Dracula

By Bram Stoker

Of the many admiring reviews Bram Stoker's Dracula received when it first appeared in 1897, the most astute praise came from the author's mother, who wrote her son: "It is splendid. No book since Mrs. Shelley's Frankenstein or indeed any other at all has come near yours in originality, or terror."

A popular bestseller in Victorian England, Stoker's hypnotic tale of the bloodthirsty Count Dracula, whose nocturnal atrocities are symbolic of an evil ages old yet forever new, endures as the quintessential story of suspense and horror. The unbridled lusts and desires, the diabolical cravings that Stoker dramatized with such mythical force, render Dracula resonant and unsettling a century later.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Mar 2, 2004
• ISBN: 9780553898538

Bram Stoker

Bram Stoker (1847–1912) grew up in Ireland listening to his mother's tales of blood-drinking fairies and vampires rising from their graves. He later managed the Lyceum Theatre in London and worked as a civil servant, newspaper editor, reporter, and theater critic. Dracula, his best-known work, was published in 1897 and is hailed as one of the founding pieces of Gothic literature.  

Reviews for Dracula

[a_reader_of_fictions · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Were it not for audiobooks, I don't think I'd have read any classics in the last two years. This is a great way to slowly slog through the ones you've been meaning to read just because, but don't think you'll like much. Dracula has been on my to-read list since middle school, but only because it's a thing I felt I should read, not because I was especially interested. Thank you, audiobook, for making it so that I did not need to DNF!

For real, if I had been reading this in print format, I really do not think we would have been friends. The story goes by so slowly, the characters are flat, and there is very little action for a horror novel. Add to this the fact that pretty much ALL of pop culture is one big giant spoiler for the plot, and the book is insanely boring at most points.

Even worse, pop culture took all the good ideas out of Dracula and so, basically, what you're left to be surprised by is all of the things pop culture changed so that the book could actually be interesting. Take, for example, Van Helsing and Dracula's battle. I went in expecting this:



If that's what you're hoping for, let me just tell you that you're WRONG. In fact, Van Helsing is an old, fat doctor with an absurd accent. Dracula is a tall, old man with a long white mustache. Umm, yuck, really? Sadly, 'tis true. The action in the book is more of the mental battle variety than anything else. They do a lot more talking than fighting.

Mental standoffs can be pretty cool though, characters trying to outmaneuver one another. I mean, that's what made the first half of Death Note so freaking cool. Unfortunately, these characters are dumb. Certainly, knowing what's happening going into the book, but even given that they're working with no knowledge, their reasoning abilities are limited.

What really got to me was that, near the end, they've figured out what happened to Lucy Westenra, watched her become a vampire, and killed her. Now they're searching for Dracula to kill him too. They decide that they need to do this without the cleverest of the bunch, Mina Harker, because ladies cannot handle this sort of thing, duh. They leave her alone and come back to find her weak, pale and tired, and it takes them freaking ages to think maybe Dracula has something to do with this, since these symptoms are remarkably similar to Lucy's. Basically, everyone's pathetic.

Speaking of Mina, she is by far the most interesting and clever character, but, because of the time period, she gets very little respect. I mean, yeah, the guys appreciate what a great typist she is and admire her intellect, but, ultimately, she's more of a curiosity than a compatriot. They leave her out of things because she's a woman, and view her most important role to be that of a shoulder to cry on, of feminine comfort, despite the fact that she's the one who ultimately figures everything out. I know it's a different time, but it still pisses me right the fuck off.

Oh, also supremely annoying? The infinite references to God. Seriously, every couple of minutes someone would intone "it's in God's hands." At first it didn't bother me, because that's the kind of stupid shit people would say, and still do say, in crises. However, after the first fifty times, I pretty much wanted to start ripping people's heads off every time it happened. I GOT it already: you're all good Christians. Shut the fuck up, okay?



The only thing that made this book bearable for me was the fact that Audible did a wonderful job putting together the audio. They brought in a stellar cast, and really fit the voices to the characters. My favorite voice actors were Alan Cumming and Katherine Kellgren. Tim Curry does a good job, but he's doing that stupid Van Helsing accent, so I couldn't love his performance as much.

Even with the marvelous audio work, this still only came out to a meh for me. I highly recommend the audio version, whether you think you'll like the book or not.

[mhanover10 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a beautifully written and scary book. Wonderful as an audiobook. The reader does a great job with accents and emotions. Glad I listened to it.

