Academy books are all the rage right now and for good reason: who doesn’t enjoy the idea of finding out you have magical powers, and then being whisked off to an academy to learn how to use them?  And of course, you get lots of magical friends and a smoking hot love interest, too!  It’s no surprise that so many academy books are exploding onto the scene lately.  Here’s a list of some amazing reads we’ve heard about lately.

1: Fallen Academy by Leia Stone.  It’s hard not to get sucked into a world where almost everyone is “gifted” with supernatural powers that awaken at the age of eighteen, thanks to an angel and demon war that’s backfired magic onto humanity.  Those whose powers awaken must attend one of two magical academies, getting involved in a war between light and darkness.  Snarky and action-packed, there’s also a hate-to-love romantic arc with a hot jerkwad who doesn’t turn out to be such a jerkwad after all. 

2: House of Night by PC Cast.  What’s cool about this series is that vampires are an accepted part of society–in fact almost an envied part of society–and having your vampire traits slowly awaken earns you a trip to the House of Night.  An instant cast of both friends and enemies, as well as having some evil vampires show up mysteriously, sucks us right in.  (Yes.  Bad joke.)

3: Academy of Shifters by Marisa Claire. We’re looking forward to this upcoming book from Torment Publishing. Remi discovers her shifter powers when she finds herself attending an academy meant to awaken their powers.  This book will have everything that we academy fans crave: an irresistible jerk, mean girls, college life, and of course, a dark secret waiting to be uncovered. 

4: A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray.  This one’s definitely a favorite, taking place in a Victorian-era finishing school for girls.  While the academy itself has nothing paranormal about it, our heroine finds herself developing magical powers and discovering a secret order that once gained access to a magical realm at her school.  Juicy secrets wait!

5: Dragon Games by Marisa Claire.   
This is another upcoming one from Torment Publishing we’re salivating over.  Instead of kids learning they have paranormal powers, our main character hears a call from a dragon and is whisked to an academy where students learn to fight on the backs of these magical beasts.  That’s a take we haven’t seen much of before and want more of.  Oh, and we’ve heard there are some Hunger-Games type battles and a smoking hot hate-to-love romance, too.

6: Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead.  With loads of teen drama, a hot yet forbidden romance, and a take on vampires we don’t see very often–they’re mortal for the most part but can have magical powers–this is one series we’re not going to miss.  Oh, and it’s also a movie now, which is an added bonus. 

7: The Hidden Witch by Chandelle LeVaun.  Academies for magic will always be a top favorite, thanks in part to a certain series we don’t have to name here.  The Hidden Witch features a protagonist shipped off to an academy for witches, where she feels she doesn’t belong.  And worse, now she has to stop a demon invasion with the help of the irresistible, yet insufferable guy who doesn’t want her there.  Tension, anyone?

8: Academy of Assassins by Stacy Brutger.  What wouldn’t be exciting about going to school to learn how to kill supernatural baddies?  That’s exactly what this book is, and to top it off, our heroine’s first assignment is to find whoever’s killing people on the Academy grounds.  No sweat, right?  And it’s a series, so you can bet we’ll be staying up late at night to finish all the installments.

9: Variant Lost by Kaydence Snow.  In this series, humans with rare superhuman abilities are selected to attend the Bardford Hills Institute, and it turns out there’s not just one, but four hot guys waiting for the protagonist, all with rare powers of their own.  Secrets and danger abound in this amazing series.

More Academy books on spring break, waiting to start classes:

Supernatural Academy by Jaymin Eve

Magical Creatures Academy by Lucia Ashta

If we were to read all the great academy books out there now, we probably wouldn’t ever venture outdoors again, unless of course it’s to pick up some hot cocoa to curl up with.  We’re always on the lookout for some fresh new academy ideas, too.  Mermaid academies?  How about fae academies?  Hint, hint, authors.  We readers are waiting!