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skypotion's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ST Gibson showed back up with this. It's no Dowry of Blood, but it's a great novel on its own. The writing is again gorgeous, the intrigue is great, and I love Laura & Carmilla's characterizations, as well as what Gibson is doing here with the power dynamics. Does not let down.
Also, if you're worried about homophobia, don't be. It's in the background, as this is set in the 60's, but neither girl is put in a situation where they have to experience it for themselves.
If you have any concerns about the Toxic Relationship TW:It is not between Carmilla & Laura, although there are BDSM/power/dom/sub undertones to some of their interactions. These are all consensual, though, & I do believe they're codependent in a fun way (lmao)
If you're curious about any potential Dowry crossovers:Magdalena appears for a bit! She references the activities in book one, but nothing specifically. It's just wonderful getting to see her again, I love Magdalena
Also, if you're worried about homophobia, don't be. It's in the background, as this is set in the 60's, but neither girl is put in a situation where they have to experience it for themselves.
If you have any concerns about the Toxic Relationship TW:
If you're curious about any potential Dowry crossovers:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Blood
Minor: Abandonment
charleyyyyy's review against another edition
3.0
🦇This book was a bit of a disappointment for me because of how much I loved Gibsons previous book. This one didn't live up to my expectations unfortunately.
🌹I love the concept of this book, but the execution leaves something to be desired. The themes seemed underdeveloped,
I didn't love the charicters, and there was barely any plot to even be interested in. The scraps of plot that we did get felt underdeveloped and rushed. It had so much potential but none of it was used to its full extent.
🖤I did like the dynamic of their relationships.
I liked how Carmilla and Laura work as a couple, and especially how the kinkyer aspects of their interests come together. Although, that was also something I wanted more of, I did enjoy how their feelings towards dom/sub dynamics were explored on an individual level,
🌹I love the concept of this book, but the execution leaves something to be desired. The themes seemed underdeveloped,
I didn't love the charicters, and there was barely any plot to even be interested in. The scraps of plot that we did get felt underdeveloped and rushed. It had so much potential but none of it was used to its full extent.
🖤I did like the dynamic of their relationships.
I liked how Carmilla and Laura work as a couple, and especially how the kinkyer aspects of their interests come together. Although, that was also something I wanted more of, I did enjoy how their feelings towards dom/sub dynamics were explored on an individual level,
"I was, I knew full well, a creature composed of strange desires. They'd always been with me, these hungers."
"Love and pain grew in a thorny Grove inside me, impossible to disentangle from one another."
But I wanted to see more how they worked with these feelings during sex together.
🥀The toxic relationship between Carmilla and De Lafontaine was written well, and I enjoyed the way that theme was explored. Along with Laura coming into that toxic mix as well.
🥀The toxic relationship between Carmilla and De Lafontaine was written well, and I enjoyed the way that theme was explored. Along with Laura coming into that toxic mix as well.
" 'Don't you think it's wrong though? What she does to her students?'
'Right and wrong don't exist, Laura. They're fairy tales made up by priests and parents. There is only art and ugliness, and I'm willing to suffer and indignity for the sake of art. Even at the hands of Mrs D.' "
⚰️The theme of religion and how that mixes with BDSM and vampirism could have been realy interesting, but that also didn't get the level of development I wanted it to. It was just kind of a background thing, which is odd seeing as how big of a role religion is supposed to play in Laura's life.
🍷I wouldn't normally read a retelling of a classic I love, but I needn't have worried because this book barely has anything in common with Carmilla. The only similarities are the charicters names and the presence of vampires. Its a retelling of Carmilla in the same way The Love Hypothesis is a retelling of Star Wars: it felt like fanfic.
So what was the point of writing a retelling of a book when you aren't going to add anything or say anything or have anything in common with the original??
ALSO MAGDELENAIS HERE OMG!!!! I loved seeing her in this story and inteacting with this cast of charicters!!
🍷I wouldn't normally read a retelling of a classic I love, but I needn't have worried because this book barely has anything in common with Carmilla. The only similarities are the charicters names and the presence of vampires. Its a retelling of Carmilla in the same way The Love Hypothesis is a retelling of Star Wars: it felt like fanfic.
So what was the point of writing a retelling of a book when you aren't going to add anything or say anything or have anything in common with the original??
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Blood
shadowspinner's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic relationship
summermorning's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Alcohol
Moderate: Death
Minor: Vomit
briij's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This was a heavy romance plot book and it’s just not for me. I thought it was boring and juvenile. None of the characters were likable and they just irritated me. The ending felt a bit rushed and what was supposed to be the climatic part fell short for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
bookameme's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
Dark, Gripping, & Stimulating
Quote:📖
In the end, I stayed. I had the awful, yawning feeling inside myself that for her, I would always stay.
