Last summer I had a great time dipping my toes into the world of dark academia- Bunny by Mona Awad, The Cloisters by Katy Hays and Hex by Rebecca Dinerstein Knight were the standouts for me.
I loved that they were technically dark academia without falling into the sort of Hogwarts/YA-adjacent trap that most dark academia seems to fall into, since that really gets on my nerves.
by littlestonerguy
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Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
I’m not sure if it’s dark enough but this book is definitely academia and a true story to boot. The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict. About an African American woman in the early 1900s in NY City. She passes for white and is able to get a job as the personal librarian to J. P. Morgan. She curates his art and book collection and becomes like family. If you visit the Morgan Library in NY, I believe her office is set aside as an exhibit. There are numerous documentaries you can watch about her after you read the book. A fascinating story.
I recommended this because you mentioned you read the Cloisters which I also read. Perhaps after reading both books you’d want to visit NY city and see these places in person. Not sure where in the country you are though.
Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay