Carmilla '86

Quaint City After Dark #2

by Avery Morstan

Laura’s life is like, totally rad. Okay, maybe she would never have used that exact phrase, but for a small town girl growing up in the 1980s, she had it all. She was beloved by her single dad, she was raised on his super picturesque farm, and all the little old biddies at church just adored her. Honestly, the only bad thing anyone could really say about Laura English was that she’d gotten a great scholarship and chosen to leave the small town life behind, then she’d consider that a win.

Except, Laura isn’t in high school, or college, anymore. She's almost thirty, unmarried and a crisis with her dad has pulled her back into the isolated world of the farm. Spring mists swirl around the hills and valleys as she adjusts to being a grown woman back home where she has to hide aspects of herself that no one else will understand. And she just can’t shake this dream- or was it a reality? Meeting a beautiful woman, dressed in all black, at a party, the memory of which is blurred just around the edges…

When Laura’s dream shows up in her real life via a fender bender, Laura has to confront all of the things she’d thought she’d locked deep inside. Will the blossoming love she feels for this mystery woman end in sweet dreams… or turn into a bloody nightmare?

Carmilla ‘86 is a campy romantic retelling of the classic lesbian horror novel Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu.

67 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 18, 2023

Reviews

[Issy Waldrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I am not familiar with the original Carmilla story, I did quite enjoy this story for what it is. It's a well told and engaging short story that weaves an interesting tale with a satisfying ending.