Serpentine Valentine by Giana Darling

SERPENTINE VALENTINE was an impulse read but I enjoyed it so much more than I ever thought I would. At its core, it is a dark sapphic romance and a revenge story, but it is also so much more than that. It has brilliant commentary on Greek mythology and classic literature, and its also a savagely vicious tale for women who have been hurt or thwarted in their pursuit of justice.

Lex is a scholarship student at Acheron University and brilliant. When one of her professors reaches out to her, she thinks it's as a friend and mentor. But then he rapes her brutally on Halloween night and the college dean sides with the professor in the interest of preserving her own reputation and the school's, leaving Lex to recover alone.

Rather than leaving, Lex forces the school to keep her on as a student with the assistance of a lawyer and, with the help of her friends, starts a vigilante group to punish the boys on campus who are benefiting from the institutional sexism of the university. But that's not enough: she wants to punish the professor and the dean. And it just so happens that the dean's young and virginal daughter is a student at the school.

SERPENTINE VALENTINE is a retelling of the Medusa myth and I thought that Giana Darling did a great job of this. But I also liked how the romance itself was so intense and surprisingly sweet. Even though Lex originally wants to destroy Luna, they end up being a healing presence for one another, making each other into stronger, better people. And like, yeah, sometimes they're a little toxic, but M/F dark romance is like that too, so if you want that, but sapphic, this your book.

The only thing I couldn't get on board with was Lex telling Luna that she tasted like pasta water "down there" when she was trying to seduce her. I'm sorry but that's not sexy. I use that to water my plants.

3.5 out of 5 stars