I was able to read an arc of this and I really enjoyed the development of the main character throughout the narrative. The setting recalls desolate moors like those in Wuthering Heights or Crimson Peak. The pace is slow but encourages the reader onwards with sizzling sapphic scenes and suspense. Without spoiling too much, this is a novel that begins and ends with blood- a true femme rage tale which leaves one hungry for more!

I'm a huge fan of any time people remember that Carmilla exists and predates Dracula. Wasn't quite expecting the turn here of "Carmilla comes to empower a woman who is in a marriage that's killing her, literally and figuratively" and how it rolls right into a revenge tale towards the end, but honestly, it's well deserved. Gothic, and I believe this is the author's adult debut, and it was a great time. Definitely worth a read this spring.

I LOVE FEMALE RAGE!! This book was so hard to put down, I love that it is a Carmilla "retelling" that could be almost a sequel to the original. Seeing Lenore's walls crumble as she comes to all of these different realizations was such a feast to read, I only wish that her revenge had been drawn out longer, I wanted to see him squirm (and I wish we could've seen just a little more of Lenore's life after she found her freedom).

Gay vampires! Who would have thunk it. I liked this one but maybe I am not as interested in vampires as I used to be because this one didn’t quite do it for me.

I really enjoyed this book! It was slower paced but I loved the setting and the way the story was told. It was atmospheric and the characters were complicated and I enjoyed watching the story unfold.

So first of I am so so grateful for the opportunity to read and review this book. I haven’t finished it as I very recently lost my last biological grandparent so I’m having a rough time. I was reading the book when I got the news so I plan to buy the book maybe in a few months and read it that way. But I wanted to share my initial thoughts on it because the bit I read was brilliant!
I love the descriptions. Right off the bat it is gothic and dark and so so atmospheric. The beginning is very gripping and I honestly think other than the awful thing that did happen nothing could have stopped me reading it. I think that everyone should want to read this book, especially if they are looking for that sort of story. Thank you again so much for approving me for the ARC and I am so so sorry that this happened and I was unable to finish it. I do hope I get another opportunity to read other books from you guys in the future💜

"Hungerstone" is, ostensibly, a very well-researched and painstakingly crafted novel, that unfortunately amounts to very little. Yes, the clothing and the cuisine described are era-appropriate, but they only make the novel tedious, at times even dull.

By contrast, the characters seem to have been afforded less thought - the husband is a painfully one-dimensional caricature of a robber baron; the Carmilla of Dunn is nowhere near as eloquent as Le Fanu's, oftentimes she is simply rude to the point you can't understand how anyone could find her alluring; the protagonist, Lenore, flounders through the pages, puppeteered, at different times, by her husband and then by Carmilla. She psychoanalyzes herself like a modern woman, unequivocally finding the roots of her problems in her traumatic childhood, and yet does nothing with that insight until Carmilla prods her into action.

There is a lot of telling instead of showing, a lot of unambiguous hammering of the author's ideas that makes for a mostly unpleasant reading experience - the reader is not allowed to draw their own conclusions at any point, everything is conveniently spelled out on the page.

In short, "Hungerstone", much like "Our Hideous Progeny", is a lukewarm (at best) retelling of a much more competent, enticing, exciting novel, interspersed with poorly planted 21st century feminism, that ends up being a mind-numbingly tedious experience. I can recognize the effort that went into this work, but just because something takes a lot of time and research, doesn't mean it's good.

I love feminine rage!!!!! Lenore is in a marriage of convenience with Henry. He provides the money and she was supposed to elevate him in society and give him a son. Ten years on and their relationship has become tense after Lenore is still childless and Henry's work is beginning to fail as he mistreats his workers during the industrial revolution. There is a carriage accident near their remote home and they welcome the mysterious Carmilla into their life. Carmilla who is weak and pale during the day but vibrant at night; Carmilla who stirs up a hunger deep within Lenore. Soon girls from local villages begin to fall sick before being consumed by a bloody hunger. Vampires, desire, rage. Carmilla opens Lenore's eyes to her desires and makes her see the mistreatment she's experience at her husband's hands.

4.5 stars!!!

I really really enjoyed this! Gothic horror just ~works~ for me and this was no different. The setting was beautiful and I became so unexpectedly attached to the main character, to the point that I needed to read the ending monologue aloud to my partner because I was just yelling "YEAH THAT'S RIGHT!". I don't want to say this book falls into the "Unwell Women" trope because she's not really unwell, just a woman that is a product of her time in history and her environment, but I will say that I support women's rights and women's wrongs. I think that it takes a talented writer to craft a character so well that I agree with her in her opinions and her feelings towards other characters, and I think Kat Dunn did an amazing job with that. I loved the characters when Lenore did, and I hated characters when Lenore did. While the ending didn't go quite where I wanted it to, I was completely invested through the entire book. I'm so excited to read more from this author!

Hungerstone is a sapphic romance. The vibe of the book is definitely dark and seductive. If you are looking for a Carmilla retelling, look no further. The book is filled with female rage, secrets, blood, desire and hunger. This follows the odyssey of Lenore. Being in a loveless marriage isn’t easy. As soon as Carmilla enters Lenore’s life. It changes unexpectedly and awakens an unexpected desire. But the unexpected happens and reveals dark secrets. The ending was unpredictable. Thanks to the Publisher and Author.

Wow, I loved this WAY more than I thought I would! Kat Dunn’s retelling of Carmilla adds so much depth to the classic story. Hungerstone is so atmospheric and suspenseful. I was on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what happens next. Kat Dunn is so good at making you really hate/love characters and was so happy with the ending. The story can be pretty slow, but it is so worth it!

Dear Author,

I had not read Carmilla, but after reading this horrifically lovely tale I am about to take a bite out of it. Well done, I thoroughly enjoyed the entire book!

