The Vampire That Started It All

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Source: Amazon Vine

(Note: This review is coming from the perspective of someone who has not yet had the pleasure of reading Bram Stoker’s Dracula.)

Critically acclaimed and bestselling author, Syrie James, once again transports her readers back in time and enchants them with a tale of unknown romance. This time instead of revealing the secret love affair of a famous author as she did with Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë, Syrie James decides to divulge the hidden romance between two fictional characters: Mina Harker and Count Dracula. Utilizing characters and plot from Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Syrie James retells this horror classic with an infusion of romance.

Mina Murray, at the age of twenty-two has her life perfectly planned; after enjoying an extended holiday at the sea-side resort of Whitby with her friend Lucy Westenra, she is to wed her childhood friend Jonathan Harker and begin her life as a devoted wife, helpmate, and mother. But when Jonathan doesn’t return from his business trip to Transylvania and dear Lucy grows more pale and lethargic each day, Mina learns that life doesn’t always go as planned. To make matters worse, Mina finds herself extremely attracted to an intriguing and mysterious stranger by the name of Mr. Wagner. Could Mina be falling in love with another man?

We are all familiar with Count Dracula – he is centuries old, from Transylvania, nocturnal, has supernatural powers, and he is sustained by blood. But in Dracula, My Love, we learn that this famous vampire isn’t as dangerous and villainous as he seems. Syrie James’s Dracula is misunderstood, passionate, a friendless outcast, and…he is in love. The dilemma is that the woman he is in love with is engaged to a man who is determined to see him dead. How will this scandalous and impassioned affair end?

What magnificent writing! I am a great admirer of Syrie James’s novels thus far and even though I wasn’t that interested in reading a novel about Dracula and vampires, I was inclined to read this book because of Ms. James’s illuminating and all-consuming prose. Believe me, I was not disappointed! Ms. James’s Dracula may be a bit more romantic and reputable than Bram Stoker’s original (an aspect which might chagrin some purists), but that didn’t bother me as I completely fell in love with him! He is such a complex and intriguing character with such mysterious origins. I’ve become so enamored that I intend to read Bram Stoker’s Dracula in the near future.

To put it simply: this novel was truly outstanding! I took pleasure in gaining new understanding and insight to Dracula’s character, the compelling action of the plot, and the ardent yet illicit love affair between Dracula and Mina Harker. Dracula, My Love is a poignant, passionate, and powerful novel you should not miss!

Other Novels By Syrie James:
– The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen

– The Secret Diaries of Charlotte Brontë
MY REVIEW