I went into this book mostly blind, equipped only with the knowledge that it would be a sapphic-led story/romance (and that was enough for me haha). This is a story about love, lust, desire, and obsession and all the many forms each of those emotions may take on or present themselves as, as explored through the lenses of magical realism, fantasy, and vampires. This book was solidly OK for me, and I wish that weren't the case because I honestly think it has/had the potential to be so much more. And this also isn't to say that it wasn't good either, just that it was a bit difficult for me to relate to the characters and some of the plot twists fell more on the "meh" side of the spectrum. I just wished I cared more?? I don't know. But, to that end, while AEiM wasn't necessarily what I expected, I will say that I really do find Gibson's style of writing to be rather beautiful and very atmospheric, so I think that's also what helped me pushed through to the end! I do believe that it's still worth checking this book out if you love sapphic stories, vampires, dark academia vibes and, again, lovely prose - because who knows! You may find yourself being able to connect with it more strongly than I was. And while this may not have been a home run for me necessarily, I'm definitely still open to reading more/other works by Gibson in the future!

3.5 / 5.0 An Education in Malice, by ST Gibson (author of A Dowery of Blood), is a dark academia queer romance. The romance is not the focus of the book, or rather not presented as a “traditional” romance as the plot develops. It is hard to explain but you’ll understand as you get into the book. There are vampires and the vibes are excellent, but the overall pace of the book and the characters aren’t as artfully done as A Dowery of Blood.

I had recently re-read Dowery and I think that helped me get into this one quicker and more comfortably. The writing is good and the story is interesting, it was just lacking something in my opinion. If this is the first book by ST Gibson you’re reading, it will go well and be enjoyable.

Until Next Time,
MC

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for access to the ARC for review.

This was gothic and absolutely haunting in a way I can't quite put my finger on it - as my first ST Gibson novel, I can easily understand why her novels are so beloved, the atmospheric vibes were simply immaculate!

"She kissed me with a martyr's agonized desperation, like I was the only sword she ever wanted to fall on. I kissed her right back like the cutting edge of a blade, trying to inflict as much damage as possible."

An Education in Malice is a retelling to the classic horror tale Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu. Gibson deftly weaves echoes of the original novella by incorporating familiar names into her own narrative, solidifying a literary link between the two works. Set in a dark academic backdrop, the novel revolves around Laura Sheridan and Carmilla, two students whose rivalry quickly morphs into a complex relationship fueled by sapphic tension. Unlike the predatory dynamic of the original, their connection emerges from a more tender bond, akin to kindred spirits finding solace in each other's company. Overall I really enjoyed this story but at parts it left me wanting a bit more.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for sending this eARC my way!

While connected to Dowry of Blood, this book is vastly different from the gothic, train of consciousness novel reimagining Dracula's first wife. This novel has dual viewpoints, dark academia vibes, and is way more sapphic than the author's debut novel. It definitely showed that Gibson is willing to take risks in changing her writing style, but I'm not sure that it paid off. The dual viewpoints were clunky, the characters sounded exactly the same; the enemies to lovers was awkward, without any nuance, just straightforward desire. The book also came with disclaimers for some spicy things that seemed very tame in the actual writing. Overall, this was a difficult sophomore attempt from the author, with low stakes, high vibes, and little else.

Gibson is a fantastic author, and one I will automatically purchase. This story was dark and romantic, fraught and fragile and powerful. The characters were beautifully drawn and led the story down a vividly created path. Everything felt real and fantastically all at once. Highly reccomend.

This retelling of Carmilla by J. Sheridan Le Fanu is deliciously dark and sultry. The story is set in New England during the 60s and follows Laura and Carmilla as they navigate the competitive world of academia. Laura is a small town Southern girl while Carmilla comes from an affluent European family and both girls are in an advanced poetry class taught by the alluring professor, De Lafontaine. The two girls end up competing for the attention of their professor, but the relationship between the professor and her pupils is far from healthy and the power dynamic is certainly problematic. De Lafontaine is responsible for taking Carmilla's innocence in more ways than one and literally drains the life out of her. As Laura dives deeper into this world of blood and passion, she and Carmilla grow closer and once the tension boils over, there are a few spicy scenes between the two. The romance at the heart of this allegorical retelling had me completely infatuated.

Incredible as always, but I expected nothing less from ST Gibson. I'm always a sucker for vampires, gothic overtones, and improper power dynamics, and this book hit the nail on the head for me. I loved the surprise nod to A Dowry of Blood!

Dark Academia, Gothic Romance, Sapphic Vampires.. what a read! I thought the writing was really beautiful and I am looking forward to reading more books from this author.

Unfortunately... this was a bit of a let down for me (even though overall, I still enjoyed my reading experience).

