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A DYING MAN’S GREATEST TREASURE…
Mortimer Moorecook, retired Wall Street raider, avid collector, is losing his fight against cancer. With weeks to live, a package arrives at the door of his hillside mansion—an artifact he paid millions for…a hominoid skull with elongated teeth, discovered in a farmer’s field in the Romanian countryside. With Shanna, his beautiful research assistant looking on, he sinks the skull’s razor sharp fangs into his neck, and immediately goes into convulsions.
OPENS THE DOOR TO AN ANCIENT EVIL...
A rural hospital. A slow night in the ER. Until Moorecook arrives strapped to a gurney, where he promptly codes and dies.
WHERE DEATH IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
Four well-known horror authors pool their penchants for scares and thrills, and tackle one of the greatest of all legends, with each writer creating a unique character and following them through a vampire outbreak in a secluded hospital.
The goal was simple: write the most intense novel they possibly could.
Which they did.
A Word of Warning:
Within these pages, you will find no black capes, no satin-lined coffins, no brooding heartthrobs who want to talk about your feelings. Forget sunlight and stakes. Throw out your garlic and your crosses. This is the Anti-TWILIGHT.
NOTE: DRACULAS is a full length novel, 80,000 words long. But this ebook is also brimming with an additional 80,000 words of extras and bonuses:
- a clickable table of contents
- a round-robin interview with Strand, Wilson, Crouch, and Kilborn about writing DRACULAS
- deleted scenes
- two alternate endings
- four excerpts from the authors’ other works
- the short story “Serial” by Crouch and Kilborn
- the short story “Cub Scout Gore Feast” by Kilborn and Strand
- the short story “A Sound of Blunder” by Kilborn and Wilson
- author biographies
- comprehensive clickable bibliographies
- an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the writing of DRACULAS, delivered through a collection of over seven hundred emails between the writers as they were brainstorming and writing the book
Mortimer Moorecook, retired Wall Street raider, avid collector, is losing his fight against cancer. With weeks to live, a package arrives at the door of his hillside mansion—an artifact he paid millions for…a hominoid skull with elongated teeth, discovered in a farmer’s field in the Romanian countryside. With Shanna, his beautiful research assistant looking on, he sinks the skull’s razor sharp fangs into his neck, and immediately goes into convulsions.
OPENS THE DOOR TO AN ANCIENT EVIL...
A rural hospital. A slow night in the ER. Until Moorecook arrives strapped to a gurney, where he promptly codes and dies.
WHERE DEATH IS JUST THE BEGINNING.
Four well-known horror authors pool their penchants for scares and thrills, and tackle one of the greatest of all legends, with each writer creating a unique character and following them through a vampire outbreak in a secluded hospital.
The goal was simple: write the most intense novel they possibly could.
Which they did.
A Word of Warning:
Within these pages, you will find no black capes, no satin-lined coffins, no brooding heartthrobs who want to talk about your feelings. Forget sunlight and stakes. Throw out your garlic and your crosses. This is the Anti-TWILIGHT.
NOTE: DRACULAS is a full length novel, 80,000 words long. But this ebook is also brimming with an additional 80,000 words of extras and bonuses:
- a clickable table of contents
- a round-robin interview with Strand, Wilson, Crouch, and Kilborn about writing DRACULAS
- deleted scenes
- two alternate endings
- four excerpts from the authors’ other works
- the short story “Serial” by Crouch and Kilborn
- the short story “Cub Scout Gore Feast” by Kilborn and Strand
- the short story “A Sound of Blunder” by Kilborn and Wilson
- author biographies
- comprehensive clickable bibliographies
- an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the writing of DRACULAS, delivered through a collection of over seven hundred emails between the writers as they were brainstorming and writing the book
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 7, 2010
715 people are currently reading
4266 people want to read
About the author
Blake Crouch
79 books59.2k followersBlake Crouch is a bestselling novelist and screenwriter. He is the author of the forthcoming novel, Dark Matter, for which he is writing the screenplay for Sony Pictures. His international-bestselling Wayward Pines trilogy was adapted into a television series for FOX, executive produced by M. Night Shyamalan, that was Summer 2015’s #1 show. With Chad Hodge, Crouch also created Good Behavior, the TNT television show starring Michelle Dockery based on his Letty Dobesh novellas. He has written more than a dozen novels that have been translated into over thirty languages and his short fiction has appeared in numerous publications including Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine. Crouch lives in Colorado with his family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 516 reviews
June 8, 2011
A Sincere and Heartfelt Thank You to the Authors (Note: the following can be read with or without musical accompaniment)
Thank you Mr. Crouch and Mr. Kilborn.
Thank you Mr. Strand and Mr. Wilson.
Thank you, sirs. Thank you Sooooo Sooooo much.
Thank you for the sweet, sweet horror,
and for the juicy, succulent butchery.
Thank you for the warm, savory mayhem,
and the scrumptious, tasty, mind-numbing violence.
Thank you for the twisted, tantalizing terror,
and for the generously gore-ific slaughter.
Thank you for giving me a truly nightmarish Vampire story,
and for helping me spew the Emo-sparkling, retch-inducing Twi
This book is something very, very special. While a superior book could certainly come down the pike tomorrow, for today, RIGHT NOW, this book wins the award hands down for the GORIEST, most DISGUSTING, most KICK ASS ENJOYABLE vampire story I have ever read.***
***Quick Explanatory Side Note: By my praise, I am not saying that this book is the BEST OVERALL vampire story I have ever read. No, this book does not displace classics like Dracula, I Am Legend and Salem's Lot or even more modern tales like Agyar and Children of the Night (personal favorites of mine). But for that warm and fuzzy that you get from a truly great, guilty pleasure, this book can not be beat.
This novel was a collaborative effort among Black Crouch, Jack Kilborn, Jeff Strand and F. Paul Wilson. Now before you open your mouth to start squawking about “collaborations hardly ever turn out well”…..just stop, because these guys knocked the gore covered ball right the fuck outta the park.
Except for the first 20 or so pages, the story takes place entirely over a 12 hour period inside a small rural hospital. Mortimer Moorecock is a retired wall street billionaire who is dying of cancer. After learning of reports about the discovery of an ancient skull with strangely elongated teeth found in a Romanian hillside, Moorecock spends millions to obtain it. Upon receiving the grossly fanged skull, he immediately jabs the thing into his neck and goes into convulsions. He is then rushed to the local hospital.
……........THAT IS ALL THE SET UP YOU NEED….............
From there all hell breaks loose in an ungodly avalanche of blood, violence, gore and mayhem the likes of which I for one, had never before encountered. Oh, the rib-tickling (or tearing) fun that ensues is just tremendous.
Now it should be a given that this book is not for the squeamish or those that do not appreciate a good evisceration or face ripping scene. In fact, I got the distinct impression that the authors were trying to constantly one up each other and devise an even more disgusting kill. THAT SAID, I want to point out that novel is NOT the sort of uncomfortable voyeuristic, torture violence that you see in movies like “Hostel” or “Saw.” I do not watch movies like that and I find them repulsive. This book is not that.
If I were to select the movie that best describes the "tone" of the story, I would say “Zombieland” or “Planet Terror.” While not quite as “tongue in cheek” as those two movies this book is definitely very darkly humorous. You could call it "tongue pulled through cheek" humor. At least I hope it was supposed to be full of dark humor because I spent much of it laughing my ass off. Shit, it could just be me. Oh well....
