Anno Dracula (Anno Dracula, #1)

May 13, 2013 Amanda rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In Victorian England, history has taken a peculiar turn: Queen Victoria has married Vlad Tepes, who has turned the Queen, restored her youth, and given her eternal life. With the Queen of England and her Prince Consort counted among the undead, it's not long before it becomes a fashionable choice, and even a political necessity, to embrace the Dark Kiss that brings immortality. High-born and low-born alike have renounced their "warm" lives in favor of the "red thirst." To accommodate the societa...more In Victorian England, history has taken a peculiar turn: Queen Victoria has married Vlad Tepes, who has turned the Queen, restored her youth, and given her eternal life. With the Queen of England and her Prince Consort counted among the undead, it's not long before it becomes a fashionable choice, and even a political necessity, to embrace the Dark Kiss that brings immortality. High-born and low-born alike have renounced their "warm" lives in favor of the "red thirst." To accommodate the societal change, most business is conducted at night, silver is in restricted supply (hide grandma's tea service!), and humans increasingly find themselves in the minority. In the midst of this societal upheaval, a new threat has emerged as poor, eviscerated vampire prostitutes have been found in Whitechapel, "ripped" by a murderer with his own violent agenda. Welcome to A.D.--the year of our Dracula.

Anno Dracula is an inventive premise that eventually collapses under its own weight. Newman's novel builds upon a reimagining of events that occur in the wake of Bram Stoker's Dracula had it been history instead of fiction. In Newman's Victorian England, the hunt is on for the murderer known as "Silver Knife" until he is given a new moniker upon receipt of anonymous letters signed "Jack the Ripper." Turning the killing spree of Jack the Ripper into a hate crime against vampires is brilliant, but instead of being the axis of the book's action it serves only as a loose framework. We as readers know the identity of the killer within the first 20 pages, but this revelation never creates any real sense of dramatic irony. If anything, it lessens the suspense that could have been created by a tense manhunt through the streets of London. The characters purportedly brought in to track the murderer do little other than show up at the scene of the crime and discuss everything but Jack the Ripper. No one character seems truly invested in tracking the madman. In fact, it's possible to forget the Jack the Ripper angle for entire chapters as characters fall in love, fall out of love, and engage in all of the social duties expected of the upper class.

The two primary characters (and it's hard to narrow it down to just two because you need to fill out a dance card to keep up with who you're supposed to focus on in this large cast--a problem further complicated by a constantly shifting point of view between chapters) are Genevieve Dieudonne and Charles Beauregard. Genevieve is a vampire elder, older than Dracula by half a century. Mirroring European snobbery based upon pedigree, she is of the pure bloodline of Chandagnac and looks down upon those from the "polluted" bloodline of Dracula. An undead philanthropist, she works in a free clinic for newly turned vampires, shows up everywhere looking beautiful and refined, and, for reasons that are murky at best, is asked to begin looking into the Jack the Ripper case because of her unique insight (of which she basically has nil). Charles Beauregard is a member of the Diogenes Club, a secret organization of powerful men who pull the strings in London society. Charles rejects the idea of becoming a vampire, shows up everywhere looking handsome and refined, and, for reasons that are murky at best, is asked to begin looking into the Jack the Ripper case because of his unique skill set (of which he basically has a silver sword concealed in a cane). Given that these two have nothing to do at the crime scenes other than shake their heads sympathetically over the gruesome loss of life, it's inevitable that they will fall in love. In terms of characterization, we're wading in some shallow waters. Neither character seems anything more than a fictional construct simply acting and reacting in ways that move the plot forward in a serviceable, if not seamless, manner.

In regard to the large cast of characters, Newman has considerable fun weaving historical and fictional characters into the plot. Bram and Florence Stoker, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain, Beatrix Potter, Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes, Mina Harker, and several Victorian societal and political luminaries either make appearances or are alluded to throughout. Even Lestat de Lioncourt makes a brief appearance as a foppish rebel against the Christians who denounce the rise of the undead. Now, initially this might sound like fun, but these characters make appearances so brief that they don't really add anything to the narrative. It's name-dropping in lieu of a clever conceit; basically, it's the literary equivalent of spotting Angelina Jolie in a crowded airport, snapping a photo as she whisks through the terminal, and then boring everyone for the rest of your life with a photo of the back of her head. And, in grandiose terms, you shall forever refer to this event as "the day I met Angelina Jolie."

The book is not entirely without its merits and I can certainly see where hardcore Dracula fans or Victorian Era Anglophiles would enjoy the hell out of this. As for me, it was a marvelously ingenious idea that ultimately felt as cold and stiff as a vampire sleeping it off in his crypt. The absence of Dracula until the last 20 pages also added to the disappointment and, while the scene in which Genevieve and Charles finally visit the vampire court is horrifically twisted, I was disappointed in the anticlimactic ending that was over with too quickly and easily.

And now, for those who won't read the novel, a quick rant about the end! (view spoiler)

Cross posted at This Insignificant Cinder and at Shelf Inflicted (less)

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Sep 28, 2008 Stephen Theaker rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I hadn't read any fiction by Kim Newman before, though I've always enjoyed his film reviews for Empire magazine. I'm pretty sure I haven't read Dracula either, though I've seen plenty of film versions of it.

The twin premise here is that Dracula was not defeated at the end of Bram Stoker's novel, and that he existed in the same world as many other fictional characters.

It's hard to mention that second bit without thinking of Alan Moore's later League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. There are other sim...more I hadn't read any fiction by Kim Newman before, though I've always enjoyed his film reviews for Empire magazine. I'm pretty sure I haven't read Dracula either, though I've seen plenty of film versions of it.

The twin premise here is that Dracula was not defeated at the end of Bram Stoker's novel, and that he existed in the same world as many other fictional characters.

