This is the long-awaited sequel to Dracula (Amazon US || UK), based on Bram Stoker’s own notes. Written by his great grand nephew, it opens twenty-five years after the events in the original book and spotlights the new character of Quincey Harker. He is the son of Jonathan and Mina, but instead of following in his father’s footsteps and becoming a lawyer he is keen instead to be an actor. Working at London’s Lyceum Theater, he soon becomes involved in an upcoming production of Dracula directed by Bram Stoker himself. When it loses its star, Quincey saves the day by contacting the Hungarian actor Basarab and asking him to play the part. Quincey discovers that the play is partly about his own parents, and he learns the secrets that they have always kept from him. Then his father is murdered...

The original hits the ground running, grabs the reader by the jugular and refuses to let go. This is surely one of the reasons why it became a classic rather than just a good horror story—it is so very, very entertaining. Here is a book that takes a more leisurely pace and gives the reader the scenic route, thus losing momentum very quickly. The lack of pace does not sit well with the kind of breathless adventure story being told, and the style of writing mixes Victorian with modern idioms rather unevenly. I can imagine it being made into a rather good film however, and a bit of editing would work wonders and maybe add some necessary zip and crackle.