"Uxlay held on to its mysteries but demanded that its students peel their flesh apart and bleed. Its ancient stone would only be satiated if it fed on their misery."

Tigest Girma take a bow. What a phenomenal debut. Sign me up for Uxlay and a vampire companion.

This was an intoxicating, addictive read and I am desperate for more. A major issue with reading an ARC of the first book in a trilogy is that I NEED the next book but this one isn't even published yet!

I love dark academia and this was it done to perfection. The prose was stunning and drew me right in. I felt entirely immersed in this fascinating world and loved the lore and history of the relationships between dranaics and actis. The concept of Uxlay, a hidden haven for families who abide by a universal law, offered a fresh take on the genre that I just loved.

I don't think there was a single character in this book that wasn't morally grey and there is absolutely no one I would trust fully. The enemies to lovers was epic. I loved how Kidan and Susenyos' relationship evolved and the way the darkness within them both grew and developed around each other.

There were twists and turns aplenty and the tension throughout was palpable. At times, I struggled to keep up with some of the plot points but I think that helped add to the pacing of the book.

An incredible story and I cannot wait for the next book.

Thank you to Netgalley, Hachett Children's Group and Tigest Girma for the ARC. Grab this for yourselves September 2024 and enter Uxlay at your own risk.

4.25/5 rounded up!

What a debut! That first chapter sucked me IN! The prose and voice was so eloquent throughout the novel, and the sharp one liners stole my breath!
But the real tea is in the romance. Because WHAT. A. ROMANCE! Hands down the best executed TRUE enemies to lovers I’ve read in AGES! Or of all time? 👀 this was true visceral violent HATE! They did not go easy on each other and there was a power balance there! I hate when there’s enemies to lovers where there’s a stark imbalance in power, so this really hit in that aspect. The chemistry was sizzling and I was constantly wondering “when the hell are they gonna smash??”
Literally dying for them to 😂 so basically the romance stole the show here and carried the book. If I were only judging the romance, I’d give this a 5/5.

Now the plotting I have slight criticisms for, although minor. The sequence of the scenes & clarity of them got messy & convuluted after the 40% mark & just didn't feel cleanly put together but I admire the ambitious vision bc it does sort of tie up at the veeeeeery end. But to get there it was a little frustrating.

E.g a lot of very important details that we're supposed to remmeber were NOT established as important when introduced so I spent a good time ctrIF-ing names to see what I missed only to realize I didn't miss anything. It just seems information wasn't being conveyed to fill those gaps. Or it felt like some scenes were incomplete given we're supposed to see the effects of them as vital & important but rereading those sections left me still confused. And believe me, I’ve read very dense ADULT fantasy books. Keeping up with complex YA fantasy is a piece of cake for me, let alone a contemporary fantasy which is the case here. But there was a lot of unexplained motives that were never answered and the choices made just didn’t feel justified for side characters as a result, nor was the importance of those choices established enough to me as the reader. So it made the middle lag. I also felt like side characters weren't fleshed out enough to convince me of extreme actions the MC does. However again, I deeply admire the complex vision and I think the sequel was set up VERY well and admirably. I’m extreeeemely excited to get my hands on it.

And the romance and the crazy unhinged MC were so out of the box, it just carried the book and made this so thrilling. So all in all, I still loved the read & had a GREAT time. Highly recommend! I think this is gonna be THE “it” romantic fantasy of the year.

Full disclosure, I didn’t actually finish the book.

Here’s the thing - I got about 25% in to the book and I am OBSESSED, ENAMOURED, ENTRANCED. I MUST read this physically, holding a gorgeous, shiny new hardback.

I will undoubtedly be giving this 5 stars though, so might as well upload my “review” now while I wait for my copy to be dispatched.

Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma is an absolutely riveting fantasy novel that beautifully weaves modern-day issues into its rich narrative, particularly shedding light on the heartbreaking silence surrounding the plight of missing black girls within the global black diaspora. This is more than just a story; it’s a powerful commentary that resonates deeply in today's world.

The enemies-to-lovers trope is executed masterfully here. Susenyos and Kidan start with a genuine animosity that evolves into something much more complex and heartfelt. Watching Kidan's transformation from fierce disdain to unexpected affection for this vampire is a journey I also felt conflicted by! Her internal conflict as she grapples with her growing feelings adds another layer of depth to her character and makes her struggle so relatable.

