A Guide To The Spine Ridge University Series By Clarissa Wild

Book Reviews
Written By Shenaye Suggs
 
“This university is far more than just a college. A lot is going on underneath the surface, more than most people know.” 
— Sick Boys, Book 1
 

What’s It About?

The Spine Ridge University series is a dark college reverse harem romance series written by Clarissa Wild. Each book covers a new set of students.

Each book centers around one of the notorious fraternities on campus: the Skull & Serpent Society, the Phantoms, and Tartarus. The men in these fraternities are dark. This is a dark romance — one of the darker ones if you ask me. The spice is spicy. The angst is angsty. The plots are full of twists and your heart is wrenched in multiple ways and directions. The girls in these stories are beyond strong and give back just as good as the guys. And what starts out as merely a game for these men turn into something much deeper.

And once you come to the end you realize that even though these men may have darker and more depraved desires when it comes to the bedroom, their morals are pretty sound (for the most part) and truly, they are fighting the evil that runs underneath the school they attend.

The full Spine Ridge University series is available on Kindle Unlimited. You can find it in my Amazon Shop here, or you can click the images below to go to each book.

Tropes Include: dark romance, college romance, mafia romance, enemies to lovers, reverse harem romance, knife play, M/M romance, and more.

The Setting

The Spine Ridge University series primarily takes place in the fictional school called Spine Ridge University, though some scenes occur outside of campus in Castle Vale City or beyond.

The Main Characters

While there are many characters in this book series, there are 12 students that the books center around:

Book 1: Penelope Ricci, Felix Rivera, Dylan Caruso, and Alistair King.

Book 2: Lana Rivera, Kai Torres, Nathan Reed, and Milo.

Book 3: Crystal Murphy, Ares, Caleb, and Blaine.

New character images will be added soon as they are completed!

The Side Characters

While there are many characters in this book series, there are a some side characters that you’ll find make a big enough impression.

New characters will be added as they are completed!

My Rating For The Series

Full rating coming soon!

Book One: Sick Boys

My Personal Rating — ★★★★★ — 5/5 Stars

Sick Boys is book one in the Spine Ridge University series. It is a dark college reverse harem romance book written by Clarissa Wild.

When Penelope’s sister, Eve, jumps to her death at the beginning of the school year, she leaves behind clues for Penelope to follow to find the truth of why she killed herself. Clue number one? Stay away from the sick boys of the Skull and Serpent Society on campus. So what does Penelope do? She faces them head on and makes a deal with them to help her find the cause of her sister’s death. The deal? Let’s just say she has to do whatever they want, whenever they want, until they fulfill their end of the bargain, taking down whoever was the root cause of Eve jumping to her death.

Felix, Dylan, and Alistair — the sick boys of the Skull & Serpent Society — have a lot of secrets they’re hiding. What did they have to do with Eve’s death?

Sick Boys takes you on a twisty, dark journey of Penelope searching for the truth. What she finds breaks her into a million pieces. And the relationship she ends up cultivating with these sick boys? Let’s just say it’s on the line after the truths she finds out.

But Penelope is strong. She was raised by parents whose mission is to take down mobsters — a modern take on Robin Hood. She can handle a little heartbreak and some truth while exacting her own vengeance — and that she does with a big bang.

I give this book 5/5 stars. It’s dark. It’s spicy. It’s angsty and full of secrets. It’s a reverse harem with 3 guys with 3 distinct personalities. There is M/M action in some scenes along with things like degradation and knife play. Like I said, it’s twisted and dark, but I loved every minute of it. And the plot? It kept me turning the pages, staying up late into the wee hours of the morning to finish the journey. It’s book 1 in a 3-book series. It does not end on a cliffhanger as each book covers a brand new relationship, though future characters are introduced in the books prior. Sick Boys is available on Kindle Unlimited. You can get book one in the Spine Ridge University series here.

A Playlist For The Spine Ridge University Series

Below, you’ll find a playlist full of songs that either matched the vibe of the school, the students, the main characters, or the events that occurred throughout the series. You can listen below via Apple Music or Spotify.

Don’t forget to give me a follow on whichever platform you use most and add the playlists to your library as new playlists and music are always being added!

Did you listen to the playlist? Let me know what you thought of it in a comment below or tag me on instagram [@shenayesuggs] or use my hashtags #shenayesuggs or #thatgirlsreads so I can see that you’re listening!

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An Important Note

For Authors

Are you an author wanting art for your book? I can help you with that! Send me a quick message via my contact page here to get the ball rolling.

For Readers

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This post contains affiliate links. Also, all character images have been generated using AI.

Shenaye Suggs

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