‘Tis the season, All Hallows’ Eve season. ‘Season of the witch,’ 😉 ghosts, & vampires. I know, I know, can’t it always be like that?!? Or is it already? With that said, or typed, I’m going to do an unofficial book review, or a witch’s brew-down version, on an underrated, not exposed enough great piece of literature, Carmilla.

Carmilla is a classic piece of literature I stumbled along at the beginning of the pandemic. There was a virtual film festival happening & they were going to show a version of the film adaption. It sounded interesting, clearly caught my attention driving through the canyons of Malibu in my Ford pickup truck.

Before Dracula came to life after death, or what have you, Carmilla laid the platform. Who and what is Carmilla?!? Via a novella written by the great Joseph Sheridan La Fanu, Carmilla revolves around a teenage girl, Laura, who crosses path mysteriously with a mysterious female, Carmilla, who just happens to be a vampire. I guess the part where I mention the long-running blood-line of family members with dark secrets is irrelevant?

Carmilla shows up out of nowhere in a European city, go have you, by the name of Styria, outside of Austria. I guess Transylvania would later become the promise land. It was all by accident. Literally. Carmilla is involved in a bad horse-driven carriage accident with a whole bunch of ugly people, one referenced as ‘Matska.’ Even the name is ugly. Is that where ‘horse-power’ really derived from?!?! Carmilla is with mommy dearest & she meets & befriends… Laura’s dad. Soon, somehow, go figure, Carmilla’s mom convinces Laura’s dad to take care of Carmilla, for a minimum of 3 months, because she has “important business” to do, while Carmilla is ½ dead, pun intended, because of the accident. Seems urgent. Yes! Happy Mother’s Day! Was it even an event then?!?! That’s just the way it was back then. People booked it for long periods of time & just lived. They didn’t stress about having service to post & overrate their life. Carmilla stays at Laura’s MASSIVE manor-house estate in the middle of nowhere. Mind you, this is all orchestrated. Con-ary at it’s best. The way the manor-house estate is described à OMFGG. To be of those times! There was NO such thing as $5.00+ a gallon gas prices in SoCal. Hell, I bet the horse food-gas was hella cheap then! & to think they still complained! I love the way the drawing room is described: oakwood everywhere, the cabinets, the shelves, the sitting spaces at the windows, velvet everywhere. I guess velvet was REALLY a thing then. Hell, still is… 😉 The views the room offered. Always having coffee, because There’s Something in the Coffee, & chocolate there. Oh, the drawing room! Another room that REALLY caught my attention was the room Carmilla stayed in. One described as the most “handsomest.” [p. 28]. The Cleopatra tapestry described on the wall! Where to begin!?! Let’s start with the smiley face emoji with hearts as eyes. I need to search the world wide web for one like that. But seriously, that passage is pivotal. Cleopatra plus the asp with the bite marks, Laura with the bite marks, Carmilla serving as the asp!?! A beautiful nod. Another beautiful nod is when Carmilla is described in bed as Eve. Flowers —> garden. Beautiful. Oops! Haven’t I given too much away?!

When Laura was young, very young, younger that what she is in the book —you get the damn point! Or should! LMFAO! She has a “terrible nightmare” of being bitten/ attacked by a figure. The bite marks? Actual bite marks —from a vampire! Where a vampire would bite from! Aside from claiming how vivid it is, the proof, & actual it felt, everyone assures Laura it was “just a dream.” When Laura & Carmilla cross paths years later, over a decade later, for the “first time” Laura is taken aback. Strange shit starts to go down. Eventually, one does go down. Literally.  It’s said a picture is worth a thousand words. Photographs appears from a very long time ago & it is called out the one of the persons in the photos looks JUST like Carmilla. The moon begins to shine & all is illuminated: unveiling of the truth, love, questioning, seduction, distraction, suspicion, thrill, secrets unveiled. Let’s also not forget about that big, nasty black, “monstruous” cat that appears & is described as Carmilla in disguise.

Carmilla is a lesbian vampire love story, something ahead of it’s freakin’ time. Pun on the ‘freakin’.’ Carmilla seduces Laura & make her fall in love with her, of which she is successful, but there is also a lot of reciprocation; it’s not just a one-way street. I will say, that no matter the chemistry between the two ladies, Laura didn’t like everything about Carmilla. There are reservations, & I don’t mean to a restaurant. Laura’s lack of sleep & “strange dreams” [& other things 😉] get the best of her. This is a horror story, people! There are speed bumps, & humps, but the chemistry is equal. Fear & love totally clash here. In the background of the town/ country-life style, havoc is wreaking. Weird shit is happening. I love when it is learned what Carmilla’s real name is: Mircalla. Anagram anyone!?! Oh, the name play. Don’t get me wrong. This isn’t your Hollywood story with a happy love-ending. I’ve given away a lot. I’m not going to give away everything.

I love the introduction of the book I bought a copy of, done by Carmen Maria Machado. The intro exposes one to new authors & material. Add the materials to the ever-running list that’ll probably never end. I’m OK with that. It was once said, reading is like aerobics for the mind. I’m sure all the people in my head keep entertained. I am, after all, me. & people always say, the book is better…  Side note, to go with that side bar, 2 actually, I wonder if that’s what people will say WHEN The Cubicle Diaries gets adapted. In due time, dear child, not chile, &, I have yet to watch any film adaptions of this great piece. I still have yet to see what premiered at the film festival. I’m just waiting for the library to obtain a copy, a year & a half later. The book I have has a few illustrations, which makes it feel more gothic-y. I like the way the editor talks to the reader via annotation, serving as a form of commentary. She is sure to give her personal input on occasion. 😉 Aside from being seen as queer literature, literally, it’s also one of the pioneers of female homo eroticism. Has anyone noticed how much queer stuff is being broadcasted these days!?!

This novella is SERIOUSLY ahead of its time. Dracula, deemed/ seen as the ‘first’ vampire, kind of, didn’t come around for years to come after Joseph Sheridan La Fanu published Carmilla. I want to read more of Sheridan Le Fanu’s work! It has been said Carmilla is a part of a serial. I can’t help but think, & ASSume, & crown Sheridan Le Fanu as the one who started the trend, or depiction, of vampires being sexy, to say the minimal. Am I wrong? Well, you gotta read the piece first! Apparently, vampires are resurfacing, again, around 2 centuries later. I love how this work has been reviewed & explicated so much! That’s just the English in me getting excited. Two of my favourite lines of the novella are, “Love is always selfish.” Carmilla, page 59, & “The precautions of nervous people are infectious.” Laura, page 60. I first borrowed Carmilla from the library, you know how I do, & then I was like, this deserves to be on my bookshelf! So, I bought it & don’t have an issue rereading it.

I love having a large vocabulary, & I also love those with big dictionaries. Check out the new lists of words I learned reading this page turner. Any sound familiar?

Od

Odylic

Fallow

Laity

Arcana

Saturnine

Expanse

Wainscot

Languid

Abhorrence

Gaiety

Languor

Saunter

Discordant

Ague

Effigy

Ensconced

Lassitude

Paroxysm

Acquiesced

Trepidation

Piqued

Parried

Adroitly

Rueful

Peremptorily

Annals

Abler

Demonical

Cadaverous

Stratagem

Satiated

Specter