Kidan enters Uxlay university with clear goals and a rigid plan, but as she navigates her new environment, she becomes embroiled in unravelling secrets that challenge everything she thought she knew. It’s fascinating to witness her journey unfold as she builds friendships and allows herself to be vulnerable, gradually letting her guard down. This exploration of personal growth amidst the chaos of college life is executed brilliantly.

Girma’s writing is not just engaging but also thought-provoking, prompting readers to reflect on significant societal issues while still delivering a captivating fantasy narrative.

Immortal Dark is a must-read for anyone who enjoys rich world-building, compelling character arcs, and the delicate dance of love blooming amidst adversity. I wholeheartedly recommend this book—it’s a five-star experience that you won’t want to miss!

IMMORTAL DARK by Tigest Girma was everything I could ask for in a vampire novel. It was absolutely captivating from the beginning to the very end. I shocked that this is Tigest debut novel, her writing is beautiful and lyrical. The representation and thought provoking messages in the read was beautiful. I was completely drawn into the story, each scene felt so real. And the characters, wow!! They were everything. The dynamic between Kidan and Susenyos was perfection, the intensity of their interactions and chemistry exceeded my expectations for an enemies to lovers romance. When they aren’t trying to murder each other they made a beautiful deadly team. The passionate moments between them were unmatched, the connection just felt so organic and natural. It was like they were truly made for each other despite one being a vampire and the other being human. They were one of the same.

Also line that the characters would break to achieve what they want was fascinating, They are all so unhinged, they truly would push they mortal boundaries to obtain their desires, they were all completely flawed yet felt to me I was able to connect with them in different, they just felt so real. I loved Kodak strength along with her vulnerability, I admired her fearlessness and determination. The magic system of the house was so interesting, never seen anything like it before. And all of the twist and turns and secrets revealed left me completely shocked and that rarely happens

Honestly this book was perfection, I loved every moment of it. It was so refreshing and after than ending I’m excited to see what’s going to transpire next in this series

Addictive, dark and gritty with rich world building and evocative storytelling. An interesting take on the exploration of girlhood and humanity through the lens of vampiric folklore in a dark academia setting with twists and turns throughout that had me on the edge of my seat. A stunning debut. Read if you loved ninth house and the secret history and your favourite book couple is Jude and Cardan.

Immortal Dark is an intoxicating, high stakes fantasy filled with death and danger. It drew me in to the world almost immediately. I started slightly absent-mindedly reading this on my phone whilst I was waiting for something, but it hooked me in and demanded my attention so quickly. The author paints a fascinating world of (not so) peaceful coexistence between vampires and humans with lots of interesting lore and history.

It is a fast-paced book with so much going on. All the characters have secrets, dark histories and a willingness to do whatever it takes. There are twists for us as readers, and for Kidan our protagonist. She has to second guess who she can trust and what's really going on the whole time. Sometimes I thought I'd cracked a mystery, only have another shocking revelation change my perspective. Plenty was resolved and explained by the end, but it does end on a cliffhanger and there is still so much up in the air that I want to know! I will be keeping an eye out for a sequel release.

Recommended for fans of dark fantasy.

“She would drown in pleasure when she killed him. It would be the most erotic act, but like any pleasure to would come to the end..”

Kidan is a human searching for her abducted sister. The only way to get her back is to join the Uxlay University and claim her house as its heir, the only problem? The vampire she believes killed her parents and abducted her sister lives there as well… WHAT COULD GO WRONG.. right?

This book was such a fantastic read and if you liked watching Vampire Diaries for Klaus… this book is it! The characters were morally black, and I LOVED IT. Everything was so violent and beautiful. It was atmospheric and engaging, introduction of more and more characters as you went brought more life to the book. I loved the East African myths and history and I loved how it was woven with the fantasy, academia and vampirism.

“I will teach you. If you let me, I can teach you a thousand different ways of loving yourself”

When reading this book you get to hate and love the characters as they journey through their own minds and emotions and I really admire the author for writing this so well in her debut! I have too many quotes from this book but they would be super spoils so I will keep them for after the book is released.

Read this book if you like:
Vampires
Dark Academia
Female Rage at its finest
Found Family
A book without white people
Intense lust in passionate hate

I was beyond excited when I received an email from Netgalley confirmimg that I had received an ARC copy of Immortal Dark and it did not disappoint! This dark academia fantasy was full of twists and turns, which made it very hard to put down.

Kidan Adane is on a mission to find out what has happend to her sister June, but to do this she has to cross moral lines that she can't come back from and make some unlikely allies.

