What do you think?
Rate this book
The Vertigo Legacy #1
Vertigo Peaks
An unexpected guest. A tempestuous liaison. A marriage falling apart.
In the eclipse of her marriage, Valerie’s days are cold and lonely. As Ethan Vertigo’s new bride, she suffers from isolation and hostility from the townspeople. That is, until an unexpected traveler appears at her door to seek refuge from the snowstorm—Mircalla Karnstein.
The mysterious and charming visitor’s presence is accompanied by feverish nightmares and itching puncture marks, and Valerie’s reputation is threatened when Mircalla draws her close with passionate midnight escapades.
As rumors of a plague terrorize the town and the dark secrets of Vertigo Peaks surface, Valerie struggles to reconcile her growing desire for Mircalla and her role as Ethan Vertigo’s wife.
When every love story begins with blood, does it matter who bleeds first?
Inspired by Sheridan Le Fanu’s timeless Carmilla, Vertigo Peaks is the first book in a sapphic vampire romance duology. It is best suited for mature readers.
Unknown Binding
76 people are currently reading
3559 people want to read
About the author
Dion Anja
3 books84 followersDion Anja is a poet, author, and a lover of all things uncanny. Weaving grotesque and ravishing characters into her writing, she hopes to lure you into the chilling landscapes of her stories. When she is not writing or reading, Dion can be found cuddling with her cat or taking long walks in the forest.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews
February 27, 2024
I was really looking forward to this sapphic vampire retelling of Carmilla and pre-ordered back in 2023. Full disclosure - I have not read Carmilla which may explain some of my mixed emotions below.
“The voice in the back of her head was crying for answers.“
Girl, same here.
There really was not enough backstory for me to get into the book, have a grasp of the characters or the plot. I had to fight the urge to DNF and I am glad I did. It’s clear to me that the author has talent and I am open to reading future works.
Their prose is beautiful, but can be stifling and incredibly dense. Throughout the book, I kept rereading lines to try to understand what was being said, or flipping through previous pages to check if I missed something. I literally didn’t even know the house was on fire until 2 pages into a chapter because the descriptions were so abstractly poetic.
For the first few chapters, nothing much happens besides a zombie-like village mob and has a repetitive format which each chapter starting with an incredibly detailed description of the gothic macabre scene followed by a short exchange to move the plot forward.
I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable or appealing, with very little character development. There was an awful lot of crying. There were probably 15 times I counted that the main protagonist is crying for some reason or another. There were sprinkles and hints of backstory that had be intruiged but were never elaborated on - this included Valerie’s previous romantic encounters or exploration of her sexuality, how she ended up getting married to Ethan Vertigo, why this allegedbly powerful man is so hated and powerless, what is this curse everyone keeps referencing, why is Valerie so special and why does she look exactly like her husband’s dead sister, who Mircalla is and how she became a vampire.
Despite Valerie being painted as this delicate woman strongly affected by the animosity of the villagers, she barely flinches or responds accordingly to the gory violence she witnesses. I assumed she was under a vampire’s thrall but that’s me trying to make sense of it all.
There were glaring plot holes and inconsistencies throughout the novel that at some point I wondered if certain chapters were meant to be edited out.
Admittedly, I enjoyed the tasteful depiction of intimacy between two women as well as the violence and gore depicted. Towards the end of the novel, the violence was no longer presented as these random strange dream sequences. The characters were responding in a way that made sense to the plot. Suddenly, I found myself liking the viscious Mircalla and Valerie as well as the introduction of the vampire lore in the Vertigo Peaks world that left me wanting more because this development simply was not backed up by the rest of the book.
I wish more effort was put towards building a stronger foundation for the characters, world-building (the tense dynamic between the Vertigo estate and the villagers, what was the curse?, who are the vampires? why is Valerie the chosen one?) which would have contextualized the conflicts that drove the story forward.
[SPOILERS]
“Valerie nibbled on her husband’s severed finger. She did not question when or where it appeared. It must have been in her hand all her life, in a blaze, sealed behind the coldness of January. She was meant to be here, cradled by her bloodthirsty lover, and sucking on her husband’s flesh until the hard bone grated against her teeth.”
ABOVE HAS ZERO BUILD UP. In the chapter prior, Valerie was hosting a tea party and making amends with her nasty neighbor in Bridgerton fashion. Then she’s eating her husband’s finger while being eaten out by her new vampire girlfriend. NONE OF THIS is mentioned afterwards.
I’m so confused the rest of the story continues as if this didn’t happen. I tried to search my eBook with key words like “husband” and “finger” and nothing came up. The writing was so convoluted it could be interpreted as a sex fantasy or a dream sequence but that’s quite a stretch.
All you really know is Valerie is poor, recently married to a powerful man, visits his town and is ostracized to the point of a violent mob. Then she ends up in her husbands estate where nothing much happens besides her being sad that the townspeople don’t love her. Her whole character centers around this until she develops a crush on a mysterious woman she meets at a party. Then begins this twisted courting with very little context as to why they’re so deep in love with one another.
“You made me in your image. You carved me and breathed me into life. Where you ache, I tremble in agony. I never had to see where I stood because I was with you, hand in hand, heart against heart, and I am replenished by the same thing that brought you to me.”
Beautiful prose, but how did we get here?
“The voice in the back of her head was crying for answers.“
Girl, same here.
There really was not enough backstory for me to get into the book, have a grasp of the characters or the plot. I had to fight the urge to DNF and I am glad I did. It’s clear to me that the author has talent and I am open to reading future works.
Their prose is beautiful, but can be stifling and incredibly dense. Throughout the book, I kept rereading lines to try to understand what was being said, or flipping through previous pages to check if I missed something. I literally didn’t even know the house was on fire until 2 pages into a chapter because the descriptions were so abstractly poetic.
For the first few chapters, nothing much happens besides a zombie-like village mob and has a repetitive format which each chapter starting with an incredibly detailed description of the gothic macabre scene followed by a short exchange to move the plot forward.
I didn’t find any of the characters particularly likeable or appealing, with very little character development. There was an awful lot of crying. There were probably 15 times I counted that the main protagonist is crying for some reason or another. There were sprinkles and hints of backstory that had be intruiged but were never elaborated on - this included Valerie’s previous romantic encounters or exploration of her sexuality, how she ended up getting married to Ethan Vertigo, why this allegedbly powerful man is so hated and powerless, what is this curse everyone keeps referencing, why is Valerie so special and why does she look exactly like her husband’s dead sister, who Mircalla is and how she became a vampire.
Despite Valerie being painted as this delicate woman strongly affected by the animosity of the villagers, she barely flinches or responds accordingly to the gory violence she witnesses. I assumed she was under a vampire’s thrall but that’s me trying to make sense of it all.
There were glaring plot holes and inconsistencies throughout the novel that at some point I wondered if certain chapters were meant to be edited out.
Admittedly, I enjoyed the tasteful depiction of intimacy between two women as well as the violence and gore depicted. Towards the end of the novel, the violence was no longer presented as these random strange dream sequences. The characters were responding in a way that made sense to the plot. Suddenly, I found myself liking the viscious Mircalla and Valerie as well as the introduction of the vampire lore in the Vertigo Peaks world that left me wanting more because this development simply was not backed up by the rest of the book.
I wish more effort was put towards building a stronger foundation for the characters, world-building (the tense dynamic between the Vertigo estate and the villagers, what was the curse?, who are the vampires? why is Valerie the chosen one?) which would have contextualized the conflicts that drove the story forward.
[SPOILERS]
“Valerie nibbled on her husband’s severed finger. She did not question when or where it appeared. It must have been in her hand all her life, in a blaze, sealed behind the coldness of January. She was meant to be here, cradled by her bloodthirsty lover, and sucking on her husband’s flesh until the hard bone grated against her teeth.”
ABOVE HAS ZERO BUILD UP. In the chapter prior, Valerie was hosting a tea party and making amends with her nasty neighbor in Bridgerton fashion. Then she’s eating her husband’s finger while being eaten out by her new vampire girlfriend. NONE OF THIS is mentioned afterwards.
