An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

Deep in the forgotten hills of Massachusetts stands Saint Perpetua's college. Isolated and ancient , it is not a place for timid girls. Here secrets are currency , ambition is lifeblood , and strange ceremonies welcome students into the fold.

On her first day of class , Laura Sheridan is thrust into an intense academic rivalry with the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla. Together , they are drawn into the confidence of their demanding poetry professor , De Lafontaine , who holds her own dark obsession with Carmilla.

But as their rivalry blossoms into something far more delicious , Laura must confront her own strange hungers. Tangled in a sinister game of politics , bloodthirsty professors and dark magic , Laura and Carmilla must decide how much they are willing to sacrifice in their ruthless pursuit of knowledge.

Slowly and piece by piece Laura discovers the truth about Carmilla and De Lafontaine and the secrets they've been hiding from her about their condition. Things between Carmilla and Laura start to shift and they form a friendship in order to keep not only De Lafontaines secret but Carmilla's too from the world , as time goes on some sort of a relationship forms between both Laura and Carmilla they start to get closer to one another.

Ranging from a kiss to Carmilla feeding from her in the middle of the lake completely bare only to be discovered by De Lafontaine catching them in the act.

On the outskirts of the woods a dead students body has been found , Evelyn's ex lover and sire Isis is the one doing the killing using it as leverage against Evelyn so she can kill Carmilla and have Evelyn all to herself. In a shocking twist of events Evelyn beheads Isis ending the hold she had on her.

On a bitter sweetness to the chaos that they've all endured De Lafontaine decides it's best that she moves to another country to tech not only to give herself a fresh start but to give Carmilla and Laura the same opportunity by leaving them behind.

All isn't sad and lost , Carmilla and Laura joined Magdalena living in her home along with the others , Laura made a commitment to Carmilla by becoming a night walker living side by side in the shadows for eternity with her one true love.

Thank you to S.T. Gibson for giving me the chance to read such a beautifully written modern vampire arc filled with love , pain and triumph.

Thank you to Netgalley too

Poetic Rivalry, intricate longing, sapphic vampires and secret societies - erm yes please. After reading A dowry of Blood last year i just knew i had to request this ARC and i am so glad that i did.
This was such a dark atmospheric read, i loved every second of it. ST Gibson just has a way with creating this wonderfully gothic setting and writing these beautifully complex characters that draw you in from the very start.
I can confidentially say that i will be reading all of ST Gibsons future work, she is the dark academia queen🙌🏽

This evocative prose that pervades through this novel embodies the poetry that Laura and Carmella compete with, vying for their teacher’s favour. I wanted to love it desperately but was unable to connect with the characters which felt undeveloped and a rushed plot which felt disjointed. The theme of obsession runs deeply throughout this, underscored in different ways from De La Fontaine to Carmilla to Laura and you are reminded how this defies logic.
This is a dark academia novel with the inclusion of sapphic vampires, that will definitely appeal to lovers of these genres

AN EDUCATION IN MALICE is a vampiric dark academia about obsession.

This is a dark academia vampire novel, where poetry is the academic subject of focus. The obsession element is more to do with each other, but the poetry is how they come together (and initially compete). As a reader (though not a poetry one!) I liked that it was the written word that brought Carmilla and Laura together.

While the Carmilla/Laura relationship (and how De Lafontaine fits into it) is the focus of the book, there is a slow build other plot about their professor's ex lover. There is obsession there, but also an old love that hasn't been tended in a while, just jealously protected. It was a nice counterpoint to the newness of Carmilla and Laura's relationship.

I think it's technically a retelling of CARMILLA, but that's a book I don't know. It did however have a subversive feel, like it was deliberately taking on vampire archetypes and interrogating them. For example, Laura is not the helpless victim to be seduced and ravished by the overpoweringly strong, evil vampire. She is the more dominant one in the physical side of the relationship. I enjoyed this a lot.

I found the time setting very interesting. It's the late 60s, which I don't see as much as other 20th century settings (the 20s and 90s being the most popular in my opinion.) It's a very liminal setting, historical but very close to touch. I liked the difference of it.

Headlines:
Carmilla retelling
Academia meets vampires
Coercion and consent
Old loves and new loves

This book sucked me into its vortex and I found I'd read it before I knew it. Laura set off the story as the main character, a determined young women, inexperienced in many ways but also rather self aware. The plot painted an exclusive female university/college where the poetry class of elite and talented female writers showed the reader the other two key characters. Carmilla was a fellow student and Ms D was the aloof and enigmatic teacher.

