When I first read Carmilla

In a recent vlog, YouTuber and vampire pasionaria Maven of the Eventide reviewed and read the first part of Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu. I quite enjoyed the video, about a vampire story I often revisit during my reading marathon leading to Halloween. The video also reminded me of the first time I discovered Carmilla and I thought I would share it today. It happened 30 years ago or so, at an age when I could pretty much read everything I wanted without my mother interfering. I had decided to discover the old horro classics, such as Dracula. It was actually shortly after I finished reading Stoker's novel (read here the account of this discovery) that I borrowed Carmilla from the local library. It was not in a translation of In a Glass Darkly, but it had other stories of Le Fanu from the same collection, namely Green Tea and The Familiar. I think I had borrowed at the same time as Dracula., so in the summer of 1990, probably in July. After reading what I still consider THE horror novel of all time, I had fairly low expectations for its predecessor. I quite enjoyed all the same, and was surprised a the amount of homoeroticism and how soft the antagonist appeared to be. The Count was an old man looking terrifying in appearance even when he was amiable, while Carmilla was young and seductive. Le Fanu's story was also more old fashioned, its atmosphere more dreamlike and romantic than Stoker's more modernist take, half of it set in then contemporary England. I had less nightmares than after reading Stoker's famous novel, but I still had a few. I think I will always prefer Dracula (being my first love and all), but Le Fanu's vampiric offspring stands on her own and I still have a few pleasant chills reading it.