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leopause 's review for:
An Education in Malice
by S.T. Gibson
This is one of those books that is going to stay with me for a long time. Carmilla and Laura start out as academic rivals which fans the flames of their feelings for each other. Something I particularly liked about this was that they were powerful equals from the beginning. I feel like it made the transition from enemies to lovers more intense and interesting. I felt the tension of their feelings and I completely devoured those early scenes. Their competition turned lust turned adoration was fascinating to experience.
SPOILERS BELOW.
Carmilla is such a bratty bottom and I was living for it. I went in expecting her to have this domineering persona, and at times she tried to act that way, but in her heart of hearts she just wanted to be pinned down by Laura. And Laura! She really came in as the steady and strong character. Something that really intrigued me about her characterization was that she tried to act demure and innocent but she was hiding back her own true nature. I enjoyed how even though she was supposed to be this pure Christian girl from the south, she was consciously aware of her lesbian identity and loved reading erotica. While she did hide these things, which makes sense given the time period, I still found that she was aware and unflinching in who she was and what she liked. Her and Carmilla’s relationship kept me engrossed in the story. I loved when they really started to fall for each other and how once they decided to become a couple they were both so equally in love and obsessed. It is one of those romances that I wish I could read for the first time again. Where Laura and Carmilla were equals in many ways, their relationship was contrasted by Carmilla’s relationship with De Lafontaine.
The character of De Lafontaine could be frustrating at times, but I believe this was intended. The unhealthy student-professor dynamic between her and Carmilla continued to worsen as the book progressed and I was prepared for De Lafontaine to become the true villain of this story. Instead, she was redeemed which at first I didn’t love but I’ve sat with and appreciate it. It would have been predictable for her to let her jealousy of Laura escalate until she trapped Carmilla into their relationship with the only resolution being the two young lovers fleeing from De Lafontaine. It was strange to see a character like her, who is so commonly typecast as the villain, choose to become a better person. At first, I didn’t like it because I wanted the story to build to this dramatic moment of Laura and Carmilla escaping her. Instead, the story took a turn of making Isis the ultimate villain who was slain in the end and represented ending the cycle of abuse that De Lafontaine could have easily continued with Carmilla. I do wish we had gotten to see the catalyst behind her decision to change. It felt like she suddenly turned on a dime and decided to be better. I believe the intended turning point for her is when Carmilla and her are outside the bar and she breaks the wine glass against the wall. While this was a good scene, I don’t think it was conveyed well enough how this impacted De Lafontaine’s ultimate decision to turn against Isis. I appreciate her character growth, but I didn’t feel like I got to see enough. I wish it had felt more earned at the end. I think all of this lead to the death of Isis feeling anti-climatic. I wanted it to be even more heart wrenching for De Lafontaine. I don’t think the anti-climatic death hindered the story too much though. I still felt relieved and excited for Carmilla and Laura to be truly set free.
What felt the most dramatic (besides Carmilla becoming a vampire) was when De Lafontaine made the decision to leave on her own. The goodbye was beautiful and I have made the decision in my mind that this is the real climax of the story. This felt like the true moment of ending the cycle and the redemption of De Lafontaine.
And finally, Magdalena! I read A Dowry of Blood first, so I was excited to see the character of Magdalena appear in this book as well. I love the nod to her experience with a lover like Isis and how she lives so differently now. When Carmilla and Laura decide to leave with her in the end, I felt so happy because I knew she would take care of them better because she had also ended her own cycle of abuse and valued freedom and choice. The final scene of Magdalena sitting with Laura and offering her the choice to become a vampire reminded me of how Magdalena had been offered the same choice with Dracula but under drastically different circumstances. Her offering to Laura felt more like she was empowering her and less like she was trying to trap her. Overall, a beautiful end to a phenomenal story.
SPOILERS BELOW.
Carmilla is such a bratty bottom and I was living for it. I went in expecting her to have this domineering persona, and at times she tried to act that way, but in her heart of hearts she just wanted to be pinned down by Laura. And Laura! She really came in as the steady and strong character. Something that really intrigued me about her characterization was that she tried to act demure and innocent but she was hiding back her own true nature. I enjoyed how even though she was supposed to be this pure Christian girl from the south, she was consciously aware of her lesbian identity and loved reading erotica. While she did hide these things, which makes sense given the time period, I still found that she was aware and unflinching in who she was and what she liked. Her and Carmilla’s relationship kept me engrossed in the story. I loved when they really started to fall for each other and how once they decided to become a couple they were both so equally in love and obsessed. It is one of those romances that I wish I could read for the first time again. Where Laura and Carmilla were equals in many ways, their relationship was contrasted by Carmilla’s relationship with De Lafontaine.
The character of De Lafontaine could be frustrating at times, but I believe this was intended. The unhealthy student-professor dynamic between her and Carmilla continued to worsen as the book progressed and I was prepared for De Lafontaine to become the true villain of this story. Instead, she was redeemed which at first I didn’t love but I’ve sat with and appreciate it. It would have been predictable for her to let her jealousy of Laura escalate until she trapped Carmilla into their relationship with the only resolution being the two young lovers fleeing from De Lafontaine. It was strange to see a character like her, who is so commonly typecast as the villain, choose to become a better person. At first, I didn’t like it because I wanted the story to build to this dramatic moment of Laura and Carmilla escaping her. Instead, the story took a turn of making Isis the ultimate villain who was slain in the end and represented ending the cycle of abuse that De Lafontaine could have easily continued with Carmilla. I do wish we had gotten to see the catalyst behind her decision to change. It felt like she suddenly turned on a dime and decided to be better. I believe the intended turning point for her is when Carmilla and her are outside the bar and she breaks the wine glass against the wall. While this was a good scene, I don’t think it was conveyed well enough how this impacted De Lafontaine’s ultimate decision to turn against Isis. I appreciate her character growth, but I didn’t feel like I got to see enough. I wish it had felt more earned at the end. I think all of this lead to the death of Isis feeling anti-climatic. I wanted it to be even more heart wrenching for De Lafontaine. I don’t think the anti-climatic death hindered the story too much though. I still felt relieved and excited for Carmilla and Laura to be truly set free.
What felt the most dramatic (besides Carmilla becoming a vampire) was when De Lafontaine made the decision to leave on her own. The goodbye was beautiful and I have made the decision in my mind that this is the real climax of the story. This felt like the true moment of ending the cycle and the redemption of De Lafontaine.
And finally, Magdalena! I read A Dowry of Blood first, so I was excited to see the character of Magdalena appear in this book as well. I love the nod to her experience with a lover like Isis and how she lives so differently now. When Carmilla and Laura decide to leave with her in the end, I felt so happy because I knew she would take care of them better because she had also ended her own cycle of abuse and valued freedom and choice. The final scene of Magdalena sitting with Laura and offering her the choice to become a vampire reminded me of how Magdalena had been offered the same choice with Dracula but under drastically different circumstances. Her offering to Laura felt more like she was empowering her and less like she was trying to trap her. Overall, a beautiful end to a phenomenal story.