I’m so confused the rest of the story continues as if this didn’t happen. I tried to search my eBook with key words like “husband” and “finger” and nothing came up. The writing was so convoluted it could be interpreted as a sex fantasy or a dream sequence but that’s quite a stretch.
All you really know is Valerie is poor, recently married to a powerful man, visits his town and is ostracized to the point of a violent mob. Then she ends up in her husbands estate where nothing much happens besides her being sad that the townspeople don’t love her. Her whole character centers around this until she develops a crush on a mysterious woman she meets at a party. Then begins this twisted courting with very little context as to why they’re so deep in love with one another.
“You made me in your image. You carved me and breathed me into life. Where you ache, I tremble in agony. I never had to see where I stood because I was with you, hand in hand, heart against heart, and I am replenished by the same thing that brought you to me.”
Beautiful prose, but how did we get here?
![Profile Image for Yves V.H. [Slow reading].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1768806067i%2F170151541._UY200_CR6%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
February 20, 2024
3.75 ⭐
I've been waiting for this book since last year when I discovered Dion's post on social media. I mean, Vampire AND Sapphic? Both my favorite things so I immediately signed up the ARC.
Though here's a thing, about 60% of the content confuses me. But from what I've gathered is that Valerie dislikes her husband and Mircalla is a vampire who fell in love with a human. What confused me were the curse, the townspeople's anger, and the plot.
I love the style and tone because it reminds me of classic literature; very poetic. The pacing, since it really reminds me of classic literature, is kind of slow but I think that is what the author intended it to feel like.
Everything else, I am not entirely sure...I didn't feel the chemistry between the main characters but I did feel disgusted by the husband; what he did to her in front of all those people but historically, it is accurate 😮💨they really wave the blanket stained with blood after consummating Ugh, disgusting.
“I don’t have the strength in me to let you go. I can’t control it. I would rip my heart off its birdcage and hand it over to you if it meant we could stay like this forever. How can I ever let you go, my dear Valerie, the heart of my soul, when you have given me the world?”
“I’ve had my fair share of bliss and damnation though it was not always easy to tell which was which. However, on that day, when you took me in, opened your home and your heart to me, I knew… I knew I would love you.”
Thank you for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily
I've been waiting for this book since last year when I discovered Dion's post on social media. I mean, Vampire AND Sapphic? Both my favorite things so I immediately signed up the ARC.
Though here's a thing, about 60% of the content confuses me. But from what I've gathered is that Valerie dislikes her husband and Mircalla is a vampire who fell in love with a human. What confused me were the curse, the townspeople's anger, and the plot.
I love the style and tone because it reminds me of classic literature; very poetic. The pacing, since it really reminds me of classic literature, is kind of slow but I think that is what the author intended it to feel like.
Everything else, I am not entirely sure...I didn't feel the chemistry between the main characters but I did feel disgusted by the husband; what he did to her in front of all those people but historically, it is accurate 😮💨
“I don’t have the strength in me to let you go. I can’t control it. I would rip my heart off its birdcage and hand it over to you if it meant we could stay like this forever. How can I ever let you go, my dear Valerie, the heart of my soul, when you have given me the world?”
“I’ve had my fair share of bliss and damnation though it was not always easy to tell which was which. However, on that day, when you took me in, opened your home and your heart to me, I knew… I knew I would love you.”
Thank you for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily
Want to read
July 30, 20242024😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
July 6, 2024
After hearing about this on social media months ago I was SO excited for this book. I’ve always loved vampire fiction and Carmilla is one of my favourites. WLW vampire fiction is my bread and butter.
So why did I rate this one star?
I never DNF books, but I had to after about 100 pages. I could not sit on this book for a month hating every single second of it. It put me off reading. I would read two pages and put it down. This book pissed me off that much.
First things first: the grammar and syntax mistakes. Get someone to proofread it. Get a beta reader. Get an editor. Publishing something with this many mistakes is embarrassing, genuinely.
Second: some, if not most, chapters seem to start in the middle of the action and the reader has no context for what’s going on. The first chapter gives nothing to the reader and expects you to follow on without having a clue what’s just happened. The same occurs when you meet the love interest for the first time. You’re just thrown into something with zero build up or context for what you’re reading. Multiple times I had to go back and check that I hadn’t just glazed over some context and that was why I didn’t know what was going on.
No, this book gives you nothing.
No context and certainly nothing to stick around for.
The main character is bland. The husband is bland. The love interest is bland. The “curse” is never explained.
If I could give this book 0 stars for wasting my time, I definitely would.
All that flowery writing and potential was fully wasted on this book.
So why did I rate this one star?
I never DNF books, but I had to after about 100 pages. I could not sit on this book for a month hating every single second of it. It put me off reading. I would read two pages and put it down. This book pissed me off that much.
First things first: the grammar and syntax mistakes. Get someone to proofread it. Get a beta reader. Get an editor. Publishing something with this many mistakes is embarrassing, genuinely.
Second: some, if not most, chapters seem to start in the middle of the action and the reader has no context for what’s going on. The first chapter gives nothing to the reader and expects you to follow on without having a clue what’s just happened. The same occurs when you meet the love interest for the first time. You’re just thrown into something with zero build up or context for what you’re reading. Multiple times I had to go back and check that I hadn’t just glazed over some context and that was why I didn’t know what was going on.
No, this book gives you nothing.
No context and certainly nothing to stick around for.
The main character is bland. The husband is bland. The love interest is bland. The “curse” is never explained.
If I could give this book 0 stars for wasting my time, I definitely would.
All that flowery writing and potential was fully wasted on this book.
dnf
October 26, 2024DNF at page 72
I really wanted to like this book. And even more because it was provided to me as an ARC by the author but I just couldn’t.
First things first, the writing is beautiful. The author has a very poetic way of writing and I loved that. To me the problem was with the pacing and that from the beginning I felt completely confused and lost. There was 4 chapters of a character talking about the same thing. And I think
the beginning felt rushed, like the author needed it to get it out of the way to get to the important parts.
I didn’t feel the dread and fear Valerie was feeling because of the attack of the townspeople towards her. I just didn’t understand what was happening and was getting bored with her just talking about it for 4 straight chapters. She seemed so appalled by her husband bribing the townspeople and I don’t get why.
Im so confused i guess they hate her because she refused to consummate her marriage in front of the townspeople?? Or if she did it but then lashed out at them. Idk. Valerie was talking about Ethans sister’s portrait and then she went into that memory of the townspeople and her consummating her marriage and it was all confusing.
Then we jumped from all that to full on vampire lady all upon Valerie kissing and sucking on her. Not a slow transition from arriving to the manor and getting used to it, maybe a couple days of hearing the vampires voice until shes seduced little by little. We are just thrown there like we’re supposed to feel this supposed enchantment out of nowhere.
I wanted to keep reading but honestly it was really painful making myself read something that was just not grabbing my attention.
I really wanted to like this book. And even more because it was provided to me as an ARC by the author but I just couldn’t.
First things first, the writing is beautiful. The author has a very poetic way of writing and I loved that. To me the problem was with the pacing and that from the beginning I felt completely confused and lost. There was 4 chapters of a character talking about the same thing. And I think
the beginning felt rushed, like the author needed it to get it out of the way to get to the important parts.
I didn’t feel the dread and fear Valerie was feeling because of the attack of the townspeople towards her. I just didn’t understand what was happening and was getting bored with her just talking about it for 4 straight chapters. She seemed so appalled by her husband bribing the townspeople and I don’t get why.
Im so confused i guess they hate her because she refused to consummate her marriage in front of the townspeople?? Or if she did it but then lashed out at them. Idk. Valerie was talking about Ethans sister’s portrait and then she went into that memory of the townspeople and her consummating her marriage and it was all confusing.
Then we jumped from all that to full on vampire lady all upon Valerie kissing and sucking on her. Not a slow transition from arriving to the manor and getting used to it, maybe a couple days of hearing the vampires voice until shes seduced little by little. We are just thrown there like we’re supposed to feel this supposed enchantment out of nowhere.
