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

Okay I mostly never read the synopsis or trope lists because I find myself looking for things as I read rather than experiencing it. I prefer comps and genre: all I needed to know was dark academia, all black cast with vampires, Cruel Prince meets Ninth House, and I was sold.

The way this book caught me off guard with how well Tigest Girma wrote these morally (dark) gray characters, an enemies to lovers I actually believed, and engrossed me so far into the story! The gothic vibes of Uxlay, the sentient house, the African mythology, the meaning of different bite locations on vampires, the unapologetically CRUEL and ruthless nature of the characters, just wow! It did not disappoint.

Jordan Cobb's narration was on point, the perfect voice for this dark book! The personality injected into the characters by the narrator was stunning. The production quality was excellent! As an avid audiobook listener, it's rare to not notice at least once instance where something was re-recorded, even subtle ones. This did not have any, a flawless audio! Thank you Hachette Audio and Netgalley for the ALC!

Review of “Immortal Dark”

By: Tigest Girma

Available September 3/2024

Check it Out on Goodreads!!

Disclaimer: Please note that I received an Audio ARC from NetGalley and Hachette Audio, in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“Immortal Dark” by Tigest Girma is an incredibly engaging dark academia fantasy that mixes mystery, romance, and gothic vibes in the best way. I was hooked from the start, and I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. The audiobook does a fantastic job of bringing the story and characters to life, making it impossible to stop listening.

Kidan Adane, the main character, is really interesting. Her quest to find her missing sister, June, and confront the vampire Susenyos Sagad—who she thinks is behind her family’s tragedy—is intense and keeps the story moving. The chemistry and tension between Kidan and Susenyos add an exciting twist that kept me on edge.

The world of “Immortal Dark” is detailed and immersive, with the vampire underworld vividly brought to life. The mix of human and vampire politics is fascinating and makes the story deeper than your usual vampire tale.

The audiobook’s narration captures the gothic and decadent tone perfectly. The narrator’s voice adds an extra layer of magic to the story, enhancing the dark and romantic themes.

If you love vampires and dark academia, you need to check out “Immortal Dark.” It’s a gothic, decadent tale full of mystery and magic that will keep you guessing until the end. Highly recommended!

Get it at…

📗 - Hard Copy -📗

Your Local Canadian Book Seller

Indigo

Amazon Canada

📱 - Digital - 📱

Kobo

Kindle

🎧 - Audio - 🎧

Audible

Libro.FM

Immortal Dark begins as a story about sisterhood. About going into the den of danger to get answers, to search for revenge. But it quickly becomes apparent that getting her revenge is going to be harder than it seems. For Kidan uncovers secrets not only about the night her sister went missing, but about their parents. At Uxlay she has to figure out how to skirt the line between survival and purpose. But Immortal Dark quickly evolves into a story about survival. About the ways we can let what we think is our only purpose, stop us from living, keep us from the moments of everyday.

I was also fortunate to be able to listen to the narration of Jordan Cobb which was an added privilege. I loved the emotions to see Kidan struggling with her own humanity, her own desires versus her ones for revenge. You can feel the emotional navigation, the warring emotions in Cobb's narration.

The world Girma creates is rich and detailed, and while it takes a bit of time to fully immerse oneself in it. The main characters relationship is a dance of power, deception, and reluctant attraction. I received an ARC audiobook from NetGalley, and the narration further enhanced the atmospheric quality of the story, making it an even more engaging experience.

This book delivered on every level - Black vampires! dark academia! gothic vibes!

A missing sister triggers this story where a young woman, Kidan Adane, dives back into the world she was born to in order to solve the mystery of her sister's disappearance. Kidan's family has a vampire bonded to them, Susenyos - the very one Kidan suspects kidnapped her sister.

Uxlay University is where students learn about their family legacies and the bonds between humans and vampires. But there are secrets, so many secrets, and Kidan must navigate not just both Uxlay and Susenyos, but her own nature, which may be her undoing.

I loved this book - it is so rich and vibrant, the atmospheric writing and the imperfect characters - I've seen it compared to The Cruel Prince but I hated that book, so if you thought TCP was just mean people being assholes to each other, don't take the comparison to heart. This book is way better.

This book may have reignited my vampire obsession from my high school years 👀

If you like complex and multi faceted FMC, this book is for you. Kidan has a black and white belief system, but that doesn’t stop her from going to any length it takes to find her sister after she disappears. She must enter the dark and mysterious halls of Uxlay University to seek vengeance against Susenyos Sagad, a vampire she is convinced stole away her sister.

I loved the way every character had moments to shine, and nobody ever remained who they were at first impression. This book pushes morally grey so far but in such a fascinating way that I was hooked from the first few chapters. I was also pleasantly surprised by the amount of philosophy present through the classes Kidan at Uxlay. It is a fantasy book yes, but most of all I think it is a book that forces the reader to confront their own ways of thinking, and if we hold ourselves to the same standards we hold others to?

The romance in this is exactly what I love and is true enemies to lovers and slooooowwww burn. (If knives aren’t pulled on each other I DO NOT want it 😂)

I also had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, which was FANTASTIC. Jordan Cobb was the perfect casting, her Kidan was fierce and her range gave every character life. I can’t wait to listen to more of her narrations.

Tropes:
⚔️Enemies to lovers
⚔️Dark academia
⚔️Slow burn 🔥
⚔️Morally grey to the max
⚔️Mystery

I rated Immortal Dark 4.5 stars!!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

This is one of the best books I’ve read this year. I am so glad I got an ARC of this! It was so intriguing and I was not expecting the book to go where it did towards the end. I wish it didn’t end on a cliffhanger because I will be thinking about it all day every day!! 😭 I am officially obsessed with vampires and this author. Loved the characters and how there were different layers to some of the ‘villains’. Such a good book! Will be re-reading

The audio performance was really good too! The narrator was very expressive and did a great job distinguishing between different characters in dialogue

Kidan hasn't grown up alongside vampires as she should have. But now that her family is dead and her sister missing, Kidan knew she had to step into the world she has been shielded from.

She blames one and only one for her loss, Susenyos - the vampire connected to her family for generations. To uncover the mystery of her missing sister, Kidan moves into her family home where Susenyos is already living.

She has to stay there long enough and enter the elite Uxlay University to make his hold on her home null and void. This Uni is where human and vampires learn to co-exist. Neither of these go smoothly, but Kidan is becoming increasingly determined to defeat Susenyos.

When Kidan's only friend at Uxlay is thrown from a tower, she is energised to learn more about her enemy and how to end him. She steps up her battle against him, but so does he - her life often on the line.

Living with her enemy causes power play after power play - each taunting the other to step over the line, break the rules and be banished from the house and inheritance.




The love of vampires and this cover drew me in. Richly written, and with strong enemy to lovers vibes, but I found the story a little too drawn out for me.

The settings were lavish and the main characters moody and simmering, but I needed it to move a little faster to keep me listening.

I hate putting a book down (especially vampires) but the plot was too slowly paced, and to know it is only the 1st in a series unfortunately didn't help.

Tigest Girma wrote an immensely smart and captivating vampire story. This story is one that will make you think, and full honesty, I don't know if I picked up on all the philosophical stuff in the class discussions, but I was totally invested.

Like most "magical school" books, things start a little slow and really pick up once you get to the school, don't worry, it comes quickly. And beyond a magical school, and vampires, you also get a sentient house and a secret uprising.

I seriously enjoyed this and was so honored to get to listen to an audio ARC (though I still have my physical copy on preorder). The narration was PHENOMENAL. There is a wide cast of characters in this story, and the narration makes it really easy to follow along. Not to mention how gothic and dark things feel when you're listening to a creepy vampire drawl.

I enjoyed Immortal Dark and I'm interested in how the story will unfold in the second book.

