I am not doing Dracula. Well, at least not the novel version. The Count will be showing up in other forms and genres later, there is really no getting away from this iconic figure, but I wanted to begin with what heavily impacted my interest with vampires.
Dracula's Guest is a small piece of fiction featuring, and narrated by, an unnamed Englishman (which could be either Jonathan Harker or R.M. Renfield) as he makes the journey to Transylvania. The story takes place in Munich and already there are portents towards the supernatural. A storm is coming in, the sky darkening, and a cold begins to touch the world. The Englishman is warned that it is Walpurgis Night and that he should not linger outdoors at night.
While out in a carriage the Englishman stops, intrigued by a certain path that the residents fear, and is told that beyond the crossroads lies an unholy village that, after the men and women were buried, were found rosy cheeked with blood in their mouths.
Despite the warnings (as always) the Englishman decides to walk back and, by chance, strays close to the village. When the man stops he finds himself near a tomb, inscribed with strange words that seem to act as a warning: "The Dead Travel Fast". This is when the storm breaks and he seeks shelter, and moves to stand in the doorway of the tomb. The door he rests against opens and, though dark inside, the lightening illuminates it enough so that he sees with each flash a woman on a bier, seemingly asleep.
Then things turn strange.
He feels like a great and mighty hand hauls him from the doorway and out into the storm. Lightening strikes the tomb and sets it ablaze, and the dead woman cries out in agony as she burns within. And, through the storm he sees white shades come after him as he is dragged away by an invisible grip. He falls into a faint and, upon awakening, finds himself beneath the body of a great wolf that licks at his throat. He passes out again, and on the second awakening is found by and rescued by a group of soldiers. They talk about the wolf that, in all likelihood, is not a wolf and how it kept him warm. Upon returning to the town the Englishman is told that the search party was sent due to a telegram, warning of the need to see to his safety above all else. The message comes from Dracula.
As a young reader the original version (and not one of the many youth-friendly) versions of Bram Stoker's Dracula is impossible to handle. It is rich and thick with prose, layered with meaning, and is truly an intimidating read. Even now it is not a bedside novel. However Dracula's Guest works well as a teaser of things to come, still filled with the same prose but concise enough to be read and enjoyed easily. It sets the scene so well and, though short, contains all the elements that made Dracula an astounding novel. I really loved how, even though the danger is still vampires, the Count is possessive enough to be protecting what he considers as belonging to him.
Link to full text of Dracula's Guest:
http://www.literature.org/authors/stoker-bram/draculas-guest/
Image found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bram_Stoker_1906.jpg No copyright infringement meant, no money made from its use.
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