I wanted to keep reading but honestly it was really painful making myself read something that was just not grabbing my attention.
Want to read
January 11, 2024it’s my year of vampire books, i can already tell
July 4, 2024
this is one of the worst books i have ever. EVER. read.
vampires? love. sapphic romance? yes please. carmilla retelling? yes please! this book, however, lived up to nothing.
the book was 243 pages, which should have made it a quick read, but it took me over a week to get through it because it was incredibly painful to read. i never DNF anything, so i pushed through as best as i could with incredible stubbornness, but god, this book made me come terribly close. this author should not write books. ever. this was a disaster. i don't say this to be mean, because she has potential, but truly, i think she should stick to poetry.
anyone recommending this book or saying it's enjoyable is a liar and deserves to be locked behind bars.
the prose was terrible. TERRIBLE. it's deceptively good with its poeticism and flowery details, but dig a little deeper and you notice the awkward sentences and terrible syntax that destroys the flow of sentences. the writing was reminiscent of an alien making an attempt at writing about the human experience and human emotion, because the point of view felt so distant from valerie despite... being from her pov. it was abstract and poetic in the worst kind of way, and i say this because i myself enjoy writing flowery, poetic writing in my own writing style. i have written flowery writing for as long as i can remember, and i've read other works with lovely flowery writing (re: anything by jay kristoff). anyone who doesn't know better will say dion anja has pretty prose, but again, it's deceptive. it's flowery and poetic in a way that acts as a disguise for what it really is: bad writing.
the book is confusing. dion anja is far too concerned about purple prose and flowery details that she doesn't add any details that are worth being anything of real substance. at no point in this book did i ever understand what was going on because i felt like i was being thrown around a room headfirst to induce memory loss. there were details being skipped between chapters, but also within them. i have no idea what the premise of this story was supposed to be beyond it being a carmilla retelling. valerie has the personality of a wet blanket, or soggy wet napkin. there was ZERO meaningful development between valerie and mircalla.
the dialogue was so awkward. the prose was awkward. it was pretentious in the worst ways. "for she" "for Valerie" "for who" oh my god shut UP LOL. do not EVER continue a sentence like that casually, and so frequently. the author REFUSES to use contractions. many of the words didn't even feel like they were being used correctly anyways. like, okay thesaurus warrior, go off.
and before i get carried away, let me mention the countless editing errors. WHO allowed it to get published like that. the author commits the sin of having multiple characters sharing dialogue on the same line or within the same paragraph MULTIPLE TIMES within the book. like, what? there was also an instance where a period and quotation mark (.") had fallen off from the end of a line and were alone on the next line, and a similar instance where a single "y" had fallen off the end of a word and left alone on the next line.
it took me 2 hours to get through 10 pages, i think, because it was dragging on but it was also...so rushed? at the same time? the pacing of this book was terrible, and again, it felt like so many details of actual events were being left out.
and also, i still don't understand what the hell the curse was supposed to be or the necessity of an heir to vertigo peaks, or the townsfolks' aversion to valerie and her husband. and like, the leap between valeria and mircalla being all "uwu i love you omg" within like 20 pages of "but i don't even know you, you're a stranger in my home" like? let me share some of my favorite excerpts.
like how many times are you going to say hand... jesus christ lmao.
and then the bizarre wording on page 31.
like, this is what i mean when i say the writing is deceptively good, when in reality it's fucking horrible. this is such bizarre, awkward wording. it would be better if it said something like "Her heart sank as she traced her fingers along the cracks in the wall. The peeling paint flaked and cascaded to the worn wooden floor with her touch." just an example off the top of my head.
there's also:
the wording is, AGAIN, so fucking awkward. peasant hesitancy is INSANE. also if you just swap the phrasing around, it'd sound better. something something law of adjectives. it'd sound better if it was "slow and mellow" or "colorless and cold" like... more impact.
there was also "Has not Ethel told you?" like i understand that's grammatically correct when you pull apart "hasn't" but it'd be better if it was "Hasn't Ethel told you?" or "Has Ethel not told you?" like please for the love of god use contractions where it mattersssssssssssssss.
like. fuck off LMFAO. never in my life in the many books i've read seen anyone do that. "replied she" FUCK OFF. like "she replied" or "Valerie replied" would work.
i could keep going. there's a lot wrong with this book with the awkward syntax disguised with the veil of purple prose to trick people into think it's profound or good writing. it's not. again, there was so little development on the pages between valerie and mircalla. they barely got to know each other before they were professing their love in the most grandiose ways. and then they would be fighting for no reason. valerie was always. crying. and then mircalla was always crying. like me fucking too girl, reading this book made me want to cry and rip my hair out. not because it was good or evocative of emotion, because i could not connect with a SINGLE character. they were all soulless and without real personality. the lore was watery and confusing, and by all accounts simply not present.
there were little sprinkle-sprinkles of backstory but never anything concrete that made sense, like valerie's life before ethan, why they got married, what the FUCK the curse was, how valerie turning into a vampire even works, why valerie looks like ethan's dead sister (because this was referenced SO many times and the book ends what... with ethan holding his dead sister's skull??? why does he have that) like nothing in this book made sense all because the author was far too concerned about writing the most pretentious purple prose garbage. like it's completely possible for authors to use flowery writing and still writing something evocative and compelling and well-written. this book was unfortunately not one of those and i regret reading this. it was a pretentious waste of my fucking time.
vampires? love. sapphic romance? yes please. carmilla retelling? yes please! this book, however, lived up to nothing.
the book was 243 pages, which should have made it a quick read, but it took me over a week to get through it because it was incredibly painful to read. i never DNF anything, so i pushed through as best as i could with incredible stubbornness, but god, this book made me come terribly close. this author should not write books. ever. this was a disaster. i don't say this to be mean, because she has potential, but truly, i think she should stick to poetry.
anyone recommending this book or saying it's enjoyable is a liar and deserves to be locked behind bars.
the prose was terrible. TERRIBLE. it's deceptively good with its poeticism and flowery details, but dig a little deeper and you notice the awkward sentences and terrible syntax that destroys the flow of sentences. the writing was reminiscent of an alien making an attempt at writing about the human experience and human emotion, because the point of view felt so distant from valerie despite... being from her pov. it was abstract and poetic in the worst kind of way, and i say this because i myself enjoy writing flowery, poetic writing in my own writing style. i have written flowery writing for as long as i can remember, and i've read other works with lovely flowery writing (re: anything by jay kristoff). anyone who doesn't know better will say dion anja has pretty prose, but again, it's deceptive. it's flowery and poetic in a way that acts as a disguise for what it really is: bad writing.
the book is confusing. dion anja is far too concerned about purple prose and flowery details that she doesn't add any details that are worth being anything of real substance. at no point in this book did i ever understand what was going on because i felt like i was being thrown around a room headfirst to induce memory loss. there were details being skipped between chapters, but also within them. i have no idea what the premise of this story was supposed to be beyond it being a carmilla retelling. valerie has the personality of a wet blanket, or soggy wet napkin. there was ZERO meaningful development between valerie and mircalla.
the dialogue was so awkward. the prose was awkward. it was pretentious in the worst ways. "for she" "for Valerie" "for who" oh my god shut UP LOL. do not EVER continue a sentence like that casually, and so frequently. the author REFUSES to use contractions. many of the words didn't even feel like they were being used correctly anyways. like, okay thesaurus warrior, go off.
and before i get carried away, let me mention the countless editing errors. WHO allowed it to get published like that. the author commits the sin of having multiple characters sharing dialogue on the same line or within the same paragraph MULTIPLE TIMES within the book. like, what? there was also an instance where a period and quotation mark (.") had fallen off from the end of a line and were alone on the next line, and a similar instance where a single "y" had fallen off the end of a word and left alone on the next line.
it took me 2 hours to get through 10 pages, i think, because it was dragging on but it was also...so rushed? at the same time? the pacing of this book was terrible, and again, it felt like so many details of actual events were being left out.
and also, i still don't understand what the hell the curse was supposed to be or the necessity of an heir to vertigo peaks, or the townsfolks' aversion to valerie and her husband. and like, the leap between valeria and mircalla being all "uwu i love you omg" within like 20 pages of "but i don't even know you, you're a stranger in my home" like? let me share some of my favorite excerpts.
