The seductive reimagining of a Gothic classic—a repressed wife encounters a mysterious woman who awakens her desire in the ‘lesbian vampire novel we need.’ (Them)
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NPR Best Book of the Year • Goodreads Choice Award Finalist • Book Riot Best Book of the Year
It’s the height of the Industrial Revolution, and ten years into Lenore’s marriage to steel magnate Henry, their relationship has soured. When Henry’s ambitions take them from London to the remote British moorlands, a shocking carriage accident brings the mysterious Carmilla into their lives. Carmilla, who is weak and pale during the day but vibrant at night. Carmilla, who stirs something deep within Lenore.
Soon, girls from the local villages fall sick, consumed by a terrible hunger, and Lenore begins to unravel. Torn between regaining her husband’s affection and the cravings Carmilla has awakened, Lenore must confront a darkness that will place her at risk.
This immersive reworking of Carmilla, the queer novella that inspired Dracula, delivers a richly atmospheric look at feminine rage and the desires that feed our hunger.
‘I didn’t like this, I LOVED it.’ —Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Horror
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • NPR Best Book of the Year • Goodreads Choice Award Finalist • Book Riot Best Book of the Year
It’s the height of the Industrial Revolution, and ten years into Lenore’s marriage to steel magnate Henry, their relationship has soured. When Henry’s ambitions take them from London to the remote British moorlands, a shocking carriage accident brings the mysterious Carmilla into their lives. Carmilla, who is weak and pale during the day but vibrant at night. Carmilla, who stirs something deep within Lenore.
Soon, girls from the local villages fall sick, consumed by a terrible hunger, and Lenore begins to unravel. Torn between regaining her husband’s affection and the cravings Carmilla has awakened, Lenore must confront a darkness that will place her at risk.
This immersive reworking of Carmilla, the queer novella that inspired Dracula, delivers a richly atmospheric look at feminine rage and the desires that feed our hunger.
‘I didn’t like this, I LOVED it.’ —Taylor Jenkins Reid
Genre: Horror
Praise for this book
"A dream of a Gothic. Combines all the best of Carmilla and would make Edgar Allan Poe jealous. Reading Kat Dunn is like finding treasure." - Sarah Rees Brennan
"Deliciously dark and atmospheric, Hungerstone throbs with the taste of the forbidden. This is a novel that asks what might happen when we reach for those places inside ourselves previously kept under lock and key. Dunn's Carmilla is as alive and alluring today as Le Fanu's was in 1872." - Emily Critchley
"Hungerstone writhes 'like a box of live snakes,' with the exquisite torment of need. A fever dream of female desire. Kat Dunn brings vital style and a dangerous pulse to queer gothic fiction in this infectious, utterly gorgeous tale of awakening." - Margot Douaihy
"Utterly captivating. A fabulous Gothic feast of a novel which is so gripping I genuinely struggled to put it down. This book has everything-a compulsive plot, fascinating characters, and a world so dark and atmospheric it makes the real one look drab. A book that will upend your expectations of the genre and leave you wanting more." - Elodie Harper
"An intoxicating and vivid take on the gothic novel. Sensual and vicious, Lenore's devastating story of self-discovery, betrayal and power feels like one for the ages." - Hannah Kaner
"A sumptuous delight, Hungerstone combines gothic thrills with a feminist exploration of what it means to become estranged from our desires, and what it might mean if we let ourselves be whole. I feasted on it." - Jessica Moor
"A rich and daring reimagining that brings the beating heart of Carmilla to life again. Hungerstone is a delicious tribute to the inherent horrors of womanhood and the desperate and exquisite vulgarity of desire. This is everything I dream of in a novel." - Ava Reid
"Extraordinary.... A dark, sensuous, gothic story of female appetite, ravenous desire and insatiable rage. A blood-drenched, glittering, jewel of a novel." - Jennifer Saint
"Kat Dunn repaints the classic story of Carmilla in the boldest, bloodiest colors. Hungerstone is decadent, brilliant, triumphant and I devoured it." - Sarah Underwood
"Deliciously dark and atmospheric, Hungerstone throbs with the taste of the forbidden. This is a novel that asks what might happen when we reach for those places inside ourselves previously kept under lock and key. Dunn's Carmilla is as alive and alluring today as Le Fanu's was in 1872." - Emily Critchley
"Hungerstone writhes 'like a box of live snakes,' with the exquisite torment of need. A fever dream of female desire. Kat Dunn brings vital style and a dangerous pulse to queer gothic fiction in this infectious, utterly gorgeous tale of awakening." - Margot Douaihy
"Utterly captivating. A fabulous Gothic feast of a novel which is so gripping I genuinely struggled to put it down. This book has everything-a compulsive plot, fascinating characters, and a world so dark and atmospheric it makes the real one look drab. A book that will upend your expectations of the genre and leave you wanting more." - Elodie Harper
"An intoxicating and vivid take on the gothic novel. Sensual and vicious, Lenore's devastating story of self-discovery, betrayal and power feels like one for the ages." - Hannah Kaner
"A sumptuous delight, Hungerstone combines gothic thrills with a feminist exploration of what it means to become estranged from our desires, and what it might mean if we let ourselves be whole. I feasted on it." - Jessica Moor
"A rich and daring reimagining that brings the beating heart of Carmilla to life again. Hungerstone is a delicious tribute to the inherent horrors of womanhood and the desperate and exquisite vulgarity of desire. This is everything I dream of in a novel." - Ava Reid
"Extraordinary.... A dark, sensuous, gothic story of female appetite, ravenous desire and insatiable rage. A blood-drenched, glittering, jewel of a novel." - Jennifer Saint
"Kat Dunn repaints the classic story of Carmilla in the boldest, bloodiest colors. Hungerstone is decadent, brilliant, triumphant and I devoured it." - Sarah Underwood
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