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mutamam's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This vampire book was written before “Dracula”.
An intense novella that describes its story beautifully. The tense story alongside the beautiful prose leads the reader to feel anxious. As such it is a real page turner! Definitely recommend this book.
It contains contemporary views of homosexuality in a way that demonizes it. However, from a 21st century mindset it adds even more depth to the book and creates a perspective shift allowing the reader to actually empathize with the vampire as well!
An intense novella that describes its story beautifully. The tense story alongside the beautiful prose leads the reader to feel anxious. As such it is a real page turner! Definitely recommend this book.
It contains contemporary views of homosexuality in a way that demonizes it. However, from a 21st century mindset it adds even more depth to the book and creates a perspective shift allowing the reader to actually empathize with the vampire as well!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Death and Terminal illness
aliyachaudhry's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
starting the Carmilla routine (waking up at 1pm and drinking hot chocolate)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Terminal illness, Death, and Gore
Minor: Suicide and Death of parent
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is a classic vampire story and an absolute delight, and the audio production was so well done and atmospheric. A great spooky season read!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Terminal illness and Blood
Minor: Sexual violence
maregred's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood and Terminal illness
el219's review against another edition
5.0
grrrrrr i have so many mixed feelings abt this,, was definitely way too short; lacked details that help you connect with the characters & even details that explained important plot points. was also hard to follow at times since each scene was about 5 pages long,, yet despite the simple storytelling, it was strangely atmospheric and alluring. everything felt very murky but that’s kind of the point. i’m just disappointed at how much better this could have been :( i needed more scenes between laura & carmilla to show their “unconventional” and sometimes toxic relationship; i needed more creepy outbursts and declarations of love. i wanted to know about laura feeling conflicted about carmilla in depth; not knowing whether she should love or hate her, etc. i did love this, but it’s “wasted” potential makes me love it a little less
edit im lying actually i think about this every day five stars
edit im lying actually i think about this every day five stars
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic friendship
Minor: Death, Terminal illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Blood
danimacuk's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Chronic illness, Child death, Death, and Terminal illness
littleflowerfairy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Chronic illness, Medical content, Murder, Blood, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Grief, Ableism, Racism, and Body horror
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
saraaaa's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I have mixed feelings about this book. It's tense, it's gothic, it's the first work of fiction revolving around vampires, it's homoerotic. It has some beautiful images and descriptions, especially when it comes to the relationship between Carmilla and Laura. Overall, I'd say it's a story worth reading.
I think its main problem is that it didn't fit the novella format that well. Everything felt rushed, especially the ending chapters, as if Le Fanu was running out of ink. By the end, the line between the protagonist-narrator and the author blurred every few paragraphs rather noticeably. Had it been a novel, there could've been enough room for both of them, without the technical information taking up precious space from the plot, that could've been better developed. Many plot points were left unexplored in their potential, some were just plainly ignored –Who was the older lady who accompanied Mircalla to meet her victims? Another vampire who just passed by from time to time to help spread their species? Was the voice of Laura's mother a mere hallucination, or did she really somehow comunicate with her daughter to save her? Was the fact that she was a blood relative to the Karnstein family relevant?
At the same time, almost paradoxically, the prose was so complex, the periods so long and full of subordinate clauses, that I found the pace rather slow.
I think its main problem is that it didn't fit the novella format that well. Everything felt rushed, especially the ending chapters, as if Le Fanu was running out of ink. By the end, the line between the protagonist-narrator and the author blurred every few paragraphs rather noticeably. Had it been a novel, there could've been enough room for both of them, without the technical information taking up precious space from the plot, that could've been better developed. Many plot points were left unexplored in their potential, some were just plainly ignored –
At the same time, almost paradoxically, the prose was so complex, the periods so long and full of subordinate clauses, that I found the pace rather slow.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Terminal illness
ggcd1981's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Carmilla: A Vampyre Tale foi inspiração para Dracula de Bram Stoker. Assim que soube disso adicionei a novela a minha lista de leitura. Após a leitura da obra é possível ver a influência, um exemplo disso é o fato de Carmilla predar jovens mulheres, dando mais atenção a “corte” ou talvez seja melhor dizer “caça” de jovens de posição social mais elevada. A vampira ainda vive em castelos e se movimenta entre círculo sociais elevados e tem aversão a símbolos religiosos. Dos personagens da obra o único que realmente se destaca é a personagem titular, Carmilla, também conhecida como Mircalla e Millarca, ela é a antagonista homônima da história. Uma vampira de uma velha família aristocrática, ela aparece eternamente como uma bela jovem e ataca jovens vulneráveis por quem parece sexualmente atraída. Carmilla usa sua beleza e juventude para enganar as pessoas ao seu redor, assim muitas vezes as pessoas não conseguem ver sua verdadeira natureza até ser tarde demais. Outra personagem que merece uma menção é Laura, a protagonista e narradora do livro, que reconta já adulta suas experiências de adolescente quando foi alvo de Carmilla. Laura fica animada quando Carmilla - uma garota de sua idade - vem para ficar com sua família, mas ela logo se sente atraída e repelida por sua nova amiga. Após repetidos sonhos de visitas noturnas, Laura começa a adoecer, e uma visita do amigo de seu pai, General Spielsdorf, quem havia perdido uma sobrinha para a mesma predadora, revela que a fonte da doença são as mordidas de Carmilla que, segundo ele, é uma vampira de uma família aristocrática extinta. A atmosfera do livro é excelentemente gótica vitoriana e dá o clima que vemos influenciar obras como Dracula: castelos, cemitérios, camponeses assombrados por um mal que não compreendem completamente. A escrita fez um excelente trabalho construindo o cenário, criando o clima e desenvolvendo uma antagonista inesperada para uma obra publicada em 1872. Considerado o primeiro thriller de vampiros o enredo desta novela trata de inocência se tornando o alvo de um mal antigo. A virtuosa Laura cresceu em um castelo solitário e anseia por uma amiga próxima. Seu desejo parece concedido com a chegada de uma bela e misteriosa estranha chamada Carmilla. Uma amizade se desenvolve, mas o humor taciturno e as conotações sexuais da visitante comprometem a felicidade de Laura. Será possível a Laura escapar dos avanços de Carmilla com vida e espírito intactos? Essa obra tem, com certeza, um enredo intrigante e não é à toa que exerceu influência em obras subsequentes de vampiros. A lógica interna da narrativa funciona, pelo menos tem sentido de acordo com o meu conhecimento prévio da tradição de vampiros. Tradição esta que imagino esta história contribuiu para estabelecer. Carmilla: A Vampyre Tale me entreteve e me deu outra dose da atmosfera gótica que tanto gosto. Claro que devido a novela ser curta não teve um aprofundamento que permitiu me apegar aos personagens. Além disso ainda houve a narração de Megan Follows que não realmente diferenciou as vozes dos personagens tornando em algumas partes o dialogo confuso no audiobook. No entanto, ao fim, minha experiência foi em maior parte positiva, dou 4 estrelas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Confinement, Grief, Toxic friendship, Blood, and Terminal illness
alexisgarcia's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
i really enjoyed this! the concept and plot were amazing, the characters were so interesting, and the writing was accessible. i wish the the characters were more flushed out and the plot was explored in more length. overall, it was a fun sapphic vampire story which was the precursor to Dracula!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Toxic friendship, Terminal illness, Stalking, Blood, Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, and Grief