...hand so she could get off the carriage. She sat motionless for a moment, her gloved hands clutching onto the edges of her dress. She hesitated, her hand suspended in mid-air, then placed her hand in his.
like how many times are you going to say hand... jesus christ lmao.
and then the bizarre wording on page 31.
Her heart sank as she traced her fingers along the peeling edges, her touch causing flakes of paint to dislodge and cascade to the worn wooden floor below.
like, this is what i mean when i say the writing is deceptively good, when in reality it's fucking horrible. this is such bizarre, awkward wording. it would be better if it said something like "Her heart sank as she traced her fingers along the cracks in the wall. The peeling paint flaked and cascaded to the worn wooden floor with her touch." just an example off the top of my head.
there's also:
She would have spoken with mellow and slow words perhaps, without the peasant hesitancy; but the sudden, horrifying descent of their wedding night had washed all her reason away. Her cheeks turn cold and colorless as she stepped into the room.
the wording is, AGAIN, so fucking awkward. peasant hesitancy is INSANE. also if you just swap the phrasing around, it'd sound better. something something law of adjectives. it'd sound better if it was "slow and mellow" or "colorless and cold" like... more impact.
there was also "Has not Ethel told you?" like i understand that's grammatically correct when you pull apart "hasn't" but it'd be better if it was "Hasn't Ethel told you?" or "Has Ethel not told you?" like please for the love of god use contractions where it mattersssssssssssssss.
"What?" replied she, with what she hoped was a steady voice.
like. fuck off LMFAO. never in my life in the many books i've read seen anyone do that. "replied she" FUCK OFF. like "she replied" or "Valerie replied" would work.
i could keep going. there's a lot wrong with this book with the awkward syntax disguised with the veil of purple prose to trick people into think it's profound or good writing. it's not. again, there was so little development on the pages between valerie and mircalla. they barely got to know each other before they were professing their love in the most grandiose ways. and then they would be fighting for no reason. valerie was always. crying. and then mircalla was always crying. like me fucking too girl, reading this book made me want to cry and rip my hair out. not because it was good or evocative of emotion, because i could not connect with a SINGLE character. they were all soulless and without real personality. the lore was watery and confusing, and by all accounts simply not present.
there were little sprinkle-sprinkles of backstory but never anything concrete that made sense, like valerie's life before ethan, why they got married, what the FUCK the curse was, how valerie turning into a vampire even works, why valerie looks like ethan's dead sister (because this was referenced SO many times and the book ends what... with ethan holding his dead sister's skull??? why does he have that) like nothing in this book made sense all because the author was far too concerned about writing the most pretentious purple prose garbage. like it's completely possible for authors to use flowery writing and still writing something evocative and compelling and well-written. this book was unfortunately not one of those and i regret reading this. it was a pretentious waste of my fucking time.
Read
February 21, 2024HAPPY RELEASE DAY!!
It has been a long time coming but it’s finally here! Vertigo Peaks is yours! You can read it in e-book format in Kindle Unlimited: mybook.to/VertigoPeaks I’m still waiting for my files to be approved on Ingramspark (once approved, I’ll be able to publish it on Amazon, too.). Just a waiting game at this point.
Welcome to Vertigo Peaks and I hope you enjoy your stay.
It has been a long time coming but it’s finally here! Vertigo Peaks is yours! You can read it in e-book format in Kindle Unlimited: mybook.to/VertigoPeaks I’m still waiting for my files to be approved on Ingramspark (once approved, I’ll be able to publish it on Amazon, too.). Just a waiting game at this point.
Welcome to Vertigo Peaks and I hope you enjoy your stay.
March 10, 2024
DNF @ 48%
I have followed this story for a very long time through tik tok and it was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. but this book was so all over the place i just couldn’t put myself through it any longer. i am so disappointed because i was so excited to read this but it was such a let down.
I have followed this story for a very long time through tik tok and it was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. but this book was so all over the place i just couldn’t put myself through it any longer. i am so disappointed because i was so excited to read this but it was such a let down.
February 21, 2024
2.5 ⭐️ This reads like classic literature and is incredibly poetic. However, I found myself immensely confused from the very begnning. I kept flipping back and rereading passages to find context that I may have missed, but didn't find any.
I think this story is lacking more background... a more solid setting. We are missing details of what caused the townsfolk to be so upset at the beginning, what role the Vertigo family played, how Mircalla came to know Mrs. Harker, what is the supposed curse, and more background on these vampires!
I think this story is lacking more background... a more solid setting. We are missing details of what caused the townsfolk to be so upset at the beginning, what role the Vertigo family played, how Mircalla came to know Mrs. Harker, what is the supposed curse, and more background on these vampires!
April 3, 2024
2.75⭐️
Thank you for the ARC! Can confirm this review is honest and was left by my own free will!
Sapphic vampires? Sign me up. I’ll read the lot.
This book is similar to a dowry of blood in a sense but make it more sapphic and you get Vertigo Peaks.
I’ll be honest a few bits of this book confused me but if I reread it i’d probably enjoy it more and find it less confusing as I was fairly tired when reading it! The writing is beautiful and the way Anja words things is gorgeous. I’m definitely excited for the second instalment, and will 100% read it to find out what happens after the ending of this book.
If you’re into sapphic historical vampires, then this is your kinda book!
“If I could, I would tear this flesh apart and crawl into you.”
“…where I begin. And I end with you. You, you, my darling Valerie.”
❤️
Thank you for the ARC! Can confirm this review is honest and was left by my own free will!
Sapphic vampires? Sign me up. I’ll read the lot.
This book is similar to a dowry of blood in a sense but make it more sapphic and you get Vertigo Peaks.
I’ll be honest a few bits of this book confused me but if I reread it i’d probably enjoy it more and find it less confusing as I was fairly tired when reading it! The writing is beautiful and the way Anja words things is gorgeous. I’m definitely excited for the second instalment, and will 100% read it to find out what happens after the ending of this book.
If you’re into sapphic historical vampires, then this is your kinda book!
“If I could, I would tear this flesh apart and crawl into you.”
“…where I begin. And I end with you. You, you, my darling Valerie.”
❤️
March 4, 2024
After waiting for this release since early last year I so desperately wanted to love this book, but unfortunately I didn’t.
I’m left confused about so much, what curse, why did Valerie so desperately want the townspeople to like her and so on. Large portions of the story felt rushed and I didn’t completely believe the love between Valerie and Mircalla.
With that said, the language is beautiful and the dialogue between the women is fantastic. And the portrayal and interpretation of Mircalla I did enjoy, but that alone can’t carry an entire story.
I’m left confused about so much, what curse, why did Valerie so desperately want the townspeople to like her and so on. Large portions of the story felt rushed and I didn’t completely believe the love between Valerie and Mircalla.
With that said, the language is beautiful and the dialogue between the women is fantastic. And the portrayal and interpretation of Mircalla I did enjoy, but that alone can’t carry an entire story.
July 23, 2024
At first I thought the writing was groundbreaking and I was just too stupid to keep up with it
But reading more I realised it was just very convoluted.
There are a lot of dramatic dialogues and confessions at several points but not enough has happened to warrant the dramatic dialogue so it doesn’t hit the same. I appreciate the dramatic dialogue. I applaud the dramatic dialogue. I am not one to shy away from a dramatic dialogue. But some drama needs to happen for the dramatic dialogue to take place.
This also results in a lot of ‘tell’ instead of ‘show’ and if there is ‘show’ it is written so confusingly you have absolutely no idea what has happened till someone talks about it.
Also the scene shifts in this book are jarring and baffling. Sometimes I didn’t know if the characters were dreaming or it was actually taking place. A major incident would take place after a cute little tea party then it would never be talked about in the book ever again making you wonder if you just imagined said incident or if it was a fever dream or something.
