The Awakening by Caroline Peckham Summary

The Awakening by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti follows twin sisters Tory and Darcy Vega, who discover they are Fae and the long-lost heirs to the Solarian throne. After a harsh upbringing in foster care, they are brought to Zodiac Academy where they must master elemental magic while facing brutal bullying from the Celestial Heirs—four powerful students who stand to lose their claim to the throne.

Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti are sisters and co-authors who write dark romance across multiple genres including paranormal romance and fantasy. They are #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling authors, with the Zodiac Academy series selling over 7 million copies. Both authors are based in England and began co-writing in 2015 after initially publishing solo projects.

The Awakening is ideal for readers who enjoy dark fantasy romance, bully romance tropes, and university-age academy settings with forbidden love. Fans of Harry Potter meets Gossip Girl will appreciate the blend of elemental magic and high-stakes drama. This book suits mature readers comfortable with themes of bullying, sexual harassment, and morally complex characters in a paranormal world.

The Awakening is worth reading for fans seeking a fast-paced paranormal romance with complex world-building and emotionally charged character dynamics. As the first installment in the bestselling Zodiac Academy series, it establishes an addictive foundation with rare elemental powers, political intrigue, and enemies-to-lovers tension. However, readers should be prepared for dark themes including bullying and cliffhanger endings that compel continuation of the series.

Tory and Darcy Vega are orphaned twin sisters and the main protagonists—Tory is brash and outspoken while Darcy is quieter and more demure. The Celestial Heirs (Darius, Max, Caleb, and Seth) are powerful students from four royal families who bully the twins to protect their claim to the throne. Professor Orion serves as a mysterious protector who reveals the twins' true heritage and becomes entangled in forbidden romance.

In The Awakening by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti, the twins possess rare control over all four Elements, making them exceptionally powerful and threatening to the established hierarchy. This elemental mastery becomes central to their survival at Zodiac Academy, where magic determines social standing and political power. The Celestial Heirs each specialize in specific powers, including Darius as a Dragon shifter, creating an imbalanced power dynamic throughout the story.

The Awakening concludes with Professor Astrum murdered and turned to ash after warning the twins that dragon shifters, particularly Lionel Acrux, were involved in their parents' deaths. A magically preserved Death tarot card delivers a cryptic message that "the Shadow" discovered Astrum and warns the twins that answers lie "between Leo and Libra" and they cannot trust flames. The book ends after Tory nearly drowns when the Celestial Heirs use their magic to trap her under ice, only to be saved by Professor Orion.

The Awakening features intense bully romance dynamics where the Celestial Heirs subject Tory and Darcy to brutal pranks, public humiliation, and physical dangers to force them out of the academy. Despite the hostility, romantic and sexual tension develops between the twins and their tormentors, particularly as Seth and Caleb begin showing genuine interest. This creates a complex enemies-to-lovers dynamic where power struggles intertwine with forbidden attraction, culminating in betrayals like Seth cutting off Darcy's hair after kissing her.

Professor Orion is the mysterious instructor who uses Coercion magic to reveal to Tory and Darcy that they are Fae heirs and teleports them to Zodiac Academy. Throughout The Awakening by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti, he serves as their protector, saving Tory from drowning and healing her after the Celestial Heirs' attack. Orion develops a forbidden romantic connection with Darcy, warning her away from Seth while showing jealousy when she gets close to other students.

The Celestial Heirs—Darius, Max, Caleb, and Seth—view the Vega twins as threats to their birthright to rule Solaria. With the royal family presumed dead, these four students from powerful families were destined to inherit the throne upon graduation. Their systematic bullying campaign aims to break the twins psychologically and physically, forcing them to leave the academy before completing The Reckoning, which would legitimize their claim to both inheritance and throne.

The Awakening faces criticism for extremely dark bullying content that some readers find difficult to justify, even within enemies-to-lovers tropes. The mature themes of sexual harassment, near-drowning, and psychological torture push boundaries beyond typical bully romance. Additionally, the complex world-building and large cast of characters can overwhelm new readers, while the cliffhanger ending frustrates those seeking standalone satisfaction rather than series commitment.

The Death tarot card that flies into Tory's hand after Professor Astrum's murder symbolizes transformation, endings, and hidden truths rather than literal death. The cryptic message on its back—warning about the Shadow, directing them to seek answers "between Leo and Libra," and cautioning against trusting flames—establishes the mystery arc that drives the series. This card represents the twins' initiation into dangerous political conspiracies that extend beyond academy bullying into their parents' assassination.