La dama del sudario

by Bram Stoker

Paperback

Published July 31, 1998

About the author

Irish-born Abraham Stoker, known as Bram, of Britain wrote the gothic horror novel Dracula (1897).

The feminist Charlotte Mathilda Blake Thornely Stoker at 15 Marino crescent, then as now called "the crescent," in Fairview, a coastal suburb of Dublin, Ireland, bore this third of seven children. The parents, members of church of Ireland, attended the parish church of Saint John the Baptist, located on Seafield road west in Clontarf with their baptized children.

Stoker, an invalid, started school at the age of seven years in 1854, when he made a complete and astounding recovery. Of this time, Stoker wrote, "I was naturally thoughtful, and the leisure of long illness gave opportunity for many thoughts which were fruitful according to their kind in later years."

After his recovery, he, a normal young man, even excelled as a university athlete at Trinity college, Dublin form 1864 to 1870 and graduated with honors in mathematics. He served as auditor of the college historical society and as president of the university philosophical society with his first paper on "Sensationalism in Fiction and Society."

In 1876, while employed as a civil servant in Dublin, Stoker wrote a non-fiction book (The Duties of Clerks of Petty Sessions in Ireland, published 1879) and theatre reviews for The Dublin Mail, a newspaper partly owned by fellow horror writer J. Sheridan Le Fanu. His interest in theatre led to a lifelong friendship with the English actor Henry Irving. He also wrote stories, and in 1872 "The Crystal Cup" was published by the London Society, followed by "The Chain of Destiny" in four parts in The Shamrock.

In 1878 Stoker married Florence Balcombe, a celebrated beauty whose former suitor was Oscar Wilde. The couple moved to London, where Stoker became business manager (at first as acting-manager) of Irving's Lyceum Theatre, a post he held for 27 years. The collaboration with Irving was very important for Stoker and through him he became involved in London's high society, where he met, among other notables, James McNeil Whistler, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In the course of Irving's tours, Stoker got the chance to travel around the world.

The Stokers had one son, Irving Noel, who was born on December 31, 1879.

People cremated the body of Bram Stoker and placed his ashes placed in a display urn at Golders green crematorium. After death of Irving Noel Stoker in 1961, people added his ashes to that urn. Despite the original plan to keep ashes of his parents together, after death, people scattered ashes of Florence Stoker at the gardens of rest.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bram_Stoker

Reviews

[Morgana le Fay · Rating 4 out of 5]

iba increíble pero el final se cae por completo, me hubiera gustado que el misterio se develara de otra forma, o que la dama del sudario hubiera tenido que ser de condición distinta (no voy a spoilearlo)

[Arturo Martín · Rating 3 out of 5]

Español: Leí este libro por casualidad, pues fui a la biblioteca buscando Drácula y, al no encontrarlo, saqué este. Realmente le daría 3,5 estrellas, pues me ha gustado pero no tanto como otros que he calificado con 4 estrellas. La parte inicial en la que se narra todo el asunto del testamento me parece liosa y creo que no aporta demasiado.

English: I read this book by chance, as I went to the library looking for Dracula and, not finding it, I checked this one out. I would really give it 3.5 stars, as I liked it but not as much as others that I have rated with 4 stars. The initial part in which the whole testament thing is narrated seems to me to be a bit complicated and I think it doesn't add too much to the story.

[Brian X · Rating 1 out of 5]

Una decepción de libro. Tenía tantas esperanzas que fuera bueno pero no. Empieza muy bien pero siento que Stoker cambió de idea a mitad de camino y arruinó todo.