Either I’m too stupid for the writing of this book or it just sometimes read like an English student who sort of like swallowed a thesaurus one day before the exam and during the exam the kid has got to write an essay and is just vomiting out the biggest, shiniest, properest, words they remember from the thesaurus.
And the characters were not fleshed out enough for me to root for them. At no point did I care for Valerie’s safety or happiness. Because of this I cared little and less about the central relationship that got me to pick up this book in the first place.
It is my personal fault that I went into this knowing it’ll be gory. I thought I could handle it. I couldn’t. That’s my own thing. I don’t fault the book for it. I only mention it because it did ruin some of the happy reading experience.
Still, I went through with the whole book and I don’t see enough of women in gory, fantasy ish fiction like this all the other wlw books I’ve ever read before are contemporary so in that sense it was a nice new experience for me.
And I know I said the writing was convoluted but I found myself enjoying the dramatic nature of it anyway sometimes so I didn’t hate it per se.
But reading more I realised it was just very convoluted.
There are a lot of dramatic dialogues and confessions at several points but not enough has happened to warrant the dramatic dialogue so it doesn’t hit the same. I appreciate the dramatic dialogue. I applaud the dramatic dialogue. I am not one to shy away from a dramatic dialogue. But some drama needs to happen for the dramatic dialogue to take place.
This also results in a lot of ‘tell’ instead of ‘show’ and if there is ‘show’ it is written so confusingly you have absolutely no idea what has happened till someone talks about it.
Also the scene shifts in this book are jarring and baffling. Sometimes I didn’t know if the characters were dreaming or it was actually taking place. A major incident would take place after a cute little tea party then it would never be talked about in the book ever again making you wonder if you just imagined said incident or if it was a fever dream or something.
Either I’m too stupid for the writing of this book or it just sometimes read like an English student who sort of like swallowed a thesaurus one day before the exam and during the exam the kid has got to write an essay and is just vomiting out the biggest, shiniest, properest, words they remember from the thesaurus.
And the characters were not fleshed out enough for me to root for them. At no point did I care for Valerie’s safety or happiness. Because of this I cared little and less about the central relationship that got me to pick up this book in the first place.
It is my personal fault that I went into this knowing it’ll be gory. I thought I could handle it. I couldn’t. That’s my own thing. I don’t fault the book for it. I only mention it because it did ruin some of the happy reading experience.
Still, I went through with the whole book and I don’t see enough of women in gory, fantasy ish fiction like this all the other wlw books I’ve ever read before are contemporary so in that sense it was a nice new experience for me.
And I know I said the writing was convoluted but I found myself enjoying the dramatic nature of it anyway sometimes so I didn’t hate it per se.
February 20, 2024
I’ve been following this author on social media for a while now in anticipation of this release. “Carmilla”, the original text in which this book is inspired, is one of my favorite classic gothic horror stories. When I found this author on social media and saw Vertigo Peaks as a sapphic retelling of the classic story, I was very excited to get my hands on it. I am grateful to have been selected to be an ARC reader for this story and it was well worth the wait.
The author wrote this story with a similar tone and similar prose to the original but authentic to the author’s voice. Her descriptions and world-building are poetic and understandable. In Anja’s story, we get a sharper look at Mircalla, our female main character’s love interest, which readers do not get in the original story. We also get a deep dive into Valerie our main character’s psyche as she navigates high society, a loveless marriage, and grapples with the questions of ‘Who am I? Who can I be?’. Another stand out for this story is that the reader finally gets to see the sexual tension between the two main characters progress and develop into full blown love which you do not get in the original story. The author’s creativity and originality shines in her reimagining of this classic and beautiful story.
The romance between our two main characters is not cliche and is accompanied by descriptions of the dark nature of Valerie and Mircalla’s intimacy. Many times their physical and sexual interactions involve blood shed and body horror, written simultaneously with tender prose about falling in love and the insatiable infatuation Valerie feels for Mrs. Karnstein.
I give this book a 3.8/5 and I truly enjoyed the story. It’s an atmospheric, creepy, poetic, short read and definitely worth downloading on to your Kindle. The prose can be a little heavy sometimes which was slightly distracting from the plot and or character development during pivotal character moments. However, it is clear this author has talent and can successfully blend her poetic talent with effective story telling. I am looking forward to whatever Dion Anja has in store next!
The author wrote this story with a similar tone and similar prose to the original but authentic to the author’s voice. Her descriptions and world-building are poetic and understandable. In Anja’s story, we get a sharper look at Mircalla, our female main character’s love interest, which readers do not get in the original story. We also get a deep dive into Valerie our main character’s psyche as she navigates high society, a loveless marriage, and grapples with the questions of ‘Who am I? Who can I be?’. Another stand out for this story is that the reader finally gets to see the sexual tension between the two main characters progress and develop into full blown love which you do not get in the original story. The author’s creativity and originality shines in her reimagining of this classic and beautiful story.
The romance between our two main characters is not cliche and is accompanied by descriptions of the dark nature of Valerie and Mircalla’s intimacy. Many times their physical and sexual interactions involve blood shed and body horror, written simultaneously with tender prose about falling in love and the insatiable infatuation Valerie feels for Mrs. Karnstein.
I give this book a 3.8/5 and I truly enjoyed the story. It’s an atmospheric, creepy, poetic, short read and definitely worth downloading on to your Kindle. The prose can be a little heavy sometimes which was slightly distracting from the plot and or character development during pivotal character moments. However, it is clear this author has talent and can successfully blend her poetic talent with effective story telling. I am looking forward to whatever Dion Anja has in store next!
February 26, 2024
➼ 3.25 stars
“𝙆𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨, 𝙈𝙞𝙧𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙖. 𝙄𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙨𝙠𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙯𝙚. 𝙄𝙛 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙚. 𝙄’𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙬𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”
Thank you to the author for this eARC!
Vertigo Peaks was a beautifully written, equal parts grotesque and wonderful gothic tale with a rotting mansion, sapphic love and vampires. It has an eerie omnipresent feeling throughout the book. Valerie, our main character, is often alienated from the town and feels lonely. Enter Mircalla, the vampire who makes Valerie feel seen.
The romance was beautiful and poetic and riveting. I just wish they had more of a chemistry build up before confessing their love to each other. You could say this is more of a 'insta-love' romance. But it doesn't take the charm away from it so I'd say it was well written.
Coming to the whole town mystery, there were many questions left answered and I also had hoped that there was a little more background to the whole vampire thing. The world building was little to zero and that made it kind of confusing to understand what was going on, a few times.
Overall the book was a good start to the duology and I will be reading the next book, hoping some of the questions get answered. (Also after that CRAZY ending, how could I not.)
I received an ARC of this book for free and am leaving this review voluntarily.
“𝙆𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨, 𝙈𝙞𝙧𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙖. 𝙄𝙣 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙨𝙩. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙖 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙨𝙠𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙞𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙤 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙯𝙚. 𝙄𝙛 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙚. 𝙄’𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙬𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪.”
Thank you to the author for this eARC!
Vertigo Peaks was a beautifully written, equal parts grotesque and wonderful gothic tale with a rotting mansion, sapphic love and vampires. It has an eerie omnipresent feeling throughout the book. Valerie, our main character, is often alienated from the town and feels lonely. Enter Mircalla, the vampire who makes Valerie feel seen.
The romance was beautiful and poetic and riveting. I just wish they had more of a chemistry build up before confessing their love to each other. You could say this is more of a 'insta-love' romance. But it doesn't take the charm away from it so I'd say it was well written.
Coming to the whole town mystery, there were many questions left answered and I also had hoped that there was a little more background to the whole vampire thing. The world building was little to zero and that made it kind of confusing to understand what was going on, a few times.
Overall the book was a good start to the duology and I will be reading the next book, hoping some of the questions get answered. (Also after that CRAZY ending, how could I not.)
I received an ARC of this book for free and am leaving this review voluntarily.
