Vlad the Undead

by Hanna Lutzen

Lucia, a young Danish medical student, receives an unusual inheritance from her grandfather -- a sheaf of old crumbling papers. During her summer vacation, in the isolation of a dark apartment in Copenhagen, she realizes these are no ordinary documents.The manuscript tells the story of a Romanian sea captain found half-dead and stranded on his ship, the Demeter, off the coast of England in 1894. Before dying, the captain dictates his bizarre story to Lucia's great-grandfather, the captain's doctor. The doctor learns that during its last trip from the Black Sea to England, the ship had been plagued by disappearances. It soon becomes clear that one of the ship's passengers was the monster of the stories the captain had heard as a child. Vlad Dracula was a vampire who had used the Demeter to carry himself and his evil cargo to the Western world.

Written as a series of manuscripts, letters, and diary entries, Vlad the Undead brings to life the brilliant, ambitious, and ruthless prince of 15th-century Romania and a contemporary young woman's fascination with him.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Vampires, Fantasy

Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Dimitri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Een originele benadering voor de jeugd van zowel de historische Vlad Tepes als de klassieke romanDracula . Het verhaal wordt immers verteld in de vorm van een briefroman, waarbij de 19e eeuwse aantekeningen en de hedendaagse dagboekaantekeningen van Lucia elkaar afwisselen.

Het uitgangspunt is eveneens aan Stoker ontleend: de vampier Dracula maakt de overtocht van Transsylvanië naar Engeland per kotter, waarbij hij de bemanning mondjesmaat decimeert. Uiteindelijk blijft enkel de kapitein over, vastgebonden aan het roer temidden van zwaar noodweer. Dracula maakt zijn ware identiteit bekend, uitgedost in alle pracht en praal van een middeleeuws vorst. Vervolgens doet hij zijn levensverhaal, vanaf zijn jeugd als gijzelaar aan het hof van de Turkse sultan.

[Anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5

[Rosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have no idea why this is considered a young adult book, it could just as easily be enjoyed by an adult. Lucia is a student getting ready for medical school, she is staying in her Uncles home while he is away. Her parents passed away six months ago and her grandfather has just passed away. He left her a sheaf of papers that was written by his grandfather that is the tale of the captain of the Demeter. The Demeter is the boat on which Dracula travels to England in Bram Stokers Dracula tale. As Lucia reads the papers she gets more and more involved in the captains story, leading to her feeling that the captain is no longer involved in the story and it is only her and Dracula. When her Uncle returns to his home, she is gone and the only trace left of her is the sheaf of papers, which now include her own journal entries, detailing her own actions and what she believes is Dracula somehow telling her his story through dreams.

[Viviam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lucia's life changes forever when she inherits a strange set of old documents from her grandfather. In the papers is the morbidly fascinating tale of Vlad Dracula and his rise from childhood to power. Fairy tale and real life bleed together as Lucia continues reading the story and her new love Vlad becomes real. He entices her into his world of everlasting night and death. She has to choose to either become the mistress of darkness, or stay in her old life. I thought this was an interesting sequel to Bram Stocker's original. It was refreshing how Vlad is bad and doesn’t claim to be anything else. It is also interesting how there is no real hero in this story.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short little time waster. Not very much here. Check out The Historian for a better and more detailed novel. Not much character development. The spider was the best character.

[Elias Samuels · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was entertaining and gave another side of the ever-told Dracula's story.

[Bianca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this a few years back, just after I'd finished Dracula, in a Dutch translation and.. it wasn't bad. I liked it, but Dracula is just better.

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't even a novel, not really. More of a history of Dracula.