An Arcane Inheritance by. Kamilah Cole | ARC Review – Past Midnight Book Reviews & More

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: An Arcane Inheritance

Author: Kamilah Cole

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 432

Publication Date: 12/30/25

Publisher: Sourcebooks

Categories: New Adult, Dark Academia, Horror, Mystery, Thriller, Magical Realism, LGBT+, Romance

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Sourcebooks for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A modern-day dark academia fantasy with a twist, perfect for fans of Babel and A Deadly Education.

Warren University has stood amongst the ivy elite for centuries, built on the bones―and forbidden magic―of its most prized BIPOC students…hiding the rot of a secret society that will do anything to keep their own powers burning bright. No matter who they must sacrifice along the way.

Ellory Morgan is determined to prove that she belongs at Warren University, an ivy league school whose history is deeply linked to occult rumors and dark secrets. But as she settles into her Freshman year, something about the ornate buildings and shadowy paths feels strangely…familiar. And, with every passing day, that sense of déjà vu grows increasingly sinister.

Despite all logic, despite all reason, despite all the rules of reality, Ellory knows one thing to be true: she has been here before. And if she can’t convince brooding legacy student Hudson Graves to help her remember a past that seems determined to slip through her fingers as if by some insidious magic…this time, she may lose herself for good.d

Content Warning: violence, racism, classism

+ I was intrigued with this story right away. Ellory is a Jamaican immigrant, who’s parents sent her to America to live with her Aunt, so she could get a better life and education. She’s studied so hard but even with good grades, money was never easy to come by so she worked – saved and now is a 21 year old freshman at Warren University. Ellory wants to be a lawyer to make her family proud. I found Ellory so relatable. Her immigrant story is like many in this country and her trying to get a good education is her ticket to success.

+ There are many issues that are brought up throughout the story from colonialism, elitism, racism, and classism. It’s interesting to see how Ellory tries to uncover secrets of Warren University’s past to expose how the wealthy and privilege get away with atrocities. A few elements are woven together in this story and I think it worked, at least for me! I loved the dark academia, and the creepy atmosphere of the library and some other parts of campus. There is a sinister feel that is there throughout the story as Ellory tries to figure out what is going on with missing memories she is experiencing and feelings of being in another space/time. There are mentions of magic and alchemy and maybe a secret society at work. It gave me Legendborn and Inception vibes.

+ I loved how realistic Ellory’s life as a college student was from the studying, going to parties, living off of coffee and trying to make new friends. Now as strange things happen to her on campus and she does more digging though, she comes off as an unreliable narrator – because what are these memories, or missing memories and dejavu she has been experiencing?

+ I did like the slow burn love story between Ellory and Hudson. Clearly there is something there, a sense of dejavu and we don’t know why until the end. But they are rivals in their constitutional law class and I thought their interactions, the bickering and arguing was fun. Also, the reveal at the end was devastating but made me love their romance more.

~ As much as I was hooked onto this book, I did have some issues. This story leads up to a very unexpected and surprising plot twist but I would have liked more information on the secret society, and the magic leading up to it. Things felt vague, maybe on purpose, but I wish we got a just a little more information just so when the plot twist happens it doesn’t feel confusing or weak. I had to sit with it for a moment just to make sure it made sense in my head.

~ I wanted more between Ellory and Hudson. I loved that they were rivals, and then he starts helping her with trying to find out what’s going but I wanted a few more kisses in there! But that’s a personal preference. They are rivals, but except for their first meeting and a few descriptions about why they are rivals, we don’t see it in action. I just wanted more interactions between them since it is very important to the twist.

Final Thoughts:

I could not put this book down because I needed to find out what was going on. I liked Ellory and Hudson and the whole atmosphere of Warren University with the gothic library, and dark secret past. I do wish we had more information about the magic since there is a huge plot twist in this story that involves magic. Also would have loved more interaction with Ellory and Hudson because their love story is wonderful, and one of the main reasons everything devastating happens in this story. Overall, even with the issues I had with it I was very entertained.