Dracula....

[aprildutcher]

I love vampires, dont get me wrong, and I understand Bram stoker opened the door to vampire fiction, but I thought the book itself was rather dull.

[optimisticnad]

i thought the ending wasn't good enough, a bit of a let down,

so was Buffy the Vampire slayer.

I see connection! I smell conspiracy! :-)

[Alexei]

I love vampires, dont get me wrong, and I understand Bram stoker opened the door to vampire fiction, but I thought the book itself was rather dull.

It\s not dull, just not exactly what usually people expect. I have been quite disappointed firstly after I finished it, but after I reconsidered it few times it was easier to understand it. The problem is there Dracula is too much "the bad guy" (at least that's my opinion). We could see his conversations with John of course, but this is not enough to make him looks human alike, as most of the modern vampires. The point of view is just very different we can't see the action through Count Dracula's eyes (I think this would be extremely interesting), we see it through these of humans. For the other characters he is the threat and this is the only the book's narrators describes him to us after the first 50 pages (50 just for example, I don't know how much pages take the episodes in the Dracula's castle). And that makes the Count quite simple as a character. I think the important are these fifty pages in the beginning of the book, they are the one who will inspired today vampires.

[aprildutcher]

I agree, but its still not what I expected. Maybe I shine too much light on vampires themselves, and expect great stories about them.

[JCamilo]

And do not forget, Dracula did not opened any door, it just passed by a long and ample road with more noise.

[grace86]

I think that the reason the ending of Dracula disappointed some (I admit I felt a bit slighted at the end as well) is that Hollywood has built his character up soo much. I find they've done that with a lot of the classic monsters: Jekyll and Hyde, Frankenstein....

We come to expect that what we've all known in pop culture about these figures will be the same in literature. Ah Hollywood.

But yes, I was a bit disappointed at the end. You'd expect the ending would be a little more dramatic. But I think the book was hardly dull - the end was just a bit different.

[Hyacinth42]

Well, I thought Dracula's character was brilliant. He came off as incredibly intelligent, cruel, and powerful. The reason I disliked the book was the total lack of suspense in the first half of the book. I was ready to bang my head against the wall while shouting, "Bite someone already!". And when the interaction between Harker and Dracula finally gets good, the story shifts to Mina, who is doing the most boring things imaginable.

The reason I thought that the ending was terrible is because Dracula dies. All good horror movies/stories end with the monster still loose and the story unfinished. If the monster is dead, then there is no reason to fear it coming to get you.

[GothMan]

I love vampires, dont get me wrong, and I understand Bram stoker opened the door to vampire fiction, but I thought the book itself was rather dull.

Yes, Stoker's "Dracula" is a typical penny dreadful. I suggest read the "original": Le Fanu's "Carmilla" instead.
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/10007

[mtpspur]

It\s not dull, just not exactly what usually people expect. I have been quite disappointed firstly after I finished it, but after I reconsidered it few times it was easier to understand it. The problem is there Dracula is too much "the bad guy" (at least that's my opinion). We could see his conversations with John of course, but this is not enough to make him looks human alike, as most of the modern vampires. The point of view is just very different we can't see the action through Count Dracula's eyes (I think this would be extremely interesting), we see it through these of humans. For the other characters he is the threat and this is the only the book's narrators describes him to us after the first 50 pages (50 just for example, I don't know how much pages take the episodes in the Dracula's castle). And that makes the Count quite simple as a character. I think the important are these fifty pages in the beginning of the book, they are the one who will inspired today vampires.

Fred Saberhagen wrote a book, called The Dracula Tape which is retelling of Bram Stoker's Dracula which told from his view and will change the way you think of Stoker's version forever. Well worth the read.

[kathycf]

Yes, Stoker's "Dracula" is a typical penny dreadful. I suggest read the "original": Le Fanu's "Carmilla" instead.

Carmilla is an excelllent novel, I would also recommend it. I can't dismiss Dracula as a penny dreadful however. I thought it a good, although not outstanding book.