It's hard to mention that second bit without thinking of Alan Moore's later League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. There are other similarities, too, in that both authors have penned sequels taking their stories into the twentieth century. Earlier books in a similar vein include Philip Jose Farmer's Wold-Newton books (credited here by Kim Newman), and of course just about every comic published since the 1940s.

Part of me wishes that Newman had limited himself to the characters from Dracula - occasionally the book drives you off to Wikipedia to look characters up, rather than drawing you in to its plot - but you can't begrudge an author his enthusiasms, and in general he carries it off very well. Indeed, one of the book's most interesting ideas is that the differences between vampires in different books stems from there being different families of vampires, with different abilities, mentalities and relationships. Dracula's line, for example, is said to be tainted, damaged and more demented than most, because of how he died before turning.

For most of the novel Dracula himself is an offstage, pernicious presence. When he does take centre stage, the wait was worthwhile - Newman's Dracula is utterly terrifying.

Overall, this is a much more plot-driven book than you might expect, and, though the mood of fear, oppression and decay is kept at a high pitch, every word compels the reader to keep turning the pages. The literary games are always subservient to the storytelling. Similarly, Dracula's far-from-bloodless coup has serious consequences for Britain's society, from its class system to its political organisations and its foreign policy, but we only learn about those things as they are relevant to the story.

A brilliant book.(less)

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Sep 27, 2007 Biz rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Vampire and Horror fans

Shelves: horror

This was a book I found at a used book store. The description on the back read basically that van helsing failed to kill Dracula and he'd become the consort of Queen Victoria. Oh and Jack the Ripper is involved.

Any story that involves Jack the Ripper AND vampires, I am so there. This was an amazing book. I would love to find the following books in the series as I loved the characters, both original and literary cameos. it was a wonderful blend and I've found I enjoy books that do that.

If you can...more

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Mar 19, 2008 William rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampire-fiction

1888 London, and Dracula is hanging out with Queen Victoria, while in Whitechapel, prostitutes are dying strange bloody deaths...

It's obvious that the author had a lot of fun writing this, and I had just as much reading it. Historical fact mixed with Newman's particular sense of whimsy and walk on parts from fictional characters from the Victorian era, it's a tremendous mixture.

The ending comes a bit too quickly, and old Drac becomes a bit of a comic parody of a vampire lord, but all in all I l...more

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Aug 06, 2012 Shan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So much fun, I can't wait to read the next one in the series (and maybe the rest of Newman's work, too). I love the reinterpretation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, and the nods to other larger-than-life literary characters (vampire and otherwise) are too numerous to count. And unlike some others I could name, this is a vampire-human romance that has some real complexity.

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Aug 08, 2007 Tara rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: any horror/vampire fan

Shelves: loved-it

I happened upon this book at a book sale and got it really cheap. I really loved how the author mixed historical facts into the fiction. This book had all of my favorite things: Victorian London, Jack the Ripper, Count Dracula, sex, intrigue and action! What a great roller coaster ride for the imagination.

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Jan 01, 2013 Kat rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, historical, fiction, fantasy

Having heared nothing but good reviews of this book, I was not at all disappointed when I finally managed to get my hands on a copy.
Kim Newman manages to mix real events, fiction of his own devising and existing fictional elements with aplomb. Fans of horror/nineteenth century fiction will have fun spotting the cameos from real and fictional figures, some more obscure than others. However, it would be easy to make this book sound gimmicky. Even if I hadn't recognised any of the references, I st...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Jaya rated it 5 of 5 stars

Im re-reading this for the umpteenth time. I love it sooo much. I love the way all the factual and fictional characters tie in.
I read another review, where the person reading said that they had to constantly look up characters that appeared in the book. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing, but I never had to look up a single one. I have a teddy bear called Quartermain. Perhaps I'm crazy. I'd read all the books in which the characters appeared, and it was like old home week.
The s...more

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Jan 23, 2010 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Dracula lovers who don't mind some gore

Recommended to Julie by: Chris

Shelves: 2010, historical-fiction, horror, paranormal, from-library

I write this review fully expecting my friend Chris to respond in outrage and shock. :D

Toward the end of last year, I explained to Chris how much I had enjoyed Soulless by Gail Carriger, and mentioned how I love it when novels are set in a world where vampires (or werewolves, or both) have "come out of the closet," so to speak. I like watching the reaction of the societies depicted in these books, and getting a bit of perspective on it from both vampires(/werewolves) and humans alike. Chris told...more I write this review fully expecting my friend Chris to respond in outrage and shock. :D

Toward the end of last year, I explained to Chris how much I had enjoyed Soulless by Gail Carriger, and mentioned how I love it when novels are set in a world where vampires (or werewolves, or both) have "come out of the closet," so to speak. I like watching the reaction of the societies depicted in these books, and getting a bit of perspective on it from both vampires(/werewolves) and humans alike. Chris told me that, in that case, I HAD to read Anno Dracula.

Having just read the pinnacle of vampire tales that is Dracula for the first time, I embarked on Anno Dracula with great interest. Unfortunately, it started to go downhill for me right from the first few chapters. I could see how Dracula marrying the widowed Victoria would be a neat (alternative) premise, but right from the start I didn't like where the characters were going. I had such love and respect for the characters from that book, and from the very beginning I felt like Kim Newman was defaming them all. Moral, upstanding, brave characters became weak, faithless, and selfish (and in some cases... dead). Even innocent Lucy Westenra had her entire diary analyzed through the lens of this new version of Jack Seward, and every line was interpreted as selfish, mean, gloating, or coquettish. This really bothered me.

