Six Characters, One Fate: Reviewing Immortal Consequences by IV Marie

Dark academia with teeth: flawed characters, endless night, and a fight for survival.

Synopsis

Six students at Blackwood Academy, an enigmatic boarding school located at the edge of the afterlife, must compete for the once-in-eternity chance to change their fate—or risk remaining stuck in purgatory forever. An unputdownable debut full of hairpin twists, shock betrayals and world-defying love, for fans of The Atlas Six.

Welcome to Blackwood Academy: the legendary school located at the fringes of the afterlife, where students are fated to spend the rest of eternity shepherding lost souls. Once a pupil enters the school’s arched gates, there is no way out…except for the Decennial, a once-in-a-decade celebration that rewards nominees who pass its trials with a choice: formally graduate and join Blackwood’s magical elite, or venture into the unknown and cross over to the mysterious Other Side.

Wren Loughty is certain that this Decennial, she has what it takes to earn the nomination—unless, that is, her academic archrival Augustine Hughes steals her spot.

Irene Manette Bamford has never cared about playing by the rules. She’s willing to break whatever (and whoever) stands between her and getting the hell out of Blackwood, including her best and only friend, Masika Sallow.

Olivier Dupont gave up on securing the nomination ages ago. But after he meets Blackwood’s newest student, Emilio Córdova, he’ll do anything to keep Emilio from leaving him and crossing over to the Other Side—even if it means claiming the victory for himself.

All of them are determined to be Blackwood’s chosen candidate–and all of them would do anything to win. But none of them are prepared for what’s to come. Because this Decennial will be different. This time, the Decennial isn’t a celebration…it’s a competition. And there can only be one victor.

Six nominees. Four trials. Untold danger. Wren, August, Irene, Masika, Olivier and Emilio are about to learn: there are some fates worse than death.

Review

4 stars

Special Fairyloot edition

Vibes: dark with threads of romance

Characters: 6 main characters

Augustus and Wren: Augustus is the broody, bad boy with a mysterious edge—always clashing and bickering with Wren, the brilliant star student. Their dynamic is sharp, witty, and a little addictive.

Irene and Mariska: Irene is really dark. She is deeply ambitious, her darkness rooted in trauma and a desperate need for control over her afterlife. Her only soft spot? Mariska, the gifted and loyal friend. Mariska is a good egg. She wants nothing more than to protect those she loves, even at great cost.

Olivier and Emilio: Olivier is a fallen gentleman—decadent, charming, and haunted by secrets. He hides his feelings for Emilio, the sweet, gentle soul who spends his days in the library. Emilio is sweet and soft like a lamb. He felt the youngest of all. Their tenderness contrasts beautifully with the academy’s looming shadows.

The setting: Blackwood Academy.

Blackwood Academy isn’t your typical school—it’s part of purgatory itself. Students reap souls, compete for ascension, and risk slowly losing their memories if they fail. There was no sun and I couldn’t help but see a constant darkness. Combined with the threat of the Orders and the Soulless One the overall vibe was dark and threatening.

The competition’s stakes are brutal: only one winner can ascend. Knowing that our main characters for whom I came to care for where racing against the clock to win a competition that had only one winner and would condemn all the others had me praying for another way out.

My general thoughts and feelings: I nearly DNF early on as the first characters to be introduced in the story projected an aura of aggressiveness and arrogance. And that wasn’t what I needed at that time. But I came to read behind the façade and saw what it was: a defense mechanism, an act.

Once I was in, I rooted for the characters, some being easier to love than others.

As if it wasn’t enough to be in that competition, I could feel that something fishy was brewing. The sardonic headmaster, the shadow-cloaked new student, and the rising tension all hinted at darker secrets. The pacing built steadily, pulling me deeper until I couldn’t stop turning pages.

Will I read the sequel? Yes probably if I don’t have to wait too long for I would forget everything as I tend to do with every book. Who should read it? Dark academia fans. The ones looking for atmospheric reads with a bunch of characters fighting for their future, most very ambitious and some hard to love.

Thanks for reading.

Sophie