Pretty solid listen and great narration, but unfortunately I just never really felt fully hooked by the story. Such a bummer!

So thrilled to have received an ALC for this beauty!

i was so invested right from the beginning and I was hooked the whole book! I may or may not have finished it in one day while at work 🤣 it was just to good

Salem and Caz were just 🤌💋 the development of these two was just beautiful. And the possessiveness heck yes!

RuNyx just seems to have a way with words that I cannot get enough of!
thank-you for the ALC for an honest review!

if she writes it I'll read it

⭐⭐.5 rounded up to ⭐⭐⭐
🌶️🌶️
Decent start and swift fall off not too long after. Did not get Hades and Persephone from this at all. I was almost put to sleep many times during the majority of the middle of this book. Maybe I am just over rich good girl swoons for a seemingly bad boy with tattoos who doesn't belong in my rich kid school flavored stories right now. If you enjoyed this book or enjoy those vibes then skip this review.

Thank you, Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the ALC.

I had heard excellent things about Gothikana and tried for the e-arc of this book and am still left on pending almost 6 months later so I figured I would shoot my shot with the ALC and got accepted pretty fast, yay. Sadly this was just not it for me. I tried really hard to overlook the insane level of pick-me vibes FMC Salem has going on but I think what broke me was the ideas that MMC Caz was such a prodigy painter but no one sees his work. Pair that with the weird comments written like some robot or young person with no sexual experience, like "take care of my pussy." There are times and places where these kinds of phrases work but it was not ever in this book. Epilogue was pure fluff and filler to add page count and runtime, could have been condensed into 2 paragraphs to say the same things. None of this book or the characters came off dark & mysterious more like I'm an edgelord and this is so deep. I'll still give Gothikana a chance, but it might be the last one for this author.

Jaclyn Kelso really tried, but she couldn't save this ship wreck. I feel worse for Aiden Snow because he has that dark & mysterious shadow daddy voice going on, and it was wasted here. Would love to hear more from both with a story that can actually hold my attention.

A steamy, dangerous dark academia romance from RuNyx that has hearts racing with enemies to lovers, secrets that reveal the evil within that is so much closer than anyone knows.

Salem Salazar attends Mortimer University, an elite school, to get answers about her sister's mysterious death. She left clues that she is having difficulty deciphering, but she knows something bad happened here and will not stop until she gets answers. As she digs deeper, she finds more unexplained deaths on the campus, and one professor is high on her watch list. As she searches down this dark and dangerous path, she also discovers Caz, who makes her head and her heart spin.

Cazimir van der Waal is constantly in her way. He is mysterious and drives her insane. Who is he? Why is he always around? Is he a suspect? Caz knows something, and the only way to find out is to get closer to him, but will that put her in danger?

Why should you love him, whome the world hates so? Because he loves me more than all the world - Christopher Marlow

Mortimer has major secrets, and Salem will get to the bottom of it all, even if it puts her life in danger. A major roadblock is Caz, who always seems to block her path. Can she trust him, or will he be her undoing? They are forced to work together to discover the truth about what happened to people they both love and have lost. Will they come out alive?

The deadly game he'd been playing was coming to a head soon, but as he moved his mouth over hers, devouring her for everyone to see, he sent a very clear message to everyone watching. Knowing THEY would be watching. She was OFF LIMITS again. She was HIS, and coming for her would make them understand WHY they called him Death in prison.

She looked at the tattoo on the side of his neck, one she got with him. Her only tattoo, and the words that said, Memento Vivere - Remember to Live.

Have a bit of patience with this one. There are layers to unfold to get to the bottom of this mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and the author for the ALC of this book. It is set to publish on April 29th. Happy Reading!

Rating: 4.5/5 stars
RuNyx is one of my favorite authors, so it’s no surprise that this book has been a highly anticipated release for me. Enigma delivered everything I want from a RuNyx book: gothic vibes, unique characters, and wildly intoxicating romance. I adore how perfectly RuNyx is able to write black-sheep characters, and I related so much to Salem’s experiences and personality. While the relationship between Salem & Cazmir was beautiful, I loved that there was a heavy emphasis on the friendships Salem was making as well. But on the topic of Cazmir, he so thoroughly understood Salem who went her whole life feeling the opposite. Beyond the romance and relationships, the underlying mystery was full of twists and turns, and I loved the slow build of information that was dropped leading up to the climax. This book was a perfect mixture of romance with dark, thrilling elements. Thank you Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy of this audiobook!

This book just didn’t hit for me. I was hoping for more than what was given. It was still a good read, I was just expecting it to be darker than it was. This is more of a gothic fantasy. Which for that was great.

4.25 rounded to a 5 💫

I have screamed this since reading Gothikana but RuNyx has a niche for writing dark academia. It is her knack and where her true talent lies. I am on the side who loved Gothikana for its vibes, her writing, the story, the characters, the atmosphere, everything… and Enigma gave me that same exact feeling.

I was sucked in from the very first chapter. You’re following Salem Salazar, who is obsessed with forensics and the inner workings of all things death related (she’s a morbid girl, okay.. and we love her for it). She goes to Mortimer University to get to the bottom of her sister’s mysterious death. While there she uncovers a string of unsolved unexplained deaths on campus and her search leads her to a secret society and to Caz Van Der Waal.

If you love crime, dark academia, secret societies, poetic writing, spooky and gothic atmospheres, with a hint of mystery then I seriously think you should pre-order this one. It comes out on April 29th, 2025.

I cannot sing enough good praises for this book. I will be going back through once I get the hard copy in the mail to annotate!

Thank you NetGalley and RuNyx for this ARC! 📖🕯️✨🕵🏼‍♀️🗝️⚰️🧬

Dark academia, mysterious deaths, a missing sister. Salem enrolls in a prestigious university to try to find answers to her sister's disappearance. As she investigates she learns about a secret society. Add some spice and this Hades/Persephone retelling is (chefs kiss).

Not my usual romance genre of choice, but I enjoyed this! First RuNyx read for me! Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC via NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts!

I was sucked into this dark world of academia/secret society where murder is a normal occurrence.

We meet Salem when she's standing over a dead body, and a dark man in the shadows startles her. He turns out to be her TA, Caz, but he's also so much more.

This book was so twisty and twisted that I didn't want to put it down. Both narrators were perfect in their roles. The two main characters had secret motives as to what they were up to, away at college, after tragedy struck both of them in different ways. The way their lives were so intertwined left me on the edge of my seat.

Read if you love:
- tragic love stories
- death, murder
- morally gray heroes
- secret society
- dark academia
- mysteries to be solved
- friendships that bloom in darkness
- college romance
- high society
- twists + twisted storylines
- morally gray HEAs (lol)

4 stars. This book was fantastic via audio. Would recommend.

🎧 Enigma by RuNyx 🎧
Audiobook ARC
Narrated by Aiden Snow and Jaclyn Kelso

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio Production from Bramble Books for the audiobook ARC.

Had fun listening to this spicy, dark romance. You get immediately sucked in to the mysteries surrounding Mortimer University. Salem and Caz have electric chemistry and narrators Jaclyn Kelso and Aiden Snow were the perfect cast.

Tropes:
Dual POV
Dark Academia Romance
Rivals to lovers
Mystery
Suspense
He’s obsessed with her
*Make sure you check out the Trigger Warnings

3/5. Releases in audio 4/29/25.

Heat Index: 7/10

The Basics:

Searching for the truth about her sister's death, Salem Salazar heads to the mysterious Mortimer University, where she meets (and gets entangled with) her mysterious-er TA, Caz van der Waal. If only Salem wasn't pursuing an award that seems connected to many mysterious deaths...

