After recently completing my own vampire novel, I decided