What do you think?
Rate this book
Magical Creatures
The House of the Vampire
One of the first psychic vampire novels of its time - where the vampire feeds off of more than just blood - The House of the Vampire is an early classic in its genre. Republished in this new edition, this Victorian novel operates in the continuum of life and death. What has been can be again, though often terribly transformed. Energetically inventive and infused with a relish for the supernatural, especially the trappings of the dark, The House of the Vampire delivers a horror which we know does not - but none the less conceivably might - exist and threaten ourselves. Blurring the lines between fact and fiction, The House of the Vampire is considered a classic among Victorian Gothic stories.
"He felt the presence of the hand of Reginald Clarke - unmistakably - groping in his brain as if searching for something that had still escaped him. He tried to move, to cry out, but his limbs were paralysed. When, by a superhuman effort, he at last succeeded in shaking off the numbness that held him enchained, he awoke just in time to see a figure, that of a man, disappearing in the wall that separated Reginald's apartments from his room...."
George Sylvester Viereck (1884 - 1962), remembered today chiefly for his contributions to fantasy literature, was born in Germany and emigrated to the United States with his family at age 11. He was editor of the magazine The Fatherland, and author of Confessions of a Barbarian and Glimpses of the Great.
"He felt the presence of the hand of Reginald Clarke - unmistakably - groping in his brain as if searching for something that had still escaped him. He tried to move, to cry out, but his limbs were paralysed. When, by a superhuman effort, he at last succeeded in shaking off the numbness that held him enchained, he awoke just in time to see a figure, that of a man, disappearing in the wall that separated Reginald's apartments from his room...."
George Sylvester Viereck (1884 - 1962), remembered today chiefly for his contributions to fantasy literature, was born in Germany and emigrated to the United States with his family at age 11. He was editor of the magazine The Fatherland, and author of Confessions of a Barbarian and Glimpses of the Great.
144 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1907
113 people are currently reading
2144 people want to read
About the author
George Sylvester Viereck
131 books20 followersGeorge Viereck was born in Germany, to a German father and American-born mother. His father Louis, born out of wedlock to German actress Edwina Viereck, was reputed to be a son of Kaiser Wilhelm I. Another relative of the Hohenzollern family assumed legal paternity of the boy. In the 1870s Louis Viereck joined the Marxist socialist movement. In 1896 Viereck emigrated to the United States. His American-born wife Laura and 12-year-old son George Sylvester followed in 1897.
In 1904 while still in college, George Sylvester Viereck, with the help of literary critic Ludwig Lewisohn published his first collection of poems. He graduated from the College of the City of New York in 1906. The next year his collection Nineveh and Other Poems (1907) won Viereck national fame. A number were written in the style of the Uranian male love poetry of the time.[1]
In the 1920s, Viereck became close friends with Nikola Tesla. According to Tesla, Viereck was the greatest contemporary American poet. Tesla occasionally attended dinner parties held by Viereck and his wife. He dedicated his poem "Fragments of Olympian Gossip" to Viereck, a work in which Tesla ridiculed the scientific establishment of the day.
Between 1907 and 1912, Viereck turned into a Germanophile. In 1908 he published the best-selling Confessions of a Barbarian. He lectured at the University of Berlin on American poetry in 1911. Notably, he conducted an interview with Adolf Hitler in 1923 which offered hints of what was to come. He was a close personal friend of Nicola Tesla. He was the person most instrumental in inducing Tesla to work with the German rocket scientists on the "p2" project at Los Alamos, New Mexico, 1936-1937.[2] He founded two publications, The International and The Fatherland, which argued the German cause during World War I. Viereck became a well-known Nazi apologist. In 1941, he was indicted in the U.S. for a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act when he set up his publishing house, Flanders Hall.[3] He was convicted in 1942 for this failure to register with the U. S. Department of State as a Nazi agent.[4] He was imprisoned from 1942 to 1947.
Viereck's memoir of life in prison, Men into Beasts, was published as a paperback original by Fawcett Publications in 1952. The book is a general memoir of discomfort, loss of dignity, and brutality in prison life. The front matter and backcover text focuses on the situational homosexuality and male rape described in the book (witnessed, not experienced, by Viereck). The book, while a memoir, is thus the first original title of 1950s gay pulp fiction, an emerging genre in that decade.
Viereck also published one of the first known gay vampire novels The House of the Vampire (1907). Not only is this one of the first known gay vampire stories, but it is also one of the first psychic vampire stories—where a vampire feeds off more than just blood.