As a fan of the original book Carmilla, the minute I saw her name, I was committed to this story. That said, Carmilla was unlikeable for the first half of the book and then unexpected in her change in allegiances. Ms D never won me over, but I loved reading about her. We got alternate Laura and Carmilla POVs but we never directly heard from Ms D. I pondered the issues of coercion and consent as I read, especially in the first half.

An old love was the pivot for a change in direction about half way in this book and it conjured an evil version of Mortica in my mind. As the plot stretched out into a different phase, Ms D got more objectionable and Carmilla was more measured and pleasant. I found the connection with Laura and Carmilla believable.

As the end section ensued, I wanted a bit more complexity in the wrap up and I expected things to be a bit more hard fought. Nevertheless, I enjoyed my time with this dark, mysterious and sensual story.

Thank you to Orbit Books for the review copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group for providing me an eARC to review!

Dowry of Blood wasn't super up my alley, but this unfortunately was even less so. The rivalry between the two main characters and the academia elements felt goofy and contrived, and I couldn't tell if it was meant to be that way (maybe to show how young/naive they were in comparison to the vampires?) or if I was really meant to be along for the ride. I also didn't really care about either of the protagonist as the pacing was very strange, especially with their relationship, and it was a lot of telling rather than showing.

The second half did get more interesting in terms of the plot but it also did get pretty raunchy and the relationship got a lot of page time for something that wasn't really well fleshed out. I think that's kind of my complaint for most of this book - if you aren't on board with the general ~ vibes ~ and aesthetic there isn't much to get you invested, especially once the relationship takes over as the main focus and interactions with the side characters and the dark academia elements become more like subplots thrown in when we remember we're meant to be doing university things.

I think maybe Gibson just isn't really for me unfortunately but I can definitely see an audience for this book (though I don't think it is necessarily the same group that loved Dowry of Blood).

I want to start out this review by expressing my love for ST Gibson's A Dowry of Blood, that book was perfection in my opinion.
Due to my love of A Dowry of Blood I had very high hopes for this sapphic, dark academia, carmilla retelling set in the same world. The atmosphere was rich and dark and the writing beautiful. However, I sadly found that the main characters fell a bit flat and due to this I didn't feel overly invested in them and their relationships and found myself wanting more depth to them. I wanted to understand more about why they acted the way they did and how their opinions of one another could change so quickly with little lead up.
I still enjoyed this and would recommend it to people who enjoyed A Dowry of Blood and ST Gibson's style of writing. I cannot wait to read Evocation and have it pre-ordered ready for release!

I don’t tend to read dark academia as a genre but wasn’t totally new to me. Overall it wasn’t bad but I found the character development a little basic. I’m fine with the enemies to lovers trope but I found it very rushed…like one minute enemies then next second lovers with little realistic development. I found it generally to be rushed with little in the way of believable or relatable characters.

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson is a lush and provocative book, loosely inspired by Carmilla by J Sheridan Le Fanu, Set on a college campus in the 1960s, the book tells the story of Laura Sheridan , a new transfer to the school whose rivalry with fellow student Carmilla soon becomes something much deeper and in some ways darker. The enigmatic and beautiful Carmilla has been the darling of visiting poetry professor De Lafontaine since her arrival at the college and she does not take kindly to being upstaged by a new student, especially one who is younger than her. Professor De Lafontaine and Carmilla are hiding the full nature of their relationship but Laura is not without secrets of her own, and as mutilated bodies begin to appear on campus and she finds herself increasingly, almost obsessively drawn to Carmilla we see the beginning of a dark romance that could have fatal consequences for one or both of them.
From the gorgeous cover to the luscious prose within this book is truly a thing of beauty, even though the story being told is dark. Both Laura and Carmilla are beguiling characters and I really enjoyed the slow burn of their relationship which becomes almost incandescent as the story builds and unfolds. If I had to pick out a flaw it is probably that the conclusion of the book felt a little rushed especially in comparison to the slow build of the first half.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

Great book! Gibson’s writing is so unique, I was hooked almost instantly.

In this story we follow Laura and Carmilla as they vie for the attention of Ms. De Lafonte in their college poetry class. Both girls go through a process of self-discovery, but ultimately it’s De Lafonte that needs to learn and grow. Oh and also…. There’s vampires.

Great plot, great journey, and I love that every character has a distinct personality but the POVs retain this beautiful way of thinking and speaking.

And the ending gave me exactly what I was hoping for.