I was very surprised to see appearances by many, many literary characters and figures of the period, such as Inspector Lestrade, Oscar Wilde, Dr. Jekyll, Dr. Moreau, and Mycroft Holmes. I enjoy this type of cross-pollination (look at [see: The Eyre Affair]), but my final issue completely overshadowed any enjoyment I might have gotten out of it.

What was this final issue? This book is super gory and and very, very sexual in content. It's more descriptive in both of these categories than I personally like in a book - not that I can't handle it, but I have to feel like there's a point. I was frequently disgusted by what I was reading, and a lot of what went on also continued to decrease my opinion of the characters and what/who they had become.

The bright spots: I did really like certain characters, such as Charles Beauregard and Genevieve Dieudonne. I also appreciated the political and social aspects (what I suspect were Chris's favorite parts) as the author examined how the various social classes in Victorian London would adapt to vampires in their midst. That part was fascinating.

Overall, I'm glad I read it, but I'm maybe... 65% sure I won't pick up the others in the series. At least not 'til I've scrubbed my brain out with something light and fun and non-gory. :D(less)

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Julie You raise many good points. I do understand that Newman is trying to show that Dracula is corrupting everything, even the characters we know were mora...more
Jan 23, 2010 10:54am

Jaya I feel like you and I read different books when reading Stoker's ''Dracula''. I certainly never ever had the impression that Lucy Westenra was innocen...more
Jan 13, 2012 04:55pm

Sep 20, 2008 Juushika rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: status-borrowed

In 1885, Count Dracula came to London to spread vampirism into the heart of Victorian England. But in this retelling of (literary) history, Van Helsing did not defeat Dracula; rather, Dracula succeeded, marrying Queen Victoria and becoming Prince Consort. Now, in 1888, vampires fill positions of powerbut also the streets of Whitechapel, where a murderer is killing and mutilating young vampire prostitutes. The attempt to catch him brings together a upper class adventurer named Charles Beauregard...more In 1885, Count Dracula came to London to spread vampirism into the heart of Victorian England. But in this retelling of (literary) history, Van Helsing did not defeat Dracula; rather, Dracula succeeded, marrying Queen Victoria and becoming Prince Consort. Now, in 1888, vampires fill positions of powerbut also the streets of Whitechapel, where a murderer is killing and mutilating young vampire prostitutes. The attempt to catch him brings together a upper class adventurer named Charles Beauregard and an ancient vampire elder named Genevieve Diuedonne. A clever concept that intertwines alternate history with horror and includes many familiar faces (including, of course, Jack the Ripper, known here as the Silver Knife), this is a promising political intrigue enrichened by vampires that, unfortunately, falls flat. Although the horror is indeed gruesome, the plot is detailed, and the vampires are skillfully conceived, the book's premise is impossible to believe and the writing style is cheap at best (and desperately in need of an editor at worst). This is a swift read and holds a lot of promise, but it is also, frankly, quite bad. I don't recommend it.

This premise as well as the character cameos create a promising and interesting starting place for the book. The Victorian setting, touching both on high society and the slums of Whitechapel, the characters which range from vampire elders to Jack the Ripper to minute appearances from even Oscar Wilde, and finally the vampires, conceived in thoughtful detail and as well as gruesome horror, certainly seems promising. And to his credit, Newman conceives and explores his plot well: it's a detailed combination of horror and history and politics, knitted together neatly but not too simply, and so remains interesting, readable, and both logical and unpredictable.

But the premise does not live up to its potential by a long shot. Instead, the book is bogged down by an underlying fault in the premise as well as poor storytelling. The premise's flaw is that Queen Victoria married Count Dracula prior to the start of the book, and that by the time of the book his plan to take control over England has proceeded largely without difficulty. Vampires roam the streets, and more are being reborn into vampirism every dayincluding those in the upper class. All of this, despite the fact that Dracula remains excessive, appalling, and violent as ever. Why is there no social resistance to vampirism? The book makes a big deal of it, but there is clearly no major social backlashor the vampires would not have gotten so far. Jack the Ripper killing vampires makes more sense than anything else in the book, including the social struggles between the vampires and the "warm" and new politics including vampire rulers, in particular a vampire as Prince Consort. Despite the careful scripting and weaving of disparate threads and concepts, the result is a premise and plot that are, for lack of a better word, impossible, thus tainting the rest of the book with the reader's disbelief.

Worse than the premise is, unfortunately, the writing. The book depends on short chapters to keep the plot moving and repeated ellipses to create a sense of urgency (especially in the later chapters), and with constant errors in punctuation and capitalization it is in dire need of an editor. By contrast, there is nothing about the writing that stands out as artful, skillful, or even simply good. To an extent, the short chapters and simple writing keep the book moving smoothly and help to simplify what could be an overly complex plot, but on the whole the bad writing style is just that: bad. So, despite the promise of the premise, the unfeasible plot and the poor writing make this a disappointing, lackluster novel. I appreciate the attempt, but I didn't enjoy the product, and I don't recommend this book.(less)

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Aug 28, 2008 Ryan rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Alan Moore, Michael Moorcock, or Comic Book Junkies

I came across this a while ago when looking into alternative history as a genre ... I think it was on a list of overlooked sci-fi novels alongside some Michael Moorcock and mysterious sounding titles like "Motherfuckers: The Auschwitz of Oz" (which I later found described as Lautreamont and Sade meet Roald Dahl). I was intrigued.

