Carmilla

by J. Sheridan Le Fanu, Benjamin Briggent (Translator)

Atmospheric, sensual and utterly riveting, Carmilla is the novel that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula. A true gothic masterpiece, this titillating tale is a key text in the history of vampire literature.

A haunting presence lurks among the secluded castles and rolling mountains of Styria, home to a lonely young woman called Laura. Upon the arrival of the mysterious Carmilla, Laura is instantly intoxicated. Upending the solitude Laura knows so well, the two young women form an intense connection that transforms her world. But a terrible truth begins to dawn on Laura and her father as they grapple with inexplicable events they only witness in the presence of Carmilla, who grows stranger and leaves more questions unanswered with the passing of each fitful day.

Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library, a series of stunning pocket-sized classics. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. This edition is introduced by Irish writer and academic Jarlath Killeen.

128 pages

Published July 1, 2025

About the author

Joseph Thomas Sheridan Le Fanu was an Irish writer of Gothic tales and mystery novels. He was the leading ghost-story writer of the nineteenth century and was central to the development of the genre in the Victorian era. M.R. James described Le Fanu as "absolutely in the first rank as a writer of ghost stories". Three of his best-known works are Uncle Silas, Carmilla and The House by the Churchyard.

Reviews

[Scarlet Buffy · Rating 5 out of 5]

25 years before Dracula 🧛‍♂️ there was Carmilla rhe first Vampire to be written and i think i prefer this to Dracula

[Paola Maciel · Rating 2 out of 5]

No compren esta edición!!! Está llena de errores que provocan que te confundas mientras lees, desde fechas equivocadas por siglos!!, nombrar erróneamente a personajes o palabras mal escritas. La historia de Carmilla es un clásico que me encanta pero con esta traducción horrible NO la recomiendo!

[Freddie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Carmilla is a fascinating vampire and I think much can be unpacked from this character... But I find the story is resolved a bit too hastily, and it kinda reduces Carmilla as just this eeeevil deviant vampire.

[Grettel BH · Rating 4 out of 5]

lo que más disfruto de leer este libro, siempre es gritarle "LESBIANAAAA" a Laura

[Emma Rosina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Carmilla. I loved the unsettling atmosphere of the novella and its overarching sense of unease. As the reader is immersed in Laura's experiences, we carry her doubts with us for the whole course of the narrative. When the truth of Carmilla is revealed, the intensity to her evil is so exaggerated that it makes it hard to believe that a woman would've been written to be so powerful at this time. Personally, I loved that the horror came from a woman and was inflicted upon another woman. It demonstrated danger within suffocating affection and hid horror between the lines of friendship.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

there is nothing I love more than a lesbian vampire

[Camila Martínez · Rating 2 out of 5]

La historia iba relativamente bien hasta que se encuentran con el general y básicamente repite el libro en 4 hojas.

Tenía más expectativas de la historia, cuando leí la trama hablaba de una relación entre Laura y Carmilla pero haciéndolo ver como amor o enamoramiento, lo único que pasa entre ellas es que quieren estar juntas todo el tiempo. No hay nada cercano a un enamoramiento, de pronto el libro es muy corto para hacer más grande esa historia.

También habla de los miedos más profundos del alma y siento que lo contaron muy simple y básico.

Atraparon a Carmilla de la forma más simple y fue claramente porque ella llegó al lugar en el que estaban y nunca sabemos cómo llegó hasta ahí!

La idea central es buena pero siento que le hizo falta desarrollo

[Tony Hannan]

85. Carmilla, by Sheridan Le Fanu. The first vampire story? Absolutely not. But certainly the book that, in 1872, prepared the plot for Bram Stoker's Dracula, 26 years later, and all we have come to know and shiver at since. It's a slight read, just over 100 pages, but tropes now taken for granted are all there... gothic houses... ghostly mystery... sinister blood-draining illnesses... eccentric vampire hunter... with a helpless young female at the heart of it, thereby establishing the genre's blatant sapphic element. An absolute graveyard cornerstone for horror fans. 9/10

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant book!!! I'd never heard of this before but I absolutely love Dracula by Bram Stoker. I was shocked to discover that this book had been written 26 years before Dracula. It is atmospheric and creepy a perfect read on an Autumn night.

[Avril Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro realmente bueno, un imperdible en caso de que te guste lo gótico y que tenga que ver con vampiros, el final pudo ser mejor pero sin duda queda según la época.

[Daniel V. N. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good vampire story that pales in comparison to its successor.

[elysia · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed it, just felt the ending happened quite quickly and everything was wrapped up quite abruptly.

[Elif Akgün · Rating 4 out of 5]

i love this book.

[Gelis Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es interesante cómo esta es una de las primeras historias de vampiros y es precursora de la imagen del vampiro moderno y seductor.

[Lucy Wright · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5

Thought to be the first vampire novel, this book has had a ginormous influence upon the gothic genre.

A complex, cunning but alluring female ‘villain,’ an exploration of gender and sexuality and a slightly uncomfortable and mysterious plot line.

A classic that I actually quite enjoyed and found fascinating.

[صرفنا · Rating 3 out of 5]

a vampire story that predates dracula that i really appreciate. it's a fast and light read; perhaps too light however because i find myself wanting more. the last few chapters felt rushed and hastily concluded. i would've loved if it delved into carmilla's melancholic past for more than a few paragraphs