As far as the vampires go, I will let you discover those for yourself but I will tell you they are “lights out” awesome. Gross like you can’t believe, ravenous as all get out and practically as intelligent as they were when “alive.” This intelligence is what provides much of the added humor in the story.
Normally that would be it, but I do feel the need to make one additional WARNING ANNOUNCEMENT for those of you out there like me that suffer from severe fear and loathing of insane, psycho killer clowns….YEP, you will spot one in this book and oh are you in for an experience. SAFETY TIP: Do not ask the vampire clown to make you a balloon animal!!!
6.0 stars. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!!!!
October 27, 2021
Draculas was 4 bloody and gory stars of fun!
This was a great book to read around this time of the year.
If you are looking for some blood and gore, lots of action, and some ‘what the f!¢k’ moments, check this one out!
Draculas is a compilation of four authors, Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, F. Paul Wilson and Jeff Strand.
They did a fantastic job of putting this book together and it was seamless!
I could not tell who wrote which character until the end when they described it in the afterword.
Draculas is about Mortimer Moorecook, a rich old man who is dying of cancer.
He pays a fortune for a deformed skull with fangs. This skull was found in a farmer’s field in the countryside of Romania. Nothing good can come from this!
Mortimore decides to do something either super stupid or insanely brilliant (you decide!) when he receives the skull and is rushed to the hospital.
What transpires after he’s rushed to the ER turns into a health professions worse nightmare.
Characters:
I loved all of the action and most of the main characters in this one!
I did think there were a few too many side characters in the book that weren’t needed, but that’s not a big issue with me.
- Clay and Randall were the best! I smiled or laughed when they were killing vampires, quoting movie lines, and just being two goofballs that are trying to save everyone.
- Jenny was also awesome. She was a fantastic character and I loved every moment with her in the book.
- Shanna was just too dull for me. I don't know what it was about this character, but I just didn't connect with her and wish they had done something "more" with her.
- There’s also great characters to hate in the book such as Dr. Lanz. What an ass but he's also fantastic to hate! Nothing is more boring in a book then evil/bad characters that will get no type of emotional response out of me.
- And I think my favorite part of the whole book was Benny the Clown!
Brilliant! I hate clowns and this character, along with all the things that happen to Benny while in the hospital was well done. I could relate with all the kids and adults that got creeped out by Benny!
Side note:
The dynamic group of four threw in some short shorties after Draculas and reading those stories was fun as well!
Definitely glad to read this one with The Night Shift and Castle Dracula crews on Goodreads.
And an extra thanks to my friend Vickie for suggesting this one!
This was a great book to read around this time of the year.
If you are looking for some blood and gore, lots of action, and some ‘what the f!¢k’ moments, check this one out!
Draculas is a compilation of four authors, Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, F. Paul Wilson and Jeff Strand.
They did a fantastic job of putting this book together and it was seamless!
I could not tell who wrote which character until the end when they described it in the afterword.
Draculas is about Mortimer Moorecook, a rich old man who is dying of cancer.
He pays a fortune for a deformed skull with fangs. This skull was found in a farmer’s field in the countryside of Romania. Nothing good can come from this!
Mortimore decides to do something either super stupid or insanely brilliant (you decide!) when he receives the skull and is rushed to the hospital.
What transpires after he’s rushed to the ER turns into a health professions worse nightmare.
Characters:
I loved all of the action and most of the main characters in this one!
I did think there were a few too many side characters in the book that weren’t needed, but that’s not a big issue with me.
- Clay and Randall were the best! I smiled or laughed when they were killing vampires, quoting movie lines, and just being two goofballs that are trying to save everyone.
- Jenny was also awesome. She was a fantastic character and I loved every moment with her in the book.
- Shanna was just too dull for me. I don't know what it was about this character, but I just didn't connect with her and wish they had done something "more" with her.
- There’s also great characters to hate in the book such as Dr. Lanz. What an ass but he's also fantastic to hate! Nothing is more boring in a book then evil/bad characters that will get no type of emotional response out of me.
- And I think my favorite part of the whole book was Benny the Clown!
Brilliant! I hate clowns and this character, along with all the things that happen to Benny while in the hospital was well done. I could relate with all the kids and adults that got creeped out by Benny!
Side note:
The dynamic group of four threw in some short shorties after Draculas and reading those stories was fun as well!
Definitely glad to read this one with The Night Shift and Castle Dracula crews on Goodreads.
And an extra thanks to my friend Vickie for suggesting this one!
October 21, 2021
Meh, I’ll leave it at 3.5 I guess. I enjoyed the book and the concept and the illustrations, but I just got mad
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
December 16, 2021
I am not a vampire book type of gal. However I kept seeing this in my feed so I figured what the hell. I am glad I did. Trapped in a hospital our heroes (or victims) are being picked off one by one by an ultimate predator. I love how the three different writers worked together to bring one wicked read. Not to mention the alternative endings were awesome. Included are the discussions they had with each other about why they chose to go the route they did. Overall a wonderful read. I am glad I went outside my usual genre.
🐱🐱🐱🐱
🐱🐱🐱🐱
October 21, 2021
"I grew up reading books where vampires were scary. This novel is an attempt to make them scary again." - Joe Konrath
Initial Thoughts
Sick of the way modern literature has completely ruined our beloved vampires.
? Turning them from bloodthirsty maniacs to sparkling, love sick puppy dogs. Me too! And so are Blake Crouch, F Paul Wilson, Jack Kilborn and Jeff Strand. This merry band of "anti-twilight" writers are getting together for one night only to give us horror obsessed readers exactly what we want. Nasty, feral vamps packing razor sharp teeth who want to suck your BloodBloodBlood!
I read this one as part of a Halloween buddy read with the Night Shift group, a fantastic pick from Vampy Vickie. Draculas gives us the really interesting project of four well-known horror authors attempting to write a joint novel, done almost completely online. Each author created their own individual characters and then put them all together, writing their own POV chapters. Sounds messy and something that would never work. But did it? You might be surprised.
"She could hear a lot of screaming on the other side of the door. Screaming meant people. People meant warm red candy."
The book is packed with action, gore and plenty of grizzly, dark humour. Pretty much everything you want in a book! It reads like Dawn of the Dead only with bloodsuckers instead of zombies. It has a very cinematic feel to it and fans of those "grindhouse" style of movies will suck the blood out of this one and eat it up.
The Story
The story begins when the terminally ill cancer patient, Mortimer Moorcock, receives an interesting package in the mail. A humanoid skull with an abundance of razor sharp teeth. A cross between a man and a shark. This is reportedly the skull of Dracula and is a big part of Mortimer's plans to prolong his life just a little bit.
"He couldn't get enough blood. It had the same punch as coke. The same rush as an orgasm. The same high as morphine. The same satisfaction as a huge meal when starving...but the feeling didn't last."
All roads lead to the Blessed Crucifix Hospital and a fight for survival as things get tasty when the joint ends up infested with Vampires. Once bitten the unlucky victims turn in a matter of minutes and the undead soon out number the living and plenty of blood dripping action ensues. These vamps certainly aren't looking to be your friend and will even attack each other if there's no other suitable victims to feast on.
