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Enigma
Not yet published
Expected 29 Apr 25A new breathtaking tale of unforgettable romance, set in a dark academia world of secret societies, lush suspense and sizzling sensuality, from RuNyx, the New York Times bestselling author of Gothikana.
Salem Salazar comes to Mortimer University to get to the bottom of her sister's mysterious death. There, obsessed with forensics, she discovers there have been a lot more unexplained deaths on the campus. Her search leads her down a dark and dangerous path to a secret society and to Caz.
Cazimir van der Waal is in her way and another mystery to unravel. Is he just an art student, a man living a double life, or a murderer? While also at the university seeking answers for another death, Caz has a lot more to him than meets the eye.
Secret forces are at play in Mortimer and no one is safe. As Salem tries to go under radar and Caz tries to block her path, somehow, they both end up in the crossfire of a powerful, secret society. They are forced to work together to discover the truth or risk losing their lives.
In this magnificent, steamy dark academia romance from RuNyx, sparks will fly, rivals will become lovers, and terrible secrets will be unleashed.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Salem Salazar comes to Mortimer University to get to the bottom of her sister's mysterious death. There, obsessed with forensics, she discovers there have been a lot more unexplained deaths on the campus. Her search leads her down a dark and dangerous path to a secret society and to Caz.
Cazimir van der Waal is in her way and another mystery to unravel. Is he just an art student, a man living a double life, or a murderer? While also at the university seeking answers for another death, Caz has a lot more to him than meets the eye.
Secret forces are at play in Mortimer and no one is safe. As Salem tries to go under radar and Caz tries to block her path, somehow, they both end up in the crossfire of a powerful, secret society. They are forced to work together to discover the truth or risk losing their lives.
In this magnificent, steamy dark academia romance from RuNyx, sparks will fly, rivals will become lovers, and terrible secrets will be unleashed.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
463 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication April 29, 2025
82 people are currently reading
28.5k people want to read
About the author
RuNyx
20books19.3kfollowersRuNyx is aNew York Times, USA Todayand international bestselling author of romance. Her stories range across subgenres from dark contemporary to gothic to historical to fantasy and more, and are currently being translated into over 10 languages.
Her pen name has a very special meaning to her. When she's not writing, she's reading, traveling, meditating, daydreaming, and most of all, procrastinating.
Join her newsletter tribe for all updates and stalk her on her social media.
Website ➡️
Newsletter ➡️
Instagram ➡️
Reader Group ➡️
Her pen name has a very special meaning to her. When she's not writing, she's reading, traveling, meditating, daydreaming, and most of all, procrastinating.
Join her newsletter tribe for all updates and stalk her on her social media.
Website ➡️
Newsletter ➡️
Instagram ➡️
Reader Group ➡️
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 172 reviews
Want to read
June 23, 2024ANOTHER DARK ACADEMIC ROMANCE BY RUNY!?!?😫 IM READY TO BE DESTROYED‼️
Want to read
April 15, 2025"Another one� THANK YOU!"🫡
Dark academia? Check. Secret societies? Check. Enemies to lovers? Is that even a question? . This is the ultimate girl dinner! 😋 "Mother Runyx is back, and she's about to wreck us all again!💥 Salem is all order and precision, while Caz is a walking hurricane of chaos—this dynamic is going to end me, I just know it.
Salem: “I make the rules.�
Caz: “I break them... on purpose.”�
The art? Slaying. The vibes? Immaculate. My patience? Gone like yesterday’s TikTok trend📚🔥
Bring on the chaos🥂
Dark academia? Check. Secret societies? Check. Enemies to lovers? Is that even a question? . This is the ultimate girl dinner! 😋 "Mother Runyx is back, and she's about to wreck us all again!💥 Salem is all order and precision, while Caz is a walking hurricane of chaos—this dynamic is going to end me, I just know it.