Sincerely,

J.D. McCoughtry

Thank you, NetGalley and Zando for this e-ARC.

DNF at page 245: I just couldn't take the whinging anymore. The prose was too purple. I was really looking forward to this one and am very disappointed.

My immediate thoughts after finishing Hungerstone were that it's a perfectly strange mix of Carmilla (its predecessor), Promising Young Woman, and a touch of Gone Girl. Essentially, it's a focus on a woman going a little insane, but one with every right to do so.

I read Carmilla last fall and was enraptured by the story and the characters even with minimal development. Attempting a retelling on a story that has been so influential on literature must have been daunting and is always risky, even just from my point of view as the reader. Kat Dunn blew my expectations out of the water by taking Carmilla and adding layers upon layers of plot and character development.

Expect Hungerstone to sick its teeth into you within the first few lines and not let go. You will be starved for more of Kat Dunn's prose and the addictive nature of watching a woman slowly gain control over her life when everyone around her is holding her back.

Thank you to NetGalley and Zando for the Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have read several of Kat Dunn's books before and I love how she blends whimsy and romance, and this book is no exception. Hungerstone is a beautifully written story.

Hungerstone by Kat Dunn is a dark and atmospheric tale that masterfully reimagines the classic lesbian vampire trope while exploring themes of desire, secrecy, and the sinister forces lurking beneath the surface of a seemingly perfect marriage. Set against the backdrop of the Industrial Revolution, this gothic novel combines haunting romance with biting social commentary, creating a story that is as alluring as it is unsettling.

The story follows Lenore, a woman trapped in a stagnant marriage with her ambitious husband, Henry. Ten years into their union, they have failed to conceive a child, and the emotional distance between them grows with each passing day. When Henry takes them out of London to the imposing Nethershaw manor in the countryside, his intentions to host a hunt add to Lenore’s frustrations. But there’s more at stake than just a hunting trip—Lenore is haunted by a terrible secret tied to her husband's last hunting expedition, a dark event that continues to cast a shadow over their marriage.

The arrival of Carmilla, a mysterious and pale woman who survives a carriage accident near their home, becomes the catalyst for Lenore’s unraveling. Carmilla’s strange behaviors—her aversion to daylight, her reluctance to eat with the family, and an undeniable magnetic presence—stir a deep, unfamiliar hunger in Lenore, one that threatens to consume her. The forbidden attraction between the two women intensifies as Lenore grapples with her emotions and desires, torn between rekindling her marriage with Henry and succumbing to the pull of Carmilla’s allure.

Dunn’s writing excels in its ability to weave gothic atmosphere with psychological depth. The manor itself feels like a character, its imposing presence mirroring the emotional walls between Lenore and Henry, while also serving as the perfect setting for the mysterious and seductive elements that unravel in the story. The author’s exploration of desire—both the kind that is suppressed and the kind that is awakened—is handled with nuance, making Lenore’s inner conflict palpable and compelling.

At its heart, Hungerstone is about more than just vampirism or forbidden love; it’s about power dynamics, repressed desires, and the consequences of a life led by societal expectations. The tension between Lenore's personal longing and her role as a wife in a patriarchal society adds layers to the narrative, making it not just a tale of supernatural hunger but also of emotional and psychological need.

Carmilla, the enigmatic figure at the center of Lenore's awakening, is both a symbol of liberation and destruction. Her presence forces Lenore to confront not only her hidden desires but also the darkness in her own life, one that is tied to family secrets and the oppressive weight of her past.

Hungerstone is a mesmerizing reclamation of a well-worn trope, bringing fresh complexity to the vampire genre while delving into themes of forbidden love, societal constraints, and personal redemption. Dunn’s writing is elegant and haunting, offering readers a gothic tale that lingers long after the final page. For fans of dark romance and atmospheric gothic fiction, Hungerstone is a must-read, offering both an emotional journey and an unsettling exploration of hunger, both literal and metaphorical.

An underestimated overlooked woman is a dangerous woman. Though it was a bit tricky to get a read on the time period, this story was hauntingly familiar yet new. I enjoyed the read.

I'm conflicted!

I love 19th century gothic novels, and I really enjoyed Carmilla, so I thought a retelling of Carmilla in a gothic style would be perfect for me! It wasn't, sadly, but I'm glad I read Hungerstone nevertheless. I assume Kat Dunn chose to write in a more modern style to be more accessible for a wider range of readers, but it fell a little flat (for me, at least). A more traditional style could have helped the gothic atmosphere and really ramp up the vibes of it all.

At the same time, I appreciated the representation of sapphic desires in a traditional button-upped society, and felt the pace improved by the end.

"Hungerstone" is "Nosferatu" but make it gay. I think this book could become a gothic classic with its illustration of a crumbling estate, mysterious strangers, strange happenings, death, and the expectations of women. It has all the elements to make a great story. Would recommend reading this around the fall.

If you’re familiar with the plot of Carmilla, you have a good idea of what’s going to happen in this book. Except there are A LOT of major differences, which leads me to wonder why this needs to be a Carmilla retelling.

I know this book is not supposed to be plot-driven, but it’s also not character-driven, and the atmosphere is severely lacking. You can’t tell me there’s rot, mould, and decay without describing them to me. I want to feel the texture and smell the scent of that house. I want to feel the cold air and the humidity in that old, dark place. I want to feel suffocated by all of it.

What’s more, the writing style doesn’t match the time period the book takes place in… It aims for a gothic style, but most of the time it reads very modern.

All of the characters are one-dimensional, walking and talking stereotypes. The main character is slightly better, but she still doesn’t read like a real person. Her growth throughout the book is very predictable, and sometimes her internal monologue feels like an empowering post you would see on social media…

All in all, this was a very underwhelming experience.