sarful's review against another edition
5.0
Fitting I should finish this book on the last day of Trump’s presidency and the beginning of a new dawn. It fits.
As for this truly suspenseful piece of horror, wow. There’s an element of the unknown outcome as the whole thing is in epistolary form, so did they all succumb to the evil or did they survive? I’m not sure if Stoker intended the letters and journals to add that extra layer of suspense, either way I loved it. The story never lets up, never a dull moment, and keeps it up all the way to the end.
After the strange experiences Mr. Harker had in Transylvania with the owner, Count Dracula, he prefers to never think on it again. This is the only time anyone gets one on one time with Dracula, a prideful monster who seems both strangely lonely, yet unremorseful about his unsavory designs. He’s a fascinating character and I can see why vampires have never left our lexicon and continues to bring more and more stories and reimaginings. This was also the most strange and terrifying bits of the book, which never let up in the strangely terrifying.
Harker nearly dies at Dracula’s castle, and becomes so ill, his fiancé, Mina, comes out to Romania to nurse him back to health. While he gains his health, back in his hometown Dracula, newly arrived into England begins his terror.
Ok the whole section with Lucy slowly being changed into a vampire was really good. She has her fiancé, Dr. Seward her almost fiancé and his friend the second most famous character in the book, Van Helsing, helping her. There’s also the strange case of Dr. Seward’s mentally insane patient Renfield, of whom is connected to Dracula. At one point when Lucy’s mom removes the garlic from the room, I was like “noooo!!!” out loud, that’s how engrossing the read is. And her demise at the hand of her fiancé is kind of heartbreaking, for him.
As the story goes on, in comes Harker and his now wife, back from Romania. Van Helsing hears of Harker’s journal through Mina and once he’s back to health they all begin to learn from Van Helsing the vampire lore and vow to kill him. This is also when Dracula begins to slowly begin to turn Mina right under the nose of the men. But it’s her who saves the day and helps Van Helsing kill Dracula’s vampiric women. Harker and Mr. Morris kill Dracula letting Mina out from the curse. Whew.
And the whole story is 3 months!
Women in this book are constantly underestimated. Both the sign of the times, but I feel done on purpose as Mina is one of the strongest people in the book, which is pretty awesome.
What a read.
As for this truly suspenseful piece of horror, wow. There’s an element of the unknown outcome as the whole thing is in epistolary form, so did they all succumb to the evil or did they survive? I’m not sure if Stoker intended the letters and journals to add that extra layer of suspense, either way I loved it. The story never lets up, never a dull moment, and keeps it up all the way to the end.
After the strange experiences Mr. Harker had in Transylvania with the owner, Count Dracula, he prefers to never think on it again. This is the only time anyone gets one on one time with Dracula, a prideful monster who seems both strangely lonely, yet unremorseful about his unsavory designs. He’s a fascinating character and I can see why vampires have never left our lexicon and continues to bring more and more stories and reimaginings. This was also the most strange and terrifying bits of the book, which never let up in the strangely terrifying.
Harker nearly dies at Dracula’s castle, and becomes so ill, his fiancé, Mina, comes out to Romania to nurse him back to health. While he gains his health, back in his hometown Dracula, newly arrived into England begins his terror.
Ok the whole section with Lucy slowly being changed into a vampire was really good. She has her fiancé, Dr. Seward her almost fiancé and his friend the second most famous character in the book, Van Helsing, helping her. There’s also the strange case of Dr. Seward’s mentally insane patient Renfield, of whom is connected to Dracula. At one point when Lucy’s mom removes the garlic from the room, I was like “noooo!!!” out loud, that’s how engrossing the read is. And her demise at the hand of her fiancé is kind of heartbreaking, for him.
As the story goes on, in comes Harker and his now wife, back from Romania. Van Helsing hears of Harker’s journal through Mina and once he’s back to health they all begin to learn from Van Helsing the vampire lore and vow to kill him. This is also when Dracula begins to slowly begin to turn Mina right under the nose of the men. But it’s her who saves the day and helps Van Helsing kill Dracula’s vampiric women. Harker and Mr. Morris kill Dracula letting Mina out from the curse. Whew.
