Carmilla

by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, J Sheridan Le Fanu, Jamieson Ridenhour

Overview

Carmilla (1872) is a novella by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. Published twenty-six years before Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Le Fanu’s work of Gothic horror and mystery is considered an important early entry in the genre of vampire fiction.

Recorded in the casebook of Dr. Hesselius, a medical professional with a detective’s sensibility, is the story of Laura, a teenager bearing a strange secret. Raised in a castle by her father, a widower who recently concluded his career in service to the Austrian Empire, Laura has been haunted since her youth, when she was visited at night by a beautiful, spectral woman. Now eighteen, she awaits the visit of Bertha Rheinfelt, a niece of her father’s friend. When Bertha dies mysteriously, however, and when a girl named Carmilla is brought to the castle under strange circumstances, Laura fears that the past has come full circle. But she soon overcomes her mournful state, growing close with Carmilla. But the girl’s behavior soon proves unsettling. Carmilla is prone to sleepwalking, sleeps through the day, declines to participate in prayers, and makes romantic overtures to Laura. She begins to be haunted by strange and violent dreams, waking one night to discover Carmilla at the foot of her bed, and bite marks along her neck. Her father intervenes, taking her to a local village. On the way, they meet Bertha’s uncle, who shares the chilling details of her fate. It becomes clear that Carmilla, whoever she is, is far from the innocent young girl she claims to be.

With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla is a classic of Irish literature reimagined for modern readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781934555644
Publisher:	Valancourt Books
Publication date:	03/09/2009
Series:	Valancourt Classics
Edition description:	Revised ed.
Pages:	196
Sales rank:	140,451
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.49(d)

About the Author

Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu (1814-1873) was an Irish writer of Gothic horror. Born in Dublin, Le Fanu was raised in a literary family. His mother, a biographer, and his father, a clergyman, encouraged his intellectual development from a young age. He began writing poetry at fifteen and went on to excel at Trinity College, Dublin, where he studied law and served as Auditor of the College Historical Society. In 1838, shortly before he was called to the bar, he began contributing ghost stories to Dublin UniversityMagazine, of which he later became editor and proprietor. He embarked on a career as a writer and journalist, using his role at the magazine as a means of publishing his own fictional work. Le Fanu made a name for himself as a pioneer of mystery and Gothic horror with such novels as The House by the Churchyard (1863) and Uncle Silas (1864). Carmilla (1872), a novella, is considered an early work of vampire fiction and an important influence for Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897).

Editorial Reviews

HGenerally acknowledged as a major influence on Bram Stoker's Dracula, this novel, originally published in 1872, is the very first vampire thriller. Le Fanu, often compared to Poe, was a Victorian writer whose tales of the occult have inspired horror writers for more than a century. Seemingly by happenstance, the mysterious and beautiful Carmilla comes to stay with the young and virtuous Laura. Laura, who has been living a lonely existence with her father in an isolated castle, finds herself enchanted with her exotic visitor. As the two become close friends, however, Laura dreams of nocturnal visitations and begins to lose her physical strength. Through much investigation, the gruesome truth about Carmilla and her family is revealed. Though the basic premise of the story, that of evil targeting pure innocence, is familiar to anyone who is vampire savvy, this haunting tale is surprisingly fresh, avoids clich and builds well to its climax. Particularly interesting are the sexual overtones that develop between the two women. Follows's reading is flawless. In particular, her ability to capture Laura's na vet so convincingly will have listeners feeling almost as shocked as Laura as the unwholesome truth unravels. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly