Book Review: Nocticadia by Keri Lake

~April 7th 2025~

❣️SPOILERS BELOW❣️

overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5

okay sooooo… from PAGE ONE I was hooked!! the prologue? insane. Keri Lake’s writing is chef’s kiss- it felt like nothing I’ve read before. i love an academia setting and honestly? i wanted even more Dracadia University. 

the worms? SO gross but like… weirdly fascinating? the whole parasitology thing had me both confused but also super intrigued, LOVED IT!

Lilia was a solid fmc at first- she’s been THROUGH it especially with her mom, but as the book went on she kinda lost her spark for me. i definitely don’t hate her, but I wasn’t as attached by the end.

ALSO! huge missed opportunity for more smutty classroom tension! we got that one almost-getting-caught kiss but pls give me more of that! 

when Lilia and Devryck finally got together… I was a little 😴. the tension fizzled out fast and the sex scenes… yeah. and I never cringe at smut!! examples that made me want to throw my kindle across the room:

“The sight of it made my womb clench.”

“He pushed down his pants and sprung that monstrous cock free.”

pls. i’m begging. make it stop ✋🏼

Keri is so good at weird and dark vibes, but i 100% skimmed through most of the spice.

another thing I needed more of: DEVRYCK GOING FERAL. when Angelo showed up at Lilia’s place, i was ready for chaos! instead, we skip two whole days? i wanted that classic “WHO DID THIS TO YOU?!” meltdown. missed moment for sure.

on the plus side- Caedmon is alive!! not super shocking but still, I liked him a lot and wish he showed up earlier. his character had so much potential and was lowkey more interesting than Devryck by the end.

the last 20% tho? felt like an info dump. every major reveal just kept piling up and instead of getting more excited, it created less shocking moments. 

BUT the first 40%? banger. honestly the whole thing really was good. the concept is super unique and felt like a new genre, which I love. i just wish the romance hit harder- it wasn’t giving “you’re my whole world i would die for you let me kiss your feet” like I crave.

and that epilogue??

Caed as Bee’s teacher?

SPICY.

⸻

my ratings

romance level: ❤️❤️.5 / 5

darkness rating: 💀💀💀 / 5

spice meter: 🌶️🌶️.5 / 5

emotional intensity: 😭 / 5

angst/plot twists: 🔥🔥 / 5

book hangover: 🌀 / 5

tropes:

💀 dark romance

⛓️ forbidden love

😠 grumpy mmc

🏫 university setting

👴🏼 age gap

👨🏻🏫 he’s her professor

💰 rich mmc