The Writing
The most impressive aspect of the writing in Draculas, when you consider it was a group project, is that the writing is absolutely seamless. It's almost impossible to tell when a different author takes the helm. Reading the interview section in the back, this is something that occurred naturally and wasn't worked at. Fascinating stuff.
The authors also discuss how they tried to outdo each other in terms of the level violence and depravity and this is really apparent when you read it. You can almost taste the competitive spirit that's infused within the pages.
"As far as Randall was concerned, if you couldn't defend four boys from a dracula invasion with a roaring chainsaw, then you didn't deserve a roaring chainsaw, right?"
The pacing of the book is absolutely rapid. Once it gets going it never stops and is relentless. There's a constant feeling of tension, with the stakes being so high and no character safe that keeps you in an uneasy state of suspense. It's a rare thing to find a story that can continue the pace at this level for such a sustained time. But the authors manage this by injecting a lot of dark humour and some completely unexpected heartfelt moments.
Characters
A story is nothing without good characters in my opinion and I was taken aback ever so slightly by those inhabiting Draculas. By how awesome they were! Two of my favourites were Clay the gun mad deputy sheriff, who reminded me a lot of Tackleberry from Police Academy, and Randall the muscle bound Lumberjack with a heart, who reminded me a lot of Ash from Evil Dead. As you can imagine, adding these two together equals maximum carnage and endless fun. Then there was the introspective and unexpectedly humanlike aspects when we had one of the vampire POVs. It really is excellent.
Final Thoughts
So if I enjoyed this book so much why didn't it get the full five stars? While this book is extremely fun it lacks the depth and heart of McCammon's Boys Life, the art and craft of Straub's Ghost Story and the amazing character development of King's Stand. But it's not meant to be and that's fine by me. It's not a masterpiece, but it is some of the best popcorn, blood and guts horror out there. A perfect light-hearted Halloween read that I couldn't put down. Fangs for reading!
"So the draculas had a weakness: they didn't know how to duck out of the way of a goddamn hatchet"
May 8, 2018
Yes, yes, YES!! This is what a vampire story should be!
While Bram Stoker wrote, at the core, a love story with DRACULA, I can't help but feel that it has been romanticized (on bad days - bastardized) to a sickening degree. I don't mean to offend, but I absolutely hate the trend of the "Bad guy that's actually a good guy and nothing is really his fault" bullshit.
And that is why, for the most part, I avoid vampire stories altogether. However, with Strand and Kilborn, I had to risk it.
What an experience - it's like sticking your hand in a deep, dark hole, expecting it to get bit, cut, stung or amputated, and finding a treasure!
This is a hardcore, brutal, kill-or-be-killed, twisted, sick and extreme story...
I fucking loved it - it was PERFECT!
While Bram Stoker wrote, at the core, a love story with DRACULA, I can't help but feel that it has been romanticized (on bad days - bastardized) to a sickening degree. I don't mean to offend, but I absolutely hate the trend of the "Bad guy that's actually a good guy and nothing is really his fault" bullshit.
And that is why, for the most part, I avoid vampire stories altogether. However, with Strand and Kilborn, I had to risk it.
What an experience - it's like sticking your hand in a deep, dark hole, expecting it to get bit, cut, stung or amputated, and finding a treasure!
This is a hardcore, brutal, kill-or-be-killed, twisted, sick and extreme story...
I fucking loved it - it was PERFECT!
November 6, 2021
Bloodsucker soaker!
A small backstory:
Mortimer Moorecock collects artifacts and when he finds an artifact of Dracula's skull he must have it so he buys it. When the package arrives Mortimer decides on the spur of the moment to sink the fangs of the skull artifact into his neck.
When Moorecock does that to himself his assistant Shanna calls an ambulance as Moorecock starts going into convulsions. When the EMT's arrive at the hospital, things go from bad to worse when Moorecock ends up attacking people by biting them and the whole hospital is turned upside down as the horror of vampirism takes over the entire building!
Thoughts:
Normally a gore infested blood romp would glean five stars from me, but I dropped this book down to three stars for a reason. I felt that there was a lot of repetition with the vampire breakout and it went on for a long time with people becoming vampires then turning other people into vampires.
The story continued like that for near 300 pages and I felt this story could have been a lot shorter. Maybe a 200 page romp of vampire attacks, but 300 pages was a long haul for the same type of thing happening from one person to another.
One interesting thing about the book though was the authors have a section at the end of biographies and emails. The emails were fascinating to me as they show how all of the authors came together to write this story. Giving this one three "Vampire Blood Sucker" stars.
For more thoughts on this review, please see my blog:
https://booknookretreat.blogspot.com/...
A small backstory:
Mortimer Moorecock collects artifacts and when he finds an artifact of Dracula's skull he must have it so he buys it. When the package arrives Mortimer decides on the spur of the moment to sink the fangs of the skull artifact into his neck.
When Moorecock does that to himself his assistant Shanna calls an ambulance as Moorecock starts going into convulsions. When the EMT's arrive at the hospital, things go from bad to worse when Moorecock ends up attacking people by biting them and the whole hospital is turned upside down as the horror of vampirism takes over the entire building!
Thoughts:
Normally a gore infested blood romp would glean five stars from me, but I dropped this book down to three stars for a reason. I felt that there was a lot of repetition with the vampire breakout and it went on for a long time with people becoming vampires then turning other people into vampires.
The story continued like that for near 300 pages and I felt this story could have been a lot shorter. Maybe a 200 page romp of vampire attacks, but 300 pages was a long haul for the same type of thing happening from one person to another.
One interesting thing about the book though was the authors have a section at the end of biographies and emails. The emails were fascinating to me as they show how all of the authors came together to write this story. Giving this one three "Vampire Blood Sucker" stars.
For more thoughts on this review, please see my blog:
https://booknookretreat.blogspot.com/...
January 13, 2012
It reads like a bullet hitting bang on target. No messing around, strip away the usual vampire history or romance this story goes straight to the kill in POV mode chapters are divided by switching through the eyes of the prey and predators. Worst case senario to have is the turned let loose in a hospital with the young weak and old to feast upon, it's too late for Benny the Clown and Oasis the young girl, she wants candy now red candy. This is what the novel The Passage was missing just good old human struggle with a chainsaw too hand. Characters are developed well, the story doesn't let up momentum and real page burner. A Dracula story on steroids! I wander if a sequel is on the way. Make sure you have few hours spare as once you ride the gauntlet you won't want to stop!
I am sure this one will end up on the big screen. I imagine the words painting images played out in my mind and i hear that classical track "O Fortuna" by a guy named Carl Orff playing in the background.
Review also here on my webpage
October 27, 2021
Hey, I have a booktube channel (youtube for book reviews, etc.), and I include Draculas in my Top 10 Spooky Books list here. Please subscribe if I earned it!
This review is dedicated to Steven's and Bridget's reviews, the reasons I even heard about this book let alone couldn't wait another second after I got my Kindle to read it.
The author, Joe Konrath (aka Jack Kilborn), writes in the introduction to Draculas that this is an attempt to make vampires scary again. As he explains, "There are no sexy teen heartthrobs herein." While it was the reviews above that got me to buy the book and start reading, it was that intro that had me salivating, wow, so cool.
