This is a re re re re read. I have always loved this book but over time I had to sadly admit I have fallen out of love with it.

I really think the first four chapters would be a brilliant short story, I wish it was. I confess I found myself laughing and giggling inappropriately. How many times we see variations on the line;

‘bring the Brandy! Quick,’
‘moisten her lips with brandy!’
‘It’s not yet too late! Quick, quick, the brandy’.

There are many brandy moments…Oh brandy, the elixir of life.

And the funniest line in all literature maybe…

‘Doctor, you don’t know what it is to doubt everything, even yourself. No, you don’t; you couldn’t with eyebrows like yours.’ (Chapter 14)

I am sitting typing that with tears of laughter in my eyes and my husband is giving me eye rolls because I keep remembering and chuckling.

What has happened to me that I just see these funny parts and find the rest a tiny bit annoying about how Mina is portrayed as soooo angelic… and the three suitors as so, too bold and noble.

I suppose what does frighten me is the inability to reason with or appeal to Dracula or the three horrible women. Our voice would be unheard or ridiculed and the horror would happen despite anything we could do.

I really hope this reaction to the book isn’t my age but just reflects a change in my reading tastes..



I don’t mind a story being long and usually don’t want the writing to be edited unnecessarily, but oh this did run on… and on…


But I love the dramatic and sizzling end of the vampires and Renfield the madman who eats flies and spiders.. although not the first vampire story it is pretty iconic and set the stage for a lot of daylight challenged descendants.