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linds1636's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
ultimatekate's review against another edition
4.0
I read "Dracula" for the first time when I was in 7th grade and wrote my first research paper (complete with footnotes--not parenthetical citations, but FOOTNOTES!) on vampires, so they have a special place in my heart. This book was great because it started with the premise that Dracula was alive and went from there.
jpro1990's review against another edition
So so awful. Spent 3 months trying to get through this book. Today I am halfway through and I admit defeat. Such a painfully boring book
thebookdreamersalley's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
sullivc5's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
callistag1's review against another edition
2.0
The worst part about this book was that I found very few problems with it up until the very end. That is what completely ruined it for me. After so much build up and time spent tracking down Dracula, fearing him, reading Helen’s letters and her talking about her terrified she was of Dracula finding her before she could find him, the final battle ends so quickly with Dracula dying from silver bullets.
Like there was nothing to it. It happened so quickly that it felt like a total let down. Also afterwards felt even more of a letdown, with there being little interaction between our protagonist, the unnamed daughter, and her mother after finally meeting her. Along with the fact that we find out (because other than the letters and storytelling from other characters, our main protagonist is writing this years after it all happened to her) Helen dies about nine years after from an illness, one that isn’t even explained. The book goes on for pages or even chapters about certain places or historical events but leaves Helen’s death to a basic illness that wasted her away.
Also the epilogue pissed me off with how we learn about our main protagonist’s father’s death and how he died, which didn’t feel necessary (and neither did Helen’s projected death). Also one of the characters, Barley, who joined in during the end of Act 1 I believe and was with our main protagonist during her travels in Act 2, isn’t mentioned. We have no clue what happened to him after this.
The book had a few other things that got to me. I often went from not being able to put the book down to forcing myself to get through a chapter because of its length and overly detailed settings. However, those things are small in comparison when looking at the overall awful payoff this book gives to so much build up.
I genuinely was excited to get to the end of this book because so much had happened, only to be let down by the anticlimactic ending of Dracula and the even more anticlimactic epilogue. If the ending has been better, I would be telling a lot of people to read this book, but the ending completely ruined the entire thing.
Like there was nothing to it. It happened so quickly that it felt like a total let down. Also afterwards felt even more of a letdown, with there being little interaction between our protagonist, the unnamed daughter, and her mother after finally meeting her. Along with the fact that we find out (because other than the letters and storytelling from other characters, our main protagonist is writing this years after it all happened to her) Helen dies about nine years after from an illness, one that isn’t even explained. The book goes on for pages or even chapters about certain places or historical events but leaves Helen’s death to a basic illness that wasted her away.
Also the epilogue pissed me off with how we learn about our main protagonist’s father’s death and how he died, which didn’t feel necessary (and neither did Helen’s projected death). Also one of the characters, Barley, who joined in during the end of Act 1 I believe and was with our main protagonist during her travels in Act 2, isn’t mentioned. We have no clue what happened to him after this.
The book had a few other things that got to me. I often went from not being able to put the book down to forcing myself to get through a chapter because of its length and overly detailed settings. However, those things are small in comparison when looking at the overall awful payoff this book gives to so much build up.
I genuinely was excited to get to the end of this book because so much had happened, only to be let down by the anticlimactic ending of Dracula and the even more anticlimactic epilogue. If the ending has been better, I would be telling a lot of people to read this book, but the ending completely ruined the entire thing.
klparmley's review against another edition
2.0
Finally finished it by listening to the audiobook. I liked it better in that medium. It's dense and slow moving. The historical parts sound correct, but I don't know enough about Vlad to know if that's actually the case.
amy123456789's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
My favorite book of all time!!!
rsutton06's review against another edition
1.0
I have attempted to finish this book on three separate occasions and I just can't get through it. Kostova is verbose and heavy on plot that seems to go no where. It seems to me that you could cut out 300 pages of the book and still not lose anything.