Draculas begins with a pretty simple story premise, there's a skull found in Romania that the insanely rich, but dying Mortimer Moorcoock buys for a small fortune. Upon receiving the skull, which is very close to being human except it is filled with huge fangs, he proceeds to bite himself with the skull.
He is taken to the hospital...and all hell breaks lose.
Because there's not much to the plot, I won't go into too much detail there, I just want to explain a couple things I thought were interesting and unique to these authors' take on vampires and also talk about this book in general.
These vampires are scary as hell. They have more fangs than your average vamp. and superhuman strength to go along with it. In addition, they also have the ability to think rationally, the only problem is that they have an insane thirst that makes them go crazy for blood and do anything to get it.
This aspect had me sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time. While some Draculas, as the characters refer to them, don't think outside the blood (hehe), but others are a little more patient and cunning when it comes to tracking their prey. What are the authors trying to do to me here, give me a heart attack?
Then there's the characters. Not only did I love those trying to escape the Draculas, but we even see the point of views of some of the Draculas themselves. Of course they're pretty focused on BLOODBLOODBLOODBLOOD, but it shows their rational sides as well as they track our favorites (and not so favorites).
My favorite Draculas had to be one, the clown. Every time I read, "Squeak, squeak, squeak." I was terrified. And two, the little girl, who just wants some red candy. It's sick, but I couldn't help but kinda root for her, at least against the adult Draculas.
If I haven't yet convinced you to start, Draculas, it's the best horror novel I've ever read. It's full of violence and gore aplenty, so beware, but it's also full of great characters and situations that had me reading until late in the night multiple times. And I was on a cruise while I read this. I still couldn't put it down.
5 out of 5 Stars
Note on the eBook version: This book actually ends at the 50% mark. I was a little confused with the climax was happening around 45%, I wondered what the heck they were going to do for the rest of the book.
The authors include a lot of extras, including three short stories, which are collaborations between pairs of the authors, previews of all the authors work, and an interview where the authors interview themselves and talk about writing a book with four authors. It's pretty interesting.
This review is dedicated to Steven's and Bridget's reviews, the reasons I even heard about this book let alone couldn't wait another second after I got my Kindle to read it.
The author, Joe Konrath (aka Jack Kilborn), writes in the introduction to Draculas that this is an attempt to make vampires scary again. As he explains, "There are no sexy teen heartthrobs herein." While it was the reviews above that got me to buy the book and start reading, it was that intro that had me salivating, wow, so cool.
Draculas begins with a pretty simple story premise, there's a skull found in Romania that the insanely rich, but dying Mortimer Moorcoock buys for a small fortune. Upon receiving the skull, which is very close to being human except it is filled with huge fangs, he proceeds to bite himself with the skull.
He is taken to the hospital...and all hell breaks lose.
Because there's not much to the plot, I won't go into too much detail there, I just want to explain a couple things I thought were interesting and unique to these authors' take on vampires and also talk about this book in general.
These vampires are scary as hell. They have more fangs than your average vamp. and superhuman strength to go along with it. In addition, they also have the ability to think rationally, the only problem is that they have an insane thirst that makes them go crazy for blood and do anything to get it.
This aspect had me sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time. While some Draculas, as the characters refer to them, don't think outside the blood (hehe), but others are a little more patient and cunning when it comes to tracking their prey. What are the authors trying to do to me here, give me a heart attack?
Then there's the characters. Not only did I love those trying to escape the Draculas, but we even see the point of views of some of the Draculas themselves. Of course they're pretty focused on BLOODBLOODBLOODBLOOD, but it shows their rational sides as well as they track our favorites (and not so favorites).
My favorite Draculas had to be one, the clown. Every time I read, "Squeak, squeak, squeak." I was terrified. And two, the little girl, who just wants some red candy. It's sick, but I couldn't help but kinda root for her, at least against the adult Draculas.
If I haven't yet convinced you to start, Draculas, it's the best horror novel I've ever read. It's full of violence and gore aplenty, so beware, but it's also full of great characters and situations that had me reading until late in the night multiple times. And I was on a cruise while I read this. I still couldn't put it down.
5 out of 5 Stars
Note on the eBook version: This book actually ends at the 50% mark. I was a little confused with the climax was happening around 45%, I wondered what the heck they were going to do for the rest of the book.
The authors include a lot of extras, including three short stories, which are collaborations between pairs of the authors, previews of all the authors work, and an interview where the authors interview themselves and talk about writing a book with four authors. It's pretty interesting.
October 29, 2021
Lost Skull Shocker! Billionaire Bites Own Throat With Fabled Cranium! "Well, we took him to the hospital because of all the bleeding... but that might've been a big mistake, especially once he started champing at the bit!" - The Captain Hindsight Heckler
Thoroughly entertaining right up until the last 2 pages where it suddenly ends with a huge dangling thread.
Is there a sequel?
This would make an excellent splatterfest (lots of gore) movie (except for the ending).
Recommended. 4 'dangling at the end,' stars.
Thoroughly entertaining right up until the last 2 pages where it suddenly ends with a huge dangling thread.
Is there a sequel?
This would make an excellent splatterfest (lots of gore) movie (except for the ending).
Recommended. 4 'dangling at the end,' stars.
November 3, 2021
What a bloody mess this book ended up being. To call it a 'gorefest' is almost under stating it! It was packed with blood and gore-filled moments from the word go all the way to the explosive conclusion. But, mixed in with all of that, there are some interesting (and really quite funny) characters who you can't help but get behind during their adventure amongst all the monsters. It was a fun romp, and I'm glad I joined the great group at Castle Dracula on this read. Nothing much better than vampires during the Halloween season. A 3.5-4 star read for me.
March 12, 2012
This was a rip roaring, funny gore fest!
Draculas was written by four authors: Jeff Strand, Jack Kilborn, F. Paul Wilson and Blake Crouch.
These are anti-sparkle vampires. All they want is blood and they will even suck their own if nothing else is available.
I don't even know what to say about the clown, other than it makes Pennywise look as nice as Bozo. I won't even mention the balloon animals.
This story ends at approximately 50% off the download. There are also 2 short stories and an interview with the authors. Finally, there is a set of emails between the authors at the end, discussing how they put the story together. For whatever reason I found the emails to be fascinating.
I could not tell while reading which author wrote what parts. Everything blended together seamlessly. All in all this was a gory horror story with some extremely funny scenes and I enjoyed the hell out of it.
Draculas was written by four authors: Jeff Strand, Jack Kilborn, F. Paul Wilson and Blake Crouch.
These are anti-sparkle vampires. All they want is blood and they will even suck their own if nothing else is available.
I don't even know what to say about the clown, other than it makes Pennywise look as nice as Bozo. I won't even mention the balloon animals.
This story ends at approximately 50% off the download. There are also 2 short stories and an interview with the authors. Finally, there is a set of emails between the authors at the end, discussing how they put the story together. For whatever reason I found the emails to be fascinating.
I could not tell while reading which author wrote what parts. Everything blended together seamlessly. All in all this was a gory horror story with some extremely funny scenes and I enjoyed the hell out of it.
February 26, 2020
Draculas
A Novel of Terror
By: F. Paul Wilson, Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, Jeff Strand
Narrated by: Eric Dawe
This really should be called the Phases of a Dracula, lol! There is an outbreak of vampire -ism at the local hospital! I enjoyed it, It was a gory story with some parts suspenseful and others I giggled through. I pictured this as one of those late night movies you watch when you can't sleep! 😁
The narration was good!
