Stoker's Dracula #1: Dracul by Dacre Stoker & J.D. Barker - Starting October 1st 2019

[Maddie]

The prequel to Dracula, inspired by notes and texts left behind by the author of the classic novel, Dracul is a supernatural thriller that reveals not only Dracula's true origins but Bram Stoker's--and the tale of the enigmatic woman who connects them.

It is 1868, and a twenty-one-year-old Bram Stoker waits in a desolate tower to face an indescribable evil. Armed only with crucifixes, holy water, and a rifle, he prays to survive a single night, the longest of his life. Desperate to record what he has witnessed, Bram scribbles down the events that led him here...

A sickly child, Bram spent his early days bedridden in his parents' Dublin home, tended to by his caretaker, a young woman named Ellen Crone. When a string of strange deaths occur in a nearby town, Bram and his sister Matilda detect a pattern of bizarre behavior by Ellen--a mystery that deepens chillingly until Ellen vanishes suddenly from their lives. Years later, Matilda returns from studying in Paris to tell Bram the news that she has seen Ellen--and that the nightmare they've thought long ended is only beginning.

[Lesa]

Part 1
(view spoiler)[ this a reread for me but its still creep and yet mysterious. Ellen is a mystery of strangeness... Oh my... (hide spoiler)]

[Lesa]

Part 2
(view spoiler)[ finding Ellen. Emily missing but she looks like she will change into a vampire soon. Vambery knows a lot so much about Ellen. Bram looking to find Ellen they are so connected. (hide spoiler)]

[Cecilia]

Part 1
(view spoiler)[ Nanna Ellen creeps me out SOOO MUCH! I really love Matilda's and Bram's relationship. It's so cute. (hide spoiler)]

[Lesa]

Cecilia wrote: "Part 1
[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ creepy yep.... Oh so dang strange omg. (hide spoiler)]

[Ashleigh]

Part 1

(view spoiler)[I like the concept of fictionalising Bram Stoker and presenting it as he wrote Dracula based on his own experiences.

My guess is that it's Dracula trying to get to him in the present timeline? It's scary and he's clearly trying very hard to keep the being out.

So is Nanna Ellen a vampire too? There's definitely something paranormal about her and I wonder if she used some of her abilities to cure Bram of his illness. (hide spoiler)]

[Lesa]

Ashleigh wrote: "Part 1
(view spoiler)[ you will totally find out more about Ellen shes a mystery. (hide spoiler)]

[Ashleigh]

Part 2 - 50% of book

(view spoiler)[This book is so creepy. I think the man that Thornley encountered was Dracula, and I'm guessing he has some ties with Ellen.

I guess that Thornley's wife has been bitten by a vampire or something and that explains her 'illness'.

I'm enjoying this book a whole lot more than Dracula! (hide spoiler)]

[Ashleigh]

@Lesa (view spoiler)[At this point I can't tell if she's evil and wishes the Stokers harm or what? Because she saved Bram several times as a kid and she hasn't actually done anything that would suggest she wants to kill/hurt them but she's creepy as fuck! (hide spoiler)]

[Ashleigh]

End of Part 2

(view spoiler)[Ellen's story is so sad. She was raised by a father who resented her and blamed her for her mothers death, she falls in love with a young man who doesn't come from a rich family so her father's like nope, gonna sell you off to the rich old dude, then she spends years being tortured by her new husband to the point where she kills herself to get free. Somehow wakes up in the grave and she decides to get revenge on those who wronged her (as you would do if you woke up in a grave) then goes to her loved one and he kills her. Or so she thinks until she wakes up again and finds herself a hostage to Dracul, who wants to make her his wife and again, she's tortured. Why can't this woman catch a break??? Ellen is clearly the true victim of this book! (hide spoiler)]

[Ashleigh]

Part 3 - Finished

(view spoiler)[This book was so spooky and sooooooo well done. Perfect for October and these dark miserable nights.

The tension in that last part was great. I loved the quick jumps between Bram and Matilda's povs. And the scene where Bram has the vision that Patrick and Maggie slaughter his family and I really thought that was real and I was like nooooooo it can't end like this!

A little issue I had was the ambiguity at the end. Did Bram manage to track down and kill Dracula? Did he set Ellen free? Did he succumb to his illness beforehand?

But nevertheless, I loved this book (a hell of a lot more than Dracula) and I was definitely scared by it haha! (hide spoiler)]