He was the first. He’d been infected by the original source. That made him special. He knew he was going to change into something else. Something more powerful than what he already was. Something that would allow him to infect the whole world. – Mortimer Moorecook
If you like your vampires well mannered, well dressed, sophisticated and seductive… run in the other direction as fast as your legs will carry you.
On the other hand, if you like your vampires the old fashioned way, rude and ridiculously full of fangs and attitude, wreaking gory indiscriminate havoc on everyone in their path, Draculas is definitely the book for you.
Retired billionaire Mortimer Moorecook is dying of cancer. Convinced it has the power to somehow cure him, Mortimer purchases a hominoid skull with elongated teeth – dubbed the “Dracula Skull” by the press – which was discovered in a farmer’s field in the Romanian countryside.
Upon receipt of the skull he uses it to bite himself in the neck… and promptly goes into convulsions before being whisked off to rural, out in the sticks Blessed Crucifixion Hospital. Once there he dies on the table in the E.R. Or does he?
Of course not, or we wouldn’t have much of a story. In the E.R. Mortimer comes back to life and undergoes an absolutely hideous transformation:
Mortimer’s cheeks exploded like a grenade had gone off inside his mouth, white points bursting through his lips, shearing flesh, digging rents into his face. His new teeth began to elongate – an inch, two inches, bursting through his bleeding gums in rows that ended in wicked, dagger-like tips. They shredded Mortimer’s face into jagged strips, and he began to snap his jaws, chewing through the inside of his mouth, grinding off his cheeks all the way back to his earlobes, making room for his monstrous new dentata.
Transformation into horrific creature complete, Mortimer quickly sets about creating carnage and turning others into vampires. The new vampires in turn dish out more carnage and create more vampires and, before you know it, the sleepy little rural hospital is under a full-on vampire onslaught.
Along the way the reader is treated to some wonderful characters including: Randall, the dim-witted lumberjack with a heart of gold; a gun-nut deputy sheriff who relishes the chance to play with all of his toys; Adam, a young preacher, and his pregnant wife; a pre-teen vampire obsessed with the “warm red candy” in people; and Benny the (vampire) Clown, who makes balloon animals out of creative materials… to say the least.
The collaborative effort of four extremely talented authors – Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn (aka Joe Konrath), Jeff Strand, and F. Paul Wilson – the book reads seamlessly despite having been a group project. Unless the reader is extremely familiar with the entire catalogs of the authors it is nearly impossible to tell who wrote which parts. And not only is the story itself extremely entertaining, if thoroughly gore soaked, but the e-book also comes with a slew of DVD-style extras such as deleted scenes (with explanations for why they were cut), an email exchange between the authors showing the creative process, a round table author discussion, and selected previous works (short stories) from the authors.
Draculas is a marvelous reclaiming of the Dracula lore from the clutches of those who think romancing high school girls and sparkling in the sunlight is appropriate vampire behavior. So what are you waiting for? Go get your copy now! Also be sure to check out the official Draculas website, which includes a free sample of the book, discussion forum, reviews and more.
Jack Kilborn is a pen name of J.A. Konrath, who has written six Jack Daniels thrillers. The seventh, SHAKEN, will be available this October. Kilborn is the author of AFRAID, ENDURANCE, TRAPPED, and SERIAL UNCUT (written with Blake Crouch), which has been downloaded more than 250,000 times. To learn more about J.A. Konrath, visit his website.
Jeff Strand is the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of such novels as PRESSURE, DWELLER, GRAVEROBBERS WANTED (NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY), BENJAMIN’S PARASITE, and THE SINISTER MR. CORPSE. His secret shame is SUCKERS, co-written with J.A. Konrath. To learn more about Jeff Strand, visit his website.
Blake Crouch is the author of four thrillers, DESERT PLACES, LOCKED DOORS, ABANDON, and SNOWBOUND, all published by St. Martin’s Press. His short fiction has appeared in Ellery Queen, THRILLER 2, and other anthologies. To learn more about Blake Crouch, visit his website.
Elizabeth A. White
October 18, 2010 - 5:06 PM