The Headmistress

Ms. McKay has another winner with this page turning novel. The characters this author creates take hold of you and do not let go. When taking part on this authors book/creation, you will be committed to the outcome of the characters in which you have become invested. Love, suspense, laughter, and romance, this story has it. The author's word choice always delights me in that I end up increasing my vocabulary! I will continue to look for books by this author.

This is the kind of writing that fills one as a lover of lesbian romance/fiction. Ms. McKay’s talent is endless in her ability to apply delicious and wanton balance to her writing. She does what any great lez fic writer knows, don’t skimp on the sex, lust, salaciousness of two women in love. Yet, what sets her miles apart from her contemporaries is a skilled hand in writing and humanizing those love scenes without sacrificing the plot. She is deft at character and plot development in such a way that the reader is ravenous, left to consume each word on the page like the finest of delicacies. Her writing is a rich tapestry illuminated by the absolute drivel that we all know passes for craftsmanship in this genre. I have never desired more to be yet and continually enfolded in a story and simultaneously be imbued with some form of temporary amnesia so that I could read it for first the first time over and over again. I can’t wait for what comes next from this writer.

I am utterly enraptured by this book—by the story, the setting, the characters, everything! I knew within the first few chapters this would become one of my all time favorite novels…and the rest of the book did not disappoint. It is not often that a story embeds itself into my soul the way The Headmistress did. Milena McKay’s writing is just as captivating as the setting and characters she created. Abby Craden’s narration was flawless as always and brought each distinct character to life…and her voice for Magdalene F*ing Nox was 🔥🔥🔥!This was a story that captured my attention and my heart from the first pages. I laughed, I cried, I held my breath. I felt every emotion and lived each moment as though they were my own. This is a book that I will be reading again and again!

“My name is Magdalene Nox. I am the new Headmistress of Three Dragons. And you are all fired.”The Headmistress by Milena McKay has given me a serious character crush in Magdalene Nox, the most ruthless reformer of private schools in the US. Have mercy but was she deliciously complex.Professor Sam Threadneedle (from a foundling on the steps of the school chapel to Math Chair in a little under thirty years) is totally out of her debt when it comes to Magdalene. One passionate hook-up with a mystery woman in Manhattan 3 months prior still haunts her thoughts. The encounter had a profound effect on her, and then Magdalene unexpectedly saunters into her life (again) - 4-inch heels and all - to wreak havoc on everything she holds dear. Is she the red-haired demon everyone makes her out to be? Magdalene is pushing all her buttons and it would be so easy to hate her but poor Sam, veering between loyalty and lust, is super conflicted.I loved it! I loved the set-up how we get a little scene from the Manhattan hook-up at the first 10 or so chapters of the book. I love the erotic undercurrent whenever Magdalene and Sam meet but how they resist it. And then we have an ex husband thrown in the mix who seems to be trying to woo Magdalene back. And we have a mystery on our hands. Who is behind these most unpleasant threats towards the new Headmistress?Great characterization throughout and I love how McKay keeps the sexual tension going, perfectly dosed and extremely sexy. It also helps that Sam and Magdalene have a lot of scenes together, which is great. There is nothing I hate more when the main characters spend most of the book apart.At 51% I got an A-ha(!) moment (and so did Sam though be it a different one). No spoilers though. And the plot twist was a total shocker I did NOT see coming! Well done! This is one of the best romances I’ve read this year and will go in my top 5 of 2021, fo shizzle! I highly recommend.Special shout out to ginger tomcat extraordinaire, Willoughby the Third, sun devotee, school mascot and only cat in residence.f/f explicitThemes: Dragons Island, Massachusetts, New England Three Dragons Academy for Girls, Math Chair, the Nox Method, the wild jasmine on the Amber Dragon Cliff, The Light Princess, veiled threats and not so veiled threats, dead flowers and rats, Sam has no poker face whatsoever, woah! shades of Mrs. Danvers anyone?5 Stars

I absolutely loved this book. The characters (main and supporting) were so clearly defined and the storyline was both unique and exciting - it was a slow-burn, which added to the mystery - a great read and very much enjoyed. There is one point I would make though and this is my opinion only, but because I found it irritating, I deducted a star. The constant use of superfluous words, being "aforesaid" and "said". An example would be "the aforesaid discussion was ignored' and "the said person just disappeared" - to me, it sounded as though it was a business/legal letter where those two words are commonly in use. In most cases, both words could simply have been dropped, or worked around - but again please, this is my take. Otherwise, this was just a superb effort and gave me many relaxing hours of reading.

This book is just perfect, like actually perfect. It’s just jumped to the number 2 spot in my all time favourite books. The story setting is amazing, I could see everything described and sometimes I felt like I was walking the halls or standing on the cliff with Sam. The story line is captivating from the start I constantly needed to know what would happen next and was never disappointed. And there’s twists in the tail.The characters are just delicious, like fall in love, delicious. Sam is fiery, sweet and loyal, you just want her to win at everything. I routed for her in all aspects of her life and truly liked her from the start. Magdalene is a most glorious Ice Queen, who is hard and emotionless in the way she presents herself, never wavering from her goals, until Ice meets Fire!!! Oh the meltage. The meltage is just epic. The struggles and the emotions are raw in the best most loveliest way. The supporting cast are fabulous especially Joanne, Lilly and Willoughby. I really did love this book and have bought it now (as I read it in KU) so I can read it again and again

This book was just so stunningly beautiful from the way it was written to the characters within. I was completely enamored, addicted and frankly want to read it again straight away because I know there are parts that I probably didn't fully comprehend while trying to consume the pages as fast as possible. Sam and Magdalene were so utterly fantastic as characters both with so much nuance and so many layers. The progression of them both was entrancing and oh so satisfying. I could genuinely wax lyrical about this book for ages it's up there as one of my favourites for sure. Milena's use of language as well as phenomenal, I consider myself pretty well read but there were about a dozen words I'd never come across before and as a reader I love being able to still be surprised by the multitude of words in this language.This book is seriously a masterpiece and I recommend anyone going to read this. I am overjoyed that Milena has another book I can now go and devour.

I enjoyed this read. It was intriguing and a page turner. I always like a not so icy ice queen, especially if they walk into a room and fire everyone. The banter between the two mains was one of my favourite parts of this book. However, it was the underlying intrigue that really had me hooked. I don't want to say much about it aside from the fact we are drip fed hints and evidence through disastrous events that come to a shocking reveal. If you like cryptic tales set in boarding schools with strong female leads, you will like this.

I don't often write reviews of books but this book deserves one.The story in its self is great and doesn't have that rushed feeling, like the author can'twait to finish and move on to the next which is all too common in lesfic.But what stands out in this book is the writing. It is beautifully written and eloquent, and the detailed angst of one of the two main protagonists in this book Sam is both believable and empathetic.I was both sad and happy when I finished it all in one sitting, because I know novels like this don't come along often, and it will probably be a while till the next unexpected treasure pops out.Kudos to the author, you produced a gem.

Loved reading the book. Ms McKay has become one of my top 5 lesfic authors. She artfully weaves a delicate balance in her storytelling. Incorporating mystery in a way that does not detract from the developing relationship of the MCs yet keeping one guessing. Enjoyed the multi layered unfolding of the story. I noticed a subtle reference to her first novel. A good supporting cast. On my read again list.I am glad I got the audible when it got released. AC just took it to another level with her narration. The already high quality of dialogue and storytelling was enriched by her talented acting. This one has joined my listen again list.