Now, let's get down to the nitty-gritty. I hate and love Kidan. I love her because she's a complex and unreliable character. I hate her because she's unhinged and has no common sense half the time. A lot of the time, I wanted to slap her because why would she do the things she did? If it weren't for the overall story and my desire to get questions I had answered, I probably would've DNF'd based on her lack of common sense alone. I think my favorite characters are Susenyos and Taj.

It did get to the point where I felt like there were too many characters and too much was going on. It was causing me to get lost in the story. I feel like if I had read a physical/digital copy, I would've been able to keep up better.

I do wish that there was more cultural and familial history given in the book. We got a few glimpses of cultural things, like outfits and artifacts that Susenyos had but they were brief in the story. I'm hoping that in the second book, we get more about their family and the language that Kidan no longer speaks, based on the ending of the book.

All in all, the book was written pretty well and the narration was good. I give it a 3.5/5

Tigest Girma’s debut, ‘Immortal Dark’, is a gripping entry in dark academia. It masterfully blends gothic horror with academic intrigue. Set in a shadowy, mysterious institution, the novel explores the chilling intersections of knowledge and power. Girma’s rich settings and atmospheric details make the dark mood come alive, creating a compelling experience from the first page.

Girma’s writing stands out! It is both elegant and precise. Her characters are intricately developed, each with their own secrets, adding layers to the story. The prose captures the eerie setting while exploring deep themes of mortality and ambition.
As a debut, Girma’s narrative control is impressive.

Fans of:
✨ Romantasy
✨ Vampires
✨ Morally gray characters
✨ Dark academia


AUDIOBOOK:
Jordan Cobb’s narration elevates ‘Immortal Dark’.
Her voice captures the novel’s haunting tone and brings each character to life.
Cobb’s pacing enhances the tension, making the audiobook mesmerizing.
Her performance adds an extra layer of immersion, making the story even more unforgettable.

I want to thank Hachette Australia and Tigest Girma for an ALC in exchange for an honest review.


Top 5 book of 2024 🖤

I knew I’d love this book just by the description. The beautiful way the author is able to describe the characters and environment is awesome! I can’t wait to read more.

First and foremost I received an arc audiobook copy from NetGalley. Thank you!

Wow! I enjoyed this audiobook. It was read well with very smooth vocals.
Immortal Dark reminds me a Vampire Academy with extra passion. The main characters you’ll want to love and hate over and over but, that makes this story even more interesting.

I have already preordered my hardcover edition of this book and highly recommend the audiobook and print. It’s a bloody good ride!

This story started off deliciously dark and exciting. I love the search for a taken sister and vampires!!!

The academic setting was cool and the relationships in here were definitely toxic but again...Vampires, lol.

I dropped to a 3☆ because towards the end it got confusing to me and it just lost something at the very end, but overall I had a good time.

ever since i knew about the existence of this book i knew i needed it in between my hands as soon as possible so imagine my joy and relief when my netgalley arc request for the audiobook got accepted (thank you netgalley we love you)

reading this book through audio was firstly an amazing experience, the narrator did so good i loved them.

now onto the content of the book.... fantastic, spectacular, out of this world! this scratched an itch in me that has been bothering me for months!! it gave me exactly the kind of ruthless unapologetic main character ive been wanting; she does bad things without remorse but not in a caricature villain kind of way, she has reasons and motives behind her actions that are believable i loved her very much she was exquisite to read about.

for the romance, this was enemies to lovers on crack this is TRUE enemies to lovers! they absolutely hated each other's guts, they tried to kill each other, they knew where to hit so that it'd hurt, they were ruthless and i was soaring and eating it up.

the ending had me gasping and clutching my pearls, i know book 2 is gonna be messsyyy and i genuinely cannot wait until i devour it.

black vampires and actual morally grey characters i love you <3

Kidan will do anything to find her sister, including agreeing to attend Uxlay University, the place where students learn their family histories and their connection to vampires. The one she’s been told is responsible for her sister’s disappearance also happens to be connected to her family. Susenyos is the most dangerous and disliked of all the vampires at Uxlay. In order to find her sister, Koran must live with him and attempt to build companionship with him in order to extend her family’s legacy.

