More Reading Recommendations

As I did last week, I wanted to take some time out to plug one of my latest reads, Dracula by Bram Stoker. Probably all of you have heard of this book, many have seen Francis Ford Coppola's film adaptation, if not the original one starring Bela Legosi, but how many of you have read this thing?

Honestly, I always hesitated over this one, fearing that it would be rather boring--as some of these older stories can often be. This was mainly due to the fact that the book is a rather large one by today's standards--and considering even some of the more recent novels have gotten a few yawns out of me...

I finally broke down the other day and started this thing, and I'm not disappointed in the least. In fact, it is much better than I ever thought it would be. Stoker's sense of atmosphere--especially in the first few chapters--is simply amazing. And the book clips along at a brisk pace, too. As with any book, it drags in places, but overall, I've been thoroughly entertained, and much of this fact is due to Stoker's writing. He really is a gifted author, building his world and suspense, and doing so by having narrator's with different voices--something Ms. Shelly should've learned before writing her Frankenstein.

While I doubt this book is for everyone, if any of you others have been on the fence about reading this, go ahead, take the plunge. It's more than worth your time.

(The above illustration comes from Ben Templesmith.)