Salem: “I make the rules.�
Caz: “I break them... on purpose.”�
The art? Slaying. The vibes? Immaculate. My patience? Gone like yesterday’s TikTok trend📚🔥
Bring on the chaos🥂
Want to read
June 21, 2024Dark academia + secret societies + RuNyx's writing? I NEED THIS LIKE I NEED AIR 😩😩
February 22, 2025
A WHOLE LOT OF F-CK YEAH.
bow down to RuNyx.
(Thank you to the publisher for an early copy of Enigma)
bow down to RuNyx.
(Thank you to the publisher for an early copy of Enigma)
Shelved as 'breathlessly-anticipating'
June 20, 2024If RuNyx writes it I’m reading it 🗣️🗣️
Also dark academia rivals to lovers?! Oh this book is gna eatttt
Also dark academia rivals to lovers?! Oh this book is gna eatttt
Currently reading
April 14, 2025These last min arcs are kinda killing me lol. Excited to jump into this one though! I’ve gotta start it now�
🖤Dark Academia
🖤ٲԻ岹DzԱ
🖤Rivals to Lovers
🖤Mystery x Suspense
🖤ٲ
🖤Secret Society
🖤Gothic Romance
Expected Pub Date - 04/29/25
Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the advanced audio copy, all thoughts are my own. 💐
🖤Dark Academia
🖤ٲԻ岹DzԱ
🖤Rivals to Lovers
🖤Mystery x Suspense
🖤ٲ
🖤Secret Society
🖤Gothic Romance
Expected Pub Date - 04/29/25
Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the advanced audio copy, all thoughts are my own. 💐
Want to read
February 16, 2025*🤸🤸🤸I found a buddy read
𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘆𝗮 we should wait till April🧘to dive into it angel 💘
*I think it is my most anticipated book in 2025 📢📢📢
𝗦𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘆𝗮 we should wait till April🧘to dive into it angel 💘
*I think it is my most anticipated book in 2025 📢📢📢
Want to read
April 14, 2025� 🍒 � pre-read:
� i can’t believe I just got the audio arc for this!!! 😭
the way dark academia have always been my fav genre and I’m very excited to see how runyx will play it out 💫 I’m nervous yet scared bc I didn’t like her last release at all!!
� i can’t believe I just got the audio arc for this!!! 😭
the way dark academia have always been my fav genre and I’m very excited to see how runyx will play it out 💫 I’m nervous yet scared bc I didn’t like her last release at all!!
Want to read
April 14, 2025mother writes, i STILL read it.
Want to read
April 12, 2025hand it over runyx.
Want to read
June 20, 2024Runyx can write scribbles on a bar napkin and I will read it.
STEAMY dark academia with enemies-to-lovers! if Gothikana was any indication I will swallow this up 👏�
STEAMY dark academia with enemies-to-lovers! if Gothikana was any indication I will swallow this up 👏�
March 26, 2025
Alright, here’s my two-star take. Don’t come for me, this is the first and only book I’ve read by this author and I am very underwhelmed.
I dove into with the kind of enthusiasm I usually reserve for a late-night taco run, only to find myself picking at the literary equivalent of a soggy tortilla. Night ruiner. Let’s get into it.
Enigma promised dark academia, secret societies, and a rivals-to-lovers arc, I was ready to read the hell out of it and call it my personality for a week. Instead, I got a slow burn that felt more like a candle someone that’s been run down to the bottom of the jar, flickering weakly when you light it before giving up entirely seconds later.
Salem Salazar is a death-obsessed legacy student (as a mortician, this should’ve been my bread and butter), rolls into Mortimer University to unravel her sister’s mysterious disappearance. Enter Cazimir van der Waal, a tattooed grump with secrets thicker than your grandma’s gravy. Sounds delicious, right? Except the execution left me hungry. The pacing drags like a Monday morning, and the “mystery� unfolds so methodically I had time to put on a new set of press-on’s. I kept waiting for that RuNyx magic I keep hearing about—the atmospheric prose that makes you feel like you’re creeping through a foggy castle—but it was more like a community college campus tour with a bored guide who lost the script.
