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A review by lilifane
Dracula by Bram Stoker
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-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
4.0
I liked it very, very much, and it's definitely one of my favourite classics now. It was really cool to finally get to know the source material for so many Dracula stories out there, and I have to admit there were a lot of things I didn't expect and that surprised me.
Loved that the story only consists of letters, diary entries and newspaper articles. Loved all the atmospheric settings and the characters. And loved how all the different parts of the story came together.
I just don't know if I chose the right method to consume it for the first time. I read it through Dracula Daily (while listening to the audiobook along the way, which was a good decision btw) and although it was a great motivator to finally start the book, and it was fun to experience the story on the same days of the year it took place, I had a few issues with it.
First of all, I didn't know that the letters etc. were not always presented in chronological order in the book. So I missed the original intention of the author who chose to withhold things and present them later (for example, letters that were delayed or articles that were read later than their publication date). This didn't happen often, but I feel, some scenes would have had a different impact on me if I had read the material at the intended point in the book. They still had an impact the way I read them, knowing more than the characters sometimes. But again, for the first read I probably would have chosen otherwise if I had known this.
Then there are several weeks in between where nothing happens. And so I was forced to take these breaks before continuing with the story. Towards the end, this worked really well for me because I really wanted to know what happens next and the anticipation kept me excited. But at the beginning, especially with so much repetition (Lucy's part basically), the story was dragging. It felt like the first half of the book took forever and the pacing was off, when in reality it would probably have been much quicker if I had just continued reading without waiting for the next appropriate date. I guess we'll never know. :D
Loved that the story only consists of letters, diary entries and newspaper articles. Loved all the atmospheric settings and the characters. And loved how all the different parts of the story came together.
I just don't know if I chose the right method to consume it for the first time. I read it through Dracula Daily (while listening to the audiobook along the way, which was a good decision btw) and although it was a great motivator to finally start the book, and it was fun to experience the story on the same days of the year it took place, I had a few issues with it.
First of all, I didn't know that the letters etc. were not always presented in chronological order in the book. So I missed the original intention of the author who chose to withhold things and present them later (for example, letters that were delayed or articles that were read later than their publication date). This didn't happen often, but I feel, some scenes would have had a different impact on me if I had read the material at the intended point in the book. They still had an impact the way I read them, knowing more than the characters sometimes. But again, for the first read I probably would have chosen otherwise if I had known this.
Then there are several weeks in between where nothing happens. And so I was forced to take these breaks before continuing with the story. Towards the end, this worked really well for me because I really wanted to know what happens next and the anticipation kept me excited. But at the beginning, especially with so much repetition (Lucy's part basically), the story was dragging. It felt like the first half of the book took forever and the pacing was off, when in reality it would probably have been much quicker if I had just continued reading without waiting for the next appropriate date. I guess we'll never know. :D
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Medical content, Blood, Confinement, Grief, Murder, and Mental illness
Moderate: Sexism, Forced institutionalization, and Misogyny