A Novel of Terror
By: F. Paul Wilson, Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, Jeff Strand
Narrated by: Eric Dawe
This really should be called the Phases of a Dracula, lol! There is an outbreak of vampire -ism at the local hospital! I enjoyed it, It was a gory story with some parts suspenseful and others I giggled through. I pictured this as one of those late night movies you watch when you can't sleep! 😁
The narration was good!
May 26, 2014
I was recently involved in a heated debate over the merits of this book (see link at bottom of review).
Draculas, it is fair to say, is written to a certain formula.
And, for me at least, it was a formula that worked well.
A simple, but nonetheless effective plot, and paced at breakneck speed throughout. It is a novel which doesn't take itself too seriously (and for me this boosted its appeal).
Also, kudos to the four authors for keeping it seamless. It was virtually impossible to identify the switch in writing styles. Nicely done!
Draculas is a rip-roaring, tour de force in vampire entertainment. At times it could have done with pausing for a breath, just to slow things down slightly, but for the most part it all came together really well.
To sum up: If you are looking for a novel full of literary depth, then this ain't the book for you. But if you are willing to be grabbed by the short and curlys, and dragged, kicking and screaming along a ride of blood soaked terror, then this is the kiddy! It's precisely as the authors intended.
High octane!
Fun!Fun!Fun!
https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...
Draculas, it is fair to say, is written to a certain formula.
And, for me at least, it was a formula that worked well.
A simple, but nonetheless effective plot, and paced at breakneck speed throughout. It is a novel which doesn't take itself too seriously (and for me this boosted its appeal).
Also, kudos to the four authors for keeping it seamless. It was virtually impossible to identify the switch in writing styles. Nicely done!
Draculas is a rip-roaring, tour de force in vampire entertainment. At times it could have done with pausing for a breath, just to slow things down slightly, but for the most part it all came together really well.
To sum up: If you are looking for a novel full of literary depth, then this ain't the book for you. But if you are willing to be grabbed by the short and curlys, and dragged, kicking and screaming along a ride of blood soaked terror, then this is the kiddy! It's precisely as the authors intended.
High octane!
Fun!Fun!Fun!
https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog...
January 11, 2014
I didn't find the setup or the ending to be particularly satisfying. And I found some of the banter between characters to be pretty hokey (especially the constant quoting from action movies).
Now that I've gotten that out of the way, let me say that this is one crazy, action-packed read. It's nearly non-stop from start to finish. I liked the depiction of the vampires. They're not sexy or sophisticated. They're like sharks in a feeding frenzy. There were also a handful of nice little illustrations that highlighted some of the crazier concepts. These were a very nice touch.
When I learned that this novel was written by FOUR(!) authors, I was pretty skeptical. I thought the mix of styles would be jarring and distracting. But I didn't find this to be the case at all. It was really pretty seamless throughout. Nice work, gentlemen. Nice work.
Now that I've gotten that out of the way, let me say that this is one crazy, action-packed read. It's nearly non-stop from start to finish. I liked the depiction of the vampires. They're not sexy or sophisticated. They're like sharks in a feeding frenzy. There were also a handful of nice little illustrations that highlighted some of the crazier concepts. These were a very nice touch.
When I learned that this novel was written by FOUR(!) authors, I was pretty skeptical. I thought the mix of styles would be jarring and distracting. But I didn't find this to be the case at all. It was really pretty seamless throughout. Nice work, gentlemen. Nice work.
January 18, 2012
Yowza, wowzers, and woot! woot! This book -- a mad collaboration from four horror gods (small 'g') -- is this cat's meow (or as they say where I come from -- it's all that and a bag of chips).
It was going to take a lot for this book to impress me for the simple reason that vampires of late have become...meh for me. As monsters meant to inspire horror they have been done to death it seems. Not to mention they have suffered an incredible disservice in recent years both on film and in print (yeah, I'm looking at you Ms. Meyer). There just hasn't been anything really new or fresh tried either. It's either you're sparkling and pouty and misunderstood, or it's waaay back to the Stoker tradition of a debonair, aristocratic abomination that abhors garlic and crucifixes.
Don't get me wrong: I haven't always felt this disillusioned. I love 'Salem's Lot and I am Legend. I went through a huge Lestat phase in my early 20s. The Lost Boys remains one of my favorite movies of all time, and I love Steve Niles' re-imagining of vampires in his graphic novel series 30 Days of Night (the movie is pretty kick-ass too).
Despite that, I've stopped 'looking for love' with vampires. Even del Toro's The Strain underwhelmed me. So I had doubts with this one, I really did, but thanks to two awesome reviews filled with squee here on goodreads by Stephen and Daniel, I decided to throw my doubts aside and dive in.
This is about the most self-indulgent fun I've had in bleems! Draculas hits just the right note of gorror-ific combined with pee your pants scary that's doused with a gallon of can't help but giggle here even though that's beyond messed up and so wrong (I can't tell you how many times I cringed and burst out laughing at the same time Remember the first time you ever saw The Evil Dead? Oh yeah baby, that's what I'm talking about!
So yeah, this book is tremendous fun, awesomely gory, written with a frantic energy that keeps the pages turning. Another thing worth praising is the way this novel is a completely mad mash-up of a whole bunch of horror elements; it's like the authors took vampire stories, along with zombies, werewolves and aliens, threw them into a blender and spit out this mish-mash of pure chaos and entertainment. I recognized about 100 shout-outs to other books and movies, but at the end of it all, this book stands as its own original. The authors tried things here I don't think I've seen tried anywhere else. The way the teeth are described though made me think of this from 1985's Fright Night: c'mon, gimme a kiss!
The ensemble cast is fun too, and added a lot to the story's enjoyment. If it weren't for such a large cast and getting to know the group -- I loved that the narrative kept changing pov -- it just would have been a ho-hum affair about a bunch of lunatic infected running rabid through an enclosed space (which has been done a 1000 times). Not only do we get pov from the good guys, we get the story from the side of the infected too. I really appreciated that and the decision to do so added great entertainment value. Highly recommended!!!!!!
P.S. I paid three dollars for the eBook and there's really no way to express how much bang I got for my buck. The eBook also contains mega extras that make this title worth so much more. My thanks to Stephen and Daniel on this one. Ain't goodreads grand?
P.P.S. Stephen, I am a woman of my word. You have earned yourself a shelf, sir. :)
This review also appears at Shelf Inflicted.
It was going to take a lot for this book to impress me for the simple reason that vampires of late have become...meh for me. As monsters meant to inspire horror they have been done to death it seems. Not to mention they have suffered an incredible disservice in recent years both on film and in print (yeah, I'm looking at you Ms. Meyer). There just hasn't been anything really new or fresh tried either. It's either you're sparkling and pouty and misunderstood, or it's waaay back to the Stoker tradition of a debonair, aristocratic abomination that abhors garlic and crucifixes.
Don't get me wrong: I haven't always felt this disillusioned. I love 'Salem's Lot and I am Legend. I went through a huge Lestat phase in my early 20s. The Lost Boys remains one of my favorite movies of all time, and I love Steve Niles' re-imagining of vampires in his graphic novel series 30 Days of Night (the movie is pretty kick-ass too).