Salem and Caz’s chemistry? Eh, it’s there, I guess, like a sparkler that fizzles before you can write your name in the air. I wanted banter sharp enough to cut glass, but their rivalry felt more like petty bickering over the last library book than the steamy tension I’d been promised. And don’t get me started on the secret society� it’s teased like a big reveal at a party, but when the curtain drops, it’s less Skulls and Bone and more your cousin Steve in a faded bedsheet going, “Boo!� I’ve had more suspense during commercials for diarrhea drugs.
I once stayed up all night reading a book that let me down so hard I threw it across the room (sorry, neighbor who heard the thud at 3 a.m.). While Enigma didn’t get yeeted, but it did make me sigh dramatically enough that my dog woke up to give me a sleepy, albeit judgy side-eye. The tropes—slow burn, grumpy MMC, “she can only sleep when he’s there”—should’ve been catnip, but they landed flat, like a joke you have to explain.
If you’re new to her, you should probably start with Gothikana as I should have done. This one’s for the diehards who’ll forgive a misstep because they’re already in too deep.
Want to read
April 9, 2025cant wait to start this one this weekend✨�
Shelved as 'upcoming-releases'
June 21, 2024Dark academia, academic rivals to lovers, secret society?? THIE IS THE ULTIMATE GIRLL DINNER 😋
mother runyx is finally back 🧎🏽♀�
mother runyx is finally back 🧎🏽♀�
April 12, 2025
Thank you to RuNyx and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
There are some books that define a genre. Enigma by RuNyx creates one.
A masterpiece:
It’s impossible to describe this book without using words like haunting, gorgeous, immersive, unforgettable. But even those feel insufficient. This book defies categorisation - not because it avoids genre, but because it builds something new with its own hands. It is dark academia, yes. There’s a secret society, an unsolved mystery, a slow-burning, exquisitely beautiful romance. But all of these exist beneath something greater: an atmosphere that breathes and lives.
This is not gothic. That label, though tempting, would be misleading. It is not shadows or castles or blood or candles or roses. This is something foggier, more fluid, like sea mist curling over memory and silence. If I had to name it, I would call it salt-lit fiction or mistcore - a genre born from sea mist and ink, from longing and silence, from the sound of waves crashing against memory.
Reading Enigma felt like stepping into another world - and not one filled with fae or elaborate lore. This world was real, tangible, breathing yet still the definition of escapism for me as a reader. The atmosphere of sea mist, the mystery, the ocean air, I could feel it all and I couldn't get enough of it.
The writing:
The writing is typical RuNyx style: exquisite - lyrical, aching, intelligent. RuNyx writes as if every word has been carefully chosen, not only to move the story forward, but to layer it with meaning, with stillness, with breath. The setting doesn’t just exist; it surrounds not only every word in the book, but it surrounds you as a reader. As you read, you can feel the salt in the air. You can hear the waves crashing against the cliffs. You can taste the quiet. It is so rare for a book to not only tell a story but to wrap you in it. I didn’t just read Enigma - I lived inside it.
Dark academia done right:
This is dark academia done right. In a genre that has lately felt bloated with aesthetic mimicry and surface-level imitation, Enigma digs deep. It understands that dark academia isn’t just about secret societies and leather-bound books - it’s a feeling. A hunger. A haunting. And the only way to write it convincingly is to either live it or study it intimately. RuNyx, clearly, has done both.
You can feel her knowledge, her love of the genre, her understanding of what makes it beautiful and brutal. And more than that, you can feel that it came from her soul. This book doesn’t just imitate dark academia - it revives it. I had almost given up on the genre entirely, exhausted by repetition and aesthetic over substance. But this book reignited everything I ever loved about it - and somehow offered more. It reminded me why I fell in love with it in the first place.
The Plot:
At its heart, Enigma is a mystery. But not just one of death and secret societies - it's a mystery of the self. Of grief. Of legacy. Of what’s left behind when the people we love disappear. Salem arrives at Mortimer University searching for answers about her sister’s suspicious death. Caz is already there, mourning his brother. Two broken people drawn to the same haunting place, pulled by the same unanswered questions. But what they find there is so much deeper.
