Okay, so this is going to be more of a warning than a review but I’m hoping it will give you a different reading experience than the one I had. The book itself is amazing and I cannot wait for the sequel. However, I’d seen marketing that compared this book to very well known TV series, a movie and a book, and armed with those names I was easily able to predict the most important spoilers in this book before I began reading. So, my warning is this:
Stay well away from marketing, reviews that may tell you too much and even the book’s copyright page if you don’t want your read to be tainted by spoilers.
I loved it despite my foreknowledge, but I’ll never know if I would have picked up on enough clues to figure out any of the reveals for myself or not, and that dulled some of the shine for me. I don’t want that to happen to you.
Once Upon a Blurb
The Girls of Innovations Academy are beautiful and well-behaved – it says so on their report cards. Under the watchful gaze of their Guardians, the all-girl boarding school offers an array of studies and activities, from “Growing a Beautiful and Prosperous Garden” to “Art Appreciation” and “Interior Design.” The girls learn to be the best society has to offer. Absent is the difficult math coursework, or the unnecessary sciences or current events. They are obedient young ladies, free from arrogance or defiance. Until Mena starts to realize that their carefully controlled existence may not be quite as it appears.
As Mena and her friends begin to uncover the dark secrets of what’s actually happening there – and who they really are – the girls of Innovations will find out what they are truly capable of. Because some of the prettiest flowers have the sharpest thorns.
Schizanthus Nerd 