[darthdeverell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Bram Stoker’s The Illustrated Dracula features illustrations from Jae Lee, who’s worked on X-Factor, Inhumans, and Fantastic Four: 1234 for Marvel Comics as well as other work for DC and Image Comics. The book itself reprints Stoker’s text, which uses the epistolary novel format that was popular in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and introduces the reader to Count Dracula, Jonathan and Mina Harker, Renfield, Abraham Van Helsing, and Lucy Westenra. Lee includes multiple black-and-white illustrations throughout the story as well as four full-color illustrations that capture the gothic, dreamlike quality of the narrative. Lee’s portrayal of Dracula appears to borrow from the depiction of Count Orlok in F.W. Murnau’s 1922 film, Nosferatu, rather than Stoker’s own description or the appearance of the historical Vlad Țepeș. Those benefits aside, there are some typographical errors throughout the work. That said, the illustrations and the high-quality materials of which this book is constructed make it a good gift edition for those new to the story or friends in need of a new copy.

[tvnerd95 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was absolutely captivated by this story from the very beginning and the characters are so well described that I couldn’t stop reading.

The cinema was my only exposure to this story before now and what can I say but the cinema destroyed these fascinating characters by either sidelining them, not including them or over sexualizing them for the entertainment value. Lucy and Mina are two of the strongest female characters that I have ever seen in literature and their friendship is wonderful. The gentlemen in this story are very courageous and it is amazing how determined they were to see Dracula destroyed because it was the right thing to do and not for revenge.

My only con is there are times that the author gets a little wordy with some of his side stories and conversations that I almost wanted to skip some of it.

This is a great performance to listen to. All the actors not only had to act out their main part but also any of the other characters when the story was being told from the journal writer’s point of view. The actors did a great job of maintaining each characters personalities and subtleties no matter which actor was speaking for the character. It is exceptionally well done.

[kimmykay_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Tried for years to get through this book. Never could quite do it...

[pdill8 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I found the book easily digestible for an older book. The format felt quite modern, being a combination of letters and journal entries from various narrators. The descriptions and emotions were lush and enveloping. The entries written from VanHelsing’s point of view were the only ones I had difficulty getting through- the language choices are meant to portray a highly intelligent person for whom English is not native, but for me it wound up being repetitive and harder to relate to. Also, the portrayal of women was hard to swallow at times. Baring in mind that it was another time, and that it might even hold a hint of satire against chauvinism, it was still at times irking. Overall, glad I finally read this classic and would definitely recommend!

[jonfaith · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Van Helsing sat with the Harker child on his lap; Van Helsing was momentarily pensive as his breathing continued stertorously. He was thankful that the child's breathing was normal, not stertorous. His suspicions had been numbed since the events with the Count some seven years before. He was also aware that both Jonathan and Mina would conscript this every instant to their journals. It was a shame he still spoke German. Why didn't anyone notice this? Yes, they had encountered True Evil and prevailed through serial implausibility on the part of Undead genius and reduced him to ashes with a Bowie knife.

[wordsampersand · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Quite good, and surprisingly funny in spots. It really was a "technothriller" of sorts in its time.

[faith_murri · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There are darknesses in life and there are lights, and you are one of the lights, the light of all lights.
Why am I always so surprised that classics are seriously fantastic?

I loved everything about this! Even knowing the general story, having absorbed it via osmosis most of my life and having once watched a terribly adapted play put on by my high school peers, I was still pulled in by the tension, the terror, and the themes. I loved every character and found the plot to be very climactic and engaging.

The writing style was superb! Each narrator had a consistent voice that defined them and made their perspective all the more interesting. My personal favorite was Dr. John Seward. He had a very lyrical way of viewing the world and it made his sections beautiful to read. The opening part with Jonathan Harker's imprisonment in Dracula's Castle was palpably tense and drew me in immediately. All in all, the entire thing was excellent!

For life be, after all, only a waitin' for somethin' else than what we're doin'; and death be all that we can rightly depend on.