If you ever read those "what if" comics as a kid, you're familiar with the exercise; what if Van Helsing hadn't killed Dracula ... and instead, Dracula had used his pow...more

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Aug 14, 2007 Peggy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: darkforcesbookgroup

Here’s another really cool vampire book out there that you won’t see unless you get really lucky at the used bookstore: Kim Newman’s Anno Dracula. Imagine a world where the Fearless Vampire Hunters failed and Dracula survived. Now imagine that the Romanian Count became the Prince Consort to the widowed Queen Victoria. The sudden high profile of vampires (many of whom you’ve met before) draws hundreds of the undead to England, creating a whole new class system. In the midst of all of this class u...more

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Apr 26, 2009 Chris rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, vampires, london, fantasy-steampunk, dracula, fantasy-urban, fantasy-historical

This is a somewhat strange book, but it presents an interesting "What if". The premise is that Dracula won and took over England. Instead of using just historical characters, Newman brings in famous Victorian fictional characters as well (most notably in reference to Sherlock Holmes). This is risky because it makes two sets of fictional characters (Newman's own and those character he borrows) as well as real historical figures. It works because Newman has done his research, not only in terms of...more

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Feb 12, 2010 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: award-nominee-bram-stoker, multiple-award-nominee, award-nominee-world-fantasy, award-nominee-locus, punked, fang-bangers, fantasy, historical-horror, 1990-1999, science-horror, audiobook, on-deck-next, to-re-read

4.5 stars. This was a very well thought out and very original novel (which is saying a lot for a book about Dracula and vampires). Super plot and great characters, together with the interweaving of both historic and literary figures make this a very worth while read. As good as the rest of the novel is, the final 30 pages and the description of Dracula and his "court" is ABSOLUTELY AMAZING (and brilliantly conceived) and brings this novel to the level of a MUST READ!!!

Nominee: World Fantasy Awar...more

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Oct 03, 2012 Daniel rated it 3 of 5 stars

Anno Dracula begins where Bram Stoker's Dracula didn't end, with Dracula defeating Van Helsing's posse, and proceeding with his plans to take over England. The novel starts several years later - it's 1889, vampires, both rich and poor, are common in London, and society is undergoing a massive upheaval to cope with the changes. Vlad Tepes is now married to Queen Victoria, and as Prince Consort is ruling the land. The plot centers around the hunt for Jack the Ripper, who is killing vampire prostit...more

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Feb 23, 2013 Joel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Well, it's about time I admitted that I am something of a nerd. After reading something so weighty (in every sense of the word) as Moby Dick, I needed something light and frothy to enjoy and ended up with Anno Dracula in my hand after a trip to the bookstore. It was a Neil Gaiman comment on the cover that first drew me to it, because Gaiman's American Gods and Anansi Boys are two of my favorite fantasy novels. I didn't learn (until several chapters in) that Anno Dracula was actually first publis...more Well, it's about time I admitted that I am something of a nerd. After reading something so weighty (in every sense of the word) as Moby Dick, I needed something light and frothy to enjoy and ended up with Anno Dracula in my hand after a trip to the bookstore. It was a Neil Gaiman comment on the cover that first drew me to it, because Gaiman's American Gods and Anansi Boys are two of my favorite fantasy novels. I didn't learn (until several chapters in) that Anno Dracula was actually first published a couple of decades ago. In fact, it already has two sequels and a third on the way.

That's actually good news, because I really ended up enjoying it.

Set in an alternate world in which both vampires and the events of Dracula are real--except that Dracula did not lose at the end of the novel, but in fact went on to mesmerize and marry Queen Victoria. Thus vampires are now free to come out of hiding and converge in Victorian England, where politics, love, and Jack the Ripper all come to get mingled together.

So, clearly, this is not for everyone. In fact, you probably already know whether or not you would ever pick up.

I really appreciated the fun the author had with the novel. Do you know your famous vampires from movies or literature? They probably make an appearance here. How about Victorian lit? Do the names Jekyll, Moreau, or Lestrade mean anything to you? Look for cameos by them as well. Newman hit the idea of the gothic mash-up out of the park years before the genre reached the public consciousness with books like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and he creates compelling original characters to boot.

As I said, I have no delusions that this is a book anyone else would enjoy besides me, but if you like supernatural fiction, and "spot-the-reference" games, and like a grown-up take on vampires, the book is a lot of fun. I'll pick up the next two in the series sight unseen--in fact, I'm looking forward to them even more, since one is set in World War I and one is set in the world of James Bond. Good times.(less)

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Jan 13, 2013 Vedang Manerikar rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013_read

This is the kind of vampire book that should be written more often. Set in the late 19th century England, the vampires have "come out" to the world, and Count Dracula is now the Prince Consort of Queen Victoria. The Victorian culture is undergoing a slow change as people start embracing vampirism and "turning". At the same time, as Count Dracula (aka Vlad the Impaler) starts exerting more and more influence over the throne, England begins reverting to the medieval times. Anti-vampire resistance...more

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Dec 30, 2012 William Mansky rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Don't judge this book by its cover. Well, do, but first set aside all your preconceptions about Victorian vampire novels. Anno Dracula was written in 1992, before the current wave of vampire popularity, and despite the completely absurd premise is deadly serious. It's the ultimate Victorian mashup, cameoing characters from the canons of Bram Stoker and Arthur Conan Doyle, the real-life saga of Jack the Ripper, and enough other period novels that it might well be worth looking up every name in th...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Sam Reader rated it 5 of 5 stars

So the rundown is as follows:

The book is a really good adventure story with tons of extra material packed in, to the point of maybe being overstuffed. While initially starting cynical and dark, the pace picks up quickly and the book is too much fun to be overshadowed by its faults. While occasionally too clever for itself, it is still very clever, and that is something that should be commended. You will enjoy this. You should definitely try reading it. The author's a true lover of pop-culture,...more

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Dec 05, 2012 Yen Ooi rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have been meaning to read Anno Dracula for a long time now, as it has been recommended to me by many many people. I finally downloaded it to my Kindle and started reading it on the weekend. I finished the book yesterday and really enjoyed it.