I love vampire novels so I couldn't wait to start this and I found it both a tense but exciting read. I loved the dynamic between Kidan and Susenyos, one minute they want to kill eachother the next they are all over eachother. The suspense throughout kept me wanting to read more and I already can't wait to find out what happens in the second book!

An amazing debut novel, that I highly recommend to anyone who loves vampires, dark academia and fantasy!

Thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'd been hearing a lot about Immortal Dark and I'm so happy to say that it did not let me down.
While there are definitely some things to be worked on both in the book and the coming series, they werent enough to condemn it and I really look forward to how this series continues.
Vampires seem to be making a come back and this has sent a really good pace for it which I love.

So, a girl named Kidan is the last heir to an ancient family of humans whose blood can be drank by vampires. There are 80 or so other families like this and in order to protect these bloodlines, a university named Uxlay is erected to protect both humans and vampires and allow them to live in harmony.
Kidan's sister goes missing and her search leads her to believe that her sister has been taken by someone at Uxlay and so of she goes to find her sister and answer some sinister questions along the way.

This book was fun to read even when it did get a little confusing at times. Not for the plot or anything but more so the writing style that seemed to skip lines or jump to points that hadnt been previously discussed, in some random way. I found myself having to re read a lot of sentences as I wasnt sure if something had happened or where they were. Descriptions outside of physical ones about the characters were also a little lacking in that I never really had a sense of what where they were looked like. A lot of sentences would literally be, 'some time later I arrived at X's house', okay but how far is the house from where you are? Is a brick house, a maisonetter, what?! It was all very much focused on the action and what was happening rather than taking the time to build the surroundings. Usually I dont mind that as such cause I want to get to the kids, but the fact it was so obvious to me was a bit of an issue.

Aside from that, I really liked this primarily for the AfroCentric vibe of it all. The FMC is Ethiopian, her friends are South African and Somali. This is not just Black in the African American or British Black sense but black from the root, encompasing all strands of Blackness in a way that was wonderful to read and imagine.
Susenyos Sagad is now officially in my Bag of Baes. He's like if Damon Salvatore, Klaus Mikaelson and Lestat had a baby and he looked like Eric Kilmonger. Like i actually cannot with how hot this man is and how many fucks he actually does not give.
I could have done with a lot more spice in this and dare I say, more explicitly described cause i'm not entirely sure if they had sex or whether they were just dry humping lol there is so much forbidden love potential here that i was foaming at the mouth.

i love the additions she's made to the vampire world especially the idea that drinking from various parts of the body sending different emotions and visions that elicit that emotion to the vampire. Desire at the neck, sin at the inner thigh, violence at the chest etc. it was all very sensual which was great.

Also, while i loved that the author doesnt shy away from darkness, there was a lot of murder in this book that just seemingly went unpunished. It was interesting seeing how easily pushed to killing a lot of the cast were and that was intriguing if not also a little confusing.

Overall i am very excited about finding this book and delving into a new world of vampires as well as Black Fantasy Vampires which have been seriously lacking!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this e arc. All views are my own.

If The Cruel Prince and Ninth House had a baby it would be Immortal Dark. The writing, the characters, the plot, and the atmosphere was so intoxicating and addicting.

THIS is how you write enemies to lovers!!! And this is how I love my enemies to lovers trope to be written. If you liked Jude and Cardan’s dynamic from The Cruel Prince then I can guarantee you will love Kidan and Susenyos. Both Kidan and Susenyos are constantly at each other’s throats and desperate to get rid of each other. They were the true enemies dynamic I’ve been looking for in books!!

I was always so excited whenever Kidan and Susenyos interacted with each other because I knew it was gonna be GOOD!! and their whole dynamic was so chef’s kiss.

Black vampires in a dark academia setting? YES!!
This book was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 and I was so hooked from chapter one. I always enjoy darker themes in books, the academia setting combined with the vampire culture, the bite's lore made everything more exciting. Dangerous and fresh!

The tension and push and pull between the MCs were written so well, I was yearning for more. I cannot wait until the rest of the books of this trilogy/series are published because I need to know how the story unfolds!

4.5

This was soooo good! It was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024 and it did not disappoint. I love dark academia so throw some vampires in the mix and I'm hooked. The vampire bite location lore was so interesting. The tension in the air between Kidan and Yos? Exquisite.
It was so well done and that ending? On the edge of my seat for a sequel.

Vampires?! I'm in!

This is a dark academia book with vampires, love and mystery.

Great writing & story.

