Dacre Stoker

All fiction – and supernatural fiction especially so – requires us to suspend our disbelief and to accept that the world between the covers of a book is as real as the one we’re living in (if not more). The premise of Dracul however is even harder to swallow than the very existence of the Undead – the novel presents us with a Bram Stoker who has personal experience of vampires and who has a final showdown with none other than Count Dracula himself. The concept intrigued me even whilst setting alarm bells ringing in my head – would Dracul turn out to be the great Dracula prequel touted by the marketing blurbs or just another in a recent tradition of horror mash-ups? The fact that the novel is jointly credited to Dacre Stoker (Bram’s great-grand nephew) and horror writer J.D. Barker only fuelled my misgivings. Apart from my irrational prejudice against co-authored works, the Stoker name on the title page gave me a niggling suspicion that it was there primarily to capitalize on the link to Bram. And so, with some difficulty in setting aside pre-conceptions, uncertainties and pet peeves, I joined a youngish Bram keeping watch in an unnamed tower, eyes fixed on a heavy door behind which untold horrors lurk...

I must say that the initial chapters did little to shake off my doubts . The shifts between Bram’s vigil (helpfully marked “NOW”) and his recollections of his sickly childhood, nursed by the enigmatic “Nanna Ellen”, seemed artificial, the dialogue between Bram and his sister Matilda unconvincing. However, once this backstory was set out and the action shifted closer to the (novel’s) present, I became increasingly engrossed. Like Bram’s original, Dracul follows a group of improvised vampire-busters on a hunt which leads them to the dark heart of Continental Europe. The pace of the plot mounts inexorably and culminates in a set-piece in a ghost-village outside Munich which seems to be as much inspired by horror movies and zombie tropes as by ‘traditional’ vampire fiction.

Part of the fun of the book lies in looking for the parallels between this novel and the original, as well as references to real life events and figures. Thus, as in Dracula, Dracul is recounted through a series of journal entries, diaries and letters, giving the text an immediacy and allowing for different perspectives. There is material which is clearly gleaned from the short story Dracula’s Guest and expanded to fit the plot. The novel also has its own Van Helsing, in the shape of Arminius Vámbéry, a Hungarian Turkologist who, in reality, was an acquaintance of Stoker and might have influenced or served as a model for Van Helsing. Rather than a prequel to Dracula, I’d consider it more of a companion piece – a “pastiche”, in a positive sense, which delights in resurrecting vampire tropes largely shaped by Bram Stoker’s seminal novel.

In an afterword to Dracul, Dacre Stoker explains that this novel is based on his ancestor’s actual notes and on the first hundred-or-so pages of the novel which were allegedly excised at the insistence of the original publishers. Then, Stoker ups the ante – Bram, he tells us, presented the manuscript as a “true story” and Dracula was not meant to serve as ‘entertainment’ as much as a warning against a very real evil. Now, of course, Dracula was neither the first nor the last Gothic novel to present itself as a “non-fictional” account. Presumably, Dacre is riffing on this trope. But this does raise an interesting question – namely just how far is Dracul actually inspired by Bram’s biography, handwritten notes and “original intentions” and how much of it is Dacre’s and J.D. Barker’s own invention? Scholars of the Gothic might illuminate us – in the meantime, Dracul remains an enjoyable vampire romp which nicely complements the (unbeatable) original.… (meer)

For those who feel Bram Stoker's "Dracula" inspired creation of the 'horror' genre, his great grandnephew has written an amazing book. Fast paced and somewhat similar to the original diary style, it becomes clear this carefully crafted and researched story could easily have led to Bram's classic. We learn of the Dublin Stoker family's nanny, Ellen Crone, whose impact on Bram and his siblings was unusual in ways none could understand nor fathom. Bram's sister, Matlida, is so enthralled with Ellen it leads them on a journey where they encounter the 'vampyr' whose powers are far reaching, his respect for humans, nil. While I generally don't read horror genre due to overuse of gore and violence, Dacre uses just enough to keep us engaged with a dab of spine chilling. It's important to read the Epilogue where he inserts actual images of manuscript notes taken by Bram Stoker and other important facts. Being a descendant, he's well within his rights to state facts. I've decided to re-read to the original "Dracula" and as well as Dacre's previous book. Highly recommended in all respects!… (meer)

El monstruo murió hace 25 años desintegrado, convertido en cenizas pero no ha sido tan fácil borrar las huellas de aquello que ocurrió en los Cárpatos hace un cuarto de siglo. Seward es adicto a la morfina. Holmwood se ha convertido en un hombre hermético, que nunca superó la muerte de Lucy, el amor de su vida. Jonathan es alcohólico y Mina –quien sigue manteniendo su belleza y juventud intactas— sabe que hace tiempo que su matrimonio hace aguas. Y Van Helsing es tan excéntrico que incluso es sospechoso de ser el mismísimo Jack el destripador.
Quincey Harker, el hijo de Jonathan y Mina, también tiene problemas. Es estudiante de derecho en la Sorbona por imposición paterna, pero su verdadera pasión es el teatro. En París irá a ver al más reputado actor del momento, el rumano Basarab, famoso y rodeado de misterio. Lo conoce y su relación de amistad con él se hace profunda, con lo que su deseo de perseguir una carrera en las artes escénicas reaparece. Quincey se entera de que una obra llamada Drácula, de un tal Bram Stoker, está en proceso de producción en el West End londinense y decide intentar que su amigo Basarab interprete al protagonista. Cuando lee la obra se da cuenta de que está basada en las vidas de sus padres y sus amigos y decide pedirles explicaciones. Es justo entonces cuando empieza la violenta caza de todos y cada uno de los que participaron en la persecución y muerte del vampiro, un peligro que también amenaza a Quincey y más de lo que él imagina…
Pero ¿quién busca venganza? Y ¿por qué después de tanto tiempo?… (meer)