In 1904 while still in college, George Sylvester Viereck, with the help of literary critic Ludwig Lewisohn published his first collection of poems. He graduated from the College of the City of New York in 1906. The next year his collection Nineveh and Other Poems (1907) won Viereck national fame. A number were written in the style of the Uranian male love poetry of the time.[1]
In the 1920s, Viereck became close friends with Nikola Tesla. According to Tesla, Viereck was the greatest contemporary American poet. Tesla occasionally attended dinner parties held by Viereck and his wife. He dedicated his poem "Fragments of Olympian Gossip" to Viereck, a work in which Tesla ridiculed the scientific establishment of the day.
Between 1907 and 1912, Viereck turned into a Germanophile. In 1908 he published the best-selling Confessions of a Barbarian. He lectured at the University of Berlin on American poetry in 1911. Notably, he conducted an interview with Adolf Hitler in 1923 which offered hints of what was to come. He was a close personal friend of Nicola Tesla. He was the person most instrumental in inducing Tesla to work with the German rocket scientists on the "p2" project at Los Alamos, New Mexico, 1936-1937.[2] He founded two publications, The International and The Fatherland, which argued the German cause during World War I. Viereck became a well-known Nazi apologist. In 1941, he was indicted in the U.S. for a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act when he set up his publishing house, Flanders Hall.[3] He was convicted in 1942 for this failure to register with the U. S. Department of State as a Nazi agent.[4] He was imprisoned from 1942 to 1947.
Viereck's memoir of life in prison, Men into Beasts, was published as a paperback original by Fawcett Publications in 1952. The book is a general memoir of discomfort, loss of dignity, and brutality in prison life. The front matter and backcover text focuses on the situational homosexuality and male rape described in the book (witnessed, not experienced, by Viereck). The book, while a memoir, is thus the first original title of 1950s gay pulp fiction, an emerging genre in that decade.
Viereck also published one of the first known gay vampire novels The House of the Vampire (1907). Not only is this one of the first known gay vampire stories, but it is also one of the first psychic vampire stories—where a vampire feeds off more than just blood.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 133 reviews
August 9, 2020
A 1907 vampire novel in the style of Oscar Wilde! This is one of those obscure classics that is actually entertaining and not simply dust on the shelf of literary history. Nearly five stars, but it would be unfair to Dorian Gray to rate them both the same. Also, Viereck was a Nazi. So that’s problematic.
Before he was a Nazi, however, Viereck published this book in 1907 at the youthful age of 22. I won’t spoil what kind of vampire we’re dealing with, but know that it isn’t the kind who drinks blood. Creative minds and vampire scholars will find Viereck’s monster unique and unforgettable.
Stylistically, the characters often speak in profound witticisms that are clearly modeled after Oscar Wilde. Male friendships are also described with the same veiled eroticism. There’s even a direct ode to Dorian Gray where the protagonist imagines a pleasant portrait of the vampire deforming into something sinister.
Apparently some hail this the first “gay vampire” novel, but other than some oddly sexy word choices to describe a bond between bros, the characters are all straight. Honestly I think George was just a huge Wilde fanboy and wanted to follow his style in every possible way.
That said, nearly 50 years later, Viereck would become significant to gay literature with his memoir Men into Beasts (1952). I haven’t read that one yet, but apparently it describes situational homosexuality witnessed while he was locked up for crimes as a Nazi propagandist. From what I could research, the memoir was intended to shame the prison system, but instead it is remembered for starting a wave of “gay pulp fiction” publications. I guess I will have to hunt down a copy someday to find out why.
As for House of the Vampire, I actually give it a hearty recommendation. In addition to the intriguing vamp, there’s some lovely New York City descriptions and sense of life from 1907 that is hard to find in an entertaining package. Too bad young Viereck grew up to be a horrible person.
Before he was a Nazi, however, Viereck published this book in 1907 at the youthful age of 22. I won’t spoil what kind of vampire we’re dealing with, but know that it isn’t the kind who drinks blood. Creative minds and vampire scholars will find Viereck’s monster unique and unforgettable.
Stylistically, the characters often speak in profound witticisms that are clearly modeled after Oscar Wilde. Male friendships are also described with the same veiled eroticism. There’s even a direct ode to Dorian Gray where the protagonist imagines a pleasant portrait of the vampire deforming into something sinister.
Apparently some hail this the first “gay vampire” novel, but other than some oddly sexy word choices to describe a bond between bros, the characters are all straight. Honestly I think George was just a huge Wilde fanboy and wanted to follow his style in every possible way.
