Dracula's Child

I loved the format of Journal's writing to explain the story. I liked the language of the time. The risen Count was a true vilian. And a surprise ending.

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." ~ Edmund BurkeI've always been a massive fan of Bram Stoker's novel 'Dracula' so I was incredibly excited when I had to opportunity to read Dracula's Child. The story takes place ten years after the original novel's events after Abraham Van Helsing destroyed the evil Count Dracula. In this novel, we follow Jonathan and Mina Harker, who are still dealing with the trauma and aftermath of those horrific events. Then, something happens on the eve of their son Quincy's 13th birthday leading to a descent into darkness for everyone involved as it quickly becomes clear that the evil may not be gone after all. Thus begins a fight not only for Quincy's soul but for the lives of everyone around him.What I loved about this captivating book is how it's in the same epistolary format as the first and written in the form of letters, found documents, newspaper clippings, and diary entries. Like the original, the story is also told through multiple points of view, allowing us to experience the story from several different angles, viewpoints, and voices.It was so true to the original and so atmospheric that I felt as though I were reading a sequel penned by Stoker himself. It even had that same suspenseful slow burn aspect to it as what was really going on was slowly revealed by the author.Additionally, the characterization was spot on and utterly faithful to the original. It was so compelling to watch the new terror unfold as many of our favorite characters from the original story are forced to face an unspeakable horror and make some impossible decisions. There are also plenty of new characters as well as a new and original plotline to add to the intrigue of the story.I thought this book really stood up well to the original and what we end up with here is a gothic story as timeless as the original Dracula. The story's ever-darkening atmosphere had an increasing feeling of foreboding and menace to it as the events slowly unraveled, revealing quite a twisty, multi-layered heart-in-your-throat tale.Though this book does stand on its own, I'd recommend reading the original first as there were plenty of references to that book's events. It will also help the reader better understand the characters and their motivations.All in all, I thought this was a phenomenal and unputdownable novel. Barnes has succeeded in creating here an intense, troubling, and complex story just as dark and creepy as the original, and I thought that the blend of human horror and the human heart is expertly achieved. Dracula's Child is an outstanding balancing act that walks a thin line between being an ode to classic horror and a nightmarish and original modern-day suspense story all its own.

"An old truth of the world is here presented: that to make a thing forbidden is to fill the souls of those who are warned against it with unquenchable thirst.""'All over Europe,' she said, 'the shadow is falling now. we must prepare for the hour of his return."----------------------------------------------------------Dracula's Child perfectly recreates the tone and feel of Bram Stoker's original. The writing style reads like that of his own hand.  Through a series of letters, journal entries, telegrams and newspaper articles we rejoin Mina, Jonathan and Arthur in England some years after their showdown with the Count. Each is coping with the psychological after-effects of having lived through such terror.  The Harkers are raising their son, who is quite unusual and dare I say, a little creepy.This is a real slow burn of a book, similar to the original.  The first third is a cozy, revisiting with our favorite characters. It feels like picking up with old friends. I will say Jonathan has taken a bit of a turn that I did not enjoy but we all respond to trauma differently.  We begin to see the elements of darkness building. The second third is a slow build of the suspense to the final showdown. This part was slightly overly long for me personally. I needed either more action or less contemplative pages.  The final third was absolutely perfect, the absolute horror of an unleashed horde of vampires and the arrogant elegance of The Count is exactly what I wanted. This one gets 4.5 stars from me.Thanks to Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A stunning literary offering. This book is, like the original 'Dracula', an epistolary novel, presented in the form of letters, articles, and journal entries. Also much like the original, it starts with an agonizing slowness and builds to a crashing crescendo of a climax.This books picks up thirteen years after the events of the original, when life has returned to a relative normalcy for those who fought against the darkness in Transylvania. All the old characters are here: Jonathan and Mina Harker, Arthur Holmwood, Jack Seward, Van Helsing, and of course, the Count himself:"I begin to see the outline of a larger design. I can see the ways in which all of us have been hamstrung and distracted.... And what is emerging once more from the darkness, onto centre stage, while we five are all so ruinously debilitated? We know his name of course. We know it of old."And new to the cast: young Quincey Harker, the son of Jonathan and Mina, whose twelfth birthday marks the beginning of this tale, and whose soul will hang in the balance soon afterward.The characters are all so beautifully, realistically flawed, that you can't help love and pity them, even as some of them do terrible things.If you loved 'Dracula', you will love 'Dracula's Child'. You will feel yourself immersed in the story, the pain, the fear, the horror, and the mad struggle of good vs evil. You will race across England by foot, train, and car; you will, with mad fury, pound stakes into the hearts of the vicious undead; you will fight against the rising panic as all that you love is endangered.I loved this book. The writing style was so utterly similar to that of Stoker himself that I wonder if perhaps old Bram was a vampire and has reemerged under the name JS Barnes.I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this. The disturbing atmosphere and knife-edge tone of Bram Stoker's original are evoked throughout, but especially in the parts of the book set on the Continent. A deeper exploration of the Harkers, their relationship and daily lives in England as they attempt to move beyond their past confrontation with the vampire are fascinating and totally believable. Ultimately though, Dracula's legacy catches up and overtakes them segueing into a disturbingly relevant mirror of contemporary times. A really satisfying addition to the legend of Dracula which unlike many modern vampire stories, retains its Gothic credentials.

A GOOD STORY WHICH FOLLOWS THE ORIGINAL LETTERS/MEMOS FORMAT BUT KEEPS YOU ENTERTAINED..THE ORIGINAL CHARACTERS ARE WELCOMED WITH A FEW NEW ONES....THE OMEN MEETS DRACULA

If you like Stoker's Drac, this is a pretty good sequel. Excellent evocation of the period - though for me, I think I would have preferred a slightly less apocalyptic scenario!

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel to Dracula. It captures the spirit of the original, written in a series of letters and set shortly after the first book. The novel is beautifully written and gripping as well as being tongue-in-cheek at times, and has an interesting twist at the end. It would appeal to anyone into vampires, historical or 19th Century fiction. A worthy successor to the original classic.