Dark Academia x Sapphic Carmilla retelling!!
This was a deliciously written gothic academia story of rivalry and obsession between two women. The tale from adversaries to devotion while in the perfect setting. Incredible writing!

3.5 stars - It took a while for me to get into this book but I love the writing style (& thank you to s. t. gibson for expanding my vocabulary so much) and perfect dark academia and academic rivalry vibes. The main characters were intriguing and I enjoyed reading about their developing relationships, though I wish there was more about the girls' friends - particularly Carmilla, as she clearly knows and gets on with some of the other students but these friendships are never expanded on. The pacing felt off as the first half of the book was much slower and focused exclusively on the relationships between De Lafontaine, Carmilla and Laura, then all of the actual plot came into play in the last part of the book, which seemed a bit rushed and didn't allow for many twists or challenges for the trio as everything was tied up quite quickly.

Overall still an enjoyable book, with the perfect setting & atmospheric writing for an autumn/winter read - thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for the ARC!

DNF at 41%, unfortunately this book wasn't for me. Ther wasn't much progress in this book and i find the relationships very weird. I also can't imagine why anyone would think this book is a dark academia vibe. All the scenes have nothing to do with the school.

Thankyou Netgalley for sending me this e-copy.

This is brilliant. Not what i had expected but i couldnt put it down.

Tells the story of Laura who attends a prestigious school and falls head over heels in love with Carmilla, the mean girl and the star pupil of Professor De Lafontaine, a poetry teacher which is Lauras favourite subject. As Laura and Carmilla spare off against each other for the professors attention a huge secret comes out that i for one was not expecting and then a wild ride commences. Ends on a bit of a cliffhanger though and the reader is left to decide which path Laura takes.

I loved it, very intrigued by the epilogue too whhich i assume means the author will write another one set in this world, i for one would be happy to read more.

DNF

I made the decision to DNF this book at 60% of the way through. The story line was feeling very flat for me; things weren't progressing, there were new elements being introduced with seemingly no appropriate build up or explanation, and to be frank I was bored.

I hadn't developed any emotional connection to characters and there was zero to no character building in the pages I read which gave me zero desire to see the book through to the end.

It's a shame as I'd heard good things about this book, but this just wasn't it for me.

This book was my introduction to dark academia. It is intoxicating, full of desire and obsession! Beautifully written and easy to read. I devoured this story! The character development is delicious, the relationships in the book are very intriguing. The dark/gothic environment is beautifully depicted. A really good book!

I ate this up!!

I absolutely loved the concept of this book and was already a fan of the author’s style. I absolutely just loved the vibes of this.
I love the characters, loved the sapphicness, perfect dark academia vibes and then add in vampires. What more could a girl want?

Absolutely cannot wait to see what the author does next and I’m very glad I will own lots of special editions of this book

Thank you netgalley for the e-arc

First of all, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ebook in exchange for an honest review.

An Education in Malice is a dark academia fantasy and gothic novel in which we follow Laura and Carmilla, two students attending Saint Perpetua's College, as their academic rivalry turns into something romantic.

/!\ SLIGHT SPOILERS BELOW

I feel like there is a certain mood, vibe, or setting to read dark or light academia books, and by reading this novel in September, as the tree leaves turned orange and brown and as the sky got grey and moody, it was a perfect timing because I loved this book. Mix together vampires, a college setting, rivals to lovers, sapphic relationships, and you've got this book.
Is it plot-driven or character-driven? I would say a mix of both. Laura is a new student arriving at Saint Perpetua's College to follow Miss De Lafontaine's poetry classes : Carmilla is an older student obsessed with their professor. From day one, they are rivals because they are both good at poetry and fighting for their teacher's attention, and as the narration progresses, their proximity turns their hatred into love, and I was definitely here for that. But amidst all that, appeared all the vampires and the murders, and I was also down for that.
The vibes of this book are immaculate, and I felt transported into New Orleans with the Mikaelsons from TVD/TO. That being said, I would have loved to have witches in this book to create the ultimate vibe, but that is just personal preference, of course.

I feel like everyone told me how good S.T. Gibson was good at writing books (especially with vampires), and you know what? I totally agree, and I will definitely read A Dowry of Blood this fall!

An Education in Malice is my first experience reading an ST Gibson book. I also have not yet read Carmilla, which this book was based upon. I enjoyed this sapphic vampire, dark academia, vampiric gothic romance. The beginning set out an academic rivalry between two students craving the attention of their poetry professor, the rivalry to lovers is done very well.

I enjoyed ST Gibson’s style of prose and now really want to read more from this author.

This is the second book I’ve read by this author now and I can’t get enough. The way their books are written has me devouring books more than is healthy.

I absolutely adored this book. I knew nothing of the inspiration behind it so read this as if it were a fresh idea. I loved the characters, they are all so rounded and have so much depth. And that cameo!?

Loved it. Absolutely adored it.

An Education of Malice is another stunning addition to S.T. Gibson’s collection of novels!

I absolutely adore her writing; it is incredibly immersive and atmospheric. I love being swept into the magic she creates. I came to this book without much info beyond that it was dark academia, but ended up delightfully dark with a House of Hunger twist.

I had so much fun with this, even though there is minimal plot. If the lack of plot isn’t off putting, then I would highly recommend it, especially to lovers of sapphic romances with a hint of kink.

Sapphic rivals in poetry to lovers - but rivals to lovers in the most fang-ly dangerous way possible.

This was simply a wonderfully written fantastic, gothic lit, dark academia and I loved it from start to finish.
I throughly enjoyed how both Laura and Carmilla were incredibly flawed individuals, and it was their rival in passion towards poetry that originally brought them together. The poetry essentially really allowed them to see who they were to each other. Whilst the growing attraction was rivalry, it later became a fondness for each other for ways they were different and ways they were similar. I really loved how it was pitched as them being complete opposites early on in the read, but then each chapter you discover how they are alike in so many ways.

This was definitely the "I'm trying REALLY hard not to fall for my rival but oh my goddddd everything they do makes me either irritated or want to madly fall in love with them" vibes and I absolutely ate it up.

I also felt the book was well paced with how many things unfolded in the story, and by the end I was absolutely routing for Laura and Carmilla, and the dynamic with De Lafontaine I found was quite an interesting one! The whole admiration mixed with mentorship and infatuation to feel recognised and exceptionally good at something really kept me interested. I appreciated that De Lafontaine had her own slice of trauma and quite the dower experience with love with explained everything about who she was! (Even at times when I found myself going YOU'RE GROWN AND BEING SO DRAMATIC ABOUT THIS but I still grew to love her!)

I'd recommend this book for many reasons, not just because it's a slice of vamp-y, but because it's really thought provoking in so many ways and touches on all the complexities of girlhood in both a soft and quite dramatic way (which I personally love)

There were parts towards the end that felt slightly rushed, however that didn’t take away from the story as a whole. I personally can look beyond that and appreciate it all for what it is: marvellous writing.

This is my second read from the author's work and I absolutely loved this one too. The writing is phenomenal and the author has brilliantly penned down the plotline knitting it wit wonderful characters and amazing plot twists and scenarios. Each chapter kept me hooked till the very end and I had a brilliant time reading this one.

This book is able to successfully cover a multitude of genres. Primarily, Gothic & dark academia, but with touches of soft horror and psychological. They all work together beautifully.
The writing style is immersive and fluent, whilst the characters are complex and flawed.
The author really knows how to create an eerie atmosphere to set the scene and entice the reader in.
I really didn’t want this book to end, I was that invested in it.
Highly recommend this book to all.

This was everything i hoped it would be - moody, gothic and perfect for gloomy, rainy days. Highly recommend for autumnal/winter days. Though i advice to look up the trigger warnings.
i really liked the characters, the writing was lyrical and the atmosphere was eerie. i especially enjoyed the second part and the only complain that i have is that i wished it was longer.

An Education in Malice is a masterful blend of dark academia, gothic allure, and psychological intrigue. Gibson’s writing is hauntingly beautiful, drawing readers into a world of twisted relationships, dangerous secrets, and intellectual seduction. The complex, morally ambiguous characters keep you questioning their motives at every turn. With its atmospheric setting and intricate plot, the novel deftly explores themes of power, manipulation, and identity. A captivating, chilling read for fans of dark, cerebral storytelling. Absolutely unforgettable!

I devoured this, the way Camilla wanted to devour Laura.. I was hooked by chapter 3 the writing was so easy for me to just keep wanting to read. I loved Lauras character and her thoughts and i loved how Carmilla handled her worries. The ribbons coming back around, i just loved the characters. I was excited for tjis book and it lived up to expectations, i will be reading more of this authors work. The budding relationship the teacher relationship what's not to love. De Lafontaine who has a off campus relationship with Camilla but it isn't as it would seem as they add Laura to the mix of a weekly evening session, the more time they spend together the more they learn. When Laura learns the truth it doesn't last long before it changes as Camilla changes to be more like De Lafontaine than ever before the jealousy De Lafontaine shows when Laura is there for her. The girls try to sneak around but do not do the sneaky side so well. This Dark academia Carmilla retelling was everything I needed it to be.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a copy of An Education in Malice.

Overall I enjoyed reading this book, it was a great shorter read going into the colder months. I liked that the author included both POVs and that the characters are very different but still compatible. I liked the twist on this dark academia with the interwoven mysteries and vampire lore and that you get some answers but not all by the end of the book as this leaves an air of mystery even after reading which I think works well with the genre and provides opportunities in the future for another book. I would recommend to those looking for an easy, low stakes read that mixes fantasy and dark academia.

However, I would say that sometimes the romance overpowers and waters down the plot meaning that we don’t get as much detail as I would have liked on the vampire lore in this story and some of the background that may have helped strengthen the story overall. I also felt that Laura’s character did a complete 360 turn in terms of personality and was very easily able to overlook the murders and dark details of De Lafontaine’s character (almost too easy). I think it would have been good to see more of an inner conversation/struggle with some of these aspects which I think would have been more realistic as although I do think it was the point that De Lafontaine manipulated both girls, realistically I think that there would have been more questioning at least from Laura who was newly introduced into this world compared to Carmilla who already knew a number of details.

Dark and Scintillating, this story is a perfect blend of Dark Academia, Rivals to Lovers, vampiric Sapphic romance. The themes of obsessive love and jealousy add an edge to the story.

I loved the tension between Laura and Carmilla. I liked the portrayal of Carmilla's obsessive adoration for her tutor. I loved the rivalry - not just academic, but for the love and attention of the other person. It felt like a dark, twisted love triangle.

But the relationship between Carmilla and De LaFontaine left me feeling extremely uncomfortable. That's grooming and manipulation at its worst. I did not like that De LaFontaine does not really suffer any consequences for how she treats Carmilla or even Laura for that matter. I did not think she deserved a redeeming arc.

I do think that the side characters were not explored much, like Eleanor or even Isis. Because of this certain plot points - like the killings of students - felt less impactful

A big fan of ST Gibson after reading A Dowry of Blood, so I went into An Education in Malice with high expectations. I didn't feel like I was disappointed by the end of it.

Loosely based on Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, I really enjoyed the story, and the character development. As always with Gibson's work, I love the prose and the way it tickles my brain in the right places!