Carmilla

I read Bram Stoker’s Dracula last year. Despite having been introduced to countless pop-culture versions of vampires and Count Dracula, from my teenage years right up to now, the scenes in this book are so vividly written that I often felt like I was watching a well-made movie, unlike anything I’ve watched already, rather than reading a book. It’s not particularly scary, but it’s moody, atmospheric gothic fiction and a sensory treat.

Given the time period it was written in and the fact that it is the origin story of all vampire books to follow, I enjoyed it a lot. It's a quick and simple read. I found it intriguing and looked forward to the ending.

Literally finished this book in an hour. Predates Dracula, AND it's lesbian! I didn't find this novel to be particularly difficult to read, either. I do warn that in one paragraph at the beginning, there's a story told of a "horrid black woman in a turban," meant to be a sort of ghost story. It's never mentioned again, but I'm sure this would bother someone.

It wasn't at par with my expectations but it was still a good read.