3.5 Stars.

I have hummed and hawed over what to rate this book. ST Gibson writes beautiful prose. They have a wonderful way with words that feels rich and the embodiment of decadent. However, I think I will be leaving her to others in the future as her stories are not for me, though I would recommend her to anyone who likes dark academia vibes.

I found this book to be a rather slow start and while I enjoyed the hate fucking, I felt like the transition between rivals to lovers was underdeveloped and too sudden. I think more needed to be done to explore the emotions and complexity between the stages for Carmilla.
Speaking of Carmilla, I have realised I don’t really enjoy super entitled characters, which she is. While my ao3 history shows I enjoy a bratty character, Carmilla’s brattiness was more often whiny and childish to me, which to be fair makes sense for her age and character, just is not my preference and good for people to know it a thing.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to Little, Brown Book Group UK for this ARC!
S.T. Gibson's 'A Dowry of Blood' was one of my favourite books of 2022, and so when I saw that 'An Education in Malice' was available to read I requested it immediately. More sapphic vampires? In a dark academia setting? Sign me up!
When Laura arrives for her freshman year to study poetry under the prestigious Professor De LaFontaine at an all-girls' university, she didn't expect to find a rival (and so much more) in fellow student Carmilla. She certainly didn't expect to follow De LaFontaine and Carmilla down into the cavernous depths of the college, unveiling bloody secrets that have been kept for decades.
While I did not love this as much as 'Dowry', I thought that the atmosphere Gibson creates is very engaging. You can practically taste the mist in the air and smell the autumn leaves the girls step on around campus, I also thoroughly enjoyed the middle section of the book, where Laura and Carmilla begin to discover more of vampire society. Gibson's writing shines here as she creates a sensual and heady setting.
Personally, this book fell slightly short for me in the antagonist and action department; I never felt that the stakes were that high, or that anyone was ever in true danger. De LaFontaine did make a worthy opponent, but I feel that some of the tension between her, Carmilla, and Laura was smoothed over quite quickly. Some of the mystery also faded away too soon for me (De LaFontaine's research, the initial rivalry between Carmilla and Laura, how Laura would keep certain secrets from Carmilla at the end). I would have loved for some of these things to have been built up more and gone into in more depth. Because of the rapid pacing, Carmilla and Laura's relationship/idolisation of each other did at times feel a bit rushed - I think if they had spent more time working together to figure out De LaFontaine's secret (etc.) this may have aided in elevating their partnership. This ended up not being as dark or as gory as I had anticipated it to be, which may be wonderful for some readers, but I personally would have loved for some more of those elements in this story!

Overall, I still had a great time reading this, and am looking forward to Gibson's next work! 3/5.

4.25

I have no ideas what st Gibson laced her words with but I flew through this book on less than 24 hours.

The all consuming obsession for control, love and academic success pushed and pulled Camilla and Laura in interesting ways.

I loved the poetry and wished there was even more of it weaved into the story.

This book, and authour have been on my 'want to read' list since I learned about it and I am so grateful for the eARC. S.T Gibsons unique way of writing combined with Dark Academia sounded so good, and for me, An Education in Malice did not dissapoint.

Readers familiar with S.T Gibson's 'A Dowry of Blood' will know they do not shy away from taboo topics and toxic relationships so check out the trigger warnings before picking it up.
Themes such as toxic relationships, sexuality, dangerous obsessions and more.

Nevertheless I was dragged deep into the captivating story of Laura, a student at the prestegious Saint Perpetua's College, while she tangled in an academic rivalry with star-pupil Carmilla. It doesn't take her long to notice the unusal relationship between Carmilla and the bewitching poetry professor De Lafontaine. Rivalry. Obsession. Devotion. Intoxicating.

I was hooked till the very last page and will definitely be adding this one to my shelves!

I enjoyed this book, which is no surprise as I also enjoyed A Dowry of Blood. While not a sequel, it does feature the same vampiric, polyamorous focus as Dowry had, but this time in a 20th century university setting.

The dark academia vibe of An Education in Malice was perfect, I loved how Laura grew stronger and Carmilla grew softer once their relationship fully blossomed and they both became more open and more vulnerable in terms of their connection, and De Lafontaine was an interesting addition to the cast - part antagonist, part saviour, but always an unsettling presence.

