Reviews

I've discovered that many 19th century books do not appeal to me. I don't know why, if it's the writing style or something else, but I tend to find most books from this specific century to be boring.

But not this book. No, this book was different. I don't know what it is about this vampire novella that I found so intriguing, but it managed to draw my attention in a way few other stories have managed.

As a vampire story, published decades before Dracula, Carmilla is both charming and gripping, a horror story that creeps up on you slowly. Most people today will be familiar with the general idea of this story, and will therefore already know where the danger is coming from. But the characters in the story do not know, and as the reader, one is left to observe as the story unfolds.

Definitely a recommended read

confusedpierog's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

The book itself is 5/5, but the polish translation is not the best, so 4

thereadingmuffin's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Well written book, very fast paced and I wished it was fleshed out more. Would love to learned more about the characters and have more adventure in it, but overall enjoyed it a lot.

wisteriacrow's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

reneejscothern's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

tatiannareads's review against another edition

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4.0

I read Carmilla by [a:J. Sheridan Le Fanu|26930|J. Sheridan Le Fanu|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1410336850p2/26930.jpg] primarily because I'm incredibly excited for [b:An Education in Malice|64414866|An Education in Malice|S.T. Gibson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1686147492l/64414866._SY75_.jpg|99987184] — an upcoming dark gothic academia from [a:S.T. Gibson|15721114|S.T. Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1544033777p2/15721114.jpg] that draws from this classic. I personally did not know of this story prior to reading S.T. Gibson's promos for her upcoming release, and I was surprised to learn that it predates Bram Stoker's [b:Dracula|17245|Dracula|Bram Stoker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1387151694l/17245._SY75_.jpg|3165724] by a only a few decades.

I listened to this on Audible. It's included in the premium membership and it's a dramatized version as well! I thought it was really well done. The story has a great gothic aesthetic and it held my interest. This was originally published in 1872, and it truly reads like it's ahead of its time. I loved all of the characters and the suspense was so well done!!

I found that I was personally hoping for a slightly different conclusion, however, the conclusion did leave me pondering this story in a great way. I feel this is a classic vampire story that will stay with me. I am so glad I read it and I definitely prefer it to Dracula.

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