Published 16:52, November the 18th, 2009
Vampire mania without Dracula would sure suck
> With a new ‘Twilight’ coming out Friday, vampires are all the rage, but the Count from Transylvania isn’t getting much love > Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt try to change that with a sequel to Bram Stoker’s 1897 book
Set 15 years after the original, “Dracula: The Un-Dead” shares many of the same characters — including Mina and Jonathan Harker, and Lucy’s suitors, John Seward and Arthur Holmwood — and unveils them to be, well, in a state of post-traumatic stress after slaying Dracula. Their lives have lost all sense of purpose since the band scattered soon after killing the vamp. Some of them are convinced that Dracula is still alive, while others try to repress the thought altogether. But that’s difficult, as it becomes blatantly apparent that there is some form of evil lurking in the shadows.
Dacre Stoker hopes “Twilight” hysteria sparks interest in its vampire- source material — and by extension, his sequel. “You know all of these mainstream things? These attributes of vampires that we live with today, with minor quirks and little isms? They all started with Bram,” Dacre insists. “And I’m hoping readers will say, ‘Well, let me buy this book and see where it all comes from.’”
As for his own bloodsucker book, Dacre says it’s not as hard to, well, sink your teeth into as the original. “Hopefully
[readers] will realize that even though Bram’s story is in that journalistic format and a tough read … ours is not.”
Familiar name?
> Author Dacre Stoker is the great-grandnephew of Bram Stoker.
> “If you want the same ‘Dracula,’ re-read Bram. If you want something new and surprising, read ‘Dracula: The Un-Dead,’” says Holt.
Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’
“Dracula” is the most influential vampire novel of all time, yet it’s relatively unknown to many modern readers. First-time readers of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” should be forewarned that death, blood and love are the main themes of this gothic horror story.
How to kill a vampire in ‘Dracula: The Un-Dead’
>In “Dracula: The Un-Dead,” we learn that the original novel was written as a result of
a conversation between Bram and someone in a bar. (Read the book to find out who broke the
sacred oath of silence.) It is implied that perhaps Stoker had not properly written the story and made a few mistakes.
> The following can kill vampires in Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” – here are the revisions to the story, according to “Dracula: The Un-Dead”:
Silver: Silver bullets are reserved for werewolves.
Garlic: No wolf’s bane or garlic to kill a vamp – just gives you bad breath.
Cross: Only a creature who fears God would fear his symbols – vampires who believe in God are easier to kill.
Sunlight: Sunlight actually was not a problem for Bram Stoker – but it is rather lethal for the vamps in this sequel.