As a fan of vampire stories, I was looking forward to reading the most famous one of all - "Dracula." However, I was disappointed at how slow it moved due to what I think was an overabundance of description. Written in 1897, it is told in epistolary format; that is, it is told through the journals and notes of most of the major characters (though not Count Dracula). Although this allows the reader to see the actions of the novel explained by various characters rather than an omnipresent narrator, I found Stoker to be way too wordy for it to be very effective. Not until the final pages does the action pick up when the main characters are finally able to come face to face with the Count.
It was interesting to see just how much of what has become the popular idea of "Dracula" was really in the novel. One thing I noticed is that Count Dracula does not believe Mina Harker to be his dead wife reincarnated centuries after her suicide as several modern versions of the story have stated. I was surprised to learn that not only can the Count become a bat but also a dog, a wolf, and mist. I can see how this book terrified readers when it was first published, especially women, to whom the Count was especially malevolent.
I'm glad that I finally read this classic tale but am disappointed that I did not enjoy it. 402 pages.
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