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friendlyozi's review against another edition
4.0
4½, por causa do dedo. Tirando esse, ótimos contos.
roshonline12's review against another edition
5.0
An amazing collection of vampire stories. they narrate nearly all the various nuances associated with the blood-sucker, the parasite. I have to say that the stories which stood out were those not involving your conventional 'vampire'. It was also a great introduction to some extraordinary horror writers who deserve more attention - Vernon Lee, Barry Pain, Mary Cholmondeley and E. R. Punshon. Richard Dalby has selected and compiled the collection with such care that it is nothing short of a perfect anthology.
emakay's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood
arnrockwell's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Dracula's Brood is a collection of 24 short stories about vampires and vampire-like beings spanning from 1867 to 1940. The book was edited by the late Richard Dalby, a literary researcher who also edited other similar collections on vampires and the paranormal. It features stories by Arthur Conan Doyle, Algernon Blackwood, and M.R.James, just to same a few.
A nice little thing about this book is the small paragraph right after the title of each story. This blurb delves a bit into the author of the story and some of their works, as well as some additional background on the story you're about to read.
The book is not biased toward blood-sucking vampires. There are many stories of psychic vampirism, those that consume energy for sustenance, within these pages. Also, not all vampires here are undead. Many are actually living, breathing people. Others are ghosts. And there are even parasitic plants. Yes, plants.
As you may expect from a short story collection with multiple authors, the book is a mixed bag. There weren't any stories I disliked. Rather, there were some that just weren't up to the same standard as others.
There are four stories in particular that stood out to me, which I'll summarize here. A little teaser for what to expect, should you decide to pick this book up yourself.
The Man-Eating Tree by Phil Robinson (1881)
This story is one of three stories in the collection with parasitic trees. The narrator tells the story of his uncle, an adventurer who came across the titular tree while in Nubia, a region in south Sudan. He witnessed the tree attack and kill an animal and then his guide, before being forced to fight off and kill the tree in self-defense. Robinson's writing style was fairly digestible as far as Victorian English goes. Descriptive enough to paint a picture without going overboard.
The Parasite by Arthur Conan Doyle (1894)
It may be no surprise that this story of psychic vampirism by the creator of Sherlock Holmes is one of, if not the best, story in the book. The protagonist is a man who is highly logical, not believing in anything that can't be proven by science or witnessed with his won eyes. A female psychic proves her abilities to him and he becomes curious, offering himself as a test subject. For science, of course. When he learns that shady things are going on and he can't remember his sessions with the psychic, he accuses her and things start getting much worse for him. I did not expect the ending, and was genuinely surprised. Doyle's writing style was so good and so easy to grab onto, that I'm actually considering reading Sherlock Holmes, despite it being in a genre I'm normally not interested in.
Aylmer Vance and the Vampire by Alice and Claude Askew (1914)
Alice and Claude and a husband and wife author duo best known for their novels The Shulamite and The Etonian. Aylmer Vance is a paranormal detective and the story is told from the perspective of his assistant, Dexter. They are hired by a young man whose wife in cursed to become a vampire. It was descent story, and the only one in the book a detective story with the paranormal. It made my mildly curious about the other stories, but not enough to actively seek them out.
Princess of Darkness by Frederick Cowles (1940)
Cowles was best known for his short story collections The Horror of Abbot's Grange and The Night Wind Howls, which are rare and highly sought after. The story follows a man, a spy, who goes undercover in Budapest to get close to a mysterious woman named Gizella Bessenyei, who is believed to be behind the murders of several men. Out of all the stories in the collection, this one is the most like Dracula. It was improved in several ways, most notably a stronger presence of the vampire in question as well as a different ending.
Overall, this collection is worth the money and shelf space. There seems to be something in here for everyone. Not just for aficionados of vampire literature, but horror and paranormal literature in general. And at only $15.00 US, can't complain.
A nice little thing about this book is the small paragraph right after the title of each story. This blurb delves a bit into the author of the story and some of their works, as well as some additional background on the story you're about to read.
The book is not biased toward blood-sucking vampires. There are many stories of psychic vampirism, those that consume energy for sustenance, within these pages. Also, not all vampires here are undead. Many are actually living, breathing people. Others are ghosts. And there are even parasitic plants. Yes, plants.
As you may expect from a short story collection with multiple authors, the book is a mixed bag. There weren't any stories I disliked. Rather, there were some that just weren't up to the same standard as others.
There are four stories in particular that stood out to me, which I'll summarize here. A little teaser for what to expect, should you decide to pick this book up yourself.
The Man-Eating Tree by Phil Robinson (1881)
This story is one of three stories in the collection with parasitic trees. The narrator tells the story of his uncle, an adventurer who came across the titular tree while in Nubia, a region in south Sudan. He witnessed the tree attack and kill an animal and then his guide, before being forced to fight off and kill the tree in self-defense. Robinson's writing style was fairly digestible as far as Victorian English goes. Descriptive enough to paint a picture without going overboard.
The Parasite by Arthur Conan Doyle (1894)
It may be no surprise that this story of psychic vampirism by the creator of Sherlock Holmes is one of, if not the best, story in the book. The protagonist is a man who is highly logical, not believing in anything that can't be proven by science or witnessed with his won eyes. A female psychic proves her abilities to him and he becomes curious, offering himself as a test subject. For science, of course. When he learns that shady things are going on and he can't remember his sessions with the psychic, he accuses her and things start getting much worse for him. I did not expect the ending, and was genuinely surprised. Doyle's writing style was so good and so easy to grab onto, that I'm actually considering reading Sherlock Holmes, despite it being in a genre I'm normally not interested in.
Aylmer Vance and the Vampire by Alice and Claude Askew (1914)
Alice and Claude and a husband and wife author duo best known for their novels The Shulamite and The Etonian. Aylmer Vance is a paranormal detective and the story is told from the perspective of his assistant, Dexter. They are hired by a young man whose wife in cursed to become a vampire. It was descent story, and the only one in the book a detective story with the paranormal. It made my mildly curious about the other stories, but not enough to actively seek them out.
Princess of Darkness by Frederick Cowles (1940)
Cowles was best known for his short story collections The Horror of Abbot's Grange and The Night Wind Howls, which are rare and highly sought after. The story follows a man, a spy, who goes undercover in Budapest to get close to a mysterious woman named Gizella Bessenyei, who is believed to be behind the murders of several men. Out of all the stories in the collection, this one is the most like Dracula. It was improved in several ways, most notably a stronger presence of the vampire in question as well as a different ending.
Overall, this collection is worth the money and shelf space. There seems to be something in here for everyone. Not just for aficionados of vampire literature, but horror and paranormal literature in general. And at only $15.00 US, can't complain.
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