Royals of Villain Academy · 2019
Cruel MagicSpice level, tropes & is it dark romance?
by Eva Chase
Spice 2/5 (Warm) · Darkness 3/5 (Dark) · 1 trigger warning flagged
From Eva Chase, 2019: Cruel Magic, book 1 of Royals of Villain Academy. Readers shelve it for academy, morally grey and romantasy. We score it spice 2 (mild) and darkness 3 (dark). The heaviest flags readers report are bullying. Our scores lean on what readers report, not on a full reread, so treat them as a guide. This note is ours. It is not a publisher blurb.
First published: 2019. Book 1 of Royals of Villain Academy.
Cruel Magic tropes
On this shelf, Cruel Magic is filed under Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes and Dark romantasy. Each tag opens more books with that trope.
Cruel Magic spice level
Is Cruel Magic dark romance?
Yes. Cruel Magic scores 3 of 5 on our darkness scale (Dark).
Spice and darkness are separate scores. More dark books. How we rate.
Cruel Magic trigger warnings
Book-specific flags taken from reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 6 readers), grouped by us. Also on that list: death of parent, sexual content. See the reader-submitted list.
Graphic (1) — open before you read
Open this before you read. These are the flags most likely to be a hard stop.
Moderate (0)
Harm, control, or obsession that is common in this lane.
None flagged in this band.
Minor (0)
Present, and usually not the reason someone puts the book down.
None flagged in this band.
Full Cruel Magic trigger warnings
Royals of Villain Academy reading order
Cruel Magic is book 1 of 1 in Eva Chase's Royals of Villain Academy series. Start here.
- Book 1 Cruel Magic (this book) · 2019
Order checked against the StoryGraph Royals of Villain Academy series page on 13 October 2026.
Who it's for
Shelf note written for this site. We do not copy reviews or publisher blurbs. Outbound links are search pages, not quoted ratings. Kindle Unlimited and endings are only flagged when we were willing to mark them. How we rate.
Missing a book? Suggest it.
Books like Cruel Magic
Matched on shared tropes, then the closest spice and darkness scores. Other books in the same series are listed above, not here.
- The Exorcism of Faeries
The Exorcism of Faeries
J.L. Vampa
Spice ●●●○○Dark ●●●●○
Shared: Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes
- Blood & Betrayals
Blood & Betrayals
Jeanette Rose, Alexis Rune
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes
- Blood of Hercules
Blood of Hercules
Jasmine Mas
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes
- Her Feral Beasts
Her Feral Beasts
E.P. Bali
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes
- Psycho Gods
Psycho Gods
Jasmine Mas
Spice ●●●●○Dark ●●●●●
Shared: Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes
- A Court of Frost and Starlight
A Court of Frost and Starlight
Sarah J. Maas
Spice ●●●○○Dark ●●●○○
Shared: Dark romantasy, Morally grey heroes
- A Game of Fate
A Game of Fate
Scarlett St. Clair
Spice ●●●○○Dark ●●●○○
Shared: Dark romantasy, Morally grey heroes
- A Touch of Chaos
A Touch of Chaos
Scarlett St. Clair
Spice ●●●○○Dark ●●●○○
Shared: Dark romantasy, Morally grey heroes
Books like Cruel Magic, with a reason for each
Questions readers actually ask
What is the spice level of Cruel Magic?
Cruel Magic spice level is 2 of 5 (Warm). Heat you can feel. Little detail. Darkness is a separate score: 3 of 5 (Dark).
What are the Cruel Magic trigger warnings?
Graphic: Bullying. Moderate: none flagged. Minor: none flagged. These are book-specific flags reported by readers on reader-submitted content warnings on The StoryGraph (top flag reported by 6 readers), grouped by us. The author's own note may list more. Read it before you start.
Is Cruel Magic dark romance?
Yes. Cruel Magic scores 3 of 5 on our darkness scale (Dark). Harm is part of the romance, not a footnote.
What tropes are in Cruel Magic?
On this shelf Cruel Magic is filed under Dark academy romance, Morally grey heroes and Dark romantasy.
Who is Cruel Magic for?
For readers hunting academy and morally grey with mild spice. Read the warnings first.
What are some books like Cruel Magic?
Matched on shared tropes and similar spice and darkness: The Exorcism of Faeries by J.L. Vampa; Blood & Betrayals by Jeanette Rose, Alexis Rune; Blood of Hercules by Jasmine Mas; Her Feral Beasts by E.P. Bali; Psycho Gods by Jasmine Mas; A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas. More read-alikes, each with a reason, are on zademasked.com/like/cruel-magic.
Is Cruel Magic a standalone?
No. Cruel Magic is book 1 of 1 in the Royals of Villain Academy series by Eva Chase.
What order should I read the Royals of Villain Academy series in?
1. Cruel Magic.
How many books are in the Royals of Villain Academy series?
The Royals of Villain Academy series by Eva Chase has 1 main book.
What is the Cruel Magic age rating?
We'd say 18+. Spice sits at 2/5 (warm) and darkness at 3/5 (dark). That's our recommendation, not an official rating, so read the trigger warnings as well.
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