Sheridan Le FanuKirja-arvosteluja

Before Bram Stoker's Dracula there was LeFanu's monstrous Carmilla/Mircalla/Millarca, a beautiful female vampire whose victims were all young women. Erotic, early LGBTQ+ work; a curiosity without the literary quality or psychological impact of Stoker's later work.
Read in 2009

Written before Dracula which is neato.
It’s a cool little read if you’re into vampires, would definitely read more if they made some series about Carmila herself

sometimes a man will write what he thinks is a horror story and end up perfectly describing the average lesbian situationship

It was nice to read one of the predecessors of Bram Stokers [b:Dracula|17245]. Lovely old-fashioned, a light read, entertaining, and sometimes scary.

In contemporary terms, Le Fanu's writing would be "slow burn." He is wordy and the stories are a bit of a slog at times, especially since the horror elements tend to be more subtle and sinister. I imagine most people would pick this up to read Green Tea or Carmilla. Green Tea was interesting but took a few attempts, and Carmilla was interesting to read from the perspective of it being an early vampire story and how it might have influenced later works.

Good writing, but not a major "page turner" in my view.

I did a quick listen to this novella. After Dracula, my curiosity...
This was really enjoyable! The maiden of vampire lore. I was happy to discover what survived as elements to the later creations and what was left behind. I feel a level of completeness just now

I'm not sure why, but I've been avoiding reading this short novel for a very long time. I guess I just wasn't expecting much.

I was wrong.

I loved this novella.

I know much has been made of the undertone of lesbianism in the novel, but for me, I'm always more of the mind...does it add to the story? Or detract?

In this case, the sensuality and attractiveness of the vampire to pretty much everyone who meets her is an essential characteristic of Le Fanu's vampire (or vampyre). And man, he makes it work.

The plot is brilliant, the pacing is perfect, and the wrap-up is, while short, nicely done. All in all, this is an awesome and worthy prequel to Stoker's Dracula. And honestly? In many ways, it's the superior of the two.

I'm glad I finally read it.

My gf got me the version edited by Carmen Maria Machado and I’m so excited to read it!!!

*update* this version is for sure 4 stars on my first read. And I think it’ll grow to a 5 after another re-read or two. The key with this is to look beyond the words and with Machado’s introduction and notes it is so much easier to do so. Looking forward to analyzing this story more

A strong blend of the fear of growing old or outliving others meeting other traits similar to that. I'm not sure it's a story for me but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I don't have much to say on it besides it's a solid hour read.

This is an early collection of short tales by this Irish author, though published anonymously in Dublin in 1851. Several of these stories later formed the basis of other, sometimes more famous stories and novels, though not always for the better in my view. I highly rated three of the four tales, but was equivocal about the fourth, which was effectively a full length novel and longer than the other three put together.

The Watcher - I have read a later version of this story under a different name "The Familiar" in the author's more famous collection In A Glass Darkly. It's an atmospheric tale of a man haunted to death by mysterious footsteps and an aggressive and angry figure that approaches him in various places. His psyche disintegrates and he eventually dies horribly after one final encounter.

The Murdered Cousin; or, Footsteps in the Lobby - this short story was an early version of the author's most famous full length novel Uncle Silas. A young lady who is ward to her reclusive uncle is trapped by him and his son into agreeing to a forced marriage with the latter, but bravely holds out even when the pressure turns to murder for her inheritance. I think this works better as a short story than as a novel actually.

Schalken the Painter - I read this story 15 years ago in a collection of Victorian and Edwardian ghost stories. It's a chilling story of a forced marriage contract between the title character's sweetheart and an unearthly figure who appears suddenly and offers the painter's master, who is the girl's uncle, gold for her hand in marriage. Chilling and effective.

