Immortal Dark (Tigest Girma, Lothian)

Tigest Girma’s debut novel, Immortal Dark, is the book YA readers of dark academia and romantasy have been waiting for—something with the violence and passion of genre bestsellers such as Sarah J Maas and Rebecca Yarros, but suitable for a teenage audience or readers who aren’t interested in ‘spicy’ scenes. Orphan Kidan Adane inherits her family’s role in an ancient peace agreement that governs the world’s vampires. Rooted in a complex history dating back to humanity’s origins in Africa, her late parents tried to keep her and her sister, June, from the intrigues that claimed their lives, but their plans failed, and June was kidnapped. To find her sister, Kidan must venture into Uxlay University, where families train to rule their houses, where death is around every corner, and where the vampire she believes took her sister, Susenyos Sagad, lives. But neither Susenyos nor Uxlay are what they seem. Kidan is caught in a deadly web of secrets and lies, and before she’s done, she’ll love an enemy, betray a friend and face the truth of her own violent nature. Immortal Dark is the first book in a planned trilogy and explores themes including trauma, violence and the complex interplay between love and hate with unflinching depth. Drawing richly from African history and cultures, the book is dedicated to ‘the Black girls who’ve always marvelled at the dark beauty of vampires’, and Girma promises ‘the immortals look like us in this one’. Immortal Dark is a fresh and captivating addition to the genre.

Books+Publishing reviewer: Stefen Brazulaitis has been a bookseller with a special interest in science fiction and fantasy for 30 years and is the owner of Stefen's Books in Perth WA. Books+Publishing is Australia’s number-one source of pre-publication book reviews.

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