistry that continues to draw them back to one another, they really are enemies, especially from Blazes side. Like attempted murder. We love it.

I found the plot of the Games to be an interesting concept but I actually wish there was more worldbuilding and background into the school's hierarchy and purpose of the Games. There is never a description of why the Houses are competing against eachother in the first place, and the students hardly ever spend time in a classroom I forget they're supposed to be in school. Also, the plot doesn't start in the main character's first year, so some of the relationship dynamics are hard to understand.

Additionally, I wish some of the side characters had a bit more fleshing out. I really liked Jolene, and I think Rogue could have been used so much more to add intrigue and jealously into the relationship.

Overall I found the book enjoyable and plan on reading the sequel!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you, netgalley for this read. I'm kind of split with this one. I enjoyed some if it, but I wasn't as hooked as I thought I would be. It is dark and magical, but pay attention to trigger warnings if you're sensitive about some things. The spice was next level and I did enjoy the characters.

The friction between the MC was fantastic, and it story was wonderfully described.
I can't wait for the next installment!

Thank you Net Galley for the e-book!
Defiantly an interesting premise and I love a good dark fantasy. Overall it wasn't my favorite but I can see why people would enjoy it. I think it just wasn't for me. Definitely similar I would say to Zodiac Academy in some ways.

House of Pain is a new book by Karolina Wilde.
In this book, Alecto Black goes to a boarding school for witches. Unfortunately for her, she is only half a witch and faces a lot of prejudice for it. All the students are sorted into houses, and every year they have to play the Game. This year, Alecto is determined to win.
I liked few things about this book. It was an interesting premise, and could have been a very interesting book. Unfortunately, this plot is barely focused on. Even by the end of the book, I was unclear on what the Game was, they never explain it. What the book is focused on is the "romance" between Alecto and Blaze Leveau, the local Bad Boy. This also could have been good, but it fell into the same tropes as all the others. Namely, they get together, break up, get back together, break up again...and so on. Despite the awful things that Blaze does to her (trying to kill her a few times) she never actually makes him suffer for it, she just forgives. For a character who is meant to be strong and independent, this really undermines her.
I would recommend this book for younger readers (mid teens) who are more interested in romance than plot.