That said, nearly 50 years later, Viereck would become significant to gay literature with his memoir Men into Beasts (1952). I haven’t read that one yet, but apparently it describes situational homosexuality witnessed while he was locked up for crimes as a Nazi propagandist. From what I could research, the memoir was intended to shame the prison system, but instead it is remembered for starting a wave of “gay pulp fiction” publications. I guess I will have to hunt down a copy someday to find out why.
As for House of the Vampire, I actually give it a hearty recommendation. In addition to the intriguing vamp, there’s some lovely New York City descriptions and sense of life from 1907 that is hard to find in an entertaining package. Too bad young Viereck grew up to be a horrible person.
July 1, 2020
3.5*
This book is a very different approach to a vampire story. There is no darkness, eerie and creepy atmosphere or any blood drinking associated with the usual vampire books. Still I enjoyed reading this novella as the writing kept me interested and the idea of this book was in a way scary though not in the conventional way.
Reginald Clarke is the star of any function he attends and everyone's eyes follows him wherever he goes. He is a great writer and an orator, handsome and proud. When young Ernest, an aspiring writer gets the opportunity to stay with Clarke and be mentored, he is thrilled. But what he experiences there is totally unexpected. I don't want to give away any spoilers.
I would definitely reccomend this book because first of all its small, secondly its interesting. Most importantly, its a vampire book! Who can resist one?
This book is a very different approach to a vampire story. There is no darkness, eerie and creepy atmosphere or any blood drinking associated with the usual vampire books. Still I enjoyed reading this novella as the writing kept me interested and the idea of this book was in a way scary though not in the conventional way.
Reginald Clarke is the star of any function he attends and everyone's eyes follows him wherever he goes. He is a great writer and an orator, handsome and proud. When young Ernest, an aspiring writer gets the opportunity to stay with Clarke and be mentored, he is thrilled. But what he experiences there is totally unexpected. I don't want to give away any spoilers.
I would definitely reccomend this book because first of all its small, secondly its interesting. Most importantly, its a vampire book! Who can resist one?
May 9, 2025
Was difficult to stay focused and interested in the audiobook as the story felt very boring to me.
February 11, 2023
Ernest and Jack, two hearts beating as one, holding hands, “I need you”;
April 3, 2021
3.5 leaning towards 4 — this was better than I thought it’d be!! very gothic energy, atmospheric, slow suspense-building, incredibly bisexual implications. the ending has just the right mix of darkness and ambiguity. it’s a fun psychological take on vampirism that maybe vamp fans that hate blood would prefer, if those exist? I don’t think I prefer this to your classic, cunning, sexy bloodsucker, but it was still eerie and a good time. I do think the characters were a little weak and I wish the setting had been a stronger component, but overall I enjoyed this. it’s short, gothic, homoerotic, and has some really pretty writing. tbh this one’s biggest weakness is that it was written by a nazi.
August 5, 2021
This little piece was brilliant! I just found this by accident as a free audiobook and as a lover of vampire stories I thought, why not give it a try?
And the writing, my fellow readers, is just beautiful. As if you would mix Oscar Wilde and dark gothic literature into one being. So full of art, emotions and yearning and yet you also feel this constant dread that something horrible is going on.
I also appreciated the alternative take on vampirism. In this case blood is not the essence of their life. They feast on the human mind and ones creativity.
I think as a full novel, this would have had great potential.
And the writing, my fellow readers, is just beautiful. As if you would mix Oscar Wilde and dark gothic literature into one being. So full of art, emotions and yearning and yet you also feel this constant dread that something horrible is going on.
I also appreciated the alternative take on vampirism. In this case blood is not the essence of their life. They feast on the human mind and ones creativity.
I think as a full novel, this would have had great potential.
October 30, 2012
As you likely already know, this was one of the first psychic vampire stories ever. Somehow it has become a rumor that it is an erotic novel and features bisexual characters. It doesn’t, so don’t bother if that’s the only reason you want to read it. There are a few scenes that come off homoerotic, and you get the feeling that Ernest, as well as Reginald Clarke, are somewhat effeminate, but they are both definitely straight. It is a little slow paced at first; however, I feel it builds up rather well, culminating in a surprising and very well executed ending.
It is also very quotable. One of my favorite lines is when Reginald Clarke spoke of Balzac and unwittingly gave away a clue to his own nature:
“He (Balzac) must have purified the atmosphere around him for miles, by bringing all the evil that was floating in the air or slumbering in men’s souls to the point of his pen.”