MINOR SPOILERS ON THE STORY FLOW

Without giving any of the story away, I would say the book isn't great when it starts. I really struggled through the first thirty percent of it, as the story felt like it was trying to be everything in too little space. Wit...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Ryan Groesbeck rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a fun and entertaining read, with the exception that I spent most of it in anxieties about what was happening to Sherlock Holmes off in a vampire concentration camp, which was alluded to but never visited.

That said, it's clear she had a fun time writing this (and you can tell from her author acknowledgments at the end, the first I've bothered to read in a long time), and I had fun reading it.

Was it deep? Not particularly. But it does make you wonder on what small turns of chance large...more This was a fun and entertaining read, with the exception that I spent most of it in anxieties about what was happening to Sherlock Holmes off in a vampire concentration camp, which was alluded to but never visited.

That said, it's clear she had a fun time writing this (and you can tell from her author acknowledgments at the end, the first I've bothered to read in a long time), and I had fun reading it.

Was it deep? Not particularly. But it does make you wonder on what small turns of chance larger things may fall -- in this case, Renfield taking a bite out of Seward's hand causes him to falter at a critical moment in the original-Dracula's plot, allowing the arch-vampire to escape and wreak his vengeance on those who attempted to thwart him.

There are some interesting observations on what a changed (and vampire-dominated) London might look like. I was particularly struck by Godalming noticing that, for all a vampire's adaptive powers, he is essentially a creature of the age he was created in. Dracula will never cease to be other than a 15th century autocrat, no matter how much he attempts to learn modern ways and blend in.

There were some minor irritants, mostly caused by excessively repetitive use of some words ("get" to describe a vampire's progeny, most notably). I might refer to my son as my son, but I think I would tire of the usage if I used it every time it was available. I might start sprinkling in "my child" or "my offspring", etc...this author does not.

One is left with a sense of flawed incompleteness. Newman seems to have envisioned a grand plot with multiple hidden threads that all merge together at the end in a magical AHA sort of climax, and fails to deliver. Since many of her desired threads (I would imagine) lie hidden in the text, the sense of disappointment is less than it might otherwise have been, but I'm still left thinking that she meant for it to be more than it ended up becoming.

The ending is somewhat abrupt and leaves some threads hanging. I'm unsure if there are sequels to this or not but it left a bit of an annoyed taste in my mouth. (less)

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Oct 30, 2012 Jen rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2012

Is there such a thing as 'too much of a good thing'? When it comes to Anno Dracula, I think the answer, sadly, is yes.

According to the Wikipedia page, Kim Newman managed to fit in something like 99 fictional references and 30 some odd historical references on top of any original characters the book gave us. For me, it became a slog instead of a joy to get through the book - it was as if Newman got caught up in a game of 'let's see how clever we are' and couldn't stop.

On top of that, giving us th...more

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Oct 25, 2012 Jordan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: alternate-history, highest-recommendations, sci-fi, horror

The year is 1888, the city is London, and a killer stalks the fog-shrouded streets. In the darkened streets of Whitechapel someone is killing prostitutes….vampire prostitutes. And neither the Queen nor Prince-Consort Vlad Tepes Dracula are amused….

Yeah, that’s right. In the world of Anno Dracula Vampires stalk the streets of London, and Dracula sits on the throne. Kim Newman has taken a story that we all more or less know in one form or another and turned it on its head. This is a tale of a worl...more The year is 1888, the city is London, and a killer stalks the fog-shrouded streets. In the darkened streets of Whitechapel someone is killing prostitutes….vampire prostitutes. And neither the Queen nor Prince-Consort Vlad Tepes Dracula are amused….

Yeah, that’s right. In the world of Anno Dracula Vampires stalk the streets of London, and Dracula sits on the throne. Kim Newman has taken a story that we all more or less know in one form or another and turned it on its head. This is a tale of a world in which Van Helsing and his band of makeshift vampire slayers failed. Now Dracula has married Queen Victoria and rules England as the Prince-Consort. Vampirism runs rampant througout London (and presumably the rest of the land as well) as elder vampires are able to “come out of the closet” and be accepted for what they are while newborns multiply at an alarming rate. Van Helsing’s head adorns a spike atop Buckingham Palace. Quincey Morris and Jonathon Harker are likewise slain, casualties of the awful night when events went awry. Mina Harker is a vampire, part of Dracula’s court. Arthur Godalming has likewise turned and is a rising star in the vampire-controlled government. And Doctor Jack Seward’s sanity is slowly slipping as he works in a Whitechapel charity ward, slipping out at night with silvered scalpel to commit the horrible murders history will remember as the work of Jack the Ripper. Original characters Charles Beauregard, an agent of the Diogenes Club (introduced as Mycroft Holmes’ club by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and here serving as the precursor to 007′s Universal Exports) and Genevieve Dieudonne, Doctor Seward’s vampiric assistant, both find themselves caught up in the hunt for Silver Knife or The Ripper as tensions between the turned and the warm threaten to tear London to pieces….

The real genius of Kim Newman’s creation, however, is that London has become haven to every literary vampire who could conceivably have been placed there, as well as a variety of other characters from the time period. Both Doctors Jekyll and Moreau show up, for instance, as do a variety of legitimate historical characters in various stages of life or undeath (Oscar Wilde has turned, for one.) With Dracula on the throne, vampires no longer have to hide and they for the most part have flocked to his banner. Mostly Victorian-era creati0ns, there are nonetheless more contemporary characters as well. Anne Rice’s Lestat de Lioncourt makes a brief appearance, as does the villain of Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot. In this, Anno Dracula follows in the footsteps of Philip Jose Farmer’s Wold Newton novels (which I apparently need to read) and Alan Moore’s League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Ingenious in its conception, but it can be offputtingly sexual in my opinion. Read at your own discretion.)

