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torismazarine's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Confinement, Gore, Racism, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Murder, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
krispi_kebob's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
An Education in Malice is quite the story. I found myself invested in the characters right from the beginning. I appreciated the content warnings at the start of the book a lot to understand what I was getting myself into - the story is complicated, morally grey. I appreciated that sex and sensuality were not the total purpose of the book, but rather fit into the plot like a key in a lock.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Death, Grief, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Gaslighting
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Infidelity
haileeraye's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Gore
moonytoast's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Thank you to Netgalley and Redhook Books for providing me with a digital ARC of this book!
Do you like: Dark academia? Lesbians? Vampiric debauchery?
An enticing mixture of the gothic and erotic, An Education in Malice breathes new life—a second life, if you will—into the subgenre of dark academia and the classic vampire tale. Heavily inspired by Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla, the novel explores the carnal nature of vampirism as well as the blooming complexities of desire, devotion, and love.
Set against the backdrop of Saint Perpetua’s College in Massachusetts, An Education in Malice follows two protagonists—Laura and Carmilla—who find themselves thrown together under the wing of their elusive poetry professor, De Lafontaine. While they begin as rivals, they are quickly pulled inexorably into the orbit of De Lafontaine’s world of dark obsession and ancient, bloody secrets.
The writing style begins with a more pragmatic, diaristic tone and transforms into an obsessive interior focus as Laura and Camilla descend into the depths of their audacious desire and devotion to each other. Combined with lush prose, S.T. Gibson crafts a pulse-pounding, atmospheric novel in its setting and characters that pulls you in for it to sink its teeth into you. While it is more immersive vibes than cohesive plot, that doesn’t necessarily make it a bad piece of fiction and I still enjoyed the story.
Perfect for fans of Carmilla and The Secret History, An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson is brimming with intrigue and insatiable hungers. This book is the incarnation of the vivid imagery of Florence and the Machine’s discography mixed with the unabashed raunchiness of Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Toxic relationship, Death, Murder, and Sexual content
courtsport3000's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Super solid 4.5, leaning oh so close to a five. This book had me on a leash the entire time I was reading it. I was hooked from the first chapter and tore through the pages as quickly as I could. I always wanted to be reading, always had these characters on my mind.
There's so much in this book that Gibson does well that I hardly know where to start. The dark academia vibes are perfection. The character work is some of the best I've read in a long time. The way the relationships are portrayed in this book... somehow Gibson manages to capture all these subtle, delicate little details that really make everything feel realistic and relatable, even when it's not. There's this careful balance between the comfortable and the uncomfortable and it's handled in a way that's almost playful. It works so well in a book that centers yearning that becomes obsession and idolatry that borders on unhinged. Add in all the trademark moments of college girl life - discovering an independent self, exploring sexuality, deciding where you fit (or don't fit) within the norms and expectations you carry... I could ramble forever about all the ways I found this book relatable in all the best and worst ways.
As for the more horror-ish elements, those were more in the forefront than I expected them to be, but not in a bad way. I do wish certain aspects of that plotline were better fleshed out (not a pun...?) but I found them rewarding regardless. I also have complicated feelings about the ending, but I'll leave it at that to avoid spoilers. Eager to see what other readers think about it.
I'm basically going to scream about this book for a really long time. So grateful to Redhook for an ARC in exchange for review.
There's so much in this book that Gibson does well that I hardly know where to start. The dark academia vibes are perfection. The character work is some of the best I've read in a long time. The way the relationships are portrayed in this book... somehow Gibson manages to capture all these subtle, delicate little details that really make everything feel realistic and relatable, even when it's not. There's this careful balance between the comfortable and the uncomfortable and it's handled in a way that's almost playful. It works so well in a book that centers yearning that becomes obsession and idolatry that borders on unhinged. Add in all the trademark moments of college girl life - discovering an independent self, exploring sexuality, deciding where you fit (or don't fit) within the norms and expectations you carry... I could ramble forever about all the ways I found this book relatable in all the best and worst ways.
As for the more horror-ish elements, those were more in the forefront than I expected them to be, but not in a bad way. I do wish certain aspects of that plotline were better fleshed out (not a pun...?) but I found them rewarding regardless. I also have complicated feelings about the ending, but I'll leave it at that to avoid spoilers. Eager to see what other readers think about it.
I'm basically going to scream about this book for a really long time. So grateful to Redhook for an ARC in exchange for review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Alcohol, and Death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Minor: Abandonment, Death of parent, and Toxic relationship
eusteph's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
4.25/5
I can't help but compare this to A Dowry of Blood, even though the stories are highly different. This one started out a little too slow for my liking, which is why I couldn't rate it higher.
