The Loner

Aiden Cross: Academy Outcast, Book 1

By: Alex Villavasso

Narrated by: Jake McAskill

I always knew I was different, but I never knew why. My name is Aiden Cross, and if you asked me a month ago if this type of thing existed, an academy for the exceptional, I’d call you a liar.

The supernatural exists, and apparently, I’m one of them. It’s in my DNA, just like all of the other students here at the academy.

I thought it was cool to be around others like me, but it turns out that this school is like high school on steroids. Having powers just makes things worse.

There’s Tristen, a pyro, who bullies me every chance that he gets. His powers are more developed than the rest, so he has no problem pushing me around. If that wasn’t enough, his goons also join in on the fun, especially when Kaci is around. I like her. I think she’s amazing, but I’m pretty sure Tristen likes her, too. And who wouldn’t? She’s smart, funny, resourceful, and can move things with her freaking mind.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why sharing a crush with your nemesis sucks. Him showing off usually means me looking like a loser, and I already have a hard enough time as it is fitting in.

And then, there’s another girl, Summer. A literal ice queen who does whatever she wants, whenever she wants. Her parents picked her name as a cruel joke, because anything bright and sunny is like death to her, and to be honest, I don’t even know how she’s still at the academy. I’m sold on the idea that she high-key hates everybody and everything, but we always seem to cross paths at the worst times. Which…yeah…

(Is her hair really jet-black? She has to dye it, right? That’s not natural, right?)

Anyway, my classmates aside, the academy is full of its own challenges. The classes are tough, the exercises are brutal, and to top it off, I’m at a major disadvantage because I can’t access my powers at will, and I'm in the advanced courses.

I’m doing my best to stay afloat, but Tristen isn’t making it easy. The academy is fast-paced, but I still have other things to focus on besides academia, like why I was attacked before I came here and the true nature behind my abilities.

And don’t even get me started on dealing with the wild things that pop up at any given time on this crazy campus.

This series is not a harem.

©2019 Alex Villavasso (P)2022 Alex Villavasso

Great start!

Orphaned and alone, Aiden finds himself in a magical academy.
This was a fun magical academy read to get lost in. It barely scratched the surface and I honestly can’t wait to return and read book 2. It was reminiscent of Harry Potter due to magic and academy but it was different. I liked Aiden and Summer! Aiden is trying to redeem himself at a new school and find his magical talents. New school, bullies, and drama. What more can you ask for?
I couldn’t help but love Aiden’s character.
The narrator, Jake McAskill did a wonderful job brining the characters to life.
This is a very promising new series and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Fun story

a very fun book. there were a few issues with the writing in my opinion, like recapping immediately after something happened. but it didn't distract from my enjoyment. great voice acting as well!

Average but too cliché?

This reads like your basic anime academy so you get all the regular tropes good and bad. Nothing really happens and this seems like set up for the next book but I will not continue the series. I don't think it's bad I'm just falling out of the animeish stories as I'm growing older and don't have it in me anymore.

Typical rise to fame academy story

Yeah this is one of those rise to fame academy stories, but this one is well executed. The characters mesh well, story pacing is good. It is fairly short at less than 5 hours long, but I find myself rushing to buy the next book. I normally only rate the books using audible's star system, but this book warranted a review.

Fun Fantasy

This is a great story about a kid just looking to belong and doing his best to prove his worth, especially to himself. I find him exceptionally relatable and the problems he faces, super power aside, are something we've all faced at some point. Good action, engaging plot

Interesting world

My only concern about the future of this series is the amount of telling instead of showing. The main character thinks it then acts on his decisions, but it reveals too much of what happens next.

Great Start to a Series

This is a great start to an academy series. Academies might be my new favorite genre. This book has more of a marvel superhero feel than a traditional magic feel. The main character being male was a huge draw for me as most academy books I’ve read are from the female perspective.
Overall the story is what you would expect from an academy series but the ending leaves the story wide opened to go in any direction. Can’t wait to see where the author has in store for the next book.

Great start to a new series!

The story seemed a little short (I listen on 1.5 and it was about 3 hrs of listening) to me, but narrator was great! I really liked the extra effect when there was an overhead speaker sounding it sounded like an actual speaker was on. The storyline was good. The character development was decent and I would totally read the next in series! I almost feel like this story should have started with the activity surrounding his parents’ deaths.

enjoyed

A boy trying to prove to himself and everyone else that he had "powers" and to overcome what happened. I enjoyed reading the start of what looks like a promising series.

great

good narration and story. definitely recommend to fantasy fans. a bit short but it's got more entries in the series