The Review:

I picked this up because RuNyx is one of those authors you hear a lot about, and I'm always down for a bit of creepiness with my romance novels. Unfortunately, while I came away from this completely understanding her popularity... I can't say this was for me.

I was initially sucked into the novel, because there is a lot of atmospheric energy. And I mean, you're immediately plunged into something Real Weird. I found, however, that Real Weird sort of clashed with the college setting, rather than truly settling into dark academia. There's a scene early on when the heroine and her friends are daring each other—not something I'm oppose to—and one of the dares is "dance sexy in front of a boy for thirty seconds". "Dance sexy" is a direct quote, and I shall be real, this wording felt more middle school than college-aged to me. And frankly, all I could imagine was that poor girl doing a bit of a noodle move in front of a shocked boy.

I feel like this kind of book does best in a timeless setting, and this just wasn't timeliness. Salem's bestie repeatedly refers to Caz as a "hunky chonk of a man", and. I'm sorry. "Chonk of a man" should not be in a spooky, ghostly dark romance to ME. It totally took me out of the story!

On a romance level, I felt that Salem and Caz had tons of chemistry, and the heat was there. But the actual love story felt underdeveloped. I felt that RuNyx spent a lot of time on vibes and not quite enough time on making me believe these two would actually LIKE each other.

So why is this a 3/5? I mean, I was entertained, and I did like the atmosphere. And I see where the audience is here. It did feel very much like that space between YA and adult romance, which fits the college setting perfectly. The writing has a campy quality that feels very fic-ish, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It did sometimes get a little confusing—mainly in that tonal contrast that didn't feel quite intentional enough for me to be on board. I feel that if RuNyx leans more into a mature vibe in a future novel, she could play to her strengths a bit more.

The Sex:

You definitely get somewhat more adventurous content here, like light CNC (a lot of care is taken to clarify consent with this practice). I did feel it overshadowed the emotional development, but overall, this was one of the stronger points of the novel.

The Conclusion:

Not really my cup of tea, but I get why people are addicted to this author. Far be it from me to yuck the yum.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for this advanced copy!!


RUNYX!! You’ve gone and done it again. I love the dark creepy atmosphere you paint in this novel. That alone with the romance component that had me literally SWEATING, it’s one of my new favorite books of 2025.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Enigma by Runyx was amazing 🤯🖤—a total 5-star read for me! From start to finish, I was completely hooked. The plot struck the perfect balance between intense action 💥 and deep character development 🧠. Salem was such a relatable protagonist 🙌, and Caz? Let’s just say he was both intriguing and scorching hot 🔥😮‍💨—a top-tier MMC for sure.

While I did find the storyline a little predictable 🤷‍♀️ (I guessed the climax before it happened), it didn’t take away from my enjoyment at all. The journey was so well written and compelling that I didn’t even care.

One major highlight for me was the audiobook 🎧—it truly brought the story to life! I loved both readers and thought their voices fit the characters and tone perfectly. It made everything feel even more immersive 😍.

And the ending? PERFECTION ✅✨. So many books rush the final chapters or leave things vague, but Enigma gave us all the emotional details we needed for a truly satisfying wrap-up. It felt complete in the best way!

The true crime vibes 🕵️‍♀️ mixed with elite gothic energy 🏰 were absolutely captivating and had me obsessed from the first chapter. This book is at least as good as Gothikana, if not better 😍📚.

Overall, one of the best gothic romances I’ve read in a long time, and it has definitely thrown me into a deep reading slump 😭💀💔. Highly recommend!!

Thank you to Netgalley and RuNyx and their publisher for this advanced reader copy of the audiobook!

this was the perfect gothic academic romance book. the mystery and the secrets and the setting were just amazing. i felt like i could picture the whole thing. Runyx is so good at giving visuals and it was just an amazing story!!

