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A review by forgottenangstycharacter
An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.5
I would like to thank Netgalley for my ALC of An Education in Malice
An Education in Malice has been one of my most anticipated releases of the year. A dark academia version of Carmilla in the 60s? Sign me up. This is interestingly the second canonical vampire retelling/re-imagining I’ve read over the past two months, the first being Reluctant Immortals
An Education in Malice is told in dual PoV between Laura Sheridan and Carmilla Karnstein. Laura is a 20 year old freshman at Saint Perpetua’s school, enrolled in a senior poetry class run by the demanding and vampiric Professor De Lefontaine (Laura’s governess in Le Fanu’s Carmilla ). She yearns for the admiration of her professor over the clear class favourite, Carmilla, who has an inappropriate and all-consuming relationship with her professor. The two girls are pitted against the other, both vying for the attention of their professor, in blend of toxicity and artistic genius.
I wouldn’t call this a retelling, it’s a transplant or even an AU (and I meant that in the most affectionate way). The elements of girlhood and obsessive relationships between women shines here. One of my favourite parts of this book is the delicate balance of what could be contradictory desires within her characters. Carmilla is simultaneously hyperindependent, worldly, sharp, cutting and incredibly needy.
“In her righteous indignation, she seemed like a wrathful goddess but now she sounded very much her age, a child chasing after the approval of her mentor.”
Laura is sheltered, sweet, eager and also incredibly needy. Transforming her from her sheltered, upper-middle class existence schloss in Styria to the epitome of Southern politeness and grace was a smart move on Gibson’s part. Ultimately, Gibson taps into the essence of Le Fanu’s Carmilla, it’s a story about yearning, obsessive love and neediness. Both young women yearn for love, friendship and each other. Laura and Carmilla do not become the fast friends of the original novella, but that doesn’t stop the obsessive infatuation they have for each other. Yet, finally, we get the explicit sapphism that was denied in Carmilla.
It was toxic, messy and Gothic. I loved it!
This is the dark academia I have been looking for ever since reading The Secret History. Gibson’s strength in writing is the atmosphere and her prose. I wish I had recorded more of the beautiful prose but as I was often listening to it while driving I couldn’t. Her writing makes sure you feel New England's biting cold and the mist as the characters walk across the quad. You feel the same rage as Laura and Carmilla.
I have to shout out the audiobook narrator, Stephanie Cannon, who brought the book to life, effortlessly shifting between Laura's Southern Mississippi accent and Carmilla's refined Austrian accent, never confusing me with who was speaking or which PoV we were in.
This is a character-focused book that centres Laura and Carmilla’s relationship with vampirism being a metaphor for artistic brilliance that brings immortality, while giving everything a bloody tint. The first half was addictive. The second half ramped up the plot back it was relegated to the background as a murderer ripped through the school. I felt like the horror could have been amped up here as the reader knew who was behind the murder, but the focus was centred on Laura and Carmilla’s desire for each other. This of course led to a fair bit of spice, which didn’t always work for me (but that’s personal preference and not a fault of the writer). Also this is a S. T. Gibson book it’s to be expected. I wish there was a bit more of a sense of things closing in on our characters, and further challenging their dynamics. This occurred right towards the end but I wanted more of it. I also wanted the dynamic between Laura, Carmilla and De Lafontaine to be resolved a little more neatly.
I wanted either Carmilla or Laura to finally say no and extract themselves from their relationship. I suppose relationships like those depicted aren’t always neatly resolved, I just wished that it culminated in a breaking point.
Overall, this is an amazing take on Le Fanu’s Carmilla and even with the things I wasn’t sure of, this is a book I highly recommend to most people. It is beautifully written, I adore Laura and Carmilla and the atmosphere is top-notch!
An Education in Malice has been one of my most anticipated releases of the year. A dark academia version of Carmilla in the 60s? Sign me up. This is interestingly the second canonical vampire retelling/re-imagining I’ve read over the past two months, the first being Reluctant Immortals
An Education in Malice is told in dual PoV between Laura Sheridan and Carmilla Karnstein. Laura is a 20 year old freshman at Saint Perpetua’s school, enrolled in a senior poetry class run by the demanding and vampiric Professor De Lefontaine (Laura’s governess in Le Fanu’s Carmilla ). She yearns for the admiration of her professor over the clear class favourite, Carmilla, who has an inappropriate and all-consuming relationship with her professor. The two girls are pitted against the other, both vying for the attention of their professor, in blend of toxicity and artistic genius.
I wouldn’t call this a retelling, it’s a transplant or even an AU (and I meant that in the most affectionate way). The elements of girlhood and obsessive relationships between women shines here. One of my favourite parts of this book is the delicate balance of what could be contradictory desires within her characters. Carmilla is simultaneously hyperindependent, worldly, sharp, cutting and incredibly needy.
“In her righteous indignation, she seemed like a wrathful goddess but now she sounded very much her age, a child chasing after the approval of her mentor.”
Laura is sheltered, sweet, eager and also incredibly needy. Transforming her from her sheltered, upper-middle class existence schloss in Styria to the epitome of Southern politeness and grace was a smart move on Gibson’s part. Ultimately, Gibson taps into the essence of Le Fanu’s Carmilla, it’s a story about yearning, obsessive love and neediness. Both young women yearn for love, friendship and each other. Laura and Carmilla do not become the fast friends of the original novella, but that doesn’t stop the obsessive infatuation they have for each other. Yet, finally, we get the explicit sapphism that was denied in Carmilla.
It was toxic, messy and Gothic. I loved it!
This is the dark academia I have been looking for ever since reading The Secret History. Gibson’s strength in writing is the atmosphere and her prose. I wish I had recorded more of the beautiful prose but as I was often listening to it while driving I couldn’t. Her writing makes sure you feel New England's biting cold and the mist as the characters walk across the quad. You feel the same rage as Laura and Carmilla.
I have to shout out the audiobook narrator, Stephanie Cannon, who brought the book to life, effortlessly shifting between Laura's Southern Mississippi accent and Carmilla's refined Austrian accent, never confusing me with who was speaking or which PoV we were in.
This is a character-focused book that centres Laura and Carmilla’s relationship with vampirism being a metaphor for artistic brilliance that brings immortality, while giving everything a bloody tint. The first half was addictive. The second half ramped up the plot back it was relegated to the background as a murderer ripped through the school. I felt like the horror could have been amped up here as the reader knew who was behind the murder, but the focus was centred on Laura and Carmilla’s desire for each other. This of course led to a fair bit of spice, which didn’t always work for me (but that’s personal preference and not a fault of the writer). Also this is a S. T. Gibson book it’s to be expected. I wish there was a bit more of a sense of things closing in on our characters, and further challenging their dynamics. This occurred right towards the end but I wanted more of it. I also wanted the dynamic between Laura, Carmilla and De Lafontaine to be resolved a little more neatly.
I wanted either Carmilla or Laura to finally say no and extract themselves from their relationship. I suppose relationships like those depicted aren’t always neatly resolved, I just wished that it culminated in a breaking point.
Overall, this is an amazing take on Le Fanu’s Carmilla and even with the things I wasn’t sure of, this is a book I highly recommend to most people. It is beautifully written, I adore Laura and Carmilla and the atmosphere is top-notch!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Blood