Thanks to @netgalley and @hachetteaus for a review copy of this book, in the end I went and bought a copy because I really enjoyed it. I’ll be definitely reading the next book as like all good stories, this one is left on a cliffhanger.

I enjoyed immersing myself into Kidan’s world and leaving about the lore between Acti and Draniacs. This one is dark academia so there is a school element and classes though it’s not the whole plot but does add to what we need to know to understand the world. I enjoyed getting to understand the quest and how that played into the bigger story. The vampire element was also interesting as I haven’t read a book where they are portrayed this way before. This really added to my interest and I know of you like reading vampire stories then you’ll enjoy this one too. Overall, it’s a great read and I’m looking forward to where it goes next.

This book will forever hold a special place in my heart, as it was my first author/publisher mail 🥹 so, I thought it was time to give you all my thoughts on this brilliant novel.

Wow. Wow. Wow. I was completely captivated and enthralled in Immortal Dark! The tension, the drama, the world building, lore and rules were all so incredibly unique with wonderful dimension.

The tension between our FMC and MMC was unmatched, you hated him, you loved him, you hated him…

I loved how our FMC Kidan wouldn’t be afraid to straight up ask when something doesn’t feel right. Questions you had as a reader, she also had, and you bet with knife in hand she would get to the bottom of it!

The twists and turns kept you gripped and NEEDING to know more, making it difficult to put down!

This book reminded me of why I fell in love with reading, especially fantasy! It evoked feelings and emotions that I once felt when I first picked up novels of this sort.

A dark and lustrous novel filled with black vampires, desire, rage and secrets that has left me wanting more!

**REVIEWED BY COLLEAGUE (STAFF MEMBER) AS A BUDDY READ.

Loved this one so much. There was so much tension between the characters and I was hooked by the storyline.

⭐️ 3.9
🌶 1.75

Thank you NetGalley, Hachette Australia and Tigest Girma for the free review copy 💙

What a debut! Tigest Girma's prose is deliciously haunting, evocative, angtsy and intense - perfect for FMC Kidan's vengeful state of mind and mental health struggles, which were portrayed with sensitivity, authenticity and brutal honesty.

The worldbuilding was phenomenal! Set in an alternate modern day Ethiopia, Uxlay University is full of lush, gothic architecture, idyllic gardens, secret academic and political societies, plus sentient magical houses that both haunt and protect their occupants, all while surrounded by a spooky, atmospheric forest.

Immortal Dark is a brilliant combination of Ethiopian mythology, East African history, a unique vampire lore, truly dark academia, an all-African morally grey to charcoal cast, and political intrigue, with feminine rage in spades.

Truly, no character - human or vampire - is innocent. In fact, embracing your darkness is the only way to survive in this story. Seriously, check trigger warnings for this one - Kidan's headspace is a dark place to be. At times, you're left wondering who the real monsters are.

The romances and friendships are all toxic in a decadently dark way. The very slow burn romance (which has yet to truly start by the end) is the epitome of "there's a fine line between love/lust and hate". In fact, the only person allowed to torment the MCs is each other. Also, friends are more like frenemies here and they encourage each other's worst impulses.

It's because of all these factors that I strongly disagree with the YA rating - this should definitely be rated New Adult, especially considering the level of open door physical intimacy. I wasn't quite prepared for just *how* dark this story would be because of the YA rating.

The persistent mystery of Kidan's kidnapped twin sister June seems to haunt the plot as much as the FMC (in the best way). This and other mysteries slowly unfold and reveal themselves throughout the plot, making for riveting twists and turns. The fact that there are 2 cliffhangers at the end is epically mean of Girma.

One critique would be that there were some pacing issues where the story felt too slow. This mostly happened when Girma glossed over the study group sessions or time passing without incident at Uxlay. Ultimately, I don't believe the book needed to be quite as long as it was.

Overall, if you like dark fantasy, dark academia and/or dark paranormal romance, you'll probably love this, as long as you're good with a little-to-no morals, burn the world down, I will succeed or happily die trying kind of revenge story.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me an eARC for my honest opinion.

This book was so masterfully done. It had me questioning everything. I went through such a wide range of emotions, 'do I like this? Yes I do, do I really? YES I DO.' was some of the thoughts on repeat in my head.

I have thought about this book every day since I finished reading it. It was so thought provoking, in so many different ways. What is good, what is evil. What is life, what is death?

The world, the mystery and the characters were phenomenal.

I am so very picky with rage filled characters, as I always find there is a fine line that can be missed by a lot of authors. But, i was glad that there was nothing to worry about, as Tigest is a master and while Kidans rage, was so hyper-focused and sometimes misdirected, I could admire and understand exactly why she was so angry. I could feel her rage. Hell, I think I could even smell it.

I dont want to go too into detail as I think this is a book everyone needs to experience. I will eagerly be awaiting book 2's release and anything else Tigest Girma writes in the future.

ONE OF MY BEST BOOKS OF 2024!

I cannot stop recommending this book to everyone, It ticks the nostalgia box of vampires with all my Dark Academia dreams.