The Evil Guest - this is a much longer story, a full length effectively, about a murder mystery and growing tensions between a set of characters, and an atmosphere of horror, bitterness and betrayal. I thought this was overlong and a bit confusing and nowhere near as good as the shorter tales in this collection. Sometimes less is more. This was also expanded even further in a novel A Lost Name, which I am far from sure I will ever read.

I've heard about this short book for a while now, an early vampire tale from the 1870s, beating out Bram Stoker's Dracula by a quarter century. I kept intending to get around to reading it, and now a new graphic novel adaptation I want to read has finally prompted me to check this out.

It's a pretty straightforward horror story, with the narrator, Laura, telling about the time a young woman named Carmilla became a guest in her home under odd circumstances. Laura feels herself drawn to and yet troubled by Carmilla's languid beauty and weird habit of sleeping late in a locked room. And then local women start dying and Laura has strange visitations in the night that leave her weakened and fading. Hmmmmm . . .

The narrative is slowed by other characters showing up to tell long stories that are supposed to seem unrelated but are obviously highly relevant.

Due to it's time of origin the story comes off as problematic by queer coding the villain to lean into the psycho killer lesbian trope. But the edition I read has been edited by Carmen Maria Machado, and she plays with the meaning of the story in her introduction (which engages in a little literary hoax to add to the fun) and intrudes in the story itself via footnotes with some pertinent information and cutting asides. (By the way, the introduction and footnote #7 should have spoiler alerts and should be read after the story if such spoilers bother you.)

Machado also edits the original text "to reflect a more modern grammatical sensibility where necessary." For example the opening line, "In Styria, we, though by no means magnificent people, inhabit a castle, or schloss." becomes, "In Styria, we—though by no means magnificent people—inhabit a manor-house."

If you prefer to read the original, the full text is in public domain and available online:
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/10007/10007-h/10007-h.htm

Review for the Original Text and Megan Follows Narration:

The Original Gaslight, Gatekeep, Girlboss Herself

How is a book over 150 years old so powerful and flowing with incredibly palpable sapphic energy?!

I've been a little reticent to read this as I have had mixed reactions to classics and I didn't want to spoil the idea, but, girl, was I a fool to have doubted and I really appreciate my friend picking it up from their library and reminding me I had the audiobook.

The writing, particularly around the 'roommates' is sublime. Honestly, I absolutely adored this and will definitely be checking out other readings and interpretations.

My only criticisms are the "hunchback" character as an ableist oddity (albeit far less so than many other works of horror), the frustrating gothic trope of a character recounting the same events happening to them as we've already seen play out in extensive detail (rather than just saying, 'same, girl. Same', and just that I wanted so much more of Carmilla and Laura!

Megan Follows' narration was perfect.

I'm biased, but I think it's criminal that we call the Children of the Night draculas and not carmillas!

--

Review for the Robin Brooks Adapted Dramatisation Audible Original

I came close to listening to this first and thank Carmilla that wasn't the case and pity the wretch I must surely have become in that alternative reality! As much as I utterly adored the book and Follow's narration, I truly couldn't stand or even finish this radio play adaptation.

I am a big fan of audio dramas and the cast is stacked, but the abominable audio mixing, wobbly performances, and pairing back the text so much that all tone and magic are lost, really sucked the life out of this for me.

I literally don't know what else to say. I bloody love Carmilla. I bloody hated this version.

My knowledge of this writer is more connected with his ghost stories, so it was with interest that I picked up this novel which fits into the genre of Victorian suspense or 'sensation' novels as it seems they were known at the time of publication, the 1860s. The sensation novel apparently took over from the earlier gothic - instead of the supernatural as a threat, the danger comes from human beings, though the setting of a gloomy old house with mysterious locked rooms etc is very gothic in inspiration. Similarly so is the central theme of a young heiress, orphaned and placed into the care of her peculiar Uncle, the Silas of the title.

