Gothikana by RuNyx is a dark, gothic romance, which you should already know based on the name. The book sets a very strong atmosphere from the beginning. An ancient haunted castle, ravens, a mysterious lake, ghosts, dark nights in the forest, misty mornings, and murder make this a true tale of the macabre.
This book is the smutty lovechild of Edgar Allan Poe and Bram Stoker. It is a tale of dark paranormal romance with an age gap and a forbidden love story between the Silver-Eyed Devil of Verenmore and a lonely witch in a castle full of secrets.
P.S. This book takes smut to a new level, so brace yourselves, do yourselves a favor, and DON’T READ IN PUBLIC!
A little overview
The story follows a 21-year-old Corvina Clemm. She and her mother live secluded from everyone else, read tarot, and collect crystals. Sounds a little witchy, doesn’t it? Both mother and daughter have violet eyes, making them outcasts. Things became especially difficult for Corvina when her mother was taken away from her.
Left alone and adrift, one day, she receives a letter of acceptance from a mysterious place.
University of Verenmore
Don’t mistake this place for Hogwarts. I think the Addams Family house, perched on top of the mountain and shrouded in eternal mist, is more fitting. Something like school in “Wednesday” will be the most appropriate. The university is a giant Gothic castle with high towers adorned with stone gargoyles.
Verenmore is an old castle, located on the top of the mountain. In the foothill of the mountain, there is a little village, where if you listen closely, you will hear many spooky stories surrounding the mountain, spun over generations.
When Corvina arrives at the castle, she shortly discovers that the castle is indeed full of mysteries, old legends, and ghosts.
One of the towers holds a suicide story about a young girl—the same girl who used to occupy the bunk bed Corvina will be sleeping in. This is not a natural case, since it leaves too many loose threads and despite people witnessing the girl jumping from the tower, the facts just don’t add up.
This place seems to be shrouded in death just as much as the forest is covered in mist. The most famous story is hundred year old of people disappearing every five years, during the Blood Moon. This mystery still keeps happening and no one seems to be able to do anything about it. As it turns out the university hosts a very scandalous, to say the least, ball on that exact day.
Outside the university, there is a spooky lake, and an abandoned wooden shack, with a forest surrounding it. Near the university, there are also ruins, where it’s rumored that a group of kids used to sacrifice villagers. Strange tunnels are running under the mountain, housing secrets that are still unanswered by the end of the book.
Along all these paranormal mysteries, our heroine finds herself infatuated by her teacher, Vad Deverel, known as:
Silver-Eyed Devil of Verenmore
Part-time teacher Vad Deverell is still technically a student, working on his thesis. He seems to know everything that is going on in the castle and has stayed there longer than any of the students.
Much like “Dracula”, Vad Deverel is a mysterious force in these ancient castle walls. This is the man with a dark side and a darker past. Still, the heroine, just like us, can’t help but be enthralled with him, especially when he so deliciously plays haunted melancholic melodies on a piano of his. And might I add, a piano is not the only thing he can play well. (Yes dear reader, I meant exactly what your smut-infested brain is telling you.)
“This is lust,” she whispered, trying to validate it, excuse it. “No, Corvina.” The side of his lips twitched, “I’ve known lust. This is something worse. This is a barbaric need to possess, to eliminate, to own. This is madness.”
“If this is madness,” she whispered almost against his lips, drown me in it.”
Even if it wasn’t forbidden for a teacher and a student to be together in university, Vad would still try to stay away from Corvina. He knows the Violet-eyed witch is trouble, especially when she starts sniffing around the secrets long buried.
The Witch
If Vad is Dracula re-incarnated, then Corvina would be more like a melancholic lonely Poe, conversing with his raven.
Since Corvina’s mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia, she’s afraid that she’ll fall in her mother’s footsteps. Especially because of Mo, this strange fatherly voice in her head that has been with her her whole life. But the line is so thin.
Corvina and her mother are witches in every sense. They carry charmed stones and minerals, tarot cards seem to be popping out by themselves for them. Corvina also hears voices. One of them is a constant presence in her mind, her lifelong companion Mo, who is always watching out for her.
Since coming to Verenmore, her psychic abilities seem to grow stronger, she sees ghosts and is plagued by visions. She doubts her mental state and I just love how the author is explaining psychic things with already explained medical reasons. It provides you with a logical explanation if you don’t want to believe that magic exists.
Not only does she have all the qualifications to be a witch, but she also looks one, with her eerie violet eyes and long silky raven black hair. She dresses in long skirts and usually wears deep colored clothes sometimes paired with chokers. One look at her and you know, that girl is a little witchy.
Despite spending most of her life in solitude, Corvina is very excited about university life, meeting new people, and having friends. We can see that friendship group developing alongside some very interesting side characters our heroine frequently interacts with.
Overall
The story is refreshing. It is mainly a romance, but the plot is holding up very well and I think is worthy of being in not just the romance, but also mystery section of the shelf.
I can’t say that a broody loner handsome guy and a lonely girl make for very unique characters, but I genuinely enjoyed reading about them. The story was well-written and was indeed a high quality romance. I loved the way the protagonists first met, the progression of their love, tentative trust and I absolutely was blown away by the declaration of love.
The book had quotes from classic literature at the beginning of every chapter. I really enjoyed these little hints of what was to come and gathering new quotes for myself.
The book didn’t quite wrap up. There were lots of loose strings left, but I would strongly encourage you to read the author’s endnote and acknowledgments. She herself explains the reason for it all, saying that Verenmore was inspired by a real boarding school she attended. She left the school with unanswered questions and writing about the mysteries of Verenmore made her come to terms with ones of her own.
P.S. Honorable mention to the book design
I don’t usually include this part in my reviews but I don’t really believe in the “don’t judge a book by its cover” saying. Say that to a designer who worked on it, I DARE YOU.
This book not only has a gorgeous cover, but the whole book is an artistic experience of its own. It’s one of the most beautiful books I own, with its edges sprayed in purple, wonderful art on the title page, haunting and eerie, gothic pictures at the beginning of every chapter housing quotes from classical literature. The hardcover has a crest of Verenmore engraved on it.
I love reading e-books but this is a hardcover you must own.
