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A review by sandygx260
Draculas by Blake Crouch, J.A. Konrath, Jack Kilborn
3.0
Draculas is a hard book to review, because I like a plot to accompany a story. The “we don’t need a stinkin’ plot” Draculas is an unashamed gore fest of sharp fangs, split cheeks, talons, blood, guts, shootings, and explosions. One vampire throws up his stomach and proceeds to eat it. A clown turned vampire makes balloon animals out of intestines. Hunger-crazed vampires chew off their own limbs. Fleeing victims pratfall in blood puddles or trip over intestines.
At a certain point, this horror novel turned into a raging comedy. I couldn’t take Draculas seriously. I don’t think the authors did either, not judging by the excellent short stories augmenting the ebook. Humor is mixed into the horror, which can work, but in Draculas, the authors carried the concept too far. I could almost tell which parts were F.Paul Wilson’s contributions because in other books I have read by him, I’ve never seen him mix horror with humor.
Also please don’t become too attached to any of the characters. Heroic characters die. Lead vampires die. Bloody carnage triumphs.
I admire what these four authors created, because mostly it works in a seamless manner. I understand that back in 2010, this was written as a big “fuck you” to the Twilight series. Imagine, who cares about Twilight now? I stand in the authors camp because I hated how Twilight derailed the idea of my favorite supernatural character.
The thing is, Draculas doesn’t do all that much to redeem the vampire legend. Face it, vampires were always tragic romantic figures filled with murderous intent. They aren’t like rabid zombies sans a coherent thought in their undead brains.
Hard to review, which means I give it a five for the ambitious idea, a four for the extra short stories and add-ons, a two for the lacking plot and frequently inane dialog, and a one for the completely ridiculous start and lackluster ending.
Sounds like a three to me. Your math may vary.
At a certain point, this horror novel turned into a raging comedy. I couldn’t take Draculas seriously. I don’t think the authors did either, not judging by the excellent short stories augmenting the ebook. Humor is mixed into the horror, which can work, but in Draculas, the authors carried the concept too far. I could almost tell which parts were F.Paul Wilson’s contributions because in other books I have read by him, I’ve never seen him mix horror with humor.
Also please don’t become too attached to any of the characters. Heroic characters die. Lead vampires die. Bloody carnage triumphs.
I admire what these four authors created, because mostly it works in a seamless manner. I understand that back in 2010, this was written as a big “fuck you” to the Twilight series. Imagine, who cares about Twilight now? I stand in the authors camp because I hated how Twilight derailed the idea of my favorite supernatural character.
The thing is, Draculas doesn’t do all that much to redeem the vampire legend. Face it, vampires were always tragic romantic figures filled with murderous intent. They aren’t like rabid zombies sans a coherent thought in their undead brains.
Hard to review, which means I give it a five for the ambitious idea, a four for the extra short stories and add-ons, a two for the lacking plot and frequently inane dialog, and a one for the completely ridiculous start and lackluster ending.
Sounds like a three to me. Your math may vary.