Despite that, I've stopped 'looking for love' with vampires. Even del Toro's The Strain underwhelmed me. So I had doubts with this one, I really did, but thanks to two awesome reviews filled with squee here on goodreads by Stephen and Daniel, I decided to throw my doubts aside and dive in.
This is about the most self-indulgent fun I've had in bleems! Draculas hits just the right note of gorror-ific combined with pee your pants scary that's doused with a gallon of can't help but giggle here even though that's beyond messed up and so wrong (I can't tell you how many times I cringed and burst out laughing at the same time Remember the first time you ever saw The Evil Dead? Oh yeah baby, that's what I'm talking about!
So yeah, this book is tremendous fun, awesomely gory, written with a frantic energy that keeps the pages turning. Another thing worth praising is the way this novel is a completely mad mash-up of a whole bunch of horror elements; it's like the authors took vampire stories, along with zombies, werewolves and aliens, threw them into a blender and spit out this mish-mash of pure chaos and entertainment. I recognized about 100 shout-outs to other books and movies, but at the end of it all, this book stands as its own original. The authors tried things here I don't think I've seen tried anywhere else. The way the teeth are described though made me think of this from 1985's Fright Night: c'mon, gimme a kiss!
The ensemble cast is fun too, and added a lot to the story's enjoyment. If it weren't for such a large cast and getting to know the group -- I loved that the narrative kept changing pov -- it just would have been a ho-hum affair about a bunch of lunatic infected running rabid through an enclosed space (which has been done a 1000 times). Not only do we get pov from the good guys, we get the story from the side of the infected too. I really appreciated that and the decision to do so added great entertainment value. Highly recommended!!!!!!
P.S. I paid three dollars for the eBook and there's really no way to express how much bang I got for my buck. The eBook also contains mega extras that make this title worth so much more. My thanks to Stephen and Daniel on this one. Ain't goodreads grand?
P.P.S. Stephen, I am a woman of my word. You have earned yourself a shelf, sir. :)
This review also appears at Shelf Inflicted.
December 30, 2014
3.5
First, you need to know what to expect from this book. You wouldn't do it justice if you expect a horror monster story. Next, the only reason I'd call it horror is because I am not really sure where else to put it. That, and it does have monsters, blood and death. There are many things I didn't like, but they are balanced with the good stuff. The weirdest thing is that the humour saves it. I am not sorry for reading this.
I was wondering how this would end up considering that there are four different authors here. I think it ends up quite well. At certain times, though, it feels as if they are competing at who could make it worse, bloodier. I had to check who wrote my favourite characters and I can't say I am surprised.
Draculas is a ridiculous and over the top story that takes place in a rural hospital over the course of couple of hours. It begins when Mortimer Moorecook, a dying rich man, turns into a monster and the infection starts spreading through the hospital pretty fast. People die in the most gruesome ways, there is a lot of blood, gore and body parts. There is a lot of stupidity too (when you are surrounded by blood-drinking mindless monsters, you do not bloody refuse a gun when someone offers it).
The story is as ludicrous as it is exaggerated.
I loved Randall. I also liked the parts with a depressed and suicidal Benny the Clown. I am not surprised they are Strand's. Those parts made this book entertaining as far as I am concerned.
I've read the first Twilight book. I didn't like how it was written, I thought the characters were horrible and cartoonish, and the story hilarious. So, when you get a book that in its blurb has 'this is anti-Twilight', you expect something other than 'hey, let's make this as anti-Twilight as we can'. To be honest, there are moments when Draculas tries too damn hard. It becomes tiresome. If it weren't advertised as anti-something, I wouldn't be annoyed. I am suspicious of the books that to do this.
Still, the more I think about this, the more I like it. Before writing this, I thought I'd rate it differently, but there is value in exaggerations and that type of humour as long as you know what to expect.
Draculas is completely farcical and it still managed to have a couple of wonderful and even heartbreaking moments. So, don't expect a horror story. Go into this as you'd go into any dark and bloody comedy full of death and a couple of over the top likeable characters.
First, you need to know what to expect from this book. You wouldn't do it justice if you expect a horror monster story. Next, the only reason I'd call it horror is because I am not really sure where else to put it. That, and it does have monsters, blood and death. There are many things I didn't like, but they are balanced with the good stuff. The weirdest thing is that the humour saves it. I am not sorry for reading this.
I was wondering how this would end up considering that there are four different authors here. I think it ends up quite well. At certain times, though, it feels as if they are competing at who could make it worse, bloodier. I had to check who wrote my favourite characters and I can't say I am surprised.
Draculas is a ridiculous and over the top story that takes place in a rural hospital over the course of couple of hours. It begins when Mortimer Moorecook, a dying rich man, turns into a monster and the infection starts spreading through the hospital pretty fast. People die in the most gruesome ways, there is a lot of blood, gore and body parts. There is a lot of stupidity too (when you are surrounded by blood-drinking mindless monsters, you do not bloody refuse a gun when someone offers it).
The story is as ludicrous as it is exaggerated.
I loved Randall. I also liked the parts with a depressed and suicidal Benny the Clown. I am not surprised they are Strand's. Those parts made this book entertaining as far as I am concerned.
I've read the first Twilight book. I didn't like how it was written, I thought the characters were horrible and cartoonish, and the story hilarious. So, when you get a book that in its blurb has 'this is anti-Twilight', you expect something other than 'hey, let's make this as anti-Twilight as we can'. To be honest, there are moments when Draculas tries too damn hard. It becomes tiresome. If it weren't advertised as anti-something, I wouldn't be annoyed. I am suspicious of the books that to do this.
Still, the more I think about this, the more I like it. Before writing this, I thought I'd rate it differently, but there is value in exaggerations and that type of humour as long as you know what to expect.
Draculas is completely farcical and it still managed to have a couple of wonderful and even heartbreaking moments. So, don't expect a horror story. Go into this as you'd go into any dark and bloody comedy full of death and a couple of over the top likeable characters.
January 30, 2012
4.5 stars. I was skeptical that a book written by four different authors telling a single story could be a good, cohesive read but I was wrong. This one was great. I am so glad my friend on Good Reads Stephen recommended it & that I had the sense to trust his excellent taste. Seat of your pants action of humans against truly scary (non-twilighty) vampires. Benny the Clown was particulary haunting;). Vampires as they should be written. I sure hope the authors choose to do a follow up. Worth a lot more than the 2.99 I paid for it on my Kindle. Buy & enjoy if you like horror & action but be warned it is bit gruesome (it serves the story well though).
November 4, 2021
2.5 Stars
This was an action packed vampire novel that read more like zombie fiction. It started out fun, but soon I found myself craving a story with my depth. The plot was predictable and the characters were so stereotypical. This was just not to my personal tastes.
This was an action packed vampire novel that read more like zombie fiction. It started out fun, but soon I found myself craving a story with my depth. The plot was predictable and the characters were so stereotypical. This was just not to my personal tastes.
October 11, 2010
If you're looking for a sexy vampire with any sort of redeeming qualities, you won't find it here. And this book is absolutely not for sensitive or squeamish readers. Draculas is a fast-paced, bloody mess of a story about the original type of bloodthirsty vampires who terrorized humans. Once you start reading, you won't breathe or smile much until long after you've read the last word.