I first ran across mention of this book in a work on Dracula where in an appendix the authors gave an overview of notable works featuring that undead nosferatu. I idly noted that it sounded like a book worth reading, then promptly forgot about it. I then found it at Barnes and Noble on its rerelease, with a prominant endorsement from Neil Gaiman on the spine and front cover. I don’t know about you, but when Neil Gaiman recommends something I pay attention. I am exceedingly glad I did! I plan to now track down and read the rest of Newman’s bibliography, starting with the just-released sequel Anno Dracula: The Bloody Red Baron.

First off, read Bram Stoker’s original novel. You won’t regret it. Its a classic for a reason, and you will need to know the story and characters therein to get the most out of Anno Dracula. If you are a hopeless cretin and refuse, at least do the CliffNotes or something. Seriously. Then read this book.

Given the premise, this is obviously not a story for children. Jack the Ripper’s victims were prostitutes, and we get to meet several of these women as characters so sexual content and violence are a given in any story exploring that mystery. The Ripper killings were quite gruesome, and while not exceedingly gory in its descriptions this element is not glossed over in this book. Vampirism tends to be rather sensual, and as noted there is a bit of sexual content–not too explicit, but present nonetheless. Also some foul language, but not too gratuitous as I recall. Definitely worth a read!
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Oct 24, 2012 Gianni Falconieri rated it 4 of 5 stars

Kim Newman è bravo, anche se nella sua prosa emerge qualche virtuosismo di troppo che si sarebbe potuto evitare facilmente, ma che può anche essere riconsiderato in funzione dell’imitazione dello stile di Stoker, ben più complesso e ricercato. Stupendo il lavoro di caratterizzazione dei personaggi, anche e soprattutto attraverso lo stile letterario della loro scrittura e del loro modo di esprimersi, uno su tutti il dottor Seward. Per il resto, abbondano gli echi e le citazioni dal Dracula di Bra...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Stuart rated it 5 of 5 stars

Newman's revisionist DRACULA, or rather, speculative sequel to Bram Stoker's DRACULA is an interesting, easy to read little masterpiece, an epic of steampunk horror, in many ways similar to THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN but in many ways significantly more successful in what it attempts to do. Unhampered by Moore's tendencies towards sensational violence and sex, Newman builds an interesting web of stories around numerous historical figures and famous characters from literature, and his c...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Moviegenius20 rated it 4 of 5 stars

If you love vampires especially Dracula, old classic literary characters, Jack the Ripper and a good old murder mystery…then this novel is right down your alley. Anno Dracula takes place after the classic Dracula stories ends but the ending has changed. What if Dracula did not really die; what would happen? Well, he would want revenge on the people who tried to kill him and marry the Queen of England of course!! The novel takes place after Dracula marries the Queen and Londoners have started tur...more If you love vampires especially Dracula, old classic literary characters, Jack the Ripper and a good old murder mystery…then this novel is right down your alley. Anno Dracula takes place after the classic Dracula stories ends but the ending has changed. What if Dracula did not really die; what would happen? Well, he would want revenge on the people who tried to kill him and marry the Queen of England of course!! The novel takes place after Dracula marries the Queen and Londoners have started turning into vampires. The whole story is about a human, Charles Beauregard, and a vampire Genevieve Dieudonne teaming up to solves a series of vampire murders.

There are both pros and cons to this novel (but I might add, very few cons). One con of the book is not anything about how the book was written or how it played out but that fact that the last 100 pages had nothing to do with the story. It was a combination of the annotations and acknowledgments, afterword, an alternate ending and a thrown out script of a potential movie. Plus a small taste of what was going to come in the books that follow Anno Dracula. I just thought that these last 100 pages were a waste of space because they did not need to be there. The only other con I can think of is that there was some jumping around with the narration of the story because the two main characters, Charles and Genevieve, did not meet up until the middle of the book and then we also encountered the killer’s point of view mixed in with the narration. Although this led to a very interesting take on perspective in the story, it could also get confusing at times. Those are the only two cons that crossed my mind as I read this novel.

On the other hand, the pros of this novel were numerous. I love Kim Newman’s use of actual literary characters in the novel such as Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Lestrade and of course Van Helsing and Dracula. From someone who loves classic novels, it was very exciting for me to come across those names in this novel because it was another way for me to connect to the story since I already knew about the other characters from their own novels. Jack the Ripper is always a fascinating person to read about and if you tie him in with vampires, it is very hard to put a book down if it is done right, Anno Dracula is definitely done right. Another pro that I think this book does well is to show how humanity craves being immortal. Prostitutes are selling immortality at a very low price. The character that really shows this struggle is Charles Beauregard’s fiancée, but I won’t give a lot away. You will just have to read to find out what happens. Even though one of the cons was that the book was split up between three different points of view, this was also a pro because the reader already knew who the killer was, which created suspense in some parts of the novel. I thought this aspect was very well done. Another aspect that is interesting is that even though the book is called Anno Dracula, Dracula is sort of an off-stage presence, where he is heard but not seen, but when he is directly in the storyline…WOW it was worthwhile and a game changing event. Lastly, the end of this book is such a surprise. The ending of Anno Dracula is definitely worth getting through all 424 pages of this novel.