There’s a secret society. There are puzzles, cryptic riddles, eerie symbols, and the ever-present atmosphere of the sea. The mystery was crafted so carefully that I never once felt lost - even when the characters did. It’s layered, intricate, with reveals that feel earned and moments that make you physically still. It’s smart without being pretentious, dark without drowning in itself. Every page felt like peeling back another layer - of the society, yes, but also of Salem and Caz.
It’s a story about death - but even more than that, it’s about what comes after. What we choose to do with the grief. Who we become in the wreckage. A major theme in this book is "remember to live" and that's definitely what I took away from it.
Salem: For the misunderstood girlies
Salem is one of the most unforgettable characters I’ve ever read - endearing, deeply odd and fiercely brilliant. She is, in every sense of the word, an enigma. It’s no coincidence that the book bears that title. Salem is the book. She is its soul, its silence. The fact that the very name of the book speaks to both her and Caz is just another testament to how perfectly crafted every detail of this story truly is.
From the first page, Salem doesn’t beg for your attention - she quietly demands it. You notice her. Not because she wants you to, but because she has a pull you cannot look away from. You notice her, which is ironic because nobody in her life ever did. Salem has always been an outcast - neglected by her parents, picked on by her sister, ostracised by those who didn’t know what to make of her sharp mind and sharper silences.
Salem stopped speaking as a child through selective mutism, believing that her silence would finally make them look. That maybe if her voice disappeared, someone might finally hear her. But they didn’t. They didn’t even notice she became mute. And there is something so gutting about that quiet grief, that yearning not to be adored or praised - but simply seen. My heart ached for her.
Salem has been fascinated by death for as long as she could remember. Not out of violence, but out of curiosity. As a child, she studied dead animals, looking inside of them, not to be morbid, but to understand. To peer into the mystery of what comes after. That alone told me who she was: someone born not just to ask questions, but to seek answers others are afraid to voice. From the prologue alone, I could just tell from 12 year old Salem, that she would grow up to be an amazing forensic scientist. That she belonged in labs and autopsy rooms, not because she’s cold or disconnected, but because she cares. Because she needs to know.
And that’s what drives her to Mortimer University - the unanswered death of her sister. The girl who called her a freak. The girl everyone adored but her. And yet, despite the cruelty and the neglect, Salem needs to understand. She needs the truth. She chases it like a calling, like oxygen. And in that search, she finds herself swept into the tangled heart of a secret society that is as dangerous as it is consuming.
But what I loved most about Salem was not just her intellect, her bravery, her obsession with the truth. It was her growth. When we start the book, Salem is a shell of a person, and over time, you get to watch her grow and accept herself. It's beautiful to see. Her growth wasn't about reinvention, though. It was about reclamation. She doesn't become someone new. She becomes more of herself. Fierce. Wild. Curious. Brilliant. Unapologetic.
She's not some tragic heroine, or a convenient genius. She's Salem. She's her own archetype. And for every girl who has ever been called too weird, too quiet, too much or not enough - Salem is for you. She is yours. You will find yourself in her, in the things she cannot say and the things she refuses to silence. I know I did.
Caz:
Cazimir, my newest husband, is an artist and I need him to paint me like one of his french girls.
If Salem is water - cool, logical, reflective - then Caz is fire. He burns through every page he's on. He's chaos. He's an artist. He's unfiltered, irresistible, and HOT. But RuNyx writes him in a way that feels real, not performative. It’s not chaos for the sake of aesthetic. It’s the chaos of grief, of love, of a man trying to hold himself together through loss whilst looking for answers.
So, Caz is a painter. But we don’t get to see his art until the very end - and that choice? That restraint? It speaks volumes. Because Caz doesn’t reveal himself easily. His grief is buried under smirks and sharp words and reckless bravado. His brother died. His world cracked. And the only thing that seems to steady his universe is finding out what happened to him, and her - Salem, the girl who derails his plans and walks into the fire anyway.
Caz didn't want Salem tangled in this secret society, but of course, she went in headfirst - and he followed. He always would. I adore them. He loved her so fiercely, protectively, without trying to tame her strangeness. He didn’t want to fix her. He just saw her. And for a girl like Salem, who spent her whole life being overlooked, that kind of love is a revolution.