The bonus material is fascinating, as we're allowed a glimpse into the process these writers went through as they worked together to turn their ideas into a book. While I would have liked to see something go right for someone in the book, after reading their thoughts I was able to understand why they chose such gruesome paths.
I enjoyed the mix of writing styles. Draculas is well written and anything but dull!
A huge thank you to all four authors for allowing me an early look at their work. You can find the Kindle format on Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/DRACULAS-Novel-...
The bonus material is fascinating, as we're allowed a glimpse into the process these writers went through as they worked together to turn their ideas into a book. While I would have liked to see something go right for someone in the book, after reading their thoughts I was able to understand why they chose such gruesome paths.
I enjoyed the mix of writing styles. Draculas is well written and anything but dull!
A huge thank you to all four authors for allowing me an early look at their work. You can find the Kindle format on Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/DRACULAS-Novel-...
October 18, 2021
This book was an absolute blast to read! For having four authors, the writing was seamless. A ton of vampires and gore. There was even humor, the vampire clown being my favorite. Loved this one!
December 8, 2024
Vampires, they're the worst; nasty and wretched creatures. With their elongated teeth, claw-like hands, and feet, they’re really awful-they stink too. Bloodsucking fiends, with no dignity, just tear people apart and gorge themselves on blood; they will even cannibalize themselves and each other, as long as they can get more blood, it’s revolting. The worst part is they are raising hell at this small-town hospital, multiplying quickly, and there are only a few people to stop them.
Right, I've been looking for a vampire book, and this did it—I'm good for a while.
4 well-known horror authors got together and wrote this; you can tell they had a great time doing it; it's very funny. The vampires are way over-the-top, along with most of the characters, and damn, this is a bloodbath.
Right, I've been looking for a vampire book, and this did it—I'm good for a while.
4 well-known horror authors got together and wrote this; you can tell they had a great time doing it; it's very funny. The vampires are way over-the-top, along with most of the characters, and damn, this is a bloodbath.
March 29, 2017
If you're looking for literary horror that might send a chill down your spine in between prosaic descriptions of foreboding forests and ominous castles, click the back button on your browser and continue your search elsewhere. But if you're looking for a bloody good time as a bunch of disparate characters try to survive a burgeoning plague of vampires, then you've come to the right place.
Draculas is good, B-grade fun, which some memorable characters and gore gags aplenty. It also represents a fairly unique experiment as Jack Killborn (aka Konrath) brought together three other names in the genre to create a novel written by all four as they developed and wrote from the POVs of their own characters. As the extensive bonus materials after the novel highlight, there were a few crossover characters, but for the most part, each one is the creation of one of these authors and then they weave them together in an entertaining fashion. Only Strand's chapters stand out as very Strand-ish, and that's fine. He has a very distinctive writing style so it wouldn't have been him had they edited his chapters to be like those from the other authors.
The supplemental material is exhaustive and includes a couple of bonus shorts that Konrath wrote with said other authors here, and they range from fantastic (Serial) to very average (A Sound of Blunder), but the peak into the process of writing this novel is well worth the time to read for anyone fascinated by this kind of thing.
So if any or all of that appeals to you, get into Draculas because there is nothing else like it currently on the market. And here's to these authors managing to align their schedules to go around again.
4 People Full of Red Candy for Draculas.
Draculas is good, B-grade fun, which some memorable characters and gore gags aplenty. It also represents a fairly unique experiment as Jack Killborn (aka Konrath) brought together three other names in the genre to create a novel written by all four as they developed and wrote from the POVs of their own characters. As the extensive bonus materials after the novel highlight, there were a few crossover characters, but for the most part, each one is the creation of one of these authors and then they weave them together in an entertaining fashion. Only Strand's chapters stand out as very Strand-ish, and that's fine. He has a very distinctive writing style so it wouldn't have been him had they edited his chapters to be like those from the other authors.
The supplemental material is exhaustive and includes a couple of bonus shorts that Konrath wrote with said other authors here, and they range from fantastic (Serial) to very average (A Sound of Blunder), but the peak into the process of writing this novel is well worth the time to read for anyone fascinated by this kind of thing.
So if any or all of that appeals to you, get into Draculas because there is nothing else like it currently on the market. And here's to these authors managing to align their schedules to go around again.
4 People Full of Red Candy for Draculas.
May 1, 2016
Mortimer Moorecook is a billionaire but he is dying of cancer. Willing to lengthen his life, he pays to get a vampire skull that was dug up from the ground in Transylvania known as the "Dracula Skull" and upon receiving it plunges the fanged skull into his neck. Upon arriving to the hospital, all hell breaks loose as he becomes one of the undead and attacks anyone breathing. Want to read more? Read this and find out for yourself.
Wow, this was an insane horror fest of blood gore and craziness! This was written by four authors who each wrote a part of the book then edited together where it flowed. I enjoyed checking this book out and these vampires freaked me out. If you enjoy vampire novels and films like Near Dark, The Lost Boys and the Original Fright Night, then def check this out. This was an awesome vampire novel. I borrowed the ebook from the overdrive ebooks library but you can buy this on amazon and other ebook retailers.
Wow, this was an insane horror fest of blood gore and craziness! This was written by four authors who each wrote a part of the book then edited together where it flowed. I enjoyed checking this book out and these vampires freaked me out. If you enjoy vampire novels and films like Near Dark, The Lost Boys and the Original Fright Night, then def check this out. This was an awesome vampire novel. I borrowed the ebook from the overdrive ebooks library but you can buy this on amazon and other ebook retailers.
December 11, 2024
Wild!!
Story 5/5
Narration 5/5
Draculas by Blake Crouch, Jeff Strand, J.A. Konrath, and F. Paul Wilson is a wild ride for anyone who enjoys splatterpunk-style vampire mayhem. It’s packed with gore, black humor, and relentless action. The story kicks off with a wealthy man acquiring an ancient skull that turns him into a feral vampire, triggering a chain reaction of blood-soaked chaos in a hospital.
The book doesn’t shy away from graphic violence or shocking scenes, and it’s all delivered with a sharp, dark wit. If you like stories that embrace over-the-top horror and don’t pull punches, Draculas is a must-read. Perfect for fans of splatterpunk-style horror.
Story 5/5
Narration 5/5
Draculas by Blake Crouch, Jeff Strand, J.A. Konrath, and F. Paul Wilson is a wild ride for anyone who enjoys splatterpunk-style vampire mayhem. It’s packed with gore, black humor, and relentless action. The story kicks off with a wealthy man acquiring an ancient skull that turns him into a feral vampire, triggering a chain reaction of blood-soaked chaos in a hospital.
The book doesn’t shy away from graphic violence or shocking scenes, and it’s all delivered with a sharp, dark wit. If you like stories that embrace over-the-top horror and don’t pull punches, Draculas is a must-read. Perfect for fans of splatterpunk-style horror.
November 1, 2021
4 Stars
4 Stars for Dracula’s, which is the main story. This gets bloody from the beginning and continues throughout the entire story, until the bloody end. Dracula's was read on Kindle and is novella length; with 2 more short stories and a bunch of extras from all 4 authors (Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, Jeff Strand and Paul F. Wilson). I think they did a great job and really kept up the action. This was brutal. I loved it.
3.5 stars for Serial” by Crouch and Kilborn - Serial killer vs Serial killer. Remember Mad Magazine?? Spy vs Spy; yeah, that; except gory.
