Dracula vs. Hitler by Patrick Sheane Duncan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks goes to Netgalley for the Arc!

Full disclosure: I imagined that I was going to be reading a humorous horror based on the title alone, as if it was one very long and humorous joke, but what I got instead was a serious and well thought-out exploration of the times precisely 50 years after the accounts of the original Dracula, written in much the same style and even including a very old Van Helsing, his granddaughter, and even the inclusion of Harker's grandson, too.

These are not affected. These flow naturally into the tale, because, after all, some evils are worse than others. Dracula was originally a freedom fighter, after all, and now his homeland has just been invaded by the German War Machine. Enemy of my enemy.

After what I thought was a slow start relying overmuch on real times and places and not quite getting into the good stuff early enough, I was soon transported and delighted into the fullness of the tale, and I loved the interesting and realistic fascination between the tragic hero of Dracula and Van Helsing's granddaughter, who is a pretty fantastic and interesting character in her own right.

Did I fail to mention that this is also a pretty cool romance?

The writing is very good, too, epistolary in the same nature as the original Dracula, but it goes on with much, much better action scenes. :) I loved the Nazis and their attempt to harness the power of vampirism. :)

I repeat, this is NOT a throwaway cash-in or a humorous joke. The novel is serious and a lot more complex than I believed could be possible, full of history and deep characterizations and real love for story.

I totally recommend this! :)

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