As to the style, I would say it’s like a mix of Bret Easton Ellis and Oscar Wilde. A great example is a conversation between Ernest (the protagonist) and his old friend, Jack, about two women they had met earlier that night:
“Susie, was that her name?”
“Yes.”
“So she had a name?”
“Of course.”
“She shouldn’t. It should be a number.”
“They may not be pillars of society; still they’re human.”
“Yes,” said Ernest, “that is the most horrible part of it.”
It is also very quotable. One of my favorite lines is when Reginald Clarke spoke of Balzac and unwittingly gave away a clue to his own nature:
“He (Balzac) must have purified the atmosphere around him for miles, by bringing all the evil that was floating in the air or slumbering in men’s souls to the point of his pen.”
As to the style, I would say it’s like a mix of Bret Easton Ellis and Oscar Wilde. A great example is a conversation between Ernest (the protagonist) and his old friend, Jack, about two women they had met earlier that night:
“Susie, was that her name?”
“Yes.”
“So she had a name?”
“Of course.”
“She shouldn’t. It should be a number.”
“They may not be pillars of society; still they’re human.”
“Yes,” said Ernest, “that is the most horrible part of it.”
February 9, 2013
With homosexual and supernatural elements, I guess one would expect something either exceptionally thrilling or totally boring... Actually, the plot was interesting, Viereck's writing does keep one asking 'what next', however, I thought the ending a tad bit disappointing. The character of Reginald Clarke was fine but maybe he could have been a bit scarier, and Ernest, well I felt sort of sorry for him at the end...
Here it is online: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Hou...
Here it is online: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Hou...
November 7, 2010
Disappointing. Billed as a vampire story, not so scary, unless you are a poet or something. The "vampire" steals your creativity, your work before it is published. He is an equal opportunity thief because he steals from men and women but mostly men. No death, but madness or brokeness. No chance of being made into a vampire. Again, disappointing.
Read on iPhone.
Read on iPhone.
February 4, 2023
Beautifully written. Definitely got The Picture of Dorian Gray vibes.
It is creepy in its own way, I loved this take on the vampire and how the powers worked.
It is creepy in its own way, I loved this take on the vampire and how the powers worked.
October 12, 2022
An amazing concept, but I honestly wish it had been scarier, which I rarely say about anything ever. The feeling of suspense and tension was lacking. A nice hidden gem for October though.
November 25, 2025
It took me a few pages to get into this novella, but after that I was sucked in. I love the author's take on a vampire, and found this version even scarier.
I don't know why I haven't heard more about this story, as it's really good. I would totally recommend it
I don't know why I haven't heard more about this story, as it's really good. I would totally recommend it
April 30, 2015
Well what can I say, I was expecting a little more from a book called house of vampire some more paranormal and horror factor, this book seemed to lack that but it feels intentional like the author was trying to write the book on a more psych level rather than a physical level. The vampire in this book didn't want blood, guts and gore he wanted something different his victims mind, his victims thoughts and well his victims life I guess.
I'm not sure whether I really liked this book or disliked it merely I was confused and left questioning throughout the first half of the book. This book seemed more written for it literature aspect than the horror aspect of it which I'm dissapointed by as that's essentially what I was looking for so maybe that's my fault for entirely looking at the wrong book but I just felt that this was a story to show off language and psych and philosophy rather than the horror of vampires, now I didn't expect the whole gore fest of blood and guts but i expected more than this book delivered.
The language and the way it was delivered was beautiful, slightly older fashioned maybe but beautiful in itself.
I can't say I connected with the characters at all because I couldn't really I felt I never got to know them enough to relate, I felt sorry for Ernest having all his ideas eaten by a vampire never realising then led to believe because of his artistic character he was maybe losing his mind, rather than be able to see the truth that Clarke was feeding upon his ideas.
I'm not sure whether I really liked this book or disliked it merely I was confused and left questioning throughout the first half of the book. This book seemed more written for it literature aspect than the horror aspect of it which I'm dissapointed by as that's essentially what I was looking for so maybe that's my fault for entirely looking at the wrong book but I just felt that this was a story to show off language and psych and philosophy rather than the horror of vampires, now I didn't expect the whole gore fest of blood and guts but i expected more than this book delivered.
The language and the way it was delivered was beautiful, slightly older fashioned maybe but beautiful in itself.