Thoughts: 💡
The first chapter had a slightly slow and meandering feel to it, but as soon as the story dove into the rivals to lovers vibes I was hooked. There is this moment of intense attraction that quickly burns into rivals that grabbed all of my attention in a sharp flash and from that point on the story had a fast and dark vibe, and I adored every minute of it. The imagery and poetry that permeated everything was spectacular. It was very LGBT positive but still recognized the struggle of marginalized people in the time period. I can’t sing enough praises for this story.
Writing Mechanics: ✍️
The plot is inspired and the language used and structure of it all is brilliant. All the characters were beautifully developed with rich backstories and deep motivations. There were points of the story that were so eloquently written that I had to reread and ruminate on the context and beauty of it. And the poetry! Gah! I can’t sing the praises of it enough! Everything in this book was spectacular!
Fun Bits:
⚜️ Sapphic Vampires
⚜️ Academic Rivals
⚜️ Needing to Please The Teacher
⚜️ Beautiful Poetry
⚜️ Sizzling Romance
⚜️ Plus Size Heroine
Important Note:✨
Standalone companion novel to A Dowery of Blood.
Full Content Warning:⚠️
Uneven Power Dynamics, Inappropriate Relationships Between Professor & Students, Toxic Academic Environments, Blood, Gore, and Murder, Alcohol and Drug Use, Smoking, Racist Political Policies, Homophobia, Religious Discrimination Against Women
Stats:📊
🌶️🌶️🌶️
Characters: 💙💙💙💙💙
Dark Historical Fantasy: Dark Academia, Sapphic Romance, Academic Rivals to Lovers, Vampires, Mystery Vibes
First Person, Present Tense, Dual POV
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Lesbophobia, Outing, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Moderate: Death of parent
jems_'s review against another edition
4.75
I was provided an audio ARC of this which was the very first audiobook I ever finished!
I had heard about this book before, as well as the author’s other work, though I had not read or otherwise consumed any of it myself so far. This was thus my first encounter with S.T. Gibson.
That said, listening to this was a very pleasant experience. The narrator, Stephanie Cannon, did an amazing job of the voices and has a beautiful voice. Multiple times I went back in the audiobook to hear her narrate professor De Lafontaine because it sounded like an entirely different person. It greatly helped immerse me in the story.
Going into this, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect of the story, especially the relationship between the professor and her students. On that, I am still not entirely certain what I think, though although strange, technically nothing too damnable happened in that aspect which I appreciate. (By damnable I‘m mostly referring to anything explicit since I don’t know how I would’ve felt about that. That aside the relationship was still really toxic! However, I don’t think the book acknowledged it as anything but if I‘m not mistaken which is important.)
I did really enjoy the relationship between Carmilla and Laura. As a very loyal and faithful person myself, unfaithfulness is generally something I can’t tolerate and there was at least one instance in this book that tested me in that regard. However, surprisingly it didn’t make me drop and dnf it like I would other books until now so that definitely says something. I think the other party‘s reaction influenced my own reaction to it as well, but that’s as much as I want to say on that to not spoiler too much!
Overall, I enjoyed the narrative style and the writing as it was read beautifully was nice and not too complicated. The characters were fleshed out with interesting, albeit a bit strange dynamics, though those were a big point of the story anyways and weren’t supposed to be the most healthy.
In my opinion it was a very nice experience and I‘m very grateful I got approved for this ARC!
I had heard about this book before, as well as the author’s other work, though I had not read or otherwise consumed any of it myself so far. This was thus my first encounter with S.T. Gibson.
That said, listening to this was a very pleasant experience. The narrator, Stephanie Cannon, did an amazing job of the voices and has a beautiful voice. Multiple times I went back in the audiobook to hear her narrate professor De Lafontaine because it sounded like an entirely different person. It greatly helped immerse me in the story.
Going into this, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect of the story, especially the relationship between the professor and her students. On that, I am still not entirely certain what I think, though although strange, technically nothing too damnable happened in that aspect which I appreciate. (By damnable I‘m mostly referring to anything explicit since I don’t know how I would’ve felt about that. That aside the relationship was still really toxic! However, I don’t think the book acknowledged it as anything but if I‘m not mistaken which is important.)
