Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

I screamed when I saw I received this ARC. This is one of my most highly anticipated reads for 2025. I loved the original Carmilla and this felt like not just a retelling of Carmilla but an extension of the original story.

My few gripes were that pacing issues made some parts feel underwhelming and that other than Lenore, most of the characters were somewhat one-dimensional, including Carmilla.

Other than those two issues, god I needed another gothic sapphic vampire story. The atmosphere was unbelievable well maintained, the stuffiness of Lenore's life felt pervasive throughout. Dunn did a fantastic job with description, and her prose was so beautiful. I know that it can come off as overly contrived sometimes (cough cough Rachel Harrison) but I think the feminist, female rage aspect felt well done and came across wonderfully. I loved hunger as a metaphor for desire, desire for a life outside of her husband, desire for another woman, it was just 10/10 well done. I felt tense and unsettled throughout the story and I will be buying the physical copy for my collection once it's released.