Set in the early 1840s, it is clear that the narrator, Maud, is writing a memoir of her early life (though at the end it transpires that she is not the elderly woman that her interjections indicate, but instead a young mother). This early indication that the narrator survives does flatten a great deal of the possible suspense throughout, and is not a spoiler as it is foregrounded and reoccurs as a reminder throughout.

I had a few problems with the novel. A main one is that Maud, the viewpoint character through whom the reader experiences the story, is rather irritating. When not dithering and being indecisive, she stamps her foot with anger like a small child. Her only bouts of firmness are, by her own admission, when she is annoyed, and she comments throughout on the weakness of women's mental powers - considering this is by a male author, it reflects the prejudice of the time but is irritating that we are expected to take it at face value as a woman's opinion of her own gender. Especially as the other main positive female character is her much more likeable older cousin Monica, a person of sense, humour and decisiveness, who sadly is not seen much in the later part of the novel.

Monica and a male character who becomes the active executor of the will of Maud's father try to open Maud's eyes to what is really going on and to help her, but she denies it to the point of stupidity until very late in the book. It is maddening that when offered various opportunities to escape she self-sabotages, either by trusting Silas or by lapsing into total apathy. Meanwhile it is clear to the reader that Maud's own father was neglectful and lacking in real affection for her: at one point, he debates aloud in front of her whether to confide in her about something very important, remarking that it is a pity she is a girl. This is a world in which women literally have no control over their own property unless they are widows and are manipulated at best or imprisoned at worst.

The underlying background to the novel is the religious sect of Swedenborgianism to which Silas effects to subscribe and to which Maud's father may have had some leanings. But really I found it immaterial, as the real point is the possible hypocrisy of Silas - is he, or is he not, really a reformed character who has abandoned the dissipation of his youth which culminated in gambling debts, a disastrous marriage and the suspicion of being involved in the seeming suicide in his house of a man to whom he owed a large sum of money. The portrayal of Silas does move beyond the stereotype, to show a man who is genuinely disturbing in his effect on others and leaves those around him off balance.

A more minor problem I had with the novel is the large amount of Derbyshire dialect and French dialect, both of which are represented not just by word choice but by phonetic spellings and apostrophes etc making it not easy to follow at times. The various villains, with the exception of Silas, are mainly stereotypes. In the case of the French governess with her facial muggings this becomes so extreme that it veers into unbelievable caricature. Also there is a continuity error at one point where Mary Quince, Maud's maid, is suddenly mentioned as having the bedroom next to hers on a visit to Monica (and why are so many people in this book given names beginning with 'M'?) but is not mentioned elsewhere on that visit, and then greets Maud on her return home with news of what has happened in the meantime. But more annoying was the prominence given to a scene where Maud's executor friend hands her a note of his address and tells her to scratch the address into the underside of her writing desk lid and destroy the note - which she does - which I thought would have a payoff. Much later she is instructed to write letters from various places to reassure her cousin and is actually in one of those places, with her minder absent for hours - and she just sits around apathetically rather than check his address, run outside and get into a cab to go there! The author could have then set further obstacles in Maud's way such as the legal one of her still being underage and not able to abscond, but it was really annoying that this had been set up but nothing was then done with it.

This edition had an introductory essay which I soon left till after finishing the novel as it started off with some spoilers. But I found the rest of it a sort of Pseud's Corner (Private Eye) effort at a vague and amorphous analysis of Swedenborgianism in the novel. I can see that settings and people are reflected to some extent: possibly Maud's childhood home is Heaven and the house where Silas lives is Hell, but more to the point Maud's father Austin and his younger brother Silas are not Jekyll and Hyde opposites but both cut from the same cloth. So I don't really think it works as a theory.

Given that this was a novel of Victorian suspense, the obvious comparison is with Wilkie Collins' "The Woman in White" which has also been credited as the first modern detective novel. I certainly enjoyed that book much more, but compared to this it has a much more complex plot and a very engaging female character. So given my various reservations with the present book, I can only award a 3 star rating.