I can't say I connected with the characters at all because I couldn't really I felt I never got to know them enough to relate, I felt sorry for Ernest having all his ideas eaten by a vampire never realising then led to believe because of his artistic character he was maybe losing his mind, rather than be able to see the truth that Clarke was feeding upon his ideas.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 17, 2016
It is hard not to be drawn by originality, and "The House of the Vampire" is anything but unoriginal. Potential readers are warned not to confuse this book for a storyline akin to one of those superficial twilight books. This book is NOT about a silly teenager that falls for a charming vampire. In addition, moving on to the opposite end of the spectrum, this book is nothing like Bram Stoker's Dracula. The House of the Vampire is..... well, simply put, nothing like any vampire story you know. The premise of the story screams out originality because it provides something much more than the exhaustively used paradigm of blood-sucking vampires. The vampire portrayed in this book is...unusually different. Feeding on blood to survive is not central to its existence, since it is highly evolved. What makes the vampire relentless, formidable and outright creepy is that it feeds on the human psyche.
If you want to read an original vampire story, embedded in a dark gothic Victorian setting, then there really is no excuse for you not to read this one. It will surely keep you entertained. 4/5 stars.
If you want to read an original vampire story, embedded in a dark gothic Victorian setting, then there really is no excuse for you not to read this one. It will surely keep you entertained. 4/5 stars.
May 6, 2012
I read this book so fast and I really liked it. It as very unique and entertaining. Although it classifies itself as the first gay vampire novel, I do not think it is gay enough. However, I really love the psychic vampire concept and the part where the vampire can suck more than just blood, they can even suck your minds and souls in diverse ways. Truly a wonderful gem that I really like. It reminded me of Dorian Gray actually. I hope it was longer though but then, it is perfect already in its own way.
November 16, 2013
Horror is, perhaps, not the proper category for this book, but it is close enough. The tale features a vampire of a different sort, and is told in brief chapters with a dream-like air. It moves swiftly, despite the languid dialogue. It is an excellent read.
November 8, 2025
This doesn’t seem like a vampire story at first, eschewing as it does many of the expected tropes. It is a briskly paced tale, and in more than one way the style and substance of Viereck’s writing seems to have a touch of the influence of Oscar Wilde about it. Although Viereck approaches the vampire myth in a way that avoids the grisly physicality of blood-soaked fangs, his take nevertheless ends up in very much the same vein, eventually building up to an appropriately eerie finale.
"Still," he observed triumphantly, “your vampires suck blood [...] How can a man suck from another man’s brain a thing as intangible, as quintessential as thought?"
"Ah," she replied, “you forget, thought is more real than blood!"
"Still," he observed triumphantly, “your vampires suck blood [...] How can a man suck from another man’s brain a thing as intangible, as quintessential as thought?"
"Ah," she replied, “you forget, thought is more real than blood!"
July 21, 2022
“Are you the slave of your unknown god?”
“We are all slaves, wire-pulled marionettes: You, Ernest, I. There is no freedom on the face of the earth nor above. The tiger that tears a lamb is not free, I am not free, you are not free. All that happens must happen; no word that is said is said in, vain, in vain is raised no hand.”
“We are all slaves, wire-pulled marionettes: You, Ernest, I. There is no freedom on the face of the earth nor above. The tiger that tears a lamb is not free, I am not free, you are not free. All that happens must happen; no word that is said is said in, vain, in vain is raised no hand.”
February 6, 2023
Sin duda, una toma interesante en lo que es el vampirismo.
Disfrute mucho de la escritura (que por momentos me recordó mucho a la de Oscar Wilde) y como se fueron desarrollando los personajes.
Es una historia algo corta, asi que todo ocurre muy rapido. Aun asi, no creo que le falte nada
Disfrute mucho de la escritura (que por momentos me recordó mucho a la de Oscar Wilde) y como se fueron desarrollando los personajes.
Es una historia algo corta, asi que todo ocurre muy rapido. Aun asi, no creo que le falte nada
December 15, 2018
The ending was pretty chilling.
October 9, 2022
for my law and literature class -- allegory for copyright and publishing I'm assuming?? we'll found out
May 22, 2024
A really good story, sadly it wasnt until I was finished that I learned about the author oof.
July 31, 2024
Funky little purple bonbon of a novella.
May 4, 2025
bardzo Oscar Wilde -esque take na vampiry
(also bardzo Oscar Wilde -esque Ernest i Jack)
(also bardzo Oscar Wilde -esque Ernest i Jack)
January 8, 2021
3.5 stars.
Strange little story with an interesting take on the characterisation of a vampire.
Strange little story with an interesting take on the characterisation of a vampire.