[olivia_atlet_writer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

- Too Sensual to Ignore -“Dracula” by Bram Stoker relays the tales of an up-and-coming realtor, Jonathan Harker, who travels from England to Transylvania to meet a client; Count Dracula. In the classic interpretation of good versus evil, Jonathan and several of his acquaintances seek out the monster that killed one of their beloved companions. Their journey is filled with superstition, which is seen within the very first chapter of Jonathan’s diary during his journey to the Count’s home; many community members warn him of the dangers that awaits, and some even beg that he returns to his home. The book fashioned a new era within the literary field alongside such works as “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley and “The strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Hyde” by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is a collection of reminiscences, transposed in diary entries, victrola recordings, and recounts of events throughout the time period. It dives into the parasitic indulgence so deftly hidden within Victorian London. There is a certain theme found in each of the novels I mentioned; the human form, when molested, may unleash a creature reeking with God’s defamation. I would recommend this book to readers with an interest in folklore/urban legends, gothic fiction, classics, horror novels, and the victorian perception of evil. It is definitely worth picking up if you are curious about the beginnings of these kinds of books, as well. It is an excellent subject to use for a case study of the genre.

[judithrs · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Dracula. Bram Stoker. Modern Library Paperback Edition. 2001. The first time I read Dracula I was at home between sophomore and junior years at Montevallo, I think. I had nightmares about vampire cats that were so real I crawled in bed with Mother and only read the book during the daylight hours. This time it was more uncomfortable, not because I think vampires are real, but I was shocked by the evil personified that the book described and surprised by the Catholicism that permeated the determined search to destroy the evil. It was long and not as suspenseful as I remembered more of it as I read. It is much deeper than the modern vampire books and movies.

[heggiep · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

By turns melodramatic, contrived and repetitive it is, nonetheless, a spine-tingling tale - a classic.

[dariazeoli · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

While I liked this book, I felt like the last half of it really dragged as Van Helsing and his group of willing accomplices made arrangements to travel to finally find and rid the world of Count Dracula. The pace really bored me at some points and I think that is the reason I could put this book down over a six-week period in favor of something else.

[capriciousreader · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I did it, I did it! I finally read DRACULA!!!

[chellebearss · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although I am a big horror fiction reader and devour everything I can find about Vampires and Werewolves, I had never actually gotten around to reading Dracula. I am happy that I can now say I have read it, although I don't think I would read it again. I did enjoy the story and how it was written as a collection of journals and news entries. "If ever a face meant death - if looks could kill - we saw it at that moment."

[lgandt · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Much better than any of the films, no matter how good some of those are, this is the best version.*Update* I do wish someone sometime would give this book its do justice and make a decent film adaptation. Some are close but still lack so much.

[ngabriel_52 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Still scary.

[readafew · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I believe when I read a work I should read the Unabridged published edition, and I do. However, Dracula is definitely Victorian Age writing. There was several places where the characters decided to expound at length on their feelings for one another and those sections became long and tedious. Over all I enjoyed the book with the exceptions noted above.

[nesum_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

One of my very favorite novels. Stoker is brilliant here in his structure, providing the plot in diary entries from several sources. Until all of the characters are united and their diaries compared, we see how desperately lost each person is in the strange events going on. The tension is palpable as we, the readers, recognize some what is going on in the background long before the characters do. They do along happily, only months later realizing the importance of certain mundane events, but we knew long before.The story itself is not that scary, but it is the wonderful structure that adds tension. My only complaint about the novel is the anti-climatic ending, but that is a small flaw for such a great and creepy novel.

[mzzkitee · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book surprised me. Its different than what you think. I'd recommend this book to anyone.

[robble_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not very scary or compelling. The first part was absolutely awesome, but Stoker failed to hold the reader enthralled for the entire novel.

[booknose_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I have been a huge fan of vampire novels over the years from Anne Rice to Laurell K. Hamilton so it was with some shame that I had never read the original Father of the vampire novel Bram Stoker's Dracula. I decided to pick this up for a halloween challenge in my classics group. I was immediately drawn into the book as it is told in the epistolary style (through journal entries and letters) which I think always makes for a quick and easy read. This book was longer than I had remembered it being when I bought it, however I enjoyed nearly all of it. The only thing that cast a shadow upon my enjoyment was the character of Van Helsing, I had always thought of Van Helsing as the muscle that always gets Dracula. Stokers Van Helsing is a long winded, kiss ass. Everyone he meets is the most wonderful person in the entire world and he instantly loves them, this seems to be a trait with 18th century fiction, love is immediate and must be illustrated with all manner of pretty talk. Other than that I found the whole novel to be very good, I loved the character of Mina as a strong woman well ahead of her time. I even liked Lucy who was never my favorite character in the many versions of the movie. For those who like I, have seen many renditions of the story for film and hesitate to read the book for fear it will be an exact duplicate, fear not. The book was though similar not exactly like any of the Dracula movies I have seen but had parts of all of them.

