Anchor of Secrets

Supernaturals of Castle Academy, Book 2

By: Tessa Hale

Narrated by: Vanessa Moyen

Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Taken. Tormented. Tortured. I’ve endured a living nightmare, and the only way I’m holding on is because I know they will come for me. My wolf. My caster. My demon. My dragons.

They’ll do anything to save me. Even if it means burning the world down around us. But rescuing me is just the beginning. Because our enemies are circling, and sometimes, evil is closer than you could ever imagine....

©2023 Tessa Hale (P)2023 Tessa Hale

Why you gotta do me like this 😫

Seriously why you gotta leave us on this cliff until September 😫 enquiring minds need to know nowwwww. Lol but for real great storyline and cast of characters. The only thing that would make it better would be multiple POV and a male narrator too but nothing can be perfect am I right. I hope book 3 doesn’t begin with our fmc in a cell again o_0 with that crazy pants vamp and who betrayed them for someone to get on secured land to tranq them?

Paranormal Nostalgia

Anchor of Secrets is the second in the Supernaturals of Castle Academy series. We are dealing with a paranormal why choose romance, and it gave Charmed and Buffy nostalgia vibes.

This booked picked up right where the reveals and action of the first left off. One thing that I loved about the first book that continued in this, was the character development of each hero. I loved the reveals on their backstories and how Leighton trauma bonded with all of them. Tessa Hale was serving dragons, shifters, and demons oh my !

I can’t say much about the plot without giving away spoilers, but I loved how we got see Leighton develop her powers. The plot thickened and amped up ( along with the steam 😉). Now, she did leave us on another cliffhanger. So, I’m definitely eager to pick up the next one.

Thank you to Forever and Always PR for the Audiobook in exchange for an honest review. This series has been so much fun.

I want these guys as my own!

Book two in the series picks right off. There will definitely be some triggers, so I would recommend researching that if you're worried that it will effect you.
I'm a huge fan of this storyline! The unknown keeps me coming back for more and I love the dynamic between the guys as well. I can't believe we only have one book left! Love this series!
As for the audiobook, I think Vanessa Moyen does a great job! The way she alters her voice and also finds a way to portray emotion is great!

A fun time!

I’m really enjoying this series! I love all the guy’s different personalities and how Tessa has written them all with their own quirks! I also really like Leighton. She has a bada** personality as well! I’m sad that I now have to wait for book 3, but it hopefully will be worth the wait!

Continues to be a Great Story

You never know which way the drama is going to come from next. So enjoyable!!

Leighton and her guys

Anchor Of Secrets by Tessa Hale is the second book in the Supernaturals of Castle Academy Series. This picks up right where book one left off. Leighton is being held in a dark, dank place and of course her guys come and rescue her. There's so much going on. So much relationship stuff to work through. They do get through some of it, but more work needs to happen. There's so much political stuff going on. There are so many baddies going against Leighton and her guys. I really hope the baddies get what's coming to them. No cheating. No bullying between Leelee and her guys. There are some TW to watch out for. There is a cliff hanger at the end. And boy, it's a doozy.

Binge-worthy listen!

“It was never that we didn’t want you,” Colt said in a harsh whisper. “We always wanted you.”

Narration Review:
Once again, audiobook veteran, Vanessa Moyen, does an excellent job bringing life into Leighton’s story in book two of the Supernaturals of Castle Academy series. I loved how she infused each character with different personalities and textures.

She remains one of my favorite narrators for this exact reason, having the ability to create multiple voices to fit each character’s unique personality and background. It is always a pleasure to listen to her narrations.

Book Review:
Tessa has blown it out of the park once again! Book two took me by the reins and had me hooked to the end. We were left at the end of book one at a killer cliffhanger, with Leighton in the clutches of an evil entity and the boys realizing how much they screwed up in keeping secrets. Book two picked up right where it left off.

Leighton showed the depth of her strength in this book. Yes, she lacked the magic needed to protect herself in the new world she had been thrust into, but that didn’t mean she was helpless. As their mate, she was a calming balm to the guys’ turmoil.

I wanted the boys to pay, to hurt, to grovel, but Tessa surprised me and gave me something completely different, yet I was 100% satisfied by the outcome. It took Leighton some time to forgive them, as lies hurt, but sparks flew when she let them in again.

The heat is much higher in this book, shifting it from a slow burn with mild steam to Leighton and the boys finally giving in to the pull of the mating bond. Holy hotness, between the dirty talk and the actual actions, these scenes are scorching.

I honestly don’t know how I’ll make it through the next several months for the last book as, once again, Tessa culminated the book at a cliffhanger. It wrecked me, and I need more.

Genre: Paranormal Academy Romance
Tropes/Features: Fated Mates, shifters, incubus, mage, “Who Hurt You”, “Touch Her and Diê”, magical society, mild OW drama (not actualized by guys), twins, hurt/comfort
Narrator: 1st Person POV, Single Narrator - Vanessa Moyen
Relationship Type: Why Choose MFMMM, Slow to medium burn, steamy to spicy
Book Type/Ending: Book two in the Supernaturals of Castle Academy series, cliffhanger ending

This shifter romance just gets better and better!!