February 18, 2024
Thank you to the author for this arc!! Vertigo Peaks is a Carmilla retelling that instantly had me hooked. The writing style paints a detailed picture and the characters will have you in a chokehold! Mircalla is such a deeply romantic and well-written character, that you can easily feel the love she has for Valerie. “When I look at you, I am only reminded of how I would risk everything to lay beside you so you may never go cold,” I’m losing my mindd
Moving forward I would love to see more of the vampires’ side of things as well as an expansion of the world-building. But I can’t wait for this series to continue.
If you’re a fan of Le Fanu’s novel Carmilla or even the web series I definitely recommend picking up this book
Moving forward I would love to see more of the vampires’ side of things as well as an expansion of the world-building. But I can’t wait for this series to continue.
If you’re a fan of Le Fanu’s novel Carmilla or even the web series I definitely recommend picking up this book
March 4, 2024
I finished this book a few days before publication thanks to having lucky enough to receive an Advance Reading Copy, and as I was about to write this review, life got crazy and I totally forgot.
Vertigo Peaks has an excellent setting, it easily takes you into this gothic and dark town, frozen in winter, but keeps you on your toes thanks to the mystery of the story.
It fulfills the promise of making justice to Camilla's love story. Thank Dion. With interesting characters, complex and enigmatic to carry you to the story.
An ideal read for a winter afternoon reading marathon. It's what I did, only during summer.
Vertigo Peaks has an excellent setting, it easily takes you into this gothic and dark town, frozen in winter, but keeps you on your toes thanks to the mystery of the story.
It fulfills the promise of making justice to Camilla's love story. Thank Dion. With interesting characters, complex and enigmatic to carry you to the story.
An ideal read for a winter afternoon reading marathon. It's what I did, only during summer.
April 7, 2025
This story is supposed to be a retelling of the Carmilla story. Although it seems to mix characters from that story and from Bram Stoker's Dracula.
It's a messy chaotic prose, but not much more. I had a hard time getting through this one. I almost DNF a few times. I had to force my way through to the end.
There are many plot holes, unexplained thoughts, and sometimes a chapter starts with new progress not previously addressed.
I love vampires and will read pretty much anything, but I was let down here. I can't recommend this tale.
It's a messy chaotic prose, but not much more. I had a hard time getting through this one. I almost DNF a few times. I had to force my way through to the end.
There are many plot holes, unexplained thoughts, and sometimes a chapter starts with new progress not previously addressed.
I love vampires and will read pretty much anything, but I was let down here. I can't recommend this tale.
February 26, 2024
3.5? possibly 4?
this was giving rebecca meets carmilla and i enjoyed it
the first few chapters, especially when describing vertigo peaks reminded me so much of manderley and just the character valerie gave me the second mrs. de winter vibes. the book itself was good. i’m a slut for sapphic vampires. the beginning felt a bit rushed. then the transition from the life valerie is getting into to when she was exposed to the vampire was very messy? i will be so honest with you, i was confused for a while, the writing is very poetic and was giving very much classic books. i still ate this up, i’m a slut for sapphic vampires sooooo
i received an arc from the author and am leaving this review voluntarily
this was giving rebecca meets carmilla and i enjoyed it
the first few chapters, especially when describing vertigo peaks reminded me so much of manderley and just the character valerie gave me the second mrs. de winter vibes. the book itself was good. i’m a slut for sapphic vampires. the beginning felt a bit rushed. then the transition from the life valerie is getting into to when she was exposed to the vampire was very messy? i will be so honest with you, i was confused for a while, the writing is very poetic and was giving very much classic books. i still ate this up, i’m a slut for sapphic vampires sooooo
i received an arc from the author and am leaving this review voluntarily
June 30, 2024
Finally, I've reached the fifty percent mark! 50% seems like a comfortable place to give up on a book. I found the writing style to be painfully unimpressive and in desperate need of revisions. I felt like I was reading a rough draft throughout this entire experience. It doesn't help that I've been generally uninterested in reading lately. Of course, I could be missing out on some stellar, groundbreaking second half, but frankly I have no reason to believe that that is at all likely. I also started reading Rebecca [relatively] recently, and since these two titles have similar themes, this book, in my mind, will forever live in Rebecca's shadow. The plot is intriguing enough, though the execution has turned it lackluster. The author advertised this book well, so I was really looking forward to reading it. I feel a bit let down. Oh, well. On a positive note: gothic atmosphere and lesbian vampires!
DNF 50%
DNF 50%
December 16, 2024
I enjoyed the story. However, I always felt like I wanted more from it. The novel circles around a family with a history that runs deep but is never fully explored, characters with the possibility to have much more personality. There is a lot of potential from this story, but it creates a surface level story, that while is enjoyable, is ultimately a basic Gothic vampire novel. It is good for what it is, a short novel that can be read quickly and enjoyed but lacks the longevity and depth I believe it is trying to achieve.
June 2, 2024
Non entendín como o 20% deste libro, pero no outro 80% estaba LIVING.
June 24, 2024
I could not finish this not matter how badly I wanted to💔 it read way too much like a bad Wattpad original for me, skipping around a lot, I couldn't follow what was going on.
March 25, 2024
This felt really unfinished to me. There were definitely parts I enjoyed, however the writing felt so heavily focused on pretty prose that the story itself was lost. I felt confused from page 1 & after finishing the book I still don’t really understand what happened.
There is potential here & many of the ideas were intriguing but were just never really followed up on. I’m left with so many questions.
What even was the curse? Who was Mircalla and what’s her story? Why was Valerie the spitting image of Ethan’s sister? Did she really eat his finger or was that a dream?
Why did the house catch on fire?
Who were the vampires?
Why did the townspeople hate Valerie?
I constantly felt like the characters must know something I didn’t, & sometimes the change between chapters was so jarring I wondered if pages of the ebook were missing.
Would love to read a more fleshed out version of this story!
There is potential here & many of the ideas were intriguing but were just never really followed up on. I’m left with so many questions.
What even was the curse? Who was Mircalla and what’s her story? Why was Valerie the spitting image of Ethan’s sister? Did she really eat his finger or was that a dream?
Why did the house catch on fire?
Who were the vampires?
Why did the townspeople hate Valerie?
I constantly felt like the characters must know something I didn’t, & sometimes the change between chapters was so jarring I wondered if pages of the ebook were missing.
Would love to read a more fleshed out version of this story!
March 9, 2024
I read this book some weeks ago and have only gotten around to writing this review now, but better late than never.
First things first. For some context, I had been anticipating this book for months on end (truth be told, I did lose track of it but the promo clips somehow found their way back onto my FYP) and was just over the moon when I got my hands on my pre-ordered kindle copy. Now, to the matter at hand. The book did not disappoint. I had already read a sneak-peek of it on the author's instagram highlights and had already gotten a sense of the prose and the tone of the novel, so I definitely knew what I was going into.
As far as the prose is concerned, I was thoroughly impressed and taken by the author's writing style. It really shows that she is a poet at heart and that she was truly in her element. You can tell she knows her stuff and that she is an inborn wordsmith, which really hits the mark for me, but this might just be a personal preference. Then again, the prose did ocassionally get somewhat dense and English being my second language, I had to retrace my steps and ensure I had not missed anything thus far. For one, I was left a bit in the dark about the origins of the curse, what it actually entails in the short and long run and would have appreciated this book to shed light on the assasination of a certain character. Athough this foible did not ruin my reading experience, as I was decidedly more focused on the main characters' romance, I would love for these loose ends to be tied up in the second book.
This is not to say that the worldbuilding took a backseat to the romance. Despite the blooming relationship being foregrounded, I could easily picture the Vertigo manor and I absolutely loved the descriptions and the inner monologue/stream of consciousness of Valerie. Her being a troubled, estranged wife to a mysterious, brooding husband adds to the charm and the ominous quality of the genre. In all honesty, though, his character did not feel entirely fleshed-out, so I'm hoping to get a glimpse into his intentions or at least his "villain origin story". The same thing could be said about Valerie's background. Athough we did get some broad strokes of her childhood and how their nuptials came to be, these flash-backs were introduced in a disjointed manner. Matter of fact, I am a fan of this type of narrative structure, but I was still hard-pressed to follow the chronology at all times and was left wanting for Ethan's backstory to be rounded off. That being said, it is safe to say that Valerie's main motives and moral compass are soundly established and consolidated.
