Reviews

This was a decent version of a vampire tale, based on Vlad the Impaler. I enjoyed the vivid imagery very much, but I just felt as though as soon as the pace FINALLY picked up--the story was over.

Unless your goal is to simply add another book to your Good Reads virtual 'vampire' shelf, I wouldn't really recommend it.

shawnapantzke's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.0

aschmitty's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

annakorda's review against another edition

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4.0

3,5/5
Η νουβέλα του Φουέντες είναι ελκυστική και στα δυο επίπεδα που φιλοδοξεί να κινηθεί!
Αρχικά είναι μια αρκετά τρομαχτική ιστορία του Κόμη Βλαντ, αντάξιο sequel του Δράκουλα του Bram Stoker! Οι περιγραφές του σπιτιού, η ζωή του Κόμη Βλαντ, το ίδιο του το παρουσιαστικό! Σε συναρπάζει πως μέσα σε τόσες λίγες σελίδες καταφέρνει να δημιουργήσει ένα απόλυτα τρομαχτικο σκηνικό!
Από την άλλη ο Φουέντες αποκαλύπτει πως τρομαχτικοτερο από όλα αυτά είναι η μικροαστική ζωή και η αδυναμία αλλά και άρνηση θέλησης απομάκρυνσης από αυτήν! Ο άνθρωπος που ζει μια απλή, καθημερινή ζωή μέσα σε μια οικογένεια που όπως αποδεικνύεται λίγα γνωρίζει για τα μέλη της!
Σε προσωπικό επίπεδο το ευχαριστήθηκα πάρα πολύ, σημαντικό είναι και το μικρό μέγεθος του! Αρνητικό κομμάτι μόνο η σκηνή με τον σκίουρο, που κατ εμέ θα μπορούσε και να απουσιάζει!

brandy777's review

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3.0

Reads beautifully in Spanish. An interesting take on the classic Dracula tale retold in modern Mexican culture . Fuentes was able to give color to the narrator by embedding him with a fear that was essential for the victims of Vlad( aka Dracula or Vlad the impaler,or Vlad ||| -as the story was nice enough to inform me with)and tell a short but gripping story of how a man centuries into the future has basically no chance against a horror he always perceived as folklore.

octavia_cade's review against another edition

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dark fast-paced

3.0

Interesting novella, if somewhat flawed. I like the idea - that modern day political upheaval in Eastern Europe has resulted in Dracula being dispossessed of his lands, so he ends up in Mexico City, which has the twin advantages of being highly populated (lots of food!) and possessed of a useless, corrupt legal system... both great advantages to a predator. And as with the original text, a lot of this is filtered through a helpless lawyer, initially employed to procure accommodation for the traveler.

I found it pretty compelling up until the last quarter or so, I think, where it all falls slightly apart for me. I'm not sure why, exactly, except that I found the ending less convincing than the rest of it. Yet thinking of it now, as I write this short review, I wonder if I haven't misinterpreted. The destruction of the lawyer's family - the corruption of it, rather - is simply playing on that existing theme, except this time it's domestic rather than political corruption, as the weaknesses of a grieving parent cause a surviving child to be given up to horror rather than sheltered from it. If so, it's cleverly done, but I think I would have liked to see the political parallels played up a little more in order to really underline the connection... because that domestic corruption could have happened anywhere, so I wonder if the book really utilised its setting to the fullest extent.

gusanadelibros's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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