Reviews

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

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mjreutman's review

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dark emotional reflective 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

4.75

shannonigans322's review against another edition

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3.5

Drawing inspiration from the ages-old vampire tale of Camilla, this gothic YA novel was...alright. Several weeks removed from finishing the text, I can't quite put my finger on what I would've liked to see more or less of, alas. If you like a vampire and/or queer story, you'll enjoy yourself, even if your socks remain firmly in their prescribed positions.

seekerxr's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I enjoyed this a lot! Gibson's prose is just as haunting and melodic as it was in A Diary of Blood and I have a special craving in my heart for Carmilla retellings because the original classic let me down so much more than Dracula did. This is the first retelling I came across that I really enjoyed.

While I did enjoy the display of toxic power dynamics within the story of Carmilla and De Lefontaine's relationship, I have to wonder why the author even added her in at all? The original story really just focuses on Laura and Carmilla and I think everything that has been done in this book could've been accomplished without De Lefontaine as a presence at all. I don't think her inclusion takes away from the story any, we still get plenty of focus on Laura and Carmilla and their personal relationship, but it just seems like an odd choice and in inclusion of a storyline that, while it was done well, didn't feel necessary to me.

Laura and Carmilla had a special sort of feralness for each other that I really enjoyed. I don't think we didn't get enough time with them but I would've loved more.

Overall though this book was dark and thrilling and I had a very good time with it!

karlijnessink's review

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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

4.75

patibooks7's review

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"an education in malice" spodoba się fanom dark academia i mrocznych romansów. ten retelling draculi jest oszałamiający i uwodzicielski, zrównoważony prawdziwymi ludzkimi emocjami. idealny dla fanów "the atlas six" lub "house of hunger".