2.5 Stars for “Cub Scout Gore Feast” by Kilborn and Strand. This was hilarious and irritating. Kids are really like this.
2.5 Stars “A Sound of Blunder” by Kilborn and Wilson
4 Stars for Dracula’s, which is the main story. This gets bloody from the beginning and continues throughout the entire story, until the bloody end. Dracula's was read on Kindle and is novella length; with 2 more short stories and a bunch of extras from all 4 authors (Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, Jeff Strand and Paul F. Wilson). I think they did a great job and really kept up the action. This was brutal. I loved it.
3.5 stars for Serial” by Crouch and Kilborn - Serial killer vs Serial killer. Remember Mad Magazine?? Spy vs Spy; yeah, that; except gory.
2.5 Stars for “Cub Scout Gore Feast” by Kilborn and Strand. This was hilarious and irritating. Kids are really like this.
2.5 Stars “A Sound of Blunder” by Kilborn and Wilson
October 15, 2010
5++ stars
A completely different and ingenious take on the vampire novel.
4 amazing authors: J.A. Konrath, Blake Crouch, F. Paul Wilson, Jack Kilborn, and Jeff Strand - each creating their own characters and following them through to the end - come together to create an absolutely amazing twist on the Vampire novel.
Mortimer Moorecook is a desperate and dying man. Willing to do just about anything to survive the disease that is ravaging his body. After acquiring the so called "Dracula's Skull", he believes he has found the answer to his prayers. Within minutes of the skull arriving at his home, he sinks the elongated teeth into his own neck...
To say anything else about the actual storyline would take away from the enjoyment of discovering all the twisted nuances to this roller coaster of a novel.
As gory and twisted as this novel is (and trust me when i say, this is not for the squeamish), there is a hefty dose of delightfully warped black humor thrown into the mix, which only made me love this book more.
I am already a HUGE fan of JA Konrath/Jack Killborn, but this book makes me anxious to read more by the other authors as well.
Not for the fainthearted, but if you enjoy finding yourself giggling as you squirm in your seat, grab this book and dig in!
Get the book here!
Kindle
A completely different and ingenious take on the vampire novel.
4 amazing authors: J.A. Konrath, Blake Crouch, F. Paul Wilson, Jack Kilborn, and Jeff Strand - each creating their own characters and following them through to the end - come together to create an absolutely amazing twist on the Vampire novel.
Mortimer Moorecook is a desperate and dying man. Willing to do just about anything to survive the disease that is ravaging his body. After acquiring the so called "Dracula's Skull", he believes he has found the answer to his prayers. Within minutes of the skull arriving at his home, he sinks the elongated teeth into his own neck...
To say anything else about the actual storyline would take away from the enjoyment of discovering all the twisted nuances to this roller coaster of a novel.
As gory and twisted as this novel is (and trust me when i say, this is not for the squeamish), there is a hefty dose of delightfully warped black humor thrown into the mix, which only made me love this book more.
I am already a HUGE fan of JA Konrath/Jack Killborn, but this book makes me anxious to read more by the other authors as well.
Not for the fainthearted, but if you enjoy finding yourself giggling as you squirm in your seat, grab this book and dig in!
Get the book here!
Kindle
August 10, 2015
This book was one hell of a journey, loved all the way though, 5-stars all the way, until the a kind of lackluster ending
But as I said, leading up to the end was a lot of fun. Full of gore, action, scares, and vampires that tear the shite out of people as quickly and as often as they can. There was some nonsensical clown nonsense and varying levels of brain activity in these creatures, but that's fine - I can't say how this disease would play out anymore than I can play the flute with solo in any Jethro Tull song while dancing on the back of a great white.
There was some quick witted humor, a lot more low brow humor, and some just plain cheesy humor. And there were many inventive kills. Sure, they were mostly thrown in for full shock and disgust factor, but creative and heartwarming to say the least. When it came to human sensitivities, this book does not hold back.
What I was most impressed with was the seamlessness of the story despite four authors contributing. I did notice that they did their darnedest to stay away from things they all would have to keep straight (day of the week (where I caught a slip up, but the only slip up I noticed), exact time, time past since events occurring pre-story, etc. etc.) Very impressive continuity no matter how achieved.
Anyway, I enjoyed it. Definitely a fun read for fans of violence and gore.
But as I said, leading up to the end was a lot of fun. Full of gore, action, scares, and vampires that tear the shite out of people as quickly and as often as they can. There was some nonsensical clown nonsense and varying levels of brain activity in these creatures, but that's fine - I can't say how this disease would play out anymore than I can play the flute with solo in any Jethro Tull song while dancing on the back of a great white.
There was some quick witted humor, a lot more low brow humor, and some just plain cheesy humor. And there were many inventive kills. Sure, they were mostly thrown in for full shock and disgust factor, but creative and heartwarming to say the least. When it came to human sensitivities, this book does not hold back.
What I was most impressed with was the seamlessness of the story despite four authors contributing. I did notice that they did their darnedest to stay away from things they all would have to keep straight (day of the week (where I caught a slip up, but the only slip up I noticed), exact time, time past since events occurring pre-story, etc. etc.) Very impressive continuity no matter how achieved.
Anyway, I enjoyed it. Definitely a fun read for fans of violence and gore.
March 12, 2019
What could I possibly say about Crouch et al. and their spectacularly gory, funny, action-packed story that can't be said more easily with a bunch of pictures?
There's s bit of this....
....and a little bit of this.....
.....and TONS of this.....
....and my favourite, a little bit of this.....
My only problem with this book, the female characters needed the men to save them, but hey, I'll forgive that, after all, it was written by a bunch of blokes who weren't really taking themselves too seriously, and neither should we :)
And I don't care what the authors say about the similarities in the writing, it took me about 90 seconds to pick Jeff Strand's character, now I just want to see more of him.....the character, not Jeff, that would just be weird....
There's s bit of this....
....and a little bit of this.....
.....and TONS of this.....
....and my favourite, a little bit of this.....
My only problem with this book, the female characters needed the men to save them, but hey, I'll forgive that, after all, it was written by a bunch of blokes who weren't really taking themselves too seriously, and neither should we :)
And I don't care what the authors say about the similarities in the writing, it took me about 90 seconds to pick Jeff Strand's character, now I just want to see more of him.....the character, not Jeff, that would just be weird....
October 19, 2021
Fun, hilarious, gory, and very original! This wasn’t an amazing book, it’s a fun book and I think the four authors knew that. You got J.A. Konrath and Blake Crouch’s pacing along with Jeff Strand’s dark sense of humor… and then there’s F. Paul Wilson, I don’t know much about him.
This was a much better vampire book than that pussy ass Southern Book Club’s Guide for Slaying Vampires. I don’t give a fuck if that offends you, this is for a review on a book with so much gore it makes Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive (Braindead) look like a G-rated movie. These vampires were bloodthirsty, almost animalistic monsters! Twilight fans sorry but they’re not your stupid romantic type.
This was a much better vampire book than that pussy ass Southern Book Club’s Guide for Slaying Vampires. I don’t give a fuck if that offends you, this is for a review on a book with so much gore it makes Peter Jackson’s Dead Alive (Braindead) look like a G-rated movie. These vampires were bloodthirsty, almost animalistic monsters! Twilight fans sorry but they’re not your stupid romantic type.
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