Caz is HOT, raw, messy, passionate, artistic. I'm obsessed. I'll never move on from him.
Final Thoughts
Enigma is unforgettable. It doesn’t belong to a shelf or a genre. It belongs to the ocean, to the fog, to the bruised hearts who’ve felt like outcasts and longed for someone to look their way and see them. It is a book made of sea mist and starlight and shadows - and I am absolutely ruined by it. I hope RuNyx never stops writing. And I hope, somehow, we get more from this world. Because one visit to Mortimer was never going to be enough.
There are some books that define a genre. Enigma by RuNyx creates one.
A masterpiece:
It’s impossible to describe this book without using words like haunting, gorgeous, immersive, unforgettable. But even those feel insufficient. This book defies categorisation - not because it avoids genre, but because it builds something new with its own hands. It is dark academia, yes. There’s a secret society, an unsolved mystery, a slow-burning, exquisitely beautiful romance. But all of these exist beneath something greater: an atmosphere that breathes and lives.
This is not gothic. That label, though tempting, would be misleading. It is not shadows or castles or blood or candles or roses. This is something foggier, more fluid, like sea mist curling over memory and silence. If I had to name it, I would call it salt-lit fiction or mistcore - a genre born from sea mist and ink, from longing and silence, from the sound of waves crashing against memory.
Reading Enigma felt like stepping into another world - and not one filled with fae or elaborate lore. This world was real, tangible, breathing yet still the definition of escapism for me as a reader. The atmosphere of sea mist, the mystery, the ocean air, I could feel it all and I couldn't get enough of it.
The writing:
The writing is typical RuNyx style: exquisite - lyrical, aching, intelligent. RuNyx writes as if every word has been carefully chosen, not only to move the story forward, but to layer it with meaning, with stillness, with breath. The setting doesn’t just exist; it surrounds not only every word in the book, but it surrounds you as a reader. As you read, you can feel the salt in the air. You can hear the waves crashing against the cliffs. You can taste the quiet. It is so rare for a book to not only tell a story but to wrap you in it. I didn’t just read Enigma - I lived inside it.
Dark academia done right:
This is dark academia done right. In a genre that has lately felt bloated with aesthetic mimicry and surface-level imitation, Enigma digs deep. It understands that dark academia isn’t just about secret societies and leather-bound books - it’s a feeling. A hunger. A haunting. And the only way to write it convincingly is to either live it or study it intimately. RuNyx, clearly, has done both.
You can feel her knowledge, her love of the genre, her understanding of what makes it beautiful and brutal. And more than that, you can feel that it came from her soul. This book doesn’t just imitate dark academia - it revives it. I had almost given up on the genre entirely, exhausted by repetition and aesthetic over substance. But this book reignited everything I ever loved about it - and somehow offered more. It reminded me why I fell in love with it in the first place.
The Plot:
At its heart, Enigma is a mystery. But not just one of death and secret societies - it's a mystery of the self. Of grief. Of legacy. Of what’s left behind when the people we love disappear. Salem arrives at Mortimer University searching for answers about her sister’s suspicious death. Caz is already there, mourning his brother. Two broken people drawn to the same haunting place, pulled by the same unanswered questions. But what they find there is so much deeper.
There’s a secret society. There are puzzles, cryptic riddles, eerie symbols, and the ever-present atmosphere of the sea. The mystery was crafted so carefully that I never once felt lost - even when the characters did. It’s layered, intricate, with reveals that feel earned and moments that make you physically still. It’s smart without being pretentious, dark without drowning in itself. Every page felt like peeling back another layer - of the society, yes, but also of Salem and Caz.
It’s a story about death - but even more than that, it’s about what comes after. What we choose to do with the grief. Who we become in the wreckage. A major theme in this book is "remember to live" and that's definitely what I took away from it.
