Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Dracula

Obviously a classic, but very hard to get through. The writing in journal style is intriguing and adds to the mystery. Its very much a product of it's time and that made it hard to get immersed.

The characters however, have much more depth than I expected and it has made me question the later interpretation of some characters. If you are a horror fan and haven't read this one, I recommend putting it on your list just to understand some of the beginnings of our supernatural tales.

I do want to add that for the times Mina seems to be a particularly strong female character. The way she is described by the men is annoying "fair but having the brain of a man" but I understand that for the time that was likely a huge praise. It is her and Van Helsing that put it all together, find all the pieces and track down Dracula. Without her the men would have been lost and that is proved in a major plot point when they try to lock her away for her safety.

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_p0ssum_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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sylda's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I really like the Audrey version.

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obviousidentity's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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coolfijiwater's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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calamityin's review against another edition

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challenging slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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bujo_bellel's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I personally dislike this book a lot. This was really slow-paced and the plot became rather draggy. Although there were moments where it got interesting, it died down a really quickly. I was already in a reading slump and this book made it worse. It could be because it's a classic or the content of the book but I was genuinely uninterested. I liked reading about Jonathan Harker in Dracula's Castle but the I ddint really care about the mission at the end.

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damiscous's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Amazing! Admittedly, it did take me years after buying the book to actually read more than halfway and then months to commit to fully reading, but that is no fault to this classic novel. I didn't expect to enjoy it so much as I often struggle with long reads, but the narratives, imagery, and plot really pulled through. The book would've been much better if I had no prior knowledge of vampire lore, and some of the characters can be a bit stagnant, but Stoker uses his devices to deliver a chilling villain, enjoyable characters, and curious talking points to supply readers with various lenses in which to analyze and interpret this particular work. This book has definitely earned it's spot on my bookshelf and has helped reignite my interest in reading, classic novels, and horror.

However, it is important to be mindful that the work was originally published in 1897. That being said , this work does contain "weak" women, some misogynistic ideals, and ideas of the time. The characters are, for the most part, enjoyable, and there's a splash of romance that does, of course, read in the devotedly sexist fashion of the 1800s, but, hey, they do give a woman a gun, so that's nice. The book is long and can be wordy, as most older books can be, but overall, a wonderful, chilling, classic work.

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