I seldom read sapphic books, so I didn't know what to expect going into this, but I was pleasantly surprised about the way this love triangle was set up. The "smutty" scenes didn't cheapen the story, and the ending was open enough to leave the reader wandering, but not so much that this tale would require a sequel.
Can't wait to read S.T. Gibson's next book!
I can't help but compare this to A Dowry of Blood, even though the stories are highly different. This one started out a little too slow for my liking, which is why I couldn't rate it higher.
I seldom read sapphic books, so I didn't know what to expect going into this, but I was pleasantly surprised about the way this love triangle was set up. The "smutty" scenes didn't cheapen the story, and the ending was open enough to leave the reader wandering, but not so much that this tale would require a sequel.
Can't wait to read S.T. Gibson's next book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
thebookkeepers's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Review to come
LGBTQ+rep: f/f relationship with main characters
LGBTQ+rep: f/f relationship with main characters
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, Blood, and Murder
sausome's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
2/5 stars - This was meh. I'll be honest, I did not expect vampires. That being said, I could've maybe been okay with the vampire situation had the various relationships been more fleshed out. I felt like the book screeched to a halt just when Laura and Carmilla were beginning to admit some things about their feelings, then BAM, vampires. LOL! This book felt like someone picked up an all-girls-school-competitive-but-I-love-you scenario, smashed it violently into some Interview-with-a-vampire sh*t, then flipped a table and went all 50-Shades. I have whiplash from whatever this was.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
tales_told_in_gold's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, Toxic relationship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content, Abandonment, and Death
Minor: Alcoholism and Vomit
themagicalworldofnian's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An Education in Malice by ST Gibson - review
5 ⭐️
2 🌶️
Wow S.T. Gibson did it again. If you have read A Dowry of Blood this gives the same vibes ✨
An Education in Malice is a sapphic Carmilla retelling, do I even have to say anymore 🤯
It follows both Carmilla and Laura, two academic rivals who are infatuated with poetry and getting the approval of their demanding professor De Lafontaine.
While Laura is timid and very insecure about herself and her sexuality, is Carmilla the complete opposite, she is very confident and a bit of a mean girl. They both want the approval of the professor. But there is a thin line between desire, obsession and academic approval.
Again S.T. Gibson her prose is just so captivating an poetic, which I just love💕. She just has a way with words that I can’t describe in any other way than just read her books and stories. The use of literary devices such as metaphors, imagery, symbolism and repetition is done just perfectly. It just adds this extra layer to the writing.
I also just loved the inclusion of a couple of poems written by Laura and Carmilla, tho I would have liked seeing even more of them.
The story is also again very character focused and driven just as her other books. The relationships are written soo good. The relationship between Laura and Carmilla, but also between Carmilla and De Lafontaine. The jealousy, the desire, the obsession, the lust, but also the love and friendship.
I also loved how you could really see the imbalance in power between everyone, but also how it is challenged in certain situations.
I love dark academia and I love S.T Gibson and her poetic writing, so for me this was the absolute perfect combo.
So overall, I would definitely recommend this if you love a dark academia that is mainly character driven with sapphic relationships, vampires and obsession and desire packaged in poetic writing.
5 ⭐️
2 🌶️
Wow S.T. Gibson did it again. If you have read A Dowry of Blood this gives the same vibes ✨
An Education in Malice is a sapphic Carmilla retelling, do I even have to say anymore 🤯
It follows both Carmilla and Laura, two academic rivals who are infatuated with poetry and getting the approval of their demanding professor De Lafontaine.
While Laura is timid and very insecure about herself and her sexuality, is Carmilla the complete opposite, she is very confident and a bit of a mean girl. They both want the approval of the professor. But there is a thin line between desire, obsession and academic approval.
Again S.T. Gibson her prose is just so captivating an poetic, which I just love💕. She just has a way with words that I can’t describe in any other way than just read her books and stories. The use of literary devices such as metaphors, imagery, symbolism and repetition is done just perfectly. It just adds this extra layer to the writing.
I also just loved the inclusion of a couple of poems written by Laura and Carmilla, tho I would have liked seeing even more of them.
The story is also again very character focused and driven just as her other books. The relationships are written soo good. The relationship between Laura and Carmilla, but also between Carmilla and De Lafontaine. The jealousy, the desire, the obsession, the lust, but also the love and friendship.
I also loved how you could really see the imbalance in power between everyone, but also how it is challenged in certain situations.
I love dark academia and I love S.T Gibson and her poetic writing, so for me this was the absolute perfect combo.
So overall, I would definitely recommend this if you love a dark academia that is mainly character driven with sapphic relationships, vampires and obsession and desire packaged in poetic writing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Blood, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Sexual content