This book is categorized as a young adult/fantasy/romance. I think the content is pretty strong for some young adults. However, I also see it as less of a romance. There were few scenes that I would consider to have been romantic between the characters, and much more violence and fighting among both the humans and vampires. Overall, I liked the book and found the story to be a unique combination of vampire tale and dark academia. I look forward to reading the next book when it comes out!

THIS IS GOING TO BE THE FANTASY BOOK OF THE YEAR, MARK MY WORDS!!! Vampires, enemies to lovers (where they are REALLY enemies)—this book was everything to me. I absolutely devoured it; I love how the characters' relationship grew throughout the book. Kidan's character is oh so complex, and I adored her. I'm here for morally grey main characters. Susenyos? The man that you are! He's a vampire, and Kidan thinks he has to do with the disappearance of her sister, so of course she HATES HIM, and he hates her. But they have to live together (iykyk). This book was so complex, fun, and beautiful. I can't wait for everyone to read it, and the audiobook was excellent.

Tropes:
- Dark academia
- Enemies to lovers
- Morally gray characters
- SLOWWWW burn

thank you so so much netgalley and hachette audio for sending this my way!

Kaiden will do anything to find her kidnapped sister, June. Although she was purposefully kept out of the secret society she was born into, where human bloodlines gain power from vampire companions, she must now infiltrate that society to try to find her sister. Kaiden will live with the vampire bound to her family, who she suspects in June's disappearance, and infiltrate Uxlay University to bring it down. This wonderfully dark and atmospheric novel is full of morally gray characters. A major trigger warning for the book is suicidal ideation.

This was a mixed bag in many respects, so let me break it down.

What I liked:
- A new take on tired vampire lore. ”Holy” water and silver? Whatev!
- Houses that are alive(ish)
- Black and African leads and culture
- The narration

What I didn’t like (and maybe left me with a festering thread id annoyance in my beating heart):
- Nearly everything else

There’s a way of writing modern YA that I just … despise. Everything is perfunctory and overwrought. Everything is described ad nauseum. This really dragged for me, and not in the desired dragula way. And we’ve got to have a romance with a mean dude, a million and one characters (mostly related in a familial sense), hidden info that would take two seconds to share and prevent the conflict carrying the plot forward from happening, and … a school. And! An old ass vampire lusting after a young’un. One of the only saving graces among all these missteps was that the dude’s name sounds like “Susan,” at least in the audiobook, which got me imagining a butch in the role. Ha!

This one made me yearn for the YA of old …

Immortal dark was delicious and delectable. Full of suspense and mystery as Kidan Adane finds her way back into the life of the arcane that her aunt so desperately tried to save her from. when her little sister goes missing Kidan has no choice but to embrace the evil within her and tread into the dark hidden recesses of the mysterious Uxley.
Uxley is hidden from the rest of the world, bound by the laws that bind 12 powerful families to their vampires, Uxley cannot be found by anyone who is not a member of these 12 houses.
Upon the death of her aunt, Kidan receives an invitation to take her rightful place as Heiress to the Adane house where she can finally investigate the disappearance of her sister and the vampire that she believes took her; Susenyos Sagad.
Will Kidan be able to unravel the knots of this long kept secret society of families and vampires?
All Kidan wants to do is save her sister and then she can die with a clear conscience, however the Adane house’s magic is beginning to blur the lines of her will and morality. She is not expecting to make friends and she is definitely not expecting to form any type of relationship with Susenyos apart from killing him. I absolutely adored the ever changing relationship between Kidan and Susenyos. The ebb and flow of hatred and passion become as blurred as my vision before I put in my contacts, which is to say absolutely nothing is clear. The twists are jagged and the turns are as sharp as a razor blade.
Will she survive this undertaking or will she sacrifice herself to stop the evil that haunts Uxley and the attempts to unbind the laws that prevent Vampires from hunting and bleeding any human that they please?