On Wings of Blood

On Wings of Blood was a really good start to Briar Boleyn’s Bloodwing Academy series. With vampires, dragons, magic, a dangerous academy, political intrigue, and a morally gray love interest, this book had plenty of things I enjoy in fantasy romance.

I also purchased the Deluxe Edition, and I absolutely love it! The design is beautiful, especially the dragon-scale sprayed edges. If you enjoy collecting special editions, this one is definitely worth considering.

One thing I wish I’d known before starting is that Blood of a Fae is a four-book series that takes place before Bloodwing Academy. I didn’t discover that until I was already three books into this series, which explains why some of the references and background information initially left me feeling like I’d missed something. I’d recommend reading Blood of a Fae first for a better understanding of the connected world.

The story follows Medra Pendragon, who finds herself in Sangratha, a world ruled by powerful highblood vampires where humans, known as blightborn, are treated as inferior. She soon becomes entangled with Blake Drakharrow, an arrogant vampire prince, and is brought to Bloodwing Academy, where dangerous traditions, supernatural politics, and hidden secrets make survival anything but simple.

Medra was exactly the kind of heroine I enjoy. She’s stubborn, independent, brave, and refuses to blindly accept authority. I appreciated that she questions the treatment of the blightborn and isn’t afraid to challenge the people around her. She’s also dealing with significant loss and uncertainty, which gives her character more emotional depth. I especially enjoyed her friendships with Florence and Naveen because they gave her meaningful relationships outside the romance.

Blake, on the other hand, is a walking collection of red flags. He’s arrogant, controlling, possessive, and accustomed to getting his way. However, his POV chapters reveal more about his family, responsibilities, and the experiences that have shaped him. I appreciated that Briar gives him complexity without excusing his behavior.

His relationship with Medra is filled with tension, conflict, and undeniable chemistry. I liked that their attraction doesn’t immediately erase their differences or make their relationship easy. Blake has a lot of growing to do, and Medra has absolutely no intention of becoming someone who simply follows his orders.

The slow-burn romance worked well for me. There’s plenty of sexual tension and some heated moments, but the intimate content is relatively light in this first book. I’m giving it two out of five peppers because the focus is primarily on developing their complicated relationship rather than explicit scenes.

The worldbuilding was another highlight. I enjoyed learning about Sangratha, the highbloods and blightborn, Bloodwing Academy’s traditions, and the political conflicts surrounding them. There’s a much larger mystery developing beneath the academy setting, and I became increasingly interested in uncovering the secrets surrounding Medra and the supernatural world.

I also loved Orcades, Medra’s deceased mother, who continues communicating with her. Their interactions brought some welcome humor to the story while adding another interesting element to Medra’s background.

My biggest disappointment was the limited presence of dragons. Considering Medra’s connection to them and their importance to the larger storyline, I expected more dragon-related content. What we do learn is interesting, but my inner BookDragon definitely wanted more.

The pacing also slowed a little through the middle as Medra adjusted to the academy and learned about Sangratha. I appreciated the worldbuilding, but some sections could have moved along a little faster. Once the larger conflicts developed, though, the story had my full attention again.

By the end, I was invested in the characters, the mysteries surrounding Medra, the corruption within Sangratha, and the history of the dragons. I also needed to know whether Blake was ever going to learn from his mistakes. That man’s Book Boyfriend application is currently under serious review, and he’s not making a particularly convincing case for himself.

Would I recommend On Wings of Blood? Absolutely! If you enjoy dark fantasy academia, vampires, dragon riders, political intrigue, morally gray love interests, strong independent heroines, slow-burn romance, found family, and dangerous magic, this series is worth adding to your TBR. I’d also recommend reading the Blood of a Fae series first for additional background.

My Final Verdict: A strong beginning to the Bloodwing Academy series with engaging characters, interesting supernatural politics, an intriguing mystery, and a slow-burn romance that leaves plenty of room for character development. The slower pacing through parts of the middle and the limited dragon presence kept it from earning a full five stars, but I genuinely enjoyed the story and couldn’t wait to continue. I’m especially looking forward to learning more about the dragons and seeing whether Blake can finally earn some points toward that Book Boyfriend application.

Final Rating: ⭐ 4.5/5 Stars | 🌶️ 2/5 Peppers

— Sassy