With Dracula, The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, some of the most famously recognized horror stories of the nineteenth century have been created, yet only few people seem to know this little story which may have been the ultimate inspiration for Bram Stoker to write his popular novel Dracula. Carmilla is an early vampire story, laying the foundation of a genre which would see many other vampire tales in the upcoming years, until the development recently culminated in the seemingly perfect picture of the attractive, charming and oh so sexy vampire. Le Fanu's tale, only 100 pages long and perfect to read as a two-hour-long distraction during a Sunday afternoon, may seem unoriginal and inferior compared to the huge stories listed in the beginning ... but looking closer at this, it might be easier to realize that "Carmilla" is much more than that. 
 Set in a gothic atmosphere surrounding the Austrian castle home of the first-person narrator, eighteen-year-old Laura, and her father, Carmilla tells the story of a young lady who comes to visit them under mysterious circumstances, with death and nightmares falling over the inhabitants of the castle and the vicinity soon. Not only does this premise introduce an interesting development - seldomly could it have been possible to find a female character in such astonishing circumstances in the 19th century - but also does the author prove himself to be far ahead of his time, including several homosexual allusions and thus being one of the first authors of his time to do so. Most of the events in this novel are implied rather than accurately explained, which strengthens the chilling atmosphere and makes up for a thrilling reading experience. 
 Le Fanu's writing is anything but tiresome. While the gothic influence can easily be recognized in the novel, it feels like the writing could also have originated in modern days. Slowly does the horror creep inside the pages, and short chapters as well as fast-paced scenes help the reader to hasten through those pages. Apart from the dumb and rather annoying protagonist and the casual, perhaps even lazy characterization, Carmilla is a fascinating tale which should be read by everyone interested in the gothic horror genre and, generally, by horror readers.