Review - An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

 

 

 

 Title: An Education in Malice

Author: S.T. Gibson

Pages: 367

Publisher: Orbit

 Release Date: 13th February 2024

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 Love is sacrifice. One of us was always going to bleed for the other.

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.

  

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My Review:

 *I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley*

When Laura Sheridan starts at Saint Perpetua's College, she finds herself drawn to Carmilla, another student.

The two develop a rivalry in their poetry class, both wanting to please their professor, De Lafontaine.

Laura finds herself drawn into Carmilla and De Lafontaine's unusual relationship, and a dark secret that will change everything.

I believe that this a retelling of Carmilla, which I haven't read, but the blurb intrigued me enough to request a copy of this book.

The story is told from both Carmilla and Laura's perspectives, which I liked as it was interesting to see both their opinions of events. However, I struggled to connect with either of them, and found Laura lacking in personality.

I liked the dark academia aspect, and found the student-teacher relationship between Carmilla and De Lafontaine interesting.

The plot was lacking for me as not much really happened, and I wasn't invested in what did happen. I didn't like the romantic relationship, as I couldn't feel the spark between the characters.

I didn't love the writing style as it felt like there was a lot of telling rather than showing what was happening.

I'm disappointed that I didn't enjoy this more.

Overall, this was an okay read.

  

 

Review - Greenteeth by Molly O'Neill

 

 

 

Title: Greenteeth

Author: Molly O'Neill

Pages: 304

Publisher: Orbit

Release Date: 25th February 2025

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 From an outstanding new voice in cozy fantasy comes Greenteeth, a  tale of fae, folklore, and found family, narrated by a charismatic lake-dwelling monster with a voice unlike any other, perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher.

Beneath the still surface of a lake lurks a monster with needle sharp teeth. Hungry and ready to pounce.

Jenny Greenteeth has never spoken to a human before, but when a witch is thrown into her lake, something makes Jenny decide she's worth saving. Temperance doesn't know why her village has suddenly turned against her, only that it has something to do with the malevolent new pastor.

Though they have nothing in common, these two must band together on a magical quest to defeat the evil that threatens Jenny's lake and Temperance's family, as well as the very soul of Britain.

 

Goodreads | Storygraph | Amazon UK | Amazon US | Bookshop

 

 

  

 

My Review: 

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group*

Jenny Greenteeth lives in a lake that she spends her days tending.

The peace of the lake is broken when one day, a chained woman is thrown into the water. It soon becomes clear that the woman is a witch, and Jenny saves her.

The witch, Temperance, tells Jenny about the new pastor who turned the village against her.

When Jenny agrees to help Temperance, the two discover that there is an evil force in the village that has the power to destroy everything they hold dear.

Can Jenny and Temperance work together to save their homes?

I had never heard of the myth/legend of the faerie Jenny Greenteeth before, but I liked the idea of her working with a human.

Jenny was an interesting protagonist - she wasn't human so her experiences and priorities were different, but at the same time they were also very human. I liked Jenny, Temperance and Brackus, and the relationships between them.

There were some interesting concepts and uses of fae and other myths/legends.

The plot was enjoyable to begin with, but I did find my attention drifting in the middle. However, I did still want to read on and find out what happened next.

Overall, this was a mixed read.