Really torn about how to rate this because I had such a good time reading it. The prose, the wild and melodramatic nature some of the scenes take, the dark academia vibes. the spice 🥵 On the other hand, I firmly believe that this book should have remained only in Laura’s POV and not Carmilla’s. De Lafontaine did not need to be laid bare in her past and characteristics. Leaving her more as a brooding mystery would have been cool. There is more of Laura’s POV in the book anyway (from what I can tell), and I feel the book would have benefited from being longer tbh. Also, I wanted more time with the plot reveal of Isis… Overall, a lovely time! It’s sexy and fun and stands on its own against A Dowry of Blood but lacks the sharp finesse its companion novel had.