The characters are perfectly flawed, the banter is top notch, enemies to lovers relationships and there is a massive hint towards future romance1

Waiting for book 2 will truely be a test because I need to know what happens after that ending.

Immortal Dark was a wild ride—dark, gritty, and richly atmospheric. It took me some time to connect with the main character, Kidan, but eventually, I found myself rooting for her triumph. I loved the setting and can’t wait to continue the series to see where the story unfolds. However, the arc copy had some choppy formatting that made it a bit confusing until I reached about 40%. I ended up buying a physical copy to finish reading.

I will forever be in my vampire Era 🙌🏾 🧛🏿‍♀️ 🩸.

But not only is this just your normal vampire book but we have BLACK VAMPIRES. The joy this brought me to finally read a book with diverse characters and also written by a black woman. I want to see more of this in publishing! People don’t realise how difficult it was growing up and never seeing yourself represented in literature or media. But the industry is finally improving 👏🏾.

“Your hatred burns like ocean ice. And it’s entirely…mine”

One thing I loved about this book is that it was a TRUE enemies to lovers. I loved that they genuinely despised each other. And oooooh that tension and banter was just *chefs kiss*. Had me literally kicking my feet in the air.

I loved the dark atmosphere of this book and that all the characters were morally grey. Even Kidan who was such a bad bitch was willing to spill blood to get her sister.

One thing I will say is that this book reads more NA than YA. Some of the themes and content are on the darker side but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Follow me on bookstagram for more reviews: @bookalicious.delights

Full review coming soon! Full review coming soon! Full review coming soon! Full review coming soon! Full review coming soon! Full review coming soon!

I DNF this book.
The writing was good, however the parts i could read i really struggled with the character relationships and the magical system.

Immortal Dark is the first instalment in a trilogy. Kidan is a human searching for her abducted sister. In order to do this she must join Uxlay University where students study to ensure peaceful coexistence between humans and vampires and inherit their family legacies. The problem here is the vampire she believes killed her parents and abducted her sister lives there as well. Thus ensues a classic tale of enemies to lovers.

The book presents some good ideas - all black characters, dark academia, magical houses. However, for YA it is pretty dark dealing with some heavy topics including self harm, suicide and a heroine who is very angry and only interested in revenge. If you're a fan of dark academia and romance fantasy, then give Immortal Dark a go.


“I fought for my immortality. It has cost me more than you could ever imagine. You hope to ask nicely and receive it.”

Okay, give me a second to catch my breath…

This book was everything. It had everything. It WILL be everything. I don’t think someone could’ve pried my kindle from my hands if they tried to. I may have growled at them, that’s how obsessed I was with this book.

For a debut novel, Tigest Girma truly couldn’t have done better, and she will no doubt go very, VERY far after a book like this.

The vibes were immaculate, the characters fully fledged and well developed, and I was gripped from the first chapter. A lot of YA books struggle to hold my attention as they can fall short in a lot of areas like world building and character development, but Girma truly said “hold my pen” and delivered a knock out book.

I couldn’t recommend this more.

*4.5
I love a good vampire book and this one got me hooked!

This is how you write the enemies to (?)lovers trope - you could feel the sexual tension and pure hatred between Kidan and Susenyos. Each page I was filled with anticipation just waiting for them to finally get it on 😩 I initially wasn’t attracted to Susenyos but halfway throughout the story my attraction to morally grey characters just couldn’t resist. I loved the Black/African representation throughout the book. The politics and laws surrounding the humans/vampires did get a bit overwhelming to the point where I couldn’t remember them and eventually stopped caring too much about them.

I cannot wait for the next book, this is the perfect cosy spooky read for lovers of dark academia!

3.5 stars, rounded up. The Cruel Prince meets Ninth House meets Crave in this dangerously romantic dark academia fantasy, where a lost heiress must infiltrate an arcane society humans and vampires coexist and live with the vampire she suspects killed her family and kidnapped her sister.

“He had the striking beauty of an eclipse, a form to be studied and admired even if it burned the eyes.”

This was a unique book to say the least! The mysterious and gothic setting piques your interest from the start as the details unfold, as do the morally grey characters.

“The world loves to punish girls who dream in the dark. I plan to worship them.”

This story was filled with dark magic, rich Ethiopian culture, family secrets, brooding vampires and cutthroat politics. I loved the idea of the magical houses and the interesting laws of the society and vampires.

“Your hatred burns like ocean ice. And it’s entirely.. mine. I’ve never owned something so completely?”

Kiden was such a complex character, ruthless and a little unhinged - it was difficult to understand and connect with her at times.

“Perhaps the key was to realize that peace lay in survival, past the scars and pinches and among righteous revenge, not surrender. What a dangerous, dangerous thought.”

I found most of the characters very unlikable and the writing and dialogue was so different that at times it was difficult to follow. Unfortunately this made the book not flow so well for me and it took extra effort to push through. But I did enjoy my time in this interesting world.

“You have such vile expectations of me… I look forward to proving them true.”

If you like a slow burn dark academia, gothic style vampire fantasy with a very unique twist then give this a read, it’s out now!

