The sheer number of characters present require an annotation (Newman provides this here) – characters from the Dracula novel appear but there are also Sherlock Holmes supporting characters, Dr Jekyll, Dr Moreau, AJ Raffles, Fu-Manchu, Sikes (from Oliver Twist) and Griffin the Invisible Man all appear to various degrees, not to mention characters from TV and film.

However, Newman goes further by using the Wold Newton approach to the story: the book contains characters (and real people) from other books of the time, as well as other literary vampires.

The book would be of interest just on the high concept alone. When I discovered the idea behind his most famous (although still cult) novel, I HAD to read it: what if Dracula didn’t die at the end of his book and became the prince consort of Queen Victoria? What I didn’t know until relatively recently was that he was also a novelist. He is now a contributing editor, still reviewing, and has his own page of Direct To DVD reviews. It features a range of engaging characters and scenes and expands upon Bram Stoker's original novel in the best possible way.Īn engaging, fun and thought provoking read which is essential for any fan of Gothic literature.Growing up reading Empire magazine, I was aware of Kim Newman as a film critic and journalist, usually reviewing the genre end of cinema and writing articles about movie monsters or fantasy.

The novel is a delight for those who are aware of the various things which are referenced, but it still stands up even if you don't get them, I think.

The book has an atmosphere and feeling of alternative history about it, almost as a Gothic horror version of Robert Harris' Fatherland, echoing the idea of the Nazi's winning the war with another foreign, psychopathic, dictator taking control of England in the form of Dracula. It does explain the one thing you'd expect it to keep a secret till the end early on, however that does allow it much more freedom to explore the themes of the novel and also grants the story the second perspective of Jack the Ripper as they justify their murders to them self.Īnno Dracula is a book for older readers as it does feature some scenes of a sexual nature and several scenes of gore and violence, however these are needed for the plot and are never too graphic or detailed, rendering this book (in my opinion) probably suitable for ages fourteen plus. The plot is well thought out and features several brilliant twists.

Anno dracula book