I LOVED THIS AUDIOBOOK!! The narration made me forget that the book was 3rd POV! The story itself was very intriguing and I loved the journey! The spice for this one seemed a bit more than her previous books (I’ve read them all!) but was very well done! I loved their chemistry! I did want a little more story to the secret societies because that seemed to end so quickly once they got to the cave sacrifice.

REVIEW:
This was a highly anticipated read for me this year. I really enjoyed the audio for this. It was dual narration and as someone who doesn’t always enjoy 3rd person POV, it had me hooked. I’m sure it was partially because Aiden Snow was narrating Caz 🫠🫣😍

This is a complete standalone with secret societies in a dark academia setting. Two unlikely allies looking for revenge and finding something else instead!

Tropes:
-dark academia
-mystery
-spiceee
-forced proximity
-morally grey MMC

Great dark academia! If you are like me and enjoyed the writing style of Gothikana then you will love Enigma.
This is a story about the FMC who wants to find out what happened to her older sister. She starts at the same school her older sister attended and right away she can tell she isn't welcomed. Her family's name doesn't bring the most positive thoughts of the students or facility. She uncovers a few secrets and a slightly older MMC that is absolutely infatuated with her. She keeps uncovering more facts. At all costs he will have to keep her safe.

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Another masterpiece by RuNyx! An instant buy author for me, I don't even need to read a synopsis or know what the plot is. I just know any book she writes will be full of emotion, tension, and life. The way she digs into her characters mind is stunning, their passions, their fears, their longing. RuNyx's words have a way of digging deep and pulls me completely into her world. I was so blown away by Enigma, by Caz and Salem. It's not what I was expecting, but it turned out to be better.

Yes, the dark academia vibes are strong and the secret society that may or may not be killing girls is interesting. But the relationships and human connection were the whole point of this book to me. I loved how Salem grew throughout this book, into her whole self and with the people in her life. Friends, family, significant other. So many unique, complex feelings and interactions explored. I would be lying if I said Salem's relationship with Caz wasn't my favorite part (blushing face!!) From their first interaction, I was drooling. The fixation on her hair. The pulling! The teasing!! Every time they were together, I just lapped it all up. The physical chemistry was off the charts, but the trust and communication made it that much sweeter.

The epilogue's had me swooning, but I was struck by the blink and you'll miss it mention of Tenebrae City. The RuNyx multiverse. I love the thought of all these amazing characters living in the same time and place.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillian Audio for a chance to listen to this ALC! I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to the publisher for the ALC!

I really enjoyed listening to Enigma! I’m super picky about narrators—it’s hard to hold my attention—but this one absolutely delivered. The narration was smooth, engaging, and brought the characters to life in a way that made it so easy to stay hooked.

I also loved the dark academia vibe—it added such a rich, moody atmosphere to the story. But what really stood out to me was the deep connection between the characters. Their love for each other felt so genuine and powerful, and it added so much emotional weight to the narrative.

This audiobook truly surprised me, and I’d definitely recommend it to fans of emotional, atmospheric stories.

4 ⭐️ 2🌶️

This is my first RuNyx book and my first dark academia and I was not disappointed! I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I’m not one to read dark romance so this took me by surprise.

Read if you like:
📖dark academia
📖dual pov
📖artistic mmc
📖crime solving fmc
📖secret society
📖murder mystery
📖academic setting
📖dislike to like
📖he becomes obsessed with her
📖touch her and 💀

Thank you to NetGalley, RuNyx, and Macmillan audio for the arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh goodness, I devoured this book!
The way RuNyx can get that dark, edgy, gothic, angsty atmosphere with words is like no other.
Boarding school, secret society, enemies-to-lovers, murder mystery, family secrets, coming of age...all major themes and tropes in one fantastic story.

An intriguing and relatable FMC, with a possessive and deep MMC tie two worlds together and show each other, true and everlasting love and family.

I adored the way the Narrators brought the characters to life for the audio and fully captured the dark, edgy feel of the story.

I highly recommend this read for the lovers of gothic romance/mystery.