Carmilla by Kim Turrisi

Carmilla by Kim Turrisi (Adapted by)

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is exactly what I had expected: a novelization of season 1 of the Carmilla web series. The series is simple, low budget, and charming in its own way.

Sadly this charm did not translate well in book form. The writing was very amateur and bland and I would not have found much to like about this had I not seen the series first. There was very little in this book that developed the characters, which are the most important aspect of this story.

I can honestly say I did not expect much from the book, but I think it just needed more.

Full Review with Spoilers

Most movie novelizations are mediocre at best and I honestly did go into this book with the same expectations. It’s a little sad that this book only covers the events through season 1. I do feel I might have had a slightly better appreciation for the book if there was more content. This book also misses out on the opportunity to dig a little bit deeper into the story and characters. The characters are the center of the series andwe didn’t get to truly know them at all in depth.

The writing was flat and felt very one dimensional. The only thing I felt was given more attention than the show provided was Laura’s crush on Danny, which actually got a little too repetitive at times. Despite Laura’s constant swooning over Danny, the writing didn’t really give us any good reason as to why. Laura’s crush on Danny, then suddenly being smitten with Carmilla felt totally out of the blue and just there to be there. None of the developing feelings really got any attention.

The web series definitely had its issues, but you go into it knowing that. It’s low budget, fairly amateur and incredibly short, but it has a charm you can’t help but love. This translates very poorly in this book. It loses all it’s charm and just feels awkward at best.

Had this story been given more attention with a higher level of writing I feel it could have been a worthy read. Bonus if it could have covered more than a single series, giving it real substance. I can safely say: watch the show and skip the book. You get nothing of value from it you don’t get from the series.