Wooooooooooooow. If I could summarise Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker in one word, it would be: wow.

That is all. (Joke, read on for the full review.)

The plot:

The year is 1868, and twenty-one-year-old Bram Stoker has barricaded himself in a room at the top of the tower of a long-abandoned abbey. On the other side of that door there waits an ungodly nightmare that he hoped had ended years before.

Stoker knows time is short and so he hurriedly writes down the disturbing events that have brought him to this point. The tale he tells is an extraordinary and terrifying one: of a Dublin childhood full of sickness and starvation, of a mysterious woman, of those presumed dead who live again, of stories once thought fables but now found to be true.

And all the while this manifestation of evil taunts him, calls to him, tries to trick him into releasing it upon the world…

All stories have their beginnings.

Dracul is the definition of a page-turner

So, first things first. I mentioned in my ‘6 books to give you a fright this Halloween’ post that this was the book I was going to be reading leading up to the big day. Which I did. And I claimed that Dracul looks like it won’t disappoint. And it didn’t.

Now, I haven’t read Dracula since I was about 14, and I dove into Dracul remembering the main aspects, but after reading it, I immediately ordered the classic for a long overdue re-read.

This is a prequel to Dracula and the story is honestly so wonderful. You’re thrown around between the past and present through Stoker’s diary entries, and between different characters – it just comes together brilliantly.

The writing and execution of Dracul is incredible, and I thought topping Dracula would be quite difficult, but the authors definitely gave it a run for its money. Barker is an incredible writer and created Dracul based off notes left behind by the author of Dracula (Bram Stoker). Dacre Stoker is the great-grandnephew of Bram Stoker, which just makes it all the more interesting. The author’s notes at the back just gave me CHILLS.

This book is honestly so tense – when I was reading it at 1am, all I could hear was the clock ticking and me breathing. 10/10 would not recommend reading it during the night. I freaked myself OUT. But in the best possible way, and I’m going to re-read this every year around Halloween.

This book is such a beautiful addition to Dracula, and from start to finish is amazing. This book will stay with me forever.

My only down-fall is that when I received a copy, it was a bit daunting because of its size. But it doesn’t feel long when you’re reading it, and Dracul is the definition of a page-turner. It’s split into three parts, so it just flies by.

Also, I’ve seen a few of you pick up Dracul based on my Insta stories, so shout-out to you too. I hope you love it as much as I did!

Dracul, Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker, RRP £12.99 (hardback); Book Depository 

Pages: 481

Publisher: Transworld Publishers

Genre: Horror/ Gothic