Review: ‘On Wings of Blood’ by Briar Boleyn
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On Wings of Blood
by Briar BoleynSeries: Bloodwing Academy #1
Published by Mira on November 30, 2024
SubGenres: Fantasy Romance
Format: eBook
Pages: 578
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Audience: 18+/Adult/New Adult
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Welcome to Bloodwing Academy.
Expect magic. Expect competition. Expect blood.
I didn't sign up for this. A half-fae in a school of highblood vampires? That's a recipe for suffering.
I'm Medra Pendragon, last of the dragon riders—or so they tell me. Funny thing is, there are no dragons left. Not a single one. But somehow, that hasn't stopped the vampires from deciding I'm worth capturing. Now I'm stuck at Bloodwing Academy, where the highbloods run everything, and blightborn like me? We're just blood in their veins, pawns in their games.
But that's not even the worst part. Enter Blake Drakharrow: cold, arrogant, and way too gorgeous for his own good. He's been tormenting me since the moment we met, and now, thanks to some ancient ritual, we're betrothed. He acts like he owns me, but I'm not going down without a fight.
Bloodwing isn't just a school—it's a battlefield. Highbloods fight for power, and if you're weak, you're dead.
Between deadly competitions, lies that could get me executed, and a dragon-shaped secret looming over my head, all I have to do is survive. Easy, right? Except I'm starting to think the real danger isn't the academy—it's what I'm becoming in this twisted game of power.
And Blake? He might just be the one who pushes me over the edge.
They think they can control me. They think they can use me. But they have no idea what they've awakened.
I was looking for a Romantasy and discovered On Wings of Blood available on Kindle Unlimited. I was immediately drawn by the synopsis and intrigued by its Academia Fantasy setting. I decided to try it, especially since it’s my first book by Briar Boleyn. I love discovering new-to-me authors.
Brief Storyline: The book started out interesting. The heroine, Medra Pendragon, is captured by high-blood vampires who find her intriguing because of her hair and other features. They believe she is a dragon rider. Before she knows it, she’s forced to attend the Bloodwing Academy and into a betrothal with a high- bloodvampire, Blake Drakharrow, who wants nothing to do with her. Blake doesn’t want to be forced into anything with her, and he is already betrothed to another, who will also make Medra’s life difficult. All Medra wants is to survive in this new world and hopefully escape. That means learning everything she can and also dealing with the voice in her head. The voice that may very well be able to help her.
My Thoughts: I enjoyed the first book in the Bloodwing Academy series and the world created, especially since it involved vampires. I’ve been obsessed with vampires since I was younger, thanks to movies like The Lost Boys and The Interview with the Vampire. I’m glad this book used dual POV from Medra and Blake. Most of it is Medra, but there are some chapters with Blake. That way, I could get inside both of their heads and see what they were feeling. Blake is not your white knight; he’s a bully at first and has a morally grey appeal. I’m not sure whether to hate or love him for how he treated Medra at first. Plus, he did something near the end of the book that made me not like him, but we’ll see what happens in the second book. Still, he did save Medra’s life in the book toward the end, which does get him some points.
When it comes to Medra, she’s an intriguing character who has been thrust into a world she didn’t choose. She’s willing to learn so she can survive. She knows how to handle herself, even when she’s bullied by Blake and his other betrothed, who I didn’t like at all because she gave off mean girl vibes. Medra definitely was a fighter, and I look forward to reading more about her in the second book, especially after the ending.
It wasn’t until the end that something happened that piqued my interest the most. That’s why I’m invested in picking up the second book. Fair warning: this book ends with a cliffhanger. It also has me wondering what is going to happen between Medra and Blake because something happens that has Medra not trusting Blake once again. I wouldn’t either.
What I had an issue with, mainly when reading On Wings of Blood, was how long this book was. It dragged in certain areas. Some of the middle felt like filler and could have been cut. It still would have been enjoyable without missing the story. I also wanted to learn more about the dragons and how Medra was a dragon rider, but that part seemed like a back burner. The main focus is Medra learning about the vampires and the blightborns like her, and how everything fits together. It’s not all rainbows and sunshine. Medra finds that out when she comes across something she’s not meant to see.
Another thing, I wish I had known before that this book was a spin-off of another series by Briar Boleyn. That’s my own fault for not researching beforehand. I was just excited to start this book. I definitely plan to read that series too.
There were times I thought I was reading a fan fiction because it gave off HP vibes with some references, but then it didn’t. If that makes sense. It didn’t stop me from reading, but the main gripe was the book’s length. Other than that, I give this book 3.5 stars. I’m invested and looking forward to the next book and the other series by Briar Boleyn.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. I recommend it to readers looking for a Romantasy in a Dark Academia setting with a strong heroine. If you love reading the Enemies to Lovers trope, this is for you. I know that trope is one I’ll never pass up in a Fantasy/Romance book, and Briar Boleyn did it well in this book.
What to Expect:
✔️Academia Setting
✔️Enemies to Lovers/Hate to Love
✔️Forced Proximity
✔️Bully Romance
✔️Slow Burn
✔️Vampires
About Briar Boleyn
Briar Boleyn is the New York Times, Sunday Times, and USA Today bestselling fantasy romance author of the Bloodwing Academy and the Blood of a Fae series. Briar once wrote scholarly papers on Dumbledore, Dragon Age, and King Arthur before finally realizing she could create her own worlds where all three might coexist–with significantly more kissing. After wandering through English literature departments at four universities across Canada, she took a detour to teach in the Arctic, where her students would sometimes run out of class to chase polar bears. When not raising fictional dragons from the dead, Briar enjoys reading all types of sci-fi and fantasy, cultivating an unhealthy Disney World obsession, and playing RPG video games. She has written fourteen historical romance novels as Fenna Edgewood.
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My obsession with reading started over 30+ years ago when I went to my first Scholastic Book Fair and found R.L. Stine's Fear Street series. Later, I came across Anne Rice's novels at my public library when I was fourteen when my obsession with vampires started. I was the girl who preferred to be a vampire over a princess any day. My husband says I would leave him a heartbeat for a vampire that looked like Spike or Angel (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer) or Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries. (It's true, though, and he's accepted it.)
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