The Becoming: A Dark Academia Romantic Fantasy (The Blackwood Chronicles Book 1)

Name: The Becoming: A Dark Academia Romantic Fantasy (The Blackwood Chronicles Book 1)
Author: Lexi Ash

Lexi Ash

Book 1 in the The Blackwood Chronicles series · Reading order →

SpiceDarkness

How we rate spice & darkness

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Spice & darkness rated — content warnings listed below

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Why we recommend it

The opening of a dark academia romantic fantasy steeped in transformation and hidden power. For readers who love magical schooling, slow-burning attraction, and a heroine coming into dangerous abilities, this builds a moody, immersive world. The atmosphere is atmospheric and tense, the romance laced with secrets and forbidden longing. A good entry point for fans who like their fantasy gothic and their love interests morally complicated.

At a glance

The Becoming is a dark academia romance by Lexi Ash. It rates 3/5 for spice and 3/5 for darkness, on the lighter side for dark academia romance: of the 191 dark academia romance books we rate, almost none score lower for darkness and 4% lower for spice. Tropes: found family, slow burn and enemies to lovers. 2 content warnings are listed below, hidden until you tap.

Tropes

Enemies to Lovers Forbidden Romance Found Family Morally Grey MC Slow Burn

Book details

Published: February 2026

The Becoming spice level

The Becoming is rated 3/5 for spice on Readark’s scale: open door, meaning explicit scenes written plainly, but not the engine of the book. Its darkness rating is 3/5: genuinely dark, meaning violence, coercion or captivity drive the plot, not just the mood. How we rate