I absolutely DEVOURED S.T. Gibson's "A Dowry of Blood", so I knew I had to pick up "An Education in Malice" to go along with it as they're based in the same universe and have a reoccurring character. However, this book just didn't give me the same emotions as I had going into ADoB, which may just be due to how this was set in a more present time period and I really enjoyed how old, yet modern the first book felt.

The characters in this story, Lisa and Carmilla, are both fine. And that's all they are is fine. I didn't find myself too concerned with either of their well-beings for the most part because I didn't bond much with either of them over the course of the novel. The actual "plotline" was kind of annoying and wasn't close enough to the forefront of the novel for me to enjoy it.

There are spicy, sexy scenes involved if you want to get your fix in a vampire novel, but they also did nothing for me (maybe because they were just so out of the norm that I was confused as to what was going on).

Without giving too much away, I'll just say that this was still a good book because Gibson has a great way with words, but overall it still fell flat for me compared to ADoB.

This was a different story than I originally anticipated but I did end up enjoying!

The dark academia paired with the dated time period was interesting and I enjoyed the setting very much.

I’m not the biggest fan of teacher/student relationships (which is the point here) but it was well done!

I would recommend for fans of dark academia.

Thank you so much to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a free copy of “An Education in Malice by ST Gibson in exchange for an honest review. All of the following opinions are formulated on my own. Any quotes in this review should be cross-referenced with the final copy for any possible edits.

Overall rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars - Rounded to 4 Stars

Favorite Quote: "one of us was always going to bleed for the other"

My review: An Education in Malice is a dark academia and vampiric sapphic novel. Written by the author of A Dowry in Blood, the story set at the remote St. Perpetua's College follows Laura and Carmilla, her academic rival. Both intensely seek academic validation from their educators while slipping from this guise into other impulses. This retelling of Carmilla is quite dark and there are a few situations involving a power imbalance which some readers should be aware of prior to beginning the novel. The writing style of S.T. Gibson is defintiely fantastic though and perhaps I should try her other novel A Dowry in Blood to see if it fits my tastes a bit better.

Notable Themes, Elements, and Tropes:
- Dark Academia
- Academic Rivals
- Vampires
- LGBTQIA+
- Dual POV

This dragged and I hates most of the characters. I loved S.T. Gibson's other work but this just wasn't for me.

Everything ST Gibson writes is immaculate. The setting, the sapphic characters, the suspense... An Education in Malice is incredible.

I really loved this book. I read this super fast because I could not put it down. The best dark academia book I've read in a long time. This was so good I give it 5 stars.
I just reviewed An Education in Malice by S. T. Gibson. #AnEducationinMalice #NetGalley
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I am a huge fan of S.T. Gibson. I loved the this book. Vampires are something I am very easily won over by, but this is a new high bar. I love the way she writes relationships. There is so much truth in the way Gibson writes the anxiety and joys of love, especially first loves. This story gripped me from the beginning, and at the end I wasn't ready to leave.

I think 3 stars is rating this high. This was so-so. I loved the sapphic vampires, but nothing really happens in this story. Young girls meet, fall in love, one gets changed into a vampire by her professor that she’s obsessed with while they’re trying to revive professor’s obsession. Professor’s obsession eats some of the school and the girls talk about trying to stop her while the professors like “no, I got this”- she does not got this. I guess the only thing I liked was sapphic vampires.

18+ a couple of descriptive scenes. Those were also parts I liked.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Redhook Books for this digital ARC.

4.5 stars!!

"I had the awful, yawning feeling inside myself that for her, I would always stay. It felt like standing on the edge of an abyss, looking down at the velvety darkness below and feeling held by it."

Beautiful stunning writing by S.T Gibson. Angsty sapphic romance set in 1968 at all girls college in Boston. Dark academia, gothic setting with vampires. Tension filled rivals to lovers. This is a story about obsession, desire, manipulation and forbidden professor student dynamics. Carmilla and Laura are hungry for validation from their poetry writing professor all the while they loathe each other. The obsession Carmilla has for her professor while Laura has deep desire for Carmilla is palpable. I really liked the way the story progressed. I highly recommend.

I received an ebook for my honest review by Netgalley and Redhook & Orbit books.

A beautifully written retelling of Carmilla. While I did enjoy reading this tale of two young women infatuated with their poetry professor, I did find the pacing quite slow. The constant back and forth between the two leads as well as the slow pacing made this a sluggish journey to the end. Don’t get me wrong, the writing is done well, but the pacing could be adjusted. Without that, the tale is one that will capture your interest and leave you waiting for the next chapter.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Redhook for the e-arc!

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the two point of views. I just wish the author dove in more to the characters. The plot is loose and I don't mind that, I just wanted more flair to the characters. This book is so different than Gibson's previous work, A Dowry in Blood. I kind of wish it was written in prose too.