Title: Dracula
Author: Bram Stoker
Genre: Classics, Horror, Gothic
First published: August 17th 1879
Finished reading: July 21st 2014
Pages: 512
“But there are things old and new which must not be contemplated by men’s eye, because they know, or think they know, some things which other men have told them. Ah. it is the fault of our science that it wants to explain all, and if it explain not, then it says there is nothing to explain.”
When I first started reading Dracula, I was like yes, yes, YES! The first part where we read the diary of Jonathan Harker and he meets Count Dracula in Transilvania is brilliant. But; and there comes the big but: when the scenes moved to Whitby the story slowed down drastically. The diaries of Mina and Lucy I found dreadfully close to boring… Luckily after a hundred pages or so the storytelling improved and the last part of the book sure is interesting. Nothing better than a good old-fashioned vampire hunt to spice up the story! Although the novel was published 135 years ago, the story wasn’t that difficult to follow and I have to say I definitely prefer Stoker‘s version of Count Dracula over the ‘fake’ vampires books are based on nowadays. Go Count Dracula!
Jonathan Harker has to travel to Transylvania for business; he is asked to help Count Dracula buying a house in London. He doesn’t know Dracula is hiding a terrible secret, but slowly he makes some horrifying discoveries about what is really going on in the Count’s castle. Dracula doesn’t seem to eat, he is never around during the day and the castle seems deserted… And Jonathan soon realizes he is trapped within the castle. After an encounter with three very terrifying ladies, he is certain to know his days are numbered. But in the end somehow Jonathan makes it back to England anyway.
We meet the ladies Mina and Lucy, who are close friends, through their letters and diaries. Mina is the girlfriend and soon-to-be wife of Jonathan, and Lucy is being courted by three different men. Soon strange things start to happen in the small town they live and that goes under the name Whitby. First a ship crashed but was found to be unmanned… Then Lucy becomes ill and strange puncture marks are found on her neck. Lucy had already chosen her husband-to-be, but all three men are determined to help her fight her disease. They even ask for the help of the Dutch doctor Van Helsing, who turns out to be an expert in the curious and the unexplained. He soon has his theory but as it seems all help comes too late…
Poor Lucy became a victim of Count Dracula, and he is now trying to make himself comfortable living in a new country. But the men are determined to fight this monster and soon start a true vampire chase weaponed with garlic, stakes and what more. They realize they have to put haste behind this search, because poor Mina is starting to have symptoms as well. But the Count is fleeing England, and finding him isn’t as easy as it seems. Their hunt brings the group back to Transylvania, the home country of Dracula and the place the final battle will take place…
In general I really enjoyed reading this classic by Bram Stoker and I would definitely recommend it to those who love reading gothic classics and want to know how vampires originally were like. Like I said before: Go Count Dracula!
Yes, exactly. What I love about Dracula is that he is what a vampire is supposed to be. None of that sparkly romantic stuff. He’s terrifying, and that how I like my vamps! Great review, and I’m glad it got better for you:)
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I totally agree! The newer versions don’t even look like vampires anymore… It’s all about looks and romance while vampires should be scary! And I definitely enjoyed the second half way better than I thought I would. 🙂
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I’m currently reading this and am up to the bit where they are chasing the Count back to Transilvania… I was delighted to find this Title in your book list as your opinion rather matches mine (insofar as I have read).
Clearly the book’s age has to be taken into consideration, for instance it’s now common knowledge that blood transfusions by three random people would cause a hemolytic reaction in the patient resulting in death, information not available to Stoker at the time.
I forgot to check your book-list fully, but if you liked Dracula, then try “Uncle Silas” by Sheridan le Fanu and I’m certain you will not be disappointed !
Happy reading 🙂
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The last part is definitely the most entertaining part! And I totally agree with you that the fact that the book was published 135 years ago has to be taken in account. Even so, Stoker was able to write a story that appeals to people even today, and I admire him for it. And I will definitely be checking out Uncle Silas! Happy reading to you too. 🙂
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I’m glad you enjoyed Dracula. I’ll have to try it again on of these days. I hate the trend where monsters aren’t monsters anymore. Even if there is one good one it’s more fun if the others are evil.
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I totally agree! Vampires, werewolves and other creatures alike should be scary; if not, what’s the point of introducing supposedly dangerous creatures in your story? 😉
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