The Dean's List by Rachel Van DykenMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
📖Book Info
A new adult dark academia romance with a scarred hero and a school full of secrets from #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Rachel Van Dyken.
She spent seven years mourning him.
He spent seven years hating her.
Neither of them knows they're hunting the same secret.
They call it the Dean's List.
Not because of grades.
Because of sins.
At Brighton University, someone keeps a ledger of the powerful. Professors. Legacy families. Future politicians. Every affair, bribe, betrayal, and crime is carefully collected, waiting for the perfect moment to destroy the people responsible.
Delilah Quinn wants nothing to do with it. She changed her name, rebuilt her life, and has one year left before she can finally leave her past behind.
Then Jude Mercer walks back into her life.
The boy she loved.
The boy she buried.
The boy who knows exactly who she is.
Jude spent years paying for a crime he didn't commit, convinced Delilah betrayed him. Now he's back, determined to uncover the truth and make everyone responsible suffer. Especially her.
But revenge gets complicated when old feelings refuse to stay dead, and the deeper they dig into the Dean's List, the more they realize the ledger isn't exposing strangers. It's exposing their families.
Someone has been waiting for them to come home. Someone knows what really happened seven years ago. And if the Dean's List finally comes to light it won't just ruin lives. It could end them.
And this time, losing each other might be the one thing Jude and Lilah can't survive.
💭Our Thoughts
” If it’s not love. It’s war. It has to be. “
This was an emotional ride!
Don't believe everything you see or hear.
Do not trust anyone.
Pay attention to the little things!
It is there, in the beginning, when everything feels like it's moving in slow motion.
It is there, hidden in the misdirections.
It starts slowly and builds up a steady momentum.
Each scene brings you further into the story until eventually you feel like you are there.
A participant, not an observer
Jude, in his quest for the truth, his revenge
Lilah, as she comes to terms with her past
Also, a fabulous cast of supporting characters.
The annoying, boy-loving, happy-go-lucky bestie who has kept you sane
The cousin who is just a bit questionable and lives to get on your nerves.
The sleazy professor
“Different wounds. Same pain. And both of us have been bleeding out for a very long time.”
Their story hurt on so many levels.
Imagine spending half of your young life trusting those who were supposed to protect and care for you, only to discover that you were nothing but a stepping stone in their ladder to success?
Or to direct all your hatred at one person, just to keep yourself sane, only to find out they were not the villain in your story?
“Yet here we are. All resurrected, angry, and full of joy.”
This has it all. Betryal. Heartbreak. Loss.
And most importantly, an HEA
“To you. I would have run to you. And like the rain that day, I wouldn’t have stopped.”
💔 At this moment, I abhor their parents
I hope they all get just a small taste of what they put these two through
A sliver of the pain. The loss. The fracturing.
“Huh, maybe you can scare someone alive.”
Fricking loved this scene!! I am excited to get their story.
Author Website: https://rachelvandykenauthor.com/
Blog Tour Page: https://awonderfulworldofwordsa.blogspot.com/2026/06/new-release-hes-last-person-she-should.html
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#bookrecommendation #rachelvandyken #newadult #enemiestolovers #darkacademia
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