The only thing that makes me sad, is that it is a stand alone novel. It also shows a lot about the characters, if you pay attention to the way each of them argues.I could not put this book down. This is the class that is mentioned the most in the book, and through their arguments, the reader is able to learn more about the book's current events, than in any other way.

What is unique, is that we find out about the politics of the government by listening to the students arguing in Debate class at the Academy. They seem like real people, acting in ways that are consistent with what knowledge the reader has been given about them.The world Osterlund built is similar to other science fiction stories set in the future there is space travel, unrest between planets, and a government that is trying to keep the peace between other planets by bringing them all under their power. Both main characters (Aerin and Dane) have their own share of troubles, and it is very interesting to see how they react to each situation. It's what drives the story, allowing the reader to see deeper and deeper into each character as it goes along. In fact, there is very little romance in this book, just a few short and sweet moments, that both tantalize and satisfy.The character development is good.

It goes so much deeper, by dealing with social issues of the future, and presenting multi-layered characters. I was mislead by the cover, into thinking this would be a novel with romance as the basic plot point.but it's not.

Recommended to me by Megan from Posey Sessions (thank you!), Academy 7 has been one of the best books I have read this year. Sweet, thought-provoking, and adventurous that's how I would describe Academy 7.

Aurelia by Anne Osterlund