Gothikana: A Dark Academia Gothic Romance: TikTok Made Me Buy it!

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The dark academia atmosphere and gothic vibes were amazing! From the creepy castle to the dark, eerie woods, the setting was perfect for this horror/mystery/romance. There were also a few times that I was genuinely creeped out. RuNyx did a fabulous job with the descriptions, so I really was able to have a clear picture of Verenmore in my head while reading. Even though she's intensely private, she shares a strong bond with her readers. Her favorite part about writing is knowing that it has somehow changed somebody's day in some corner of the world for the better. Springs of honey bubbling from the ground. If we are strong enough in our souls we can rip away the veil and look that naked, terrible beauty right in the face; let God consume us, devour us, unstring our bones. Then spit us out reborn. RuNyx immerses her readers in the dark worlds she builds and then injects life into them in the most hauntingly beautiful way. Her work is unique and addictive—she really is one of a kind.” ―Hannah Grace New York Times bestselling author of Icebreaker

i didn’t like that i had so many questions and no answers. the ending wasn’t rushed but there could’ve been more. overall, i need to go to verenmore bc i’m in love with that place. Book Genre: Academic, Adult, College, Dark, Fantasy, Gothic, Mystery, New Adult, Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Romance

I feel I’m being more negative about this book than I would like to be about, well, any book, really. I can genuinely appreciate the *exuberance* in Gothikana, you can’t go wrong with a murder university plot, and there’s some solid writing here, for sure. But it also, ultimately, felt quite juvenile to me, probably because I am old enough to find nose rings fairly banal and, in a professional capacity, more inclined to obsess over Vad Deverell’s terrible teaching than his sexy silver eyes. I think what also lowkey bugs me—not that I think this is any reflection on the author—is that Simon & Schuster bought this thing on the basis of its TikTok success (which is immense, btw, so don’t come for me: just because a book doesn't work for me doesn’t mean I can’t celebrate the accomplishment of the author) and couldn’t even show it enough respect to excise a few of the repetitions and tighten the prose. Let it shine a bit. Because, honestly, it could. It really could. Not only that, but the dark academia aesthetic it was apparently striving for was nowhere to be seen beyond needing a reason for all these characters to be in one building. My issues were with the story and characters. I just didn't care about any of them. Corvina was a little bland and I couldn't warm up to Vad at all. He drove into her harshly . . . her pants muffled by his flesh and their hips slapped together, mating in the most primitive, basic way a man and a woman could mate. I LOVED the uncertainty that the voices in Corvina's head were real or part of a mental health condition. We still don't really know in the end, but since Corvina truly gives off witchy vibes, I like to believe she's connected to the paranormal. I also lean more toward this because of the old woman's prediction about Vad meeting the girl with purple eyes.

Val's possessive love for Corvina built this darker chemistry between them, but it works so well. The chemistry. The attraction. The tension. Everything worked so well. Vad blushed furiously, his seven-year-old self getting mad at Old Zelda for cornering him like that and saying weird stuff about him his friends made fun of. I was so excited about this. The plot seemed great and the description of the castle was really nice and I wanted to get fully immersed in the story. Overall I liked the story but it's not the best thing I've ever read. I did enjoy the ending even thoughWell, by the looks of it, today I've been banned from Thesaurus.com: Synonyms and Antonyms of Words. Might as well go with the flow and end my misery by writing a very short review, since I'm not enjoying reliving this reading experience in the least. he leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to her nose, right above her piercing. “i never regretted kissing you, little crow.” Like i get that smut is a genre in itself and while that's not what im into and did not go into this book expecting to see, i have to believe that i have an issue with this book not solely because it isn’t “my thing” but because this has to be an atrociously bad example of it… right? RIGHT????? Everything and i mean everything in this book is at its best awkward/corny or at its worst downright creepy. plotwise it was clear that anything that didn’t directly have to do with the romance was a heavy afterthought. at points it genuinely felt like satire it was getting so ridiculous, then decided to get META at the end to explain away the plot holes? META????????????????????????? consider me retired from booktok recommendations jesus christ

Steer clear of me, little crow,” he muttered, his eyes piercing, flaying her open. “You might be a luring siren but I’m no ordinary sailor.” She was a twenty-one-year-old girl who’d been homeschooled and secluded her whole life by her mother. Why would a university want an undergraduate student way past the normal age, one who didn’t have anything close to conventional schooling? And who sent handwritten letters anymore?Amidst the laughter at his expense, Zelda’s grip on his arm tightened. “Don’t forget, boy. It’s a matter of many deaths.” Old Zelda had once been the caretaker of the home little Vad now lived in with other boys. But after she went blind a few years ago from an accident, the admin people let her stay on, which was a mistake in Vad’s opinion. Because she knew stuff, stuff she shouldn’t know, stuff about boys she couldn’t even see. She’d known things long before she lost her sight. She’d known Reed would drown in the pond a week before he did. She knew about Tor and his skin burning from the inside, something he’d never told anyone. And she said his best friend would “eat flames” one day, whatever that meant, and Fury was scared of fires. An outcast her entire life, Corvina Clemm is left adrift after losing her mother. When she receives the admission letter from the mysterious University of Verenmore, she accepts it as a sign from the universe. The last thing she expects though is an olden, secluded castle on top of a mountain riddled with secrets, deceit, and death. IT'S NOT FORBIDDEN IF THE TEACHER MAKES IT A HABIT TO SLEEP WITH STUDENTS. IT JUST MAKES IT PREDATORY AND CREEPY I tried to read The Predator before and couldn't because the writing was bad. This wasn't the case in this one. I thought the writing was much better and it flowed nicely, even though some sentences were still stilted and a bit juvenile. Kudos for the improvement though!

I'm pretty comfortable saying this is the worst book I've ever read. I know I keep making little edits to this review here and there but it's just because it's been nearly two years since I read this and I still think about how bad it is at least once a week. If I could unread one book in my life, it would be Gothikana. The eternal romance of Beauty and the Beast meets the gothic suspense of Dracula in this erotic dark academia story of epic love from bestselling author RuNyx.I'm obsessed, it kept me on my toes with the little twists and turns, and my jaw was on the damn floor with that plot twist. I truly loved the relationship between vad and her, it was so intriguing! You couldn’t help but love the guy even knowing you shouldn’t, and he was always there, watching her and keeping her safe... entirely in love!