Book: Tides of Secrets (The Obsidian Academy Duet) by A.R. Conwell
Reviewed by Your_bookish_fantasy
Rating: 3/5
๐๐ ๐ข๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐ข
โ๏ธ๐ป๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐๐จ ๐ ๐- Tides of secrets audiobook
๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐๐ญ ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฐ๐๐ซ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฒ๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ซ, NetGalley, and dreamscape media ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐ข๐๐ฐ, ๐ข๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ค๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ง๐ค ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ to all ๐๐ฌ ๐ข ๐ฉ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐ฆ๐ฒ ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ก๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐จ๐ค.
โ๏ธโ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ค-
๐ฃ ๐ก๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ผ๐ฟs Alys Wilde โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.5 & George Reid โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ผ๐ฟ๐ โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.25 / 5
๐ก๏ธ ๐ฆ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฒ slow burn - none yet / 5 -๐โ๐๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ก ๐๐ฆ ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ โ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ค ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ก๐๐๐๐๐
Which books have I also given this same rating? (๐ ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ข ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐ ๐ก๐ฆ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ค๐)
5โญ๏ธ Fourth wing / Bound by inked flame / Anathama / The Lies of Lena / Of silver and Curses
4.5โญ๏ธ Bitten / The Female / Quicksilver / Bride / Lights Out / A Bargain so Bloody
4โญ๏ธ Spellcaster / One Dark Window / From Blood and Ash / Phantasma / Butcher & Blackbird
3โญ๏ธWe Who Will Die / The Wolf King / Daughter of No Worlds / The Ex Hex
โ๏ธ๐๐๐ช ๐๐๐๐ :
Genre- Fantasy Romance
๐ง 11 ๐๐ผ๐๐ฟ๐ 07 ๐ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐๐ฒ๐ (I ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ 1.5 ๐๐๐๐๐)
๐ 342 ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ๐
๐โ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ dual ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฉ / # ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ- March 31, 2026
๐ฃ๐น๐ผ๐ or ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ driven? ๐ โณ๐พ๐
๐ฆ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ก๐ฎ๐บ๐ฒ & ๐๐ผ๐ผ๐ธ ๐ป๐ผ-The Obsidian Academy book 2/2
๐๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ on ๐๐จ? โ ๐ดโฏ๐.
๐ฃ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ-๐โฏ๐น๐พ๐๐
๐ ๐ฒ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ? โ๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐๐, ๐โด.
๐๐ง๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง? (Disability, plus size, mental health etc...)โ PTSD / trauma healing
๐๐พ๐น ๐พ โฏ๐๐ฟโด๐ ๐๐ฝ๐พ๐?โ
๐ฒโด๐๐๐น ๐พ ๐โฏ๐ถ๐น ๐ถ๐๐๐๐ฝ๐พ๐๐ โฏ๐๐โฏ ๐ท๐ ๐๐ฝ๐พ๐ ๐ถ๐๐๐ฝโด๐?โ
TW: mention of SA, slight gore, death, m^rder, ptsd
CONTENT:
kisses only (closed door)
no language
โ๏ธ๐โ๐ผโ๐๐ผ๐ ๐โ ๐๐๐โ๐:
๐๐ป๐ข๐๐๐๐
โ๏ธ๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค:
๐ฅ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฐ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง
๐๐ป๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ก
๐๐ฎ๐
๐พ๐ธโฏ ๐พ๐๐ธ๐โฏ๐ถ๐โฏ๐ ๐๐พ๐๐ฝ โฏ๐ถ๐ธ๐ฝ ๐ทโดโด๐
๐ก๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐, ๐ธ๐๐๐ค๐ฅ, ๐๐๐๐ค๐๐ ๐
โ๏ธ๐โ๐โ๐ผ๐
๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ฅ๐ค & ๐น๐๐ฅ๐ฃ๐๐ช๐๐๐ค
๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฐ
๐ชงPแดสษชแดษชแดแดส Iษดแดสษชษขแดแด
โ๏ธโโฏ๐พ๐ ๐โด ๐๐ฝโฏ ๐๐ฝ๐โด๐โฏ
๐ชฆ๐ณ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
๐ช๐๐๐๐๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐ก
โ๏ธDark Academia
๐ฐGothic
๐คฉEpic Side Character
๐งจ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐ช ๐ฝ๐โ
๐ฅ Revenge
๐ฆฎ Golden retriever MMC
๐ฏ๏ธnicknames
๐Cliff Notes Review-
Mehโฆ read it, donโt read itโฆ just make sure it really is your style/ type of book or you may find yourself dissatisfied.
โThe loss of her words would be unbearable. He had come to rely on them. They were his air and water. Vital. Necessary for survival in this shadowy landscape.โ
โ๏ธ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐
๐๐๐ ๐น๐ฌ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ ๐๐, ๐ณ๐ฐ๐บ๐ป๐ฌ๐ต ๐๐ ๐๐?โ๏ธ
(๐โ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก- ๐ต๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ด๐ข๐๐๐?) read this one
โ๏ธ๐ธ๐ฆ๐๐๐ ๐น๐ ๐ ๐ โ๐๐ง๐๐๐จ:
Have you watched our Yorkshire farm? His voice is sooo similar! I couldnโt get into it as itโs so serious. There were plenty of tonal changes and inflections but no emotions came out in his lines. There was some difference to his character voices but not enough to distinguish who was speaking if you got lost in a task and then forgot where you were up to.
