Review of Darke Academy: Secret Lives by Gabriella Poole

The Darke Academy is a school like no other. An elite establishment that moves to an exotic new city every term, its students are impossibly beautiful, sophisticated and rich. And the more new scholarship girl Cassie Bell learns about the Academy, the more curious she becomes. What sinister secrets are guarded by the Few -- the select group of students who keep outsiders away? Who is the dark stranger prowling the corridors at night? And what really happened a year earlier, when the last scholarship girl died in mysterious circumstances? One thing Cassie will discover is that a little knowledge may be a dangerous thing, but knowing too much can be deadly...

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This was a good book but not a jump out of your seat, run the nearest bookstore and hold a mini protest until they give a copy kind of book. It's good if you're bored though. The writing style is simplistic and the book shouldn't take too long to read. I'm expecting the series to go downhill from here though.

I was surprised to learn that Cassie is English, I was expecting the story to be all-American. It was also nice that there was no love interest (cue gasps of horror) in it. Well there were two but she didn't get with either of them. And! One thing that is awesome! The main bad boy mystery character... is Indian! Too many pretty white boys in books, time for some pretty... not so white guys.

The mystery in the book is very basic and slightly clichéd. It all went a bit Scooby Doo at the end, ironically. The characters are very stereotypical, acting in a way that mirrors the stereotype of their country. Cassie and Isabelle are the best characters and Isabelle is pretty funny at times.
The idea that the school moves to a new city every year is an appealing one though. The amount of bookshops across the world you could visit!

4/5