Dracula, Bram Stoker

First published in 1897 at the end of the Victoria era, Dracula has spawned countless movies, books and television shows based on Stoker’s original plot (Bram Stoker's Dracula, Dracula - Prince Of Darkness) or using the characters and Vampire “lore” that he established (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Batman and Dracula: Red Rain). The cross, garlic and stake that Stoker’s heroes use to fight Dracula are staples of the genre but the book is more than just a reference work for future writers, it is a classic work of horror fiction and a master-class on the subjects of tension and suspense.

Written as an epistolary novel, the story is told through the letters, diaries and journals of the main characters with occasional elements from local newspapers and reports. This style of writing is rare in modern novels but Stoker has used it to construct a story that advances in threads; each character writes of their own experiences and drives forward their portion of the story until they reach a cliff-hanger, at which point another character takes over.

These intertwining threads combine to give the reader an overview of Dracula’s efforts which is hidden from the characters whilst at the same time presenting a first-hand account of the character’s development. While Van Helsing and Dr. Seward search with increasing despair for the cause of Lucy Westenra’s illness, the reader, knowing that Dracula has landed at Whitby, can only watch with mounting concern as every effort the good doctors make is thwarted by fate, family or the success of Dracula’s machinations.

Similarly, the reader's experience of modern thrillers and horror films will help them to recognise far sooner than Harker the reality of his imprisonment by Dracula, whose sinister instructions about not sleeping outside his rooms are not very subtle warnings about the dangers lurking within the castle. When Harker ignores these warnings the reader experiences a strong “uh oh” moment because he knows, or thinks he knows, what will happen next.

Dracula himself keeps no memoirs and features only when written about by the other characters. His intentions remain opaque until discerned and described by his enemies and thus the reader’s knowledge of his long-term aims progresses only as fast as the characters’, even while they might have leapt ahead of Van Helsing in diagnosing a vampiric cause to Lucy’s disease.

This is not a book without faults. In places it is slow and Stoker sometimes seems to take a long time advancing the plot. The language and style of writing are a little unfamiliar and it sits firmly within the late Victorian era in terms of its treatment of women and foreigners; a modern reader will occasionally find that Stoker’s writing jars against modern concepts of morality and ethics.

Dracula remains one of the best examples of the horror genre, setting the stage for numerous derivatives and copycats. Stoker creates believable characters and sets them loose in a self-consistent alternative reality that British readers in particular will find familiar. He explores (not always in great depth) evil, self-sacrifice and heroism, forcing his characters to undergo appalling horrors for the entertainment of his readers and his book is a must-read for anyone with even a peripheral interest in the genre.

Rating: 9/10.

Verdict: get the book today - Dracula