April 23, 2025
Well, this was a let down...somehow, January is really not my best reading month apart from Circe...XD
Anyway...
This was beautifully written and an amazing fit for a vampire story, as expected from books of the era. I was excited at first, thinking I finally found another vampire story on par with the atmosphere and the feeling that Vampire Chronicles and Vampire The Masquerade RPG give me. But in the end, that did not turn out to be the case...all because of one single decision of one single character. In the end, this, like many other old books, did not age well, for the story is much too simplistic and generic. And honestly, this is not a blood-sucking vampire, so there is also that, but I did enjoy this different aspect to this vampire for it worked well and I could still see Vampire The Masquerade type of vampires personified in this one, yet...the main character just had to make a dumb decision and mess it all up.
The decision that was made... I blame the author for, because it made no sense
So yeah...things could have gone differently, yet they didn't. How sad. It had the potential, but it was lost. Still, I really enjoyed the writing and the rich description, but unfortunately, as it always is, that is not enough.
Still giving it a generous 3 stars though.
Anyway...
This was beautifully written and an amazing fit for a vampire story, as expected from books of the era. I was excited at first, thinking I finally found another vampire story on par with the atmosphere and the feeling that Vampire Chronicles and Vampire The Masquerade RPG give me. But in the end, that did not turn out to be the case...all because of one single decision of one single character. In the end, this, like many other old books, did not age well, for the story is much too simplistic and generic. And honestly, this is not a blood-sucking vampire, so there is also that, but I did enjoy this different aspect to this vampire for it worked well and I could still see Vampire The Masquerade type of vampires personified in this one, yet...the main character just had to make a dumb decision and mess it all up.
The decision that was made... I blame the author for, because it made no sense
So yeah...things could have gone differently, yet they didn't. How sad. It had the potential, but it was lost. Still, I really enjoyed the writing and the rich description, but unfortunately, as it always is, that is not enough.
Still giving it a generous 3 stars though.
November 2, 2008
One of the first psychic vampire novels of its time - where the vampire feeds off of more than just blood - The House of the Vampire is an early classic in its genre. Republished in this new edition, this Victorian novel operates in the continuum of life and death. What has been can be again, though often terribly transformed. Energetically inventive and infused with a relish for the supernatural, especially the trappings of the dark, The House of the Vampire delivers a horror which we know does not - but none the less conceivably might - exist and threaten ourselves. Blurring the lines between fact and fiction, The House of the Vampire is considered a classic among Victorian Gothic stories. He felt the presence of the hand of Reginald Clarke - unmistakably - groping in his brain as if searching for something that had still escaped him. He tried to move, to cry out, but his limbs were paralysed. When, by a superhuman effort, he at last succeeded in shaking off the numbness that held him enchained, he awoke just in time to see a figure, that of a man, disappearing in the wall that separated Reginald's apartments from his room....
The House of the Vampire
The House of the Vampire
October 5, 2023
One of the better known novels by German-American author George Sylvester Viereck, this is anything but a typical bloodsucker story. Steeped in that unique style of early 20th Century authors still under the spell of French decadence (and probably Nietzsche), Vierick's vampire doesn't suck blood, at least not in these pages. To say more would be a spoiler. Occasionally comically overwritten by modern standards, it's still a diverting tale and a good example of how the concept of vampirism inspired unlikely Dracula imitators almost before the ink was dry on Stoker's manuscript.
The novel is also interesting as an expression of some of German notions of will to power and the inevitable pre-Nazi superman fascination that seems to have consumed central Europe 100 years ago. Vierick's later life, first as an agent of the Kaiser then as a Hitler stooge, has some of its seeds here.
The novel is also interesting as an expression of some of German notions of will to power and the inevitable pre-Nazi superman fascination that seems to have consumed central Europe 100 years ago. Vierick's later life, first as an agent of the Kaiser then as a Hitler stooge, has some of its seeds here.
August 20, 2010
One of the more subtle vampire stories I've read, this is a classic Victorian gothic horror which tells of Ernest Fielding's time at the house of Reginald Clarke, a well known and very well respected poet, play-write and novelist. At first it appears that Reginald is mentoring the young Ernest however as the story progresses more malignant reasons come to light as Clarke's work resembles Ernest's ideas more and more. As he investigates he finds that Clarke is not the man he says he is, but is in fact a vampire, a vampire that feeds not on blood but on thoughts, ideas and the very identity of his victims. A mildly disturbing tale that is gripping to the last page with a climax that is both horrifying and saddening
Displaying 1 - 30 of 133 reviews