by RuNyx
First published 2024
Corvina Clemm has spent her life as an outsider. After her mother dies, she drifts until an acceptance letter arrives from the University of Verenmore. She takes this as a cosmic signal and travels to what turns out to be an isolated castle perched on a mountaintop. The university harbors dark secrets. Vad Deverell, a part-time professor writing his thesis, has witnessed the castle's dangers firsthand. He prefers solitude and anonymity, yet he monitors everything that happens within the university walls. When Corvina arrives, Vad recognizes she threatens his carefully maintained distance. Their attraction defies logic. A pattern of disappearances spanning a century pulls them together against their better judgment. Every five years, students vanish without explanation. Corvina begins receiving mysterious clues that might solve the puzzle. Vad realizes he must watch her closely, both to protect the university's secrets and to keep her safe. The investigation forces them into an unlikely partnership. As they dig deeper into the century-old mystery, their connection intensifies. In a place where death lurks behind ancient stone walls, love takes root between two people who never expected to find each other.
Genres: romance, mystery, gothic-horror, gothic, academia, dark-academia, dark
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, emotional, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family, unlikely-partnership
Setting: University of Verenmore, Verenmore
399 pages · Hardcover · Bramble