Her vocal style was very similar, serious in nature -which suited the FMC, she had a little less distinction between her characters however, her tone of voice, inflections and emotional range was better. I personally feel she was well cast to this role and it were a duet she would have rated far higher as her male voices are what let her down.
โFor someone who hates me, you spend quite a lot of time in my arms.โ
๐ ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐ฆ๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐จ๐ฃ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐๐:
This book was laced heavily with trauma healing for all the main characters. Lots of recovery and slowly learning to just be, and learning to trust againโฆ
The writing style again was easy and pleasant to read/ listen to and it felt much faster paced. But the first book held more information and characters like the professors and other students who all played a bigger role. This one however was more focused on the romance aspect, all other characters felt like an after thought. Even the murders were overshadowed.
The ending was underwhelming in how it was executed . It felt like it was drawn out over the last 30% of the book, slowing and dragging things out.
โHe deserved her contempt. Her ire. A dagger through the heart if she so wished. Yet still he yearned and longed to see her forgiveness and trust blossom.โ
๐งโโ๏ธ โ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐ค:
This book leaned heavier into the old style romance/sappy & lovey-dovey side of flirting, with the MMC Castien, turning into a full on heart sick golden retriever who could see or hear no wrong in wren which was not good reading. There was little character growth with Castien because of that. He was so overly loving and patient and caring and obsessed with Wren, but it all came from that stolen journal so it felt โickyโ. His heart fully belonged to her right from the beginning but againโฆ it felt โickyโ rather than romantic.
However i absolutely loved that Castien went out of his way to show her that she is strong, That she is NOT broken or something to be looked down on. He never tried to fix her either, no wading in like an overprotective alpha man- instead, he simply showed her how to fix herself.
Wren was a good character with more growth- even if it was at a snails pace. I appreciate she went through some hellish trauma and needs time to adjust still, the quiet strength that she had and her drive for absolution really came through.
But when it came to the slow burn side, wren flitted from stupid naive girl wondering โwhat on earth is thatโ and then jumping to โI love you so muchโ.
But- I love Fin so much still. I loved how loyal and caring he is with Castien. Their banter and friendship was one of the my favorite parts in the entire book. I genuinely feel the author missed a trick with him as he should have had his own sub plot!
โCastien saw her hand move in his peripheral vision, then felt the cool edge of a blade against his neck. โWhat a creative way to thank me,โ he teased.โ
โณ ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐-๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ฃ ๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐?
Nope
๐น๐๐๐๐๐ค ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ข๐๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐๐ ;
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐
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*
๐๐ช โ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐ ๐๐ช๐ค๐ฅ๐๐๐ค:
โญ๏ธ DNF
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
I managed to finish it but it was rubbish. I won't keep a physical copy and won't recommend it, but it's a shame as the plot could have made a good book in another author's hands
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.5
It was OK. I wish I didn't start this one as it didn't do it for me as I struggled to read it. It had an interesting premise that fell flat but I had to see what happened in the end.
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
I don't regret reading it, and I will read the next one, but this one did have a few flaws. [These could be repetitive writing, gaps or plot holes, better character growth or world building, areas needing more detail]
Generally, the book lacked depth and became confusing. The plot resonated with me even though it annoyed me on the whole.
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.5
I'm glad I read it. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to the right people, but I wanted more! Sadly, it's easily forgettable with a few issues I just couldn't overlook/get past.
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
Good book! I loved it, but... I needed more! I really did enjoy it, but it had a few parts that needed more detail or added history/background or lore. But that's because the story or characters were memorable, and the plot was strong with brilliant twists. I would re-read if I needed to catch up for the next book and would recommend.
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ.5
Great book! I truly wish the story had been thought about more, or the author had been given more time as this book is so close to brilliance! I will likely read again and will definitely be recommending it to all!
โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ
WOW! Absolutely amazing book! Well written with great characters and a plot so memorable that it will stay with me. I will definitely read this again, I will be recommending it and sharing it with the whole world! Also- I NEED A PHYSICAL COPY!
๐ฅโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ๐ฅ
This is my God level tier. The book must be perfectly memorable. Even after reading 50+ more books, I will remember character names and emotions along with the plot. If there is a special edition, then I need to own it! If there is a conversation on books- I'm talking about this!
SPICE SCALE:
๐ถ๏ธโ segsual language and a little on-page action
๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธโ a lot of segsual language and some on-page open door action, may be occurring a couple of times
๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธโ a lot of explicit action and dirty talk, occurring frequently with 2/3 lurvers
๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ โ super graphic and explicit, occurring 4 or more times, can be more grey and taboo themed.
๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ โ Kinks and Fet!shism, explicit and super graphic. It is likely to be tushy play, toys, playrooms, and more dark / taboo fantasies and realities.