It’s pretty clear to most readers at the very beginning of the book who’s the undead and who isn’t, but the real mystery is what happens to Ellen, and what her motives are. We switch back and forth to that scene throughout most of the novel, while we also learn about Bram’s youth as a sickly child and his strange nurse Ellen.

Barker has come up with an original look at the beginnings of vampires and Dracul/Dracula himself.ĭracul begins with the very creepy scene of Bram Stoker caught in a tower, by himself, with the usual weapons one uses against vampires (holy water, crosses, mirrors) while some evil creature outside tries to get at him.

Dacre now manages the Stoker estate, and he’s done a significant amount of research, and together with J.D. This is all explained by Dacre in the back of this current book. What I found really fascinating (and let’s be honest, terrifying) is that Bram Stoker originally submitted his book Dracula as a work of non-fiction!!! The publishers than fiddled with it, and it became a work of fiction with a bunch of other parts cut out of it. Yes-that Stoker! He’s the great grand-nephew of Bram Stoker, the original author of the timeless horror classic Dracula, and this book is meant as its prequel. I indulged in some dark chocolate to accompany my foray into the dark arts with Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J.D. The big day is finally here! Halloween the perfect time to scare yourself silly with a spooky book in one hand and a delicious chocolate bar (or ten) in the other.

Dracula by Dacre Stoker