Once again, Vanessa Moyen did a phenomenal job narrating the audio for this series! This is book 2 of the series and her voice just fits these characters perfectly!! She continues to use different tones for each person so well and makes them so distinguishable! Her voice is so pleasing to listen to which makes it such an enjoyable audio that completely grasps the vibes of the book! Cannot wait to hear her in book 3 as well!!

Ahhh the opening to this book was torture to read!!! But wow, did it just go on so many twists and turns from there! Lets just say when one mystery wraps up, another opens! Tessa kills it with the surprises and suspense but boy is it so incredibly captivating!!!

In this book, I also loved getting to see Leighton’s relationships with each of the guys grow individually! Each time I think I have a favorite in the bond, we hear about another backstory to one of the guys and then that one becomes my favorite! I will also admit that I was unsure of Declan in book 1, but my heart opened up for him in this one after hearing more about the past! Now I whole heartedly love each of the guys in this book! The dynamic between them all just continues to develop in this story while that suspense kept me completely captivated! I also have to mention that Leighton is becoming a stronger and stronger heroine standing her ground and also defending herself. I loved to see her growth from even just book 1 to 2! Overall, this series continues to build so incredibly well! I cannot wait to see how Tessa wraps it all up in book 3!!

New Favorite Series?! Yes!

*Audible note- I loved Vanessa Mayan in this audible book series. She does a great job of portraying the feelings that Leighton is going through. It felt like she was coming to life before my eyes and I loved being able to listen to it.


*The book itself - Oh my gosh, I can’t wait for book 3, I just need it like right nowwww, this cliffhanger, was so hard to read.

We pick up right where book 1 left us, and we see how strong Leighton is. She keeps fighting through all of the pain she’s put through, and never breaks. When she is reunited with the guys, they’re not just rocking too and fro now that they’re all back together. The trust was broken, and they have to go through the fallout of what she found out. All the while still dealing with the issue of who took her, and how to deal with getting rid of people that shouldn’t walk their world.

Oh the guys, Colt, Dash, Declan, Ronan and Trace, they’re all feeling a lot with having her back, the betrayal, the questions, and just all of it. Trace ugh, baby boy you’re breaking my heart, I just can’t wait for book 3, I swear it’s going to be fireworks when that happens. Colt, I was not happy with him, I mean that went for all of them but him the most. But, he explained himself, didn’t hold back just gave his LeeLee the truth, which is what she needed. Dash, I love how he is with Leighton, it’s a a different way to help her but, they’ve had a different relationship. Declan & Ronan, ugh the twins, and all of the things that are going on. We do get some answers about them as we go through, so that was good to learn something.

Leighton learns more about the world that she’s been thrust into, well actually taken to. Tomato-Tomahto. She shows her strength throughout the book, and that she can be a level headed FMC, she doesn’t give the guys an easy out. But she doesn’t overly punish them for no reason, it’s a good balance. Tessa did a great job with that, she does so good in this area with her books!

The story and plot lines of this book ebb and flow, we find out a few answers to questions from book 1, and we get new questions too that will be answered next. It’s so much action, and moving parts that you won’t want to put this book down. Also, the fun stuff, that is just so much FUN and what a level up from book 1. I swear book 3, our kindles are going to melt LOL. One thing I liked was that we get to see more of their world now that Leighton knows about it, so we get to learn the importance. And what each “section” does of the supernatural. I loved that we learned that in book 2, it felt right.

If you’re looking for a new supernatural why choose romance, look no further. If you’re not a fan of cliffhangers, I suggest waiting until September 3rd. That’s when we get the final book!

Fun, fantasy RH continuation!

4⭐️ 3.5🌶️

This is the second book in this series, so if you are looking for a fun, spicy, fantasy, RH with protective fated mates, go back to book one or if you’ve already read book one, what are you waiting for, jump in!

We left Leighton at a pretty bad spot in the last book, she ran from the guys thinking she was a burden and her lack of magic made them not want her. The minute she left the house she was grabbed and unfortunately her time away from them was not pleasant. She had been previously attacked by a rude and power hungry vampire, and he’s back for more. While he attempts to torture secrets out of her that she doesn’t have, the guys are doing everything they can to track her down. And when they find her, their protective instincts go into overdrive.

This book is really about her building those bonds and helping her mates heal — she has her hands full with her wolf, twin dragons, demon, and caster. Some of them are sure about her but not each other, some of them are sure about each other but not themselves.

And the crew are in for a bit of a good surprise when they learn something about Leighton and her latent anchor powers — but that knowledge comes with a ticking clock.

Again, Vanessa Moyen absolutely crushed the audio for this! I will definitely be doing the audio for book three as well! It was a short listen but I was engaged the whole way through — perfect for my flight and drive for a work trip!