Overall, Anno Dracula, though slow at some parts, is very plot driven and causes the reader to want to know what comes next. This novel plays on a reader’s fascination with vampires but if you compare Anno Dracula to any other vampire novel, it stands alone because of storyline and fascinating characters
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Oct 19, 2011 Tessa rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have no idea why I read this book
I really don't
yet I really enjoyed it
it was clever and well written but every bone in my body was shrieking I've read this before, and I have, but the book that hit me was not as old, and perhaps the two were reached independantly
Supping with Panthers by Tom Holland is that other book and I adore it and the two of them were eerily similar.
The premise here is that at the point where Dracula assaults the asylum in his eponymous novel we are given a paradigm shift...more

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Aug 27, 2011 snowgray rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: awful, fanfiction, fantasy, horror, historical-fiction, overrated, vampires

This book was recommended to me by the owners of a gaming store (the Magic-and-Warhammer type), and I was eager to read it based on the premise of “vampires are ‘out’ and taking over.” I knew that Dracula would be a character, and I didn’t mind that the rest of the Dracula cast appeared as well (in this version, Dracula’s invasion of England was successful, and he has married and turned Queen Victoria). What ended up bothering me was the ridiculous proliferation of spot-the-reference vampire app...more
This book was recommended to me by the owners of a gaming store (the Magic-and-Warhammer type), and I was eager to read it based on the premise of “vampires are ‘out’ and taking over.” I knew that Dracula would be a character, and I didn’t mind that the rest of the Dracula cast appeared as well (in this version, Dracula’s invasion of England was successful, and he has married and turned Queen Victoria). What ended up bothering me was the ridiculous proliferation of spot-the-reference vampire appearances. Lord Ruthven is there, Carmilla gets mentioned, Lestat appears, and there are repeated litanies of vampires that include movie, novel and television characters large and small. Similarly, Jack the Ripper, Fu Manchu, Inspector Lestrade and Mycroft Holmes all appear (though not the good doctor or his detective friend; of course they would have solved the case too quickly). There are two major original characters, Beauregard the human spy and Dieudonné the vampire charity nurse. Unfortunately, neither of the two has much appeal or charisma. Dieudonné, of course, still looks 16 but has been a vampire for some 400 years; Beauregard spies for the British government on multiple continents. In fanfiction, Dieudonné would certainly be labeled a Mary Sue, and Beauregard is kept from Gary-Stu-ism by a mildly creepy engagement to his dead wife’s cousin.

In the story, the Jack the Ripper killings are reconfigured to be murders of vampire prostitutes, and though the reader knows the killer’s identity, the main characters’ search for the killer drives the plot. The concept that vampirism has spread to the lower classes, and that there is a class divide between vampires as much as there is a species divide between humans and vampires, is essentially interesting. But we come to know the lower-class vampires only through Dieudonné’s patronizing eyes (she is of a different ‘bloodline’ from Dracula, and refers to his blood as polluted), and given the rather disgusting afflictions that the poor vampires suffer (a half-bat child looms large), it’s hard to feel much for them beyond polite pity. Vampirism in this world does not always go well (the aforementioned afflictions), but again, there is little discussion of the potentially rich topic of risk versus reward; Beauregard discusses it only briefly with his fiancée. The Ripper murders are deemed important by virtue of the fact that they threaten the vampires’ façade of immortality, and indeed near the end of the story there are anti-vampire demonstrations by some humans. But all-out warfare never emerges, and the ultimate goal of the Diogenes Club (hey, another reference!) in sending Beauregard to investigate ends up being... kind-of flat.

In the end, my problem with this book is twofold. First, it isn’t coherent. It takes too much delight in name-checks of characters from older works, which may delight the well-read, but unfortunately annoy those of us who have not the massive mental bookshelf (and DVD rack, I suppose) of the author. Too many characters pass through the story with a bit of a thrill of recognition, but no development or plot movement. Dieudonné and Beauregard don’t grow as people, and their attempts to solve the ‘mystery’ are frustratingly slow and stupid, doubly so in that the reader already knows who it is. The book can’t decide if it is a political novel, a spy novel, a society novel, a murder mystery or something else, so bits of each are flashed before the reader and passed over. My second problem is that the book has so many nice opportunities for something interesting, but it drops the ball every time. Vampire class warfare? Totally fascinating! Any old schmoe can become a vampire? Give me a schmoe to care about! Vampirism: not all it’s cracked up to be? Refreshing! But none of these threads pan out satisfactorily. For the first time ever, I found myself wishing I’d read a Charlaine Harris novel just so I’d have some comparison for the ‘vampires-are-out’ trope.

Neil Gaiman is quoted on the cover praising the book, and I’m not surprised, in that he does a lot of work in the similar arena of revising-mythology. I’m not a huge fan of Gaiman’s more recent adult works, but little in modern literature visual or otherwise can compare to the beauty of the Sandman series. Though I didn’t get the references to comic book characters in that series, I did catch the mythological and literary references, and the repurposing of characters never bothered me. Gaiman’s own unique mythology of the Endless, and the persuasiveness of Dream as a character, were strong enough to make the other characters serve Dream’s story, rather than simply guest-starring. Newman’s narrative in Anno Dracula, and his original characters, just aren’t strong enough. I don’t give a shit about Dieudonné and Beauregard. I was rooting for Jack the Ripper’s character almost all the way through the book.

Finally, I think this book is interesting in that it has made me question the nature of fanfiction. Fanfiction is frequently derided, and often its reader-and-writership is described as predominately female. But Anno Dracula is, in my opinion, clearly a work of fanfiction (alternate-universe crossover with original characters), and its author as well as the people who recommended it to me most highly are all men. Does this mean that men are willing to read fanfiction if it isn’t described as such (alternate-history books always felt like fanfiction to me...)? Could there be a wider market for the ‘tamer’ types of fanfiction, or for fanfiction in longer form? There’s been a long tradition of writing new cases for Sherlock Holmes, and Gaiman repurposes Shakespeare and Aeschylus, all clearly in the public domain. Under the anxiety of influence, is everyone just writing fanfiction anyway?(less)

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Jul 25, 2011 Matthew Kresal rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm a fan of alternate history more then I am of vampires. But having always had an interest in Bram Stoker's Dracula I was surprised to learn via a documentary on vampire novels that the two had been combined together into one novel by British critic and novelist Kim Newman. Anno Dracula is a fine example of the alternate history genre, combining the what might have been in reality with one of literature's great tales of horror.