And the whole story is 3 months!
Women in this book are constantly underestimated. Both the sign of the times, but I feel done on purpose as Mina is one of the strongest people in the book, which is pretty awesome.
What a read.
renatafauceglia's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
ladyofsorrows's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mumbi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
mairimav's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 Re-read. Props for the originality and creating a beloved mythical creature that people are fascinated reading and telling storues about,but I dreaded and got bored and it put me into a reading slump. Also, the gothic novel atmosphere is enchanting and it succumbs the reader
mossdrop's review against another edition
2.0
It's always a strange feeling giving a low rating to a book deemed 'a classic.'
Dracula is not a good book. It's a disappointing tome that reads more like a travelogue than a horror novel. Towards the end, everything falls apart into endless discussions on how to kill the villain himself, with an abrupt, unsatisfactory ending that vexes after being forced to endure the same thing over and over.
The pace is all over the place, and Stoker has no idea how to keep the tension and mystery going. After a respectable beginning, that brief feeling of horror fades away. Count Dracula himself doesn't even feature in the novel much at all, other than an extended appearance at the beginning (and brief appearances sprinkled in). You certainly can keep your villain off the page and have it work! Gaston Leroux does this masterfully in The Phantom of the Opera, where the Phantom makes his only real big appearance at the end of the novel. Leroux understands how to keep the tension, horror, and mystery going; Stoker fails here. Dracula the character inspires very little horror himself, and it's no wonder film adaptations rewrite him as either strikingly handsome or add a tragic romantic backstory — they're trying to give the character something out of really nothing (outside of a Fu Manchu mustache, I'm not joking).
I will give one star to Chapter Seven, in which Dracula terrorizes a ship and its crew. Masterful bit of horror displayed here. Shame it could not continue for the duration of the novel.
It's understandable that Dracula became such a phenomenon, but through a critical literary lens, the novel does not hold up.
Dracula is not a good book. It's a disappointing tome that reads more like a travelogue than a horror novel. Towards the end, everything falls apart into endless discussions on how to kill the villain himself, with an abrupt, unsatisfactory ending that vexes after being forced to endure the same thing over and over.
The pace is all over the place, and Stoker has no idea how to keep the tension and mystery going. After a respectable beginning, that brief feeling of horror fades away. Count Dracula himself doesn't even feature in the novel much at all, other than an extended appearance at the beginning (and brief appearances sprinkled in). You certainly can keep your villain off the page and have it work! Gaston Leroux does this masterfully in The Phantom of the Opera, where the Phantom makes his only real big appearance at the end of the novel. Leroux understands how to keep the tension, horror, and mystery going; Stoker fails here. Dracula the character inspires very little horror himself, and it's no wonder film adaptations rewrite him as either strikingly handsome or add a tragic romantic backstory — they're trying to give the character something out of really nothing (outside of a Fu Manchu mustache, I'm not joking).
I will give one star to Chapter Seven, in which Dracula terrorizes a ship and its crew. Masterful bit of horror displayed here. Shame it could not continue for the duration of the novel.
It's understandable that Dracula became such a phenomenon, but through a critical literary lens, the novel does not hold up.
meg_64's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
hellsells's review against another edition
4.0
The book itself had a good plot, nice storyline, good characters, but the historical research Bram made lack preciseness and accuracy.
sampena16's review against another edition
4.0
I had to read this for class. I wish I didn't know the legend, though. That probably would have made the suspense in this book better.
clairebartholomew549's review against another edition
5.0
Entering my reviews over from my old Goodreads profile I unearthed recently...here are some super sappy thoughts from 2009-era 14-year-old Claire!
This book scared me beyond comprehension. Which is a good thing.
This book scared me beyond comprehension. Which is a good thing.