Salem: For the misunderstood girlies
Salem is one of the most unforgettable characters I’ve ever read - endearing, deeply odd and fiercely brilliant. She is, in every sense of the word, an enigma. It’s no coincidence that the book bears that title. Salem is the book. She is its soul, its silence. The fact that the very name of the book speaks to both her and Caz is just another testament to how perfectly crafted every detail of this story truly is.
From the first page, Salem doesn’t beg for your attention - she quietly demands it. You notice her. Not because she wants you to, but because she has a pull you cannot look away from. You notice her, which is ironic because nobody in her life ever did. Salem has always been an outcast - neglected by her parents, picked on by her sister, ostracised by those who didn’t know what to make of her sharp mind and sharper silences.
Salem stopped speaking as a child through selective mutism, believing that her silence would finally make them look. That maybe if her voice disappeared, someone might finally hear her. But they didn’t. They didn’t even notice she became mute. And there is something so gutting about that quiet grief, that yearning not to be adored or praised - but simply seen. My heart ached for her.
Salem has been fascinated by death for as long as she could remember. Not out of violence, but out of curiosity. As a child, she studied dead animals, looking inside of them, not to be morbid, but to understand. To peer into the mystery of what comes after. That alone told me who she was: someone born not just to ask questions, but to seek answers others are afraid to voice. From the prologue alone, I could just tell from 12 year old Salem, that she would grow up to be an amazing forensic scientist. That she belonged in labs and autopsy rooms, not because she’s cold or disconnected, but because she cares. Because she needs to know.
And that’s what drives her to Mortimer University - the unanswered death of her sister. The girl who called her a freak. The girl everyone adored but her. And yet, despite the cruelty and the neglect, Salem needs to understand. She needs the truth. She chases it like a calling, like oxygen. And in that search, she finds herself swept into the tangled heart of a secret society that is as dangerous as it is consuming.
But what I loved most about Salem was not just her intellect, her bravery, her obsession with the truth. It was her growth. When we start the book, Salem is a shell of a person, and over time, you get to watch her grow and accept herself. It's beautiful to see. Her growth wasn't about reinvention, though. It was about reclamation. She doesn't become someone new. She becomes more of herself. Fierce. Wild. Curious. Brilliant. Unapologetic.
She's not some tragic heroine, or a convenient genius. She's Salem. She's her own archetype. And for every girl who has ever been called too weird, too quiet, too much or not enough - Salem is for you. She is yours. You will find yourself in her, in the things she cannot say and the things she refuses to silence. I know I did.
Caz:
Cazimir, my newest husband, is an artist and I need him to paint me like one of his french girls.
If Salem is water - cool, logical, reflective - then Caz is fire. He burns through every page he's on. He's chaos. He's an artist. He's unfiltered, irresistible, and HOT. But RuNyx writes him in a way that feels real, not performative. It’s not chaos for the sake of aesthetic. It’s the chaos of grief, of love, of a man trying to hold himself together through loss whilst looking for answers.
So, Caz is a painter. But we don’t get to see his art until the very end - and that choice? That restraint? It speaks volumes. Because Caz doesn’t reveal himself easily. His grief is buried under smirks and sharp words and reckless bravado. His brother died. His world cracked. And the only thing that seems to steady his universe is finding out what happened to him, and her - Salem, the girl who derails his plans and walks into the fire anyway.
Caz didn't want Salem tangled in this secret society, but of course, she went in headfirst - and he followed. He always would. I adore them. He loved her so fiercely, protectively, without trying to tame her strangeness. He didn’t want to fix her. He just saw her. And for a girl like Salem, who spent her whole life being overlooked, that kind of love is a revolution.
Caz is HOT, raw, messy, passionate, artistic. I'm obsessed. I'll never move on from him.
Final Thoughts
Enigma is unforgettable. It doesn’t belong to a shelf or a genre. It belongs to the ocean, to the fog, to the bruised hearts who’ve felt like outcasts and longed for someone to look their way and see them. It is a book made of sea mist and starlight and shadows - and I am absolutely ruined by it. I hope RuNyx never stops writing. And I hope, somehow, we get more from this world. Because one visit to Mortimer was never going to be enough.