[wanderlust_lost · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An absolute must for all fans of vampire lore. Although by no means the first vampire story ever written it was, for most people in the Western world, their first encounter with the vampire myth. The Victorians loved their gothic doom and gloom horror stories with moral endings where purity, chastity, and a love of god won over evil and Stoker provided all the required elements of a good gothic horror in spades. Highly enjoyable and easy to read as it\'s constructed in diary form. For me the best bits were the bits when Jonathan was at Dracula\'s castle and the bits when Lucy and Mina were in Whitby.

[katiebear_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Bram Stoker's Dracula seems like a fairly imposing book at first glance. There are many, many "chapters", which discouraged me. I definitely picked it up saying "I think I'm not going to enjoy this, but I will power through it". Imagine my pleasant surprise when I found it engaging, witty, and suspenseful. Many people may not enjoy the style. It is written from many different points of view. There are letters, telegrams, and journal entries. The characters that we see from are Jonothan Harker, Val Helsing, Mina Harker, Miss Lucy, and Dr. Steward. There are a few other characters from which we do not here (Quincey, Arthur). Many people may find the switching back and forth tedious, or as though the author cannot make up his mind. I found this device increased the suspense for me, showing the reader different reactions to the same situation, or switching to a different character just before the crux. I found that as we heard from more characters, the more interesting it became! The general idea of the story is as follows: Jonothan Harker goes to deliver papers and to meet Dracula in his castle. While there, Dracula imprisons him, until he escapes with barely his life. After poor Miss Lucy is killed by Dracula, the rest of the gang gets involved, up until the end, with many and various threats upon their lives. My only question was how Renfield played into all of this. I understand that he must have had some previous contact with Dracula, and thus became insane, and started the process of eating things which ate things. I am a little puzzled over his relationship with the Count, but there you go. I would rate this book at a PG-13. It has some frightening themes, however very little is actually spelled out. There is no sex or sexual scenes (except to say that the women are very beautiful, and that they are desirable). I would say that people 16 or over could read it on their own, but younger should have their parents read it first to decide whether it would be appropriate for them. I also think that younger people would grow bored, depending on their attention span, and their maturity to be able to relate to the themes. Over all, I quite liked this book and would recommend it to any who desire an interesting, and very different book from what they are used to.

[crowyhead · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I had heard that this was a bit dry, so I wasn't sure what to expect when I began reading. What a great book and engrossing narrative! I was pleasantly surprised by how cool a character Mina is. I'd expected her to be completely passive, and there was some BS about women and purity -- but Mina also has an active role in her own salvation, and she is clearly portrayed as being just as clever and brave as the men who protect her. Fantastic!

[imnotsatan · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have the Barnes and Noble edition with illustrations by Edward Gorey, which is worth picking up even if you have a copy already. The illustrations are definitely my favorite thing about the book.Dracula's difficult to review, because it is well written, and it is creepy, but it pales next to modern horror. In a certain light, it's thanks to Dracula that these modern books can be so scary, because Stoker was leading the charge. It is still genuinely scary in places, though.

[trogdor7899 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is truely a classic. The narrative structure really creates an interesting story, but also, holes in time of events that may or may not have occured. Simply put, the reader cannot know what happens between journal entries, newpaper clippings, or letters. Plus, are the characters who are cataloguing this information not biased about this or that? Anyways, that's just one facet of Bram Stoker's brilliant novel. A good book, all in all.

[katie_h_11 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Before there was Anne Rice's Lestat, there was Bram Stoker's Dracula! This is easily the best and most absorbing horror novel that I've ever read; it's the original vampire masterpiece, with garlic, stakes through the heart, crucifixes, lots of gore, Van Helsing, and, of course, THE deliciously evil villain, Count Dracula. The book is well written in 19th century prose, told through a series of letters and journal entries, and it was exciting to the very last page. This is truly an *immortal* and influential piece of literature, effectively creating a new genre of horror in its wake. If you like stories of the macabre, read this.

[srboone · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

For me the telling of this story in letters and diary entries did a disservice to the whole, but it's a chilling and suspensful read. Too episodic for 5 stars.

[superphoenix_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Anyone who is a vampire fan just can't miss this. This is the book that started it all - our fascination with Dracula. There is no extensive blood and gore as one normally anticipates in such a book. But the story itself keeps you on the edge and in no time you would be jumping at the slightest sound or movement. Count Dracula is a debonair, suave creature. Sophistication just dripping from every sentence that he utters or writes. But the terror he instills is terrifying and bone- chilling. This classic is entertaining and exhilarating to the last letter.