Sci-Fi, Fantasy & Horror Reviews

Book Review: Dracula the Un-Dead

By Sandy Amazeen Oct 23, 2009, 2:17 GMT

At last--the sequel to Bram Stoker\'s classic novel Dracula, written by his direct descendant and a Dracula historian Bram Stoker\'s Dracula is the prototypical horror novel, an inspiration for the world\'s seemingly limitless fascination with vampires. Though many have tried to replicate Stoker\'s horror classic- in books, television shows, and movies-only the 1931 Bela Lugosi film bore the Stoker family\'s support. Until now. Dracula The Un-Dead is a ...more

Not to be confused with Freda Warrington’s 1999 release of the same title, this collaborative sequel by Bram Stoker’s great-grandnephew Dacre and screenwriter Holt takes considerable artistic license with the original story. Changing the timeline allows dubious connections with actual events like first London to Paris flight, Jack the Ripper murders and the Titanic but do little to facilitate the storyline that picks up twenty-four years after the original.

Mina and Jonathan Harker’s marriage is far from happy and their son Quincey suffers his share of angst in the face of his father’s behavior. The bloodthirsty Countess Elizabeth Bathory’s excesses in dress and body count usurp Dracula’s role as an arch villain. Inevitably, Dracula and Bathory face each other in a duel to the death where Quincey learns the awful truth and Mina chooses to follow her lover.

Although written as a sequel to Bram Stoker’s Dracula, this book provides little by way of new material to the mythology. There is the usual tie in with Prince Vlad and the Jack the Ripper reference along with plenty of gratuitous bloodshed but nothing to make this stand out from the many entries in this genre. The pace is good and there are a few new plot twists but not enough to make up for the overall canned feel of this disappointing attempt to redraw some old roles.