Want to read
August 12, 2024is somebody gonna match my freak [ make this book their entire personality 😤]
Read
February 9, 2025buddy reading this with Rory when it drops🙈💗
i hope my girl runyx doesn’t disappoint with this one cuz it sounds SO good 😩
i hope my girl runyx doesn’t disappoint with this one cuz it sounds SO good 😩
April 11, 2025
Runyx had some how done it again. Creating the most beautifully poetic story about two very lost souls finding each other. Through space and time to create the most romantically haunting story I have read since Gothikana. The way she is able to transport you to a whole new world, with such vivid descriptions and powerful writing. The scenes unfold so perfectly in your mind until you’re there along the shores of Mortimer with them.
I absolutely love how complex these characters were. The way their backstories unfolded and we were able to see such raw characters. Some that may seem one way on the outside due to nature and childhood to who they get to be underneath.
This story had everything I was looking for. A fast paced plot with such a unique world, spice to make you sweat, a mystery to keep you in your toes until the very last chapter, an absolutely perfectly unhinged MMC that you can’t help but to immediately want more of.
I absolutely love how complex these characters were. The way their backstories unfolded and we were able to see such raw characters. Some that may seem one way on the outside due to nature and childhood to who they get to be underneath.
This story had everything I was looking for. A fast paced plot with such a unique world, spice to make you sweat, a mystery to keep you in your toes until the very last chapter, an absolutely perfectly unhinged MMC that you can’t help but to immediately want more of.
March 26, 2025
This was a good read. I liked the atmospheric and dark themes to it. This one followed the fmc, and when we meet her in the book, we see that she is kinda obsessed with all things related to death, and at times it was a bit triggering. This is a dark academia with secret societies, and I think one of the best things about this book was the way the author wrote the setting and world. It was descriptive and well done.
It did take me a while to get into, but once everything started flowing and the main characters met, it got better. The romance is enemies-to-lovers to lovers, and they are also rivals. It was cute, and I liked aspects of their relationship. The mmc is the tattooed grumpy grey mc we all love in dark romance. It's a slow burn and gets steamy. I liked the secret society plot and the mystery plot. Thanks to the Bramble for the arc for an honest review.
3.75/5
It did take me a while to get into, but once everything started flowing and the main characters met, it got better. The romance is enemies-to-lovers to lovers, and they are also rivals. It was cute, and I liked aspects of their relationship. The mmc is the tattooed grumpy grey mc we all love in dark romance. It's a slow burn and gets steamy. I liked the secret society plot and the mystery plot. Thanks to the Bramble for the arc for an honest review.
3.75/5
January 28, 2025
Thank you so much bramble romance for the arc!
5⭐️ 3🌶�
Nobody does dark academia gothic romance like RuNyx. Gothikana is one of my favorite books ever and so Enigma was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025, and it did not disappoint.
The start was a little slow, but it quickly picked up as the mystery evolved and stakes got higher.
RuNyx masterfully created a setting and atmosphere so vivid that it felt real, like I was actually at the college and experiencing it all.
I don’t want to give too much away, since the release isn’t until the end of April. But if you loved Gothikana or want to read a gothic dark academia standalone, you will absolutely want to read this one!
Tropes:
- dark academia
- secret societies
- rivals to lovers
- murder mystery
- slow burn
- grumpy, broody, & heavily tattooed artist mmc
- nicknames (my fav)
Honorable mention:
SHE CAN ONLY SLEEP WHEN HES W HER
^^ that’s actually my favorite trope of all time and this book did it better than any other one I’ve ever read
5⭐️ 3🌶�
Nobody does dark academia gothic romance like RuNyx. Gothikana is one of my favorite books ever and so Enigma was one of my most anticipated reads for 2025, and it did not disappoint.
The start was a little slow, but it quickly picked up as the mystery evolved and stakes got higher.
RuNyx masterfully created a setting and atmosphere so vivid that it felt real, like I was actually at the college and experiencing it all.
I don’t want to give too much away, since the release isn’t until the end of April. But if you loved Gothikana or want to read a gothic dark academia standalone, you will absolutely want to read this one!
