Anno Dracula by: Kim Newman

 

Dracula is perhaps the one classic novel I find myself coming back to the most.  It’s a tale representing several things that has resonated through the years, skyrocketing vampires to popularity as well as having several interesting and valid readings.  British journalist Kim Newman is one such person who has his own readings of Dracula as well as dedicating much of his work to horror fiction and film history, the 1931 Bela Lugosi led Dracula being responsible for his love of horror.  In the mid-1980s, he and Neil Gaiman came up with an idea for what if Dracula won and what an alternate history telling of Dracula may be like, something they might work on together.  Ultimately that never came to be, but in 1992, Newman published Anno Dracula, playing on the same idea.  The book is set in 1888 where Dracula has killed Abraham Van Helsing, Jonathan Harker, and Quincy Morris, fully converted Mina Harker into a vampire, and found himself marrying Queen Victoria.  Vampirism has now essentially become a status symbol of the upper class with the lower classes essentially becoming food for the upper classes, Newman pulling a class narrative throughout the book but through the eyes of the upper class for the majority.  Those who are rich who don’t turn such as Charles Beauregard and Penelope Churchward are pressured into doing so, and those who are turned from lower classes are generally prejudiced against.  The main event of the novel is the investigations surrounding the Jack the Ripper murders, still prostitutes, but all done with silver knives as silver kills vampires.

 

As this is a sequel to Dracula and thus already set in a fictional universe, Anno Dracula also blends history with several pieces of Victorian and post-Victorian fiction.  This is a universe where Sherlock Holmes exists as well as several other fictional vampires, both in and outside of the public domain (Barnabas Collins from the 1960s soap opera Dark Shadows makes a cameo).  Adam Adamant from the cult 1960s Adam Adamant Lives is name dropped, showing just how obscure Newman would go.  I am certain there are references that I am not catching, and Newman is skilled enough to not make the references feel distracting to the narrative.  This is at least for the most part as the original characters don’t always feel as if they have their own authorial voices.  The narrative is an exploration of society, not a murder mystery, as it’s quite obvious who Jack the Ripper is going to turn out to be from the very first page.  Newman is interesting as you don’t entirely want the Ripper to be caught, the vampires while acting as if they have made society better have only brought much of the seediness of Victorian times to the forefront while still keeping the British stiff upper lips.  People deciding to become vampires willingly is an interesting idea for a book which Newman explores throughout Anno Dracula, with Dracula himself being a background figure who has wormed his way to the heart of Britain, but as with much of the monarchy finds himself not actively participating in the plot.  This makes it interesting as several other vampires are explored, both fictional and historical figures who have given themselves over.

 

It’s also a book that moves along at a really nice pace, with Newman switching points of view from vampires to still living humans who want to be vampires to those who despise the vampires.  Beauregard in particular is interesting as he has come to terms with what life is while his fiancé Penelope wishes to maintain their status as the upper class by becoming vampires.  Beauregard works for the Diogenes Club from Conan Doyle’s The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter and is one of many investigating the murders which call into question London’s lifestyle, much like the historical Jack the Ripper case would inevitably do.  He is a fascinating main character as he interacts with vampires and humans both of whom he has formed deep, impactful relationships with as vampires especially are both inhuman and human monsters who find themselves in society.  Penelope as a socialite is also guarded by Victorian England’s views on women which Newman also explores, vampires integrating themselves into society not immediately causing a level playing field for women.  There are still societal revolutions to come for progress and adding vampires in the mix may have even slowed down that progress with humanity slowly becoming a minority in London and indeed the rest of the world.

 

Overall, Anno Dracula is a fascinating idea for an alternative history tale adding in the fantastic and horrific together for what’s a bloody good time.  It isn’t perfect and has an issue of Newman’s own voice not quite matching that of the characters he takes from other stories, at least for the non-historical characters.  It also doesn’t quite work as marketed as a mystery, but is something that shines in the ideas that it plays around with throughout the book.  8/10.