Welcome to the very first episode of our new monthly series, Throwback Bookshelf — where we dust off the books that defined our teenage years and revisit them with our fully-formed adult brains, higher standards, and just a little bit of chaos.

This month, we’re diving fang-first into Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead, this series that had us shipping forbidden romances, dreaming about dhampir training, and spiraling over Strigoi drama back in the early 2000s. We’re talking nostalgia, teen obsession, and whether this book actually holds up—or if it was simply a fever dream powered by glitter eyeliner and bad decisions.