Tropes:
- dark academia
- secret societies
- rivals to lovers
- murder mystery
- slow burn
- grumpy, broody, & heavily tattooed artist mmc
- nicknames (my fav)
Honorable mention:
SHE CAN ONLY SLEEP WHEN HES W HER
^^ that’s actually my favorite trope of all time and this book did it better than any other one I’ve ever read
Want to read
August 28, 2024Ugh THIS couple!
From RuNyx's newsletter:
Where she is ice, he is fire; she's organization, he's chaos; she is precision, he is passion.
--
Salem = Peace / Cazimir = Destroyer of peace / Mortimer = To die
I love RuNyx's brain and her symbolism.
April 2025 can't come any sooner!
From RuNyx's newsletter:
Where she is ice, he is fire; she's organization, he's chaos; she is precision, he is passion.
--
Salem = Peace / Cazimir = Destroyer of peace / Mortimer = To die
I love RuNyx's brain and her symbolism.
April 2025 can't come any sooner!
Want to read
April 14, 2025eeek this audio just landed in my email and im so excited to get started on it!!! i have a gorgeous special edition of it coming soon after its release and i cant wait to find out if ill love it 🤭
Want to read
June 20, 2024uhum that’s what i’m talking about 🙂↕️� sign me up
Want to read
August 26, 2024another reason for me to keep living
Want to read
November 15, 2024she’s NOT mother anymore
April 7, 2025
As book lovers, we read for a variety of reasons. But sometimes a book comes a long at the exact right time. A book that captivates your mind, pulls you in, and has you turning the pages of a story that resonates so deeply, you know it has become a part of you.
That is what Enigma was for me.
At its core, it is a story of healing, growth, and loneliness.
Without giving too much away, I can say that some of the specific themes that came through hit me at a time that I am experiencing myself, bringing me further into this captivating story.
As always, the Ru-inverse brings us an enthralling setting, depicted on page in such vibrancy it's a place that will stay with you always.
The romance is kick your feet in the air - worthy and I loved the development of our couple both separately and together.
The ode to many places we've been before made me smile.
And the mystery was well built, with an ending that was just so well executed.
Remember to live was one of my first tattoos so many moons ago and to see that same message in a fabulous story by one of my favourite authors just gives me ALL the warm and fuzzies.
That is what Enigma was for me.
At its core, it is a story of healing, growth, and loneliness.
Without giving too much away, I can say that some of the specific themes that came through hit me at a time that I am experiencing myself, bringing me further into this captivating story.
As always, the Ru-inverse brings us an enthralling setting, depicted on page in such vibrancy it's a place that will stay with you always.
The romance is kick your feet in the air - worthy and I loved the development of our couple both separately and together.
The ode to many places we've been before made me smile.
And the mystery was well built, with an ending that was just so well executed.
Remember to live was one of my first tattoos so many moons ago and to see that same message in a fabulous story by one of my favourite authors just gives me ALL the warm and fuzzies.
Read
March 31, 2025A new RuNyx standalone? Sold.
A gothic dark academia romance? Sold!
A rivals-to-lovers & secret society mystery? SOLD
A spray-edged hardcover AND paperback with art? SOLDDD
A gothic dark academia romance? Sold!
A rivals-to-lovers & secret society mystery? SOLD
A spray-edged hardcover AND paperback with art? SOLDDD
April 12, 2025
I’ll be writing a proper review soon, but all I want to say is RuNyx has the most poetic writing ever. I’m always in awe. It’s like an extended poem. On top of that she mixes it in with the best thriller. Mysteries to solve. Questions to ask. It always leaves you at the edge of your seat, which is what Enigma does exactly. With the occasional romance of course�.this is a dark romance after all. I’m not sure how to explain it but she does dark romance RIGHT. When I say I want to read DR this is EXACTLY what I mean. A full thought out plot with romance gripping ur heart. I’m obsessed in every way possible�
Read
June 20, 2024At this point anything by her will save my life
Also, dark academia and murder mystery
Also ,the date................
Also, dark academia and murder mystery
Also ,the date................
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