Now for the hot ticket, how did I feel about Mircalla's character. In the final analysis, I was enthralled by her vehemence. She's a hopeless romantic and feels things viscerally, which seamlessly meshes with the overall tone of the book: feverish, urgent and angsty. I guess that's par for the course when it comes to vampire flicks, doesn't it? However, as thrilled and mesmerized as I was by her and although she did feel comparatively more polished than her original counterpart, the introduction of their romantic relationship blindsided me. It's not that I had not caught on to the tension (which, trust me, was torturously delicious), but as a slow-burn enthusiast I was expecting for an extended tentative friendship and some ebb and flow before the inevitable escalation of their dynamic. Shortly put, despite their feelings for each other ultimately shaping up into love, the early stages of it struck me as blind infatuation. It was not mindless in the slightest and the depth of their feelings did acquire more credibility by the end of the book, BUT I am still looking forward to how their relationship will fare in the second installment of this saga.
Furthermore, in spite of how frustrating it was, I liked that the author adhered to the original source concerning Mircalla's mistifying nature. This iteration of Mircalla still keeps her cards close to her chest, but all the while feels infinitely more human and pedestrian to the primigineous character. She genuinely cares about Valerie and views her as an equal, thus the plausability of their relationship as the story progresses. Valerie does not feel anymore like a disoriented, reckless prey that had foolishly walked into the lion's den but rather like a fellow tormented soul that fortunately finds its soulmate and equal match.
Moreover, Mircalla ackwnoledges her former human life and does not trivialize it nor does she belittle it. She still is mercurial and a bit of a hothead, not unlike the main heroine, which brings on communication issues halfway into the book, but what would be a vampire drama novel without a dash of trials and tribulations? Be that as it may, their relationship is given the importance and validation that the original book fell short of due to its time and it felt amazing for Valerie and Mircalla's love to stand the test of time and not end up as an inconsequential notch on Mircalla's belt. I won't spoil the ending, but they are ENDGAME and that's refreshing enough for this long-standing story in and of itself, so props to the author for that.
Last but not least, I would take heed of the rating and classification of the book. There's a reason why this is a vampire story, so I guess do what you will with that but be warned that it contains graphic, detailed gore and that might prove problematic if that kind of description does not strike your fancy. Having said that, I'm so excited for the second book and chomping at the bit to delve into the fascinating world of vampires!
First things first. For some context, I had been anticipating this book for months on end (truth be told, I did lose track of it but the promo clips somehow found their way back onto my FYP) and was just over the moon when I got my hands on my pre-ordered kindle copy. Now, to the matter at hand. The book did not disappoint. I had already read a sneak-peek of it on the author's instagram highlights and had already gotten a sense of the prose and the tone of the novel, so I definitely knew what I was going into.
As far as the prose is concerned, I was thoroughly impressed and taken by the author's writing style. It really shows that she is a poet at heart and that she was truly in her element. You can tell she knows her stuff and that she is an inborn wordsmith, which really hits the mark for me, but this might just be a personal preference. Then again, the prose did ocassionally get somewhat dense and English being my second language, I had to retrace my steps and ensure I had not missed anything thus far. For one, I was left a bit in the dark about the origins of the curse, what it actually entails in the short and long run and would have appreciated this book to shed light on the assasination of a certain character. Athough this foible did not ruin my reading experience, as I was decidedly more focused on the main characters' romance, I would love for these loose ends to be tied up in the second book.
This is not to say that the worldbuilding took a backseat to the romance. Despite the blooming relationship being foregrounded, I could easily picture the Vertigo manor and I absolutely loved the descriptions and the inner monologue/stream of consciousness of Valerie. Her being a troubled, estranged wife to a mysterious, brooding husband adds to the charm and the ominous quality of the genre. In all honesty, though, his character did not feel entirely fleshed-out, so I'm hoping to get a glimpse into his intentions or at least his "villain origin story". The same thing could be said about Valerie's background. Athough we did get some broad strokes of her childhood and how their nuptials came to be, these flash-backs were introduced in a disjointed manner. Matter of fact, I am a fan of this type of narrative structure, but I was still hard-pressed to follow the chronology at all times and was left wanting for Ethan's backstory to be rounded off. That being said, it is safe to say that Valerie's main motives and moral compass are soundly established and consolidated.
Now for the hot ticket, how did I feel about Mircalla's character. In the final analysis, I was enthralled by her vehemence. She's a hopeless romantic and feels things viscerally, which seamlessly meshes with the overall tone of the book: feverish, urgent and angsty. I guess that's par for the course when it comes to vampire flicks, doesn't it? However, as thrilled and mesmerized as I was by her and although she did feel comparatively more polished than her original counterpart, the introduction of their romantic relationship blindsided me. It's not that I had not caught on to the tension (which, trust me, was torturously delicious), but as a slow-burn enthusiast I was expecting for an extended tentative friendship and some ebb and flow before the inevitable escalation of their dynamic. Shortly put, despite their feelings for each other ultimately shaping up into love, the early stages of it struck me as blind infatuation. It was not mindless in the slightest and the depth of their feelings did acquire more credibility by the end of the book, BUT I am still looking forward to how their relationship will fare in the second installment of this saga.
Furthermore, in spite of how frustrating it was, I liked that the author adhered to the original source concerning Mircalla's mistifying nature. This iteration of Mircalla still keeps her cards close to her chest, but all the while feels infinitely more human and pedestrian to the primigineous character. She genuinely cares about Valerie and views her as an equal, thus the plausability of their relationship as the story progresses. Valerie does not feel anymore like a disoriented, reckless prey that had foolishly walked into the lion's den but rather like a fellow tormented soul that fortunately finds its soulmate and equal match.
Moreover, Mircalla ackwnoledges her former human life and does not trivialize it nor does she belittle it. She still is mercurial and a bit of a hothead, not unlike the main heroine, which brings on communication issues halfway into the book, but what would be a vampire drama novel without a dash of trials and tribulations? Be that as it may, their relationship is given the importance and validation that the original book fell short of due to its time and it felt amazing for Valerie and Mircalla's love to stand the test of time and not end up as an inconsequential notch on Mircalla's belt. I won't spoil the ending, but they are ENDGAME and that's refreshing enough for this long-standing story in and of itself, so props to the author for that.
Last but not least, I would take heed of the rating and classification of the book. There's a reason why this is a vampire story, so I guess do what you will with that but be warned that it contains graphic, detailed gore and that might prove problematic if that kind of description does not strike your fancy. Having said that, I'm so excited for the second book and chomping at the bit to delve into the fascinating world of vampires!
March 7, 2024
I’ve been excitedly waiting for this book for awhile and even marked the release day in my calendar. I was not able to even finish the book. I had no idea what is even happening 75% of the time. Nothing was clearly written, it was more like a confusing fever dream. I also didn’t feel the connection between the two main characters. I really wanted this book the be amazing but it fell well short of that mark.
December 11, 2024
finished this hours ago but whattttt 😭 need to make a review it's soo good
-
She was born in this room, crawled in this room, grew up and bled in this room, and God cut her web of fate with an indifference that grew larger every day.
-
She was born in this room, crawled in this room, grew up and bled in this room, and God cut her web of fate with an indifference that grew larger every day.
May 14, 2024
I was lead to this book by my love of the late 1800’s gothic novella Carmilla. The original piece is pretty short but the unsettling and gloomy atmosphere navigated by the young Laura, who’d later be enraptured by a new friend, was a setting that leaves lovers of the supernatural satiated. I won’t spoil it, but the book’s ending left lovers of the relationship between the new friend and Laura a bit bitter. A year later, I was super excited to have stumbled across Dion Anja’s Instagram page where she was teasing Vertigo Peaks. Anja promised a Carmilla inspired work, and I was elated. I’d always wanted Carmilla to have been expanded upon. But I digress.