The novel's premise is a simple yet interesting one to be sure. Wh...more I'm a fan of alternate history more then I am of vampires. But having always had an interest in Bram Stoker's Dracula I was surprised to learn via a documentary on vampire novels that the two had been combined together into one novel by British critic and novelist Kim Newman. Anno Dracula is a fine example of the alternate history genre, combining the what might have been in reality with one of literature's great tales of horror.

The novel's premise is a simple yet interesting one to be sure. What if Van Helshing and his followers failed to stop Count Dracula and the vampire took over Britain? Newman combines this with the Victorian London (and to a lesser extent Britain) of both real and fiction. The plot hinges on the mysterious murders of vampire prostitutes being committed by the serial killer known first as Silver Knife and then as Jack The Ripper. Newman has clearly done his research as he creates an entire panoramic portrait of this world that combines the best and worst of the era with vampires. Perhaps even more surprising is how seamlessly everything fits together, changing a detail here or there to fit this nation overrun by vampires. Newman's version of the society is a perfect example of this as people of all classes begin converting to being vampires in an attempt to rise in social status. In fact perhaps the novel's best written section is chapter thrirty-eight which in incredible detail shows us the aftermath of a character choosing to take this action for herself. All of this means that Newman's Victorian London under vampire control is one of the most incredible worlds to ever an alternate story.

Newman fills this world with a massive cast of characters. To start with there's the lead characters of the vampire Genevieve Dieudonne and the human Charles Beauregard who are sent to investigate the Ripper murders. While they couldn't be much more different from each other ( Genevieve is a vampire older then Dracula in the body of a sixteen year old while Charles is a thirty-five or so year old adventurer) the two of them share a great chemistry, particularity as both are world weary from their respective lifetimes. It is through them, and their respective views of this world, that the reader is shown not only this world but the large cast of supporting characters. These supporting characters includes those who really existed such as Sir Charles Warren, Florence Stoker (wife of guess who), the victims of Jack the Ripper and Oscar Wilde amongst others. Then there's the cast of fictional characters including characters from the Sherlock Holmes stories (such as Inspector Lestrade and Mycroft Holmes plus the occasional reference to the great detective himself), Inspector Mackenzie and the good doctors Jekyll and Moreau who not only say true to the original characters who fit into this world almost seamlessly with the real ones. There's also characters from Stoker's original novel as well including Dr. Jack Seward who plays a major role in the proceedings of the novel. Queen Victoria and her Prince Consort, the infamous count from Transylvania himself, only appear in the novel's ending but their appearance is well worth the wait as it makes for an incredible and unforgettable finale. The result is a novel that is not only full of an incredible setting but a lush and diverse tapestry of characters as well.

In my opinion, Anno Dracula suffers from only one major flaw. While Newman spins an incredible vampire run version of Victorian London is truly fascinating, unfortunately there are a few times when the plot gets hung up on the details of this world which can bring the novel to a bit of a stand still. In short, the details of set dressing overwhelm the plot on a few occasions. Thanfully, and much to Newman's credit as well, he is able to practically pick things up again quickly, which helps to minimize the effect. Which the exception of that occasional flaw, there's little to see wrong with the novel.

Anno Dracula is an incredible read to say the very least. It is an alternate world of a Victorian Britain turned vampire occupied by a large cast of characters. The characters, made up of people both real and fictional, make this world truly come alive right down to the novel's incredible finale. While it does get perhaps too marred in details at times, one thing is certain. Anno Dracula is a fine example of not only the vampire novel but alternate history as well. (less)

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Jun 02, 2011 Brian rated it 5 of 5 stars

I started reading this one quite some time ago, and enjoyed it, but as with so many books, I ultimately got distracted by something else before finishing it. But the novel’s compelling premise stuck with me: What would have happened if Van Helsing and company had failed to eradicate Dracula?

I had to find out, so I exhumed my old paperback and devoured it afresh.

Much has been written about Dracula as Victorian “invasion” literature. Anno Dracula is set in a world where that invasion has succeeded...more I started reading this one quite some time ago, and enjoyed it, but as with so many books, I ultimately got distracted by something else before finishing it. But the novel’s compelling premise stuck with me: What would have happened if Van Helsing and company had failed to eradicate Dracula?

I had to find out, so I exhumed my old paperback and devoured it afresh.

Much has been written about Dracula as Victorian “invasion” literature. Anno Dracula is set in a world where that invasion has succeeded and vampirism has become mainstream–indeed, there is great pressure among the higher classes to turn or be left behind. Needless to say, many of the “warm” are not pleased, and vampirism becomes a focus of social unrest.

The book has been sadly out of print for some time, but a new edition is set to come out this spring, along with reissues of the other two books in the series and a fourth novel in 2012. The tagline of the new edition’s cover (“A Gallery of Rogues and Scoundrels,” pictured) sums up a large part of what makes the work so appealing: It would have been a fine alternate history novel on its own, but author Kim Newman doesn’t stop at picking up the Dracula storyline.

An amazing number of figures from Victorian and vampire fiction are deftly woven into the story–mostly in minor but enjoyable roles alongside fine original characters–creating a metafictional feel. Also, the pages are filled with references to historical figures, social undercurrents and repurposed real-life happenings (for example, much of the plot surrounds the panic caused by a re-imagined Jack the Ripper who preys on undead harlots). Probably, few readers will catch all the references (I sure didn’t), but this approach adds depth to the story and supports Newman’s vision of a fully realized alternate world. With familiar characters and real people and ideas put into the service of a gripping narrative, Anno Dracula offers, in the guise of fantasy, a brilliant examination of the anxieties and injustices of this fascinating historical period.

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