Three and a half rounded to four stars. I have been wanting to read -this- for nearly twenty years, but never knew how to find it. It was recommended left and right and praised. Many people described it as "short story," which I always took to mean "part of an anthology." It wasn't until I read this that I realized they meant "novella." I didn't know what a novella was until I was in my twenty's, so. I did try to find it. I figured it to be a rare book and figured I wouldn't be able to afford it, and so I stopped looking. Until now. My city's library had it in ebook form, and advertised it for Halloween. I borrowed it instantly, fascinated and surprised that I'd even been able to get ahold of it.

Other reviewers have remarked that already knowing the twist (of Carmilla being a vampire) makes this book not as thrilling as it could be, and yeah, they're right. This must have been absolutely chilling when it first came out. I dug it. I dug the writing style! I saw clear places where Stoker was inspired to write his own spinoff. I liked being able to spot that. I dug the style of this. It's a short book but felt so dense. I liked how the ending was written. What a worthwhile reading experience. Definitely recommend for vampire fans and for rare book fans.

2 maybe 2.5. I was really excited for this one as it is supposed to be one of the very first vampire fics out there predating Dracula by a few decades. However, I don't know if it's just this version, but it seemed as though the entire story had been run through a translating app. It was very confusing at times to the point where I had to just skip whole paragraphs.

Le Fanu's classic, the codifier of the lesbian vampire in the popular Western imagination, is still an engrossing read today with some quite chilling moments as well as an air of underlying sadness. The sapphic elements are sub-textual but barely so, written with a lovely precision and eloquence. Some of the exposition towards the very end feels unnecessary and unravels more of the mystery than I think needed to be, but this is a minor complaint for a work of fiction that's a core touchstone for me and for so many works of art I love that have come since.

The first narrator narrates the words of the second narrator, narrating the same events previously narrated by the first narrator herself.

Say what? Fear? No, not really. Just booooooredom :p

A sapphic horror classic.

Old Collection Worth Reading

These old short stories are true to the Gothic horror genre. Although written over a century ago, the tales are easily understood and thoroughly enjoyable. My favorite, and the reason I bought this book, was the short story Carmilla which was inspiration for others, like Bram Stoker and his character Dracula.

8475740545

An incredible vampire story predating Dracula by 50 years. Some parts were really well done. The sensual, sapphic, romantic vibes were done really well, and the interplay between that, and the dark, mysterious horror was really compelling.

That being said, the climax was kind of a let down. Told with absolutely no tension, and felt really rushed.

3.5*

I don't know why the Guardian's list of 1000 Novels has this book under 'Science Fiction and Fantasy'. There is nothing fantastical about it - it would more properly be described as a Gothic horror story, though the horror is very Victorian (not at all like the gruesome modern day horror stories). I would call it a suspense.

The atmosphere of terror and the plots laid for Maud Ruthyns, the heroine narrator, were very well done but Maud herself annoyed me. She was constantly referring to her timid nature which led her into some behaviors that were - to her - silly. That was okay - not my preference for a heroine but acceptable. It was her obstinate holding to the conviction that her Uncle Silas was a good man despite the history, the hints and worries from others, and even his own actions towards her that annoyed. Even after he had connived with Madame to separate her from her trusted maid Mary Quince and have her brought back to Bartram-Haugh secretly in the middle of the night and locked into a room with barred windows, she still believed that it was all Madame and her Uncle Silas would save her! If it wasn't for that, I would have given this 4*.

The vampire story that came before Dracula. It is better than Dracula, in that it is a perfectly taut story, with a rising tension that never relents until the final chapters. It is short, to the point, and doesn't waste a word, which, in my experience, is unusual for Victorian novels.

Dracula is a snooze compared to this. Who knew vampires could be so entertaining? Get your Gothic fix here.

Yay for lesbian vampires but I wasn't a huge fan of the style. Contents are somewhat surprising for the time but I struggled to get into it.½