I will say that as a teacher myself the professor/student relationship and subsequent power imbalance wasn’t my favourite, and while I felt that this book did have a stronger plot than A Dowry of Blood it was all wrapped up a little too quickly for me. I wanted more mystery and tension building regarding the murdered students and who might be behind it, but I did love the novel’s sapphic romance and the fact that Carmilla and Magdalena crossed paths - that plot device, especially with reference to the ending, was really well played out and satisfying for the reader, and fans of A Dowry of Blood will not be disappointed with this one.

I burned through this book, it was definetly a lot of fun to read. It's hard not to compare it to a dowry of blood since I read that recently, I would say the main theme of a powerful vampire that has controlling relationships w those less powerful than itself is similar in both. In ADOB, I would say the stakes felt higher and the control more absolute. This was a bit fluffier by comparison but still enjoyable in it's own way. I think the characters didn't hugely stand out on their own, and the plot felt less important than the character/relationship development, but I still enjoyed it and recommend it to anyone that finds the premise intriguing.

4.5

Love ST Gibsons writing and the exploration of taboo. Would have liked a little bit more of the mystery but still loved it

God, I wish I could tell you how I feel about An Education in Malice but I cannot because I'm just confused and highly irritated. I liked A Dowry in Blood (gave it 4 stars), so I was extremely hyped when a) I learned about this novel and b) got approved for an eArc.

The entire book lacks direction and the ending is just as open-faced, and without any sense, as the rest of the novel. It jumps from one point to another point without any real connection, and I struggled a lot while reading it (to the point where I had to re-read sentences and paragraphs again because my brain couldn't be bothered to stay engaged; normally it's only so bad with academic papers).

I think, the lack of direction just stems from the lack of character development as all three main characters are utterly flat (and the side characters tend to disappear after like five pages). Their relationships are very rushed as well. Especially the romance between the girls; it just felt like insta-lust and that's something I despise in every book. Their hate/rivalry turned quickly into love but the love had no real substance aside from having the hots for each other (especially Laura for Carmilla).

A 100 pages more might have helped the novel as Gibson would have had time to develop the plot and the characters more then.

Bonus points for meeting Magdalena again.

Unfortunately this fell really flat for me. I loved A Dowry of Blood, but I wouldn't have even thought this was the same author. The characters were very one dimensional, the obsession with the teacher, the hate to love turned insta-love/lust were all telling, not showing with no real development. I didn't feel any emotions from any of the characters and even the storyline running behind the relationships was very flat and rushed. Where there should have been tension, everything was over too quickly. If it weren't for the explicit nature of some of the scenes I think it reads like an obsessive teen relationship in an angsty YA book with melodramatic writing. I would have DNFed if it hadn't been an arc. I will try another book from this author in the future, based on how good A Dowry of Blood was though.

S.T. Gibson's latest work marks an absolutely stunning return, showcasing her prowess in the realm of dark academia. Set in the 1960s, this novel unfolds within the prestigious confines of Saint Perpetua's College, where the protagonist, Laura, finds herself enraptured by the intense and esteemed poetry class led by the alluring De Lafontaine. In her quest to impress De Lafontaine at any cost, Laura unwittingly becomes entangled in a rivalry with the gifted Carmilia, setting the stage for a narrative infused with dark magic, bloodthirsty professors, and political intrigue.

Gibson's unparalleled writing skill is on full display, captivating readers with prose that compels them to cling to every word. Fans familiar with S.T. Gibson's A Dowry of Blood will find themselves far from disappointed. The exploration of themes such as obsession, youth, and sexuality is executed with exquisite finesse, profoundly shaping perspectives long after the novel's conclusion.

The plot is a masterful blend of action and contemplation, skillfully lingering on pivotal moments. Each character is adored, with Laura resonating deeply as a relatable figure, sharing religious beliefs and struggles with anxiety. Her subtle adoration for erotica novels adds a layer of complexity to her character. Carmilia, with her profound loneliness, becomes a character one might find themselves willing to sacrifice for. De Lafontaine, a character rich in nuance, defies easy classification as solely good or bad, leaving readers questioning her authenticity or manipulative tendencies—a testament to Gibson's storytelling finesse. By the book's conclusion, De Lafontaine is unequivocally adored, showcasing the author's ability to craft multi-dimensional characters.

The rivalry and romance between Carmilia and Laura form a poignant thread that tugs at the reader's heartstrings, eliciting laughter and swoons on every page. The depth of their obsession for each other and the frequency with which their thoughts intertwine lend a palpable intensity to their relationship.

In essence, this book stands as a true work of art. I implore everyone to read it upon its release on February 13th, perfectly timed for Valentine's Day.