From my understanding, Vertigo Peaks is meant to be a standalone work inspired by Carmilla. That said, I think a reader of VP would absolutely benefit from reading CARMILLA to understand VP’s plot structure and important events like the dreams or the ball.
The reason I rated this book a 3/5 is because the book reads like a dream. Some moments are extremely clear AND beautiful, while others seemed to shift too fast or were constructed in a way that resulted in confusion and haziness when trying to follow the order of events.
My favorite component was the relationship between Mircalla and Valerie. It was clear the author spent the most time on their interactions. There was lovely prose between the pair, some of the most beautifully poetic metaphors I’ve seen as well. (If you give this book a read, wait until the desert line-you’ll know what I mean). Additionally, the descriptive prowess of classic gothic literature came to light in VP. Anja’s poetic background translated well when creating a notable atmospheric setting. In short, I found the figurative and descriptive language to be the most elevated and interesting part of VP.
Like other reviewers, I found issues with the order of events and motivations for characters besides Mircalla and Valerie. Even then, the duo did leave me with the occasional “what…?” moments. The most glaring being Mircallas’s vampire origins and Valerie’s miraculously profound speech even though she was a servant to her uncle for most of her life. Other angles of the work like the curse Ethan/the Vertigos suffered and the hatred of the townspeople towards the Vertigos were poorly elucidated. What happened to Ethan’s sister?? Furthermore, the introductory chapters attempted to hook the audience through the villager hatred while not giving away too much, but I think too little was given away. What occurred in the town’s past to make the Vertigos such a beacon for blame, such a scapegoat?
Overall, I see a lot of potential from the writer, particularly in regards to the figurative language, but more work needs to be done when it comes to world building and character motivations. I would implore Carmilla readers to give this book a try if they seek a similar atmosphere but to know it does feel like a first work. And that’s fine! So much potential here! I certainly enjoyed reading it, but I implore the author to have someone help them to revise and clarify in order to make it more polished and professional.
From my understanding, Vertigo Peaks is meant to be a standalone work inspired by Carmilla. That said, I think a reader of VP would absolutely benefit from reading CARMILLA to understand VP’s plot structure and important events like the dreams or the ball.
The reason I rated this book a 3/5 is because the book reads like a dream. Some moments are extremely clear AND beautiful, while others seemed to shift too fast or were constructed in a way that resulted in confusion and haziness when trying to follow the order of events.
My favorite component was the relationship between Mircalla and Valerie. It was clear the author spent the most time on their interactions. There was lovely prose between the pair, some of the most beautifully poetic metaphors I’ve seen as well. (If you give this book a read, wait until the desert line-you’ll know what I mean). Additionally, the descriptive prowess of classic gothic literature came to light in VP. Anja’s poetic background translated well when creating a notable atmospheric setting. In short, I found the figurative and descriptive language to be the most elevated and interesting part of VP.
Like other reviewers, I found issues with the order of events and motivations for characters besides Mircalla and Valerie. Even then, the duo did leave me with the occasional “what…?” moments. The most glaring being Mircallas’s vampire origins and Valerie’s miraculously profound speech even though she was a servant to her uncle for most of her life. Other angles of the work like the curse Ethan/the Vertigos suffered and the hatred of the townspeople towards the Vertigos were poorly elucidated. What happened to Ethan’s sister?? Furthermore, the introductory chapters attempted to hook the audience through the villager hatred while not giving away too much, but I think too little was given away. What occurred in the town’s past to make the Vertigos such a beacon for blame, such a scapegoat?
Overall, I see a lot of potential from the writer, particularly in regards to the figurative language, but more work needs to be done when it comes to world building and character motivations. I would implore Carmilla readers to give this book a try if they seek a similar atmosphere but to know it does feel like a first work. And that’s fine! So much potential here! I certainly enjoyed reading it, but I implore the author to have someone help them to revise and clarify in order to make it more polished and professional.
March 1, 2024
“I don’t have the strength in me to let you go. I can’t control it. I would rip my heart off its birdcage and hand it over to you if it meant we could stay like this forever. How can I ever let you go, my dear Valerie, the heart of my soul when you have given me the world?”
SUMMARY
Valerie vertigo is married to Ethan, and it is not a love match as most during that time so then one-day Mircalla comes to her door in the need of a place to stay,And with Mircalla comes nightmare and wounds she cannot tell anyone about and then a midnight rendezvous and they are hooked to each other.
REVIEW
THE BOOK
It has been so long since I have read a real vampire book like with blood and things. Above all a sapphic book. I loved it. Initially, things were a bit confusing, but as we went, the pieces fell into place. Mircalla is such a romantic. I mean her quotes are some of the best romance quotes I have ever read.
THE WRITING STYLE
The writing style is like the writing style of classic literature. It has fitting and effective word choices.The tone was perfect for the subject of this book. No use of thou, thee etc. I don’t get them, so that was a relief. We did not get the whole vampire background, maybe in the next book.
FAVOURITE QUOTES
“I want to know what she would do if I touched her.”
~Well you have to read to find out.
“You’re lucky I’m good with laces”
~AHHHHHHHHHH
“The more you give, the more they take. You know they will. Why do you torment yourself with these fading things? For they shall wilt.”
“I’ve had my fair share of bliss and damnation though it was not always easy to tell which was which. However, on that day, when you took me in, opened your home and your heart to me, I knew… I knew I would love you”
“What else can I call you but a spark, a beam of light? That's what you are to me. That's when you come to me, in the darkest hour of my night”
~CRIIIIIIIIIIIII
I received an ARC of this book at no cost from the author and am voluntarily leaving a review.
September 6, 2025
2/5
Being a vampire lover, I had high hopes for "Vertigo Peaks", especially when I learned it was going to be a sapphic vampire story inspired by "Carmilla". However, I was disappointed with this book.
I think one of my biggest complaints with this book is that it was almost uncreatively similar to the original story of "Carmilla". While I enjoy "Carmilla", I was expecting more from this book, especially with it being pushed as simply inspired by, rather than a retelling. As a story, it was just so boring because it was so similar to the original and wasn't doing very much to make it unique.
The writing also made this book... hard to enjoy. There were times that it jumped around and left me feeling like I missed something, when in actuality, it had been skipped in the first place. Events also jumped around, with them seemingly coming out of nowhere with little buildup or explanation at times. The biggest example of this in the book is the cannibalism scene with Ethan's finger...? The chapter starts with that actively taking place with no explanation as to how the characters got there, especially when Ethan wasn't present in the previous chapter. It's also never brought up again, and Ethan disappears from the story with no mention or concern from anyone until he shows up at the very end for a specific scene.
"Vertigo Peaks" gets two stars because I do like vampires and appreciate the relationship between Valeria and Mircalla being more developed, but as a whole it was relatively boring and hard to get through.
Being a vampire lover, I had high hopes for "Vertigo Peaks", especially when I learned it was going to be a sapphic vampire story inspired by "Carmilla". However, I was disappointed with this book.
I think one of my biggest complaints with this book is that it was almost uncreatively similar to the original story of "Carmilla". While I enjoy "Carmilla", I was expecting more from this book, especially with it being pushed as simply inspired by, rather than a retelling. As a story, it was just so boring because it was so similar to the original and wasn't doing very much to make it unique.
The writing also made this book... hard to enjoy. There were times that it jumped around and left me feeling like I missed something, when in actuality, it had been skipped in the first place. Events also jumped around, with them seemingly coming out of nowhere with little buildup or explanation at times. The biggest example of this in the book is the cannibalism scene with Ethan's finger...? The chapter starts with that actively taking place with no explanation as to how the characters got there, especially when Ethan wasn't present in the previous chapter. It's also never brought up again, and Ethan disappears from the story with no mention or concern from anyone until he shows up at the very end for a specific scene.
"Vertigo Peaks" gets two stars because I do like vampires and appreciate the relationship between Valeria and Mircalla being more developed, but as a whole it was relatively boring and hard to get through.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews