Cadet-in-Training Review
Kate Connelly is officially part of The Academy after she wakes up handcuffed in its psyche ward and Ranger is charged with training her. But how is she supposed to submit to the guy who dragged her and her little brother there against their will and perform for the academy she despises? The two have to work together though. Ranger is off of Missions until Kate graduates the CIT program, and if she does not do this swiftly, she will no longer be allowed to see Mikey. General Weston decides to give Ranger a new recon assignment, but only on the condition that Kate goes too. While on this mission, Ranger realizes that he has started to care for Kate, but he is determined that he won't fall onto the same path his father did. She seems to care for him as well, but she still harbors feelings for the missing Pete. All of this must be set aside, though, so they can focus on surviving their mission. The Academy has set her path for her. She will go to Missions, but will she be forced to deal with The Academy alone?
Keep in mind that everyone has their own opinion. This review is only my opinion, and you may have your own, different one. I would take into consideration what I say, but do not make a decision about the book solely based off of this review. Let's begin:
CJ Daly has done it again. I am rendered speechless after reading this second installment in The Academy Saga! Well sort of- I will somehow find enough words to write this review. Before I do that though, I will just say (*scream) that I need book 3 immediately. As in, right now, this very second, cannot wait any longer immediately. Just like with the first novel, everything is either perfect or so close near it that it hardly worth mentioning. The physical reactions were even more often and intense this time. Thankfully, I still didn't throw the book, but it did almost happen, but only maybe 10 times, so I consider that a win.
The characters were just as good if not better than they were in the first book. Ranger was definitely better, although I do still have mixed feelings about whether I like him or not. This has nothing to do with the writing at all- the writing was fantastic. It's more of a I don't know about his personality yet. I keep going back and forth on loving him because of some of the more toxic traits he has. However, his flaws help make him more real which makes me love the book even more. All of the characters feel like they could be real people- they are not too perfect or so evil that you can hardly think of them as human. Kate was once again fantastic and I think she is overall someone I would want to be like. I love all of her layers and deep feelings. Even with the limited amount of time we saw Pete, I still love his character so much. He apparently does not need a lot of page time to be loved. The same goes with Andrew. Just to calm any worries you may be having over this, Mikey stays just as adorable as ever.
The plot was absolutely amazing. I loved the transfer from the small town to The Academy and getting to know more about The Academy in general. This book had a ton of action, awkwardness, pain, love, and basically everything one would experience in real life. It was fast-paced and entrancing quite honestly. I found myself unable to resist picking it back up even if I only had a single minute to read. It pained me every time I had to pause to do something else (thank you very much to all of my classes for forcing me to stop- NOT!). The pacing was perfect, the twists were present, and perhaps most importantly the connection was formed.
The emotional rollercoaster that was the first book transformed into a full on hurricane. I experienced numerous emotions that were like sadness and anxiety (negative, but in a good way) then was able to calm down a bit during the eye of the storm just to be thrown into another twist and start feeling those oh my gosh, what just happened I'm not okay emotions again. I am also convinced that this author is the master of making you feel second-hand embarrassment.
There was only one minor negative again that caught my eye and it has nothing to do with the writing itself. It is the same teeny tiny negative from the first novel. Majority of the book is from the point of view of Kate, but there are a few chapters that switch to Ranger's or Pete's perspective, Ranger more often than Pete. However, there is nothing that blatantly lets you know about the switch. That said, it is extremely easy to figure out. I very highly doubt anyone would not understand what happened. However, it may have been nice to write the name of the guy it was switching to under the chapter title to signify the switch before reading.
The cover is really pretty and meaningful which I love, just like I did with the first book. I also definitely agree with the little bit the author of "The Last Train from Paris" said that is on the cover. The book is 100% binge-worthy!
Overall, this book was another smash hit that I cannot recommend with enough fervor. Hopefully, my love of this series has been evident in my reviews. I need everyone to read the books so that I have an endless supply of people to rave about them with! Pretty please help spread the word about this amazing series and author because both deserve so much praise!
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