Can't wait to read the rest of the story in book 2 and 3!

A Black vampire romantasy was always going to get my attention but add a 'dark academia' tag too and I'm in. I did really enjoy this, moreso once I realised that it was not going to be a standalone as there was so much going on that I was concerned about how it was all going to get resolved in one book.
I really enjoyed the magic system and world building once I got my head around it, and it was unlike anything I'd read before. I also really liked that the author didn't shy away from violence, as it made the characters much more messed up and therefore made me appreciate their actions. The slow burn romance was okay and I'm looking forward to see what happens with this in the next book. I really liked the ending too. There were parts that I found confusing, such as not quite being able to visualise certain places and so ended up confused about which characters were where, such as in the baths. Can't go into more detail without giving spoilers but if things are happening in public spaces then people would react?
A good read. Unique, dark, and a great hook at the end to make me look forward to the sequel.

Wow, I devoured this book!
I needed to know what happened to Kidan's sister but this book has so much to offer.
The lore of the vampire is fascinating, intricate and creative. I am truly amazed by the flourishing story we were given and the engaging writing style. Tigest Grima knows what she’s doing.
The characters are complex and morally gray - oh they are, believe me. All of them by the way.
It is said to be an enemies to lovers romance and Kidan and Susenyos’s hatred for each other is real and palpable!
(There is a scene in this book that was EPIC, Kidan really stopped at nothing to slay).
Objectively, it’s an amazing debut!
Enter Uxlay at your own risk now.

Tigest Girma had unleashed something truly unhinged, viscerally violent and deliciously dark into the world and I am here for it!

Immortal Dark should come with a health warning, this book is addictive-as in this book will become your whole personality-addictive.
Sign me up for Uxlay University, a Vampire Companion and Morally Grey Shenanigans, I want it all! I genuinely have no clue how I am going to get over this monsterous book hangover or survive until the sequel. It's only June but I'm calling it now - Immortal Dark - Book of the Year!

Dark academia at its best, interwoven with such beautiful history, a plethora of the best morally grey characters and what can only be described as the perfect enemies-to-reluctant allies-to-lovers-who resent their attraction and ultimately still want to destroy each other, relationship I have ever read. The tension and chemistry between these two will have you gripped, how their relationship evolves throughout is pure perfection and I can't wait to discover where it'll lead in the next book.

Tigest Girma has a way with words that made this such a pleasure to read and it's still playing on my mind days later. I adored the world building, the concepts made Vampires feel fresh again, a hidden University protected by Family Houses, houses that are powerful, somehow sentient and have their own laws. Powerplays and struggles are rife, not only with houses competing with each other but with in house fighting too. Heirs inherit houses and with that comes power, in a world like Uxlay people are willing to do just about anything to ensure that the power is theirs.
With Vampire pledged to serve these houses and their humans, their own true power suppressed and beholden to a Companion to feed from, tensions are high. Friends start looking like enemies. Enemies like allies. Allies like partners in crime.
Immortal Dark pits everyone against each other in the most delicious and devious ways, the scheming and manipulating and plotting keep you on the edge of your seat. The characters are diverse and the plot unravels at such a great pace, you can't put it down.

Thank you Netgalley, Hachett Children's Group and Tigest Girma for the eARC
Immortal Dark is out September 2024.

A very unique vampire story full of morally grey characters (and I LOVE morally grey characters!).
Very well written, and will have you hooked instantly.
I can't wait to read more from this author!

This was brilliant and I expected nothing less. I really enjoyed the dark academic feel mixed in with black African history and vampires. This story sucks you in with its violent yet loyal FMC who isn’t overly likeable at first but her desire to find her sister who she believes was taken is a real driving force for Kidan.

The way the houses of the human families linked to vampires are somewhat sentient was very interesting, and I look forward to how that develops for Kidan. Also how the companionship between human and vampire will move forward in the next book, its very tumultuous already so I’m sure it can only get more tension filled from here. There’s also the aspects of different family houses competing in a way and plotting against one another, it always feels like a war is brewing just below the surface.

This book is a fantastic piece of dark academia, which is refreshingly diverse and has a huge proportion of black characters. I loved the concept and was delighted to be approved for this title, as the author did an amazing job with the prose and I was gripped from page one. The concept of vampires and humans living together under certain laws was really interesting and I thought the characters were amazing! It’s hard to put into words how much I loved this book but I am really excited for more by this author. Definitely check this out if you’re interested in vampires and/or horror fiction!