Thank you @hachetteaus for this Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for my honest review. 🙏🏽

*Thank you to NetGalley & Hachette Australia & New Zealand for sending me a digital copy to review*

Dark Academia & fantasy are two of my favourite genres. Mix them together along with vampires and enemies to lovers and you’ve got one amazing book.

Kidan is investigating the disappearance of her twin sister and her main suspect is the vampire bound to her family, Susenyos Sagad. Kidan is forced to attend Uxlay University where students study to ensure peaceful coexistence between humans and vampires and inherit their family legacies. While Kidan tries to survive living with Susenyos a murder that mirrors her sister’s disappearance leads Kidan to discover threats that are centuries old.

I could not stop reading this book. Usually, I try to pace myself but with this one, I had to know what would happen next. Uxlay University had the perfect dark academia vibes, with classes on humans & vampires coexisting to frequent deaths/murders happening at the school. The world-building was amazing, there are layers of history that you discover as you read this book.

The enemies to lovers is perfection!!! When you start to think that they will actually kill each other then you know it’s good. Kidan & Susenyos hate each other with a burning passion and having them need to reside in the same house just adds to the tension, which is so good! Both do not hold back in trying to get rid of each other and I was shocked at every decision they made. The payoff at the end is once again amazing,

As soon as I finished I just needed the second book immediately. It can’t come soon enough.

Dark, unique and beautiful written. If you love vampires and dark academia vibes, this is for you.
This book starts off with some heavy world building and took until about the 20% mark for me to get into it (and understand what was happening lol).
Our female main character, Kidan Adane, is certainly dark and twisty as the title would suggest and our male main character, Susenyos Sagad, brings the immortality of the title in a story unlike anything l've read.
One element I really loved was in a world of immortality, the discourse around what it means to be human and how we grapple with our sense of identity.
"There are many grotesque evils in this world. Trust me, l have encountered them all. Yet the most frightening of all is the one of the mind. If you can't bear the sound of your own voice, the look of your eyes, the soul of your body, I ask you to do the most difficult thing of all-wait."
Thank you NetGalley, Hachette Australia and Tigest Girma for an ARC of Immortal Dark.

⭐️4/5
🌶2/5

“𝑺𝒐, 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒅, 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒘𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒆?

Where do I even start?! I was very pleasantly surprised by this dark academia, bully/enemies to lovers book.

This is an actual enemies scenario, and he loves to torment her for sure! Susenyos definitely gets a kick out of publicly embarrassing Kidan. But Kidan isn't innocent by any means... she loves to carry around a cute item (the only thing that can kill him, of course 🤣).

“𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒖𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒅𝒂𝒚.” 𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒗𝒐𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅, 𝒔𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒌𝒆. “𝑰𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒃𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆? 𝑻𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒑 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆? 𝑭𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒅?”

The plot was intruiging, but I found the romance more palatable

“𝑨𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒑, 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒊𝒕. 𝑯𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚.”

The tension, bickering, and bullying were on point and made me want to throw something at a wall just so they could say what they really thought. This gives Cardan and Jude vibes 100%, but make them dark academic vampires and stabby humans.

“𝑯𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏’𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒅? 𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏’𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒎𝒆.”
“𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒄𝒂𝒏’𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒇𝒍𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉.”

I really enjoyed both the book and the audiobook. Although the audiobook would have been better with a second narrator.

𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉.

🩸Enemies to lovers (true enemies)
🩸Dark academia
🩸Human FMC who wants to 💀
🩸Vampire MMC, who loves life
🩸Forced proximity
🩸Suspense
🩸Tension
🩸Morally grey
🩸Cliffhanger
🩸Closed door romance
🩸Do anything for the one you love...

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy through NetGalley and I was so happy I was able to get through this one without any spoilers! The book started off slow and I found that I wasn’t picking it up as much as I liked but once I got into it, I was obsessed. It was such a vivid read and I could picture it clearly in my head, the fmc and mmc’s tension was to die for (pun intended) and I’m back into my vampire era.

The story follows Kidan Adane on her journey to find her kidnapped sister June. This leads her to Uxlay Academy the setting for our dark academia - where she must live with the vampire suspected to have taken her sister.

Whilst I was intrigued by the beginning of the book I personally found it to be a bit clunky and abrupt. The more I got into it the more it found a flow. I did get engrossed in the story but it took a while to get there, maybe halfway.

The enemies to lovers trope in the book is very much enemies, but didn’t really get to lovers. It was very back and forth and sometimes didn’t seem to make sense after the work and build up of their relationship. It kinda gave me whiplash.

All together though a lot did happen in the second half of the book that had me on the edge of my seat and questioning characters motives. The world building felt unique and I love the African influences subtly placed into the storyline. The growth and journey of self love and acceptance of our FMC throughout the book was also a joy to see. I am keen to see where the story goes in book 2!

Thank you to Hachette ANZ and NetGalley for an ARC for review!

I don’t often read anything quite like this book. It was rather interesting and a very welcome change from my usual reading habits.
I would 10/10 recommend and will definitely continue reading once the following books are released.