I did really enjoy the relationship between Carmilla and Laura. As a very loyal and faithful person myself, unfaithfulness is generally something I can’t tolerate and there was at least one instance in this book that tested me in that regard. However, surprisingly it didn’t make me drop and dnf it like I would other books until now so that definitely says something. I think the other party‘s reaction influenced my own reaction to it as well, but that’s as much as I want to say on that to not spoiler too much!
Overall, I enjoyed the narrative style and the writing as it was read beautifully was nice and not too complicated. The characters were fleshed out with interesting, albeit a bit strange dynamics, though those were a big point of the story anyways and weren’t supposed to be the most healthy.
In my opinion it was a very nice experience and I‘m very grateful I got approved for this ARC!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Blood
Minor: Death, Abandonment, and Alcohol
danaburrreads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder
heather_harrison's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thank you NetGalley, Hatchette Audio & S.T. Gibson for this audio-arc of An Education in Malice in exchange of my honest review.
Last year I devoured both Le Fanu's Carmilla and S.T. Gibson's previous work A Dowry of Blood - so needless to say I had high expectations of this going in.
This retelling follows Laura's arrival at Saint Perpetua's College, as she finds herself immediately falling into an academic rivalry with classmate Camilla, both of which are under the thrall of the capricious and mercurial poetry professor, Ms. De LaFontaine.
I enjoyed the alternating chapters between Laura and Camilla. The narrator did well to distinguish between the two voices, however I felt that as the novel darkened it became harder to tell. While this definitely is in line with the events of the story, it did make it a bit harder to follow.
Read for:
- Dark academia
- Sapphic vampires
- Academic rivals to lovers
- Dark romance & horror blend
The book starts with trigger warnings - which was definitely useful.
The romance and spice were liberally blended, and were also heavily tied to many triggers - however the exploration of trauma, grooming, and obsession was accurately toxic in the best possible way.
This is definitely not going to be everybody's cup of tea - but I devoured this in two days, and honestly wished I could have finished it earlier.
Last year I devoured both Le Fanu's Carmilla and S.T. Gibson's previous work A Dowry of Blood - so needless to say I had high expectations of this going in.
This retelling follows Laura's arrival at Saint Perpetua's College, as she finds herself immediately falling into an academic rivalry with classmate Camilla, both of which are under the thrall of the capricious and mercurial poetry professor, Ms. De LaFontaine.
I enjoyed the alternating chapters between Laura and Camilla. The narrator did well to distinguish between the two voices, however I felt that as the novel darkened it became harder to tell. While this definitely is in line with the events of the story, it did make it a bit harder to follow.
Read for:
- Dark academia
- Sapphic vampires
- Academic rivals to lovers
- Dark romance & horror blend
The book starts with trigger warnings - which was definitely useful.
The romance and spice were liberally blended, and were also heavily tied to many triggers - however the exploration of trauma, grooming, and obsession was accurately toxic in the best possible way.
This is definitely not going to be everybody's cup of tea - but I devoured this in two days, and honestly wished I could have finished it earlier.
"I felt certain I could perish like this. Suffocated by her thighs and die perfectly happy."
- An Education in Malice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Blood
mariebrunelm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.5
ARC provided by the editor via NetGalley.
It is Laura’s first year at Saint Perpetua's College, and she has been admitted to the very closed circle of Ms De Lafontaine’s poetry class. There, in addition to the heady blend of poetry she has to absorb and create, she faces the immediate hatred of one student, Carmilla, the teacher’s favourite. A web of secrets links the prodigy student and the professor, one that hints at something not entirely proper. Soon, Laura finds herself drawn into the tight circle of their relationship.
This dark academia novel / romance had all the vibes. It felt gothic, rather sexy, dangerous and morally very gray. The relationship dynamics were probably the highlight of this book as it explored the trope of rivals to lovers as well as power abuse in academic settings. I felt these were well executed, introducing a lot of tension from the former and a lot of “ugh please no” from the latter. I was thoroughly enjoying myself and couldn’t put the book down. When I did, however, I felt a little frustrated. I think I wanted a little more from it, especially because of the novella S.T. Gibson drew from — Carmilla. That being said, the original piece is very short and suggests more than it takes a deep dive into its themes, so maybe that’s fair for An Education in Malice to do a similar job. The fact that I wanted more from it probably stems from the fact that I was really enjoying myself, and that’s a good thing.
Rep : bisexual MC, lesbian mid-size MC.
Summary of the CW listed at the beginning of the book: power abuse, inappropriate relationships, toxic academic environment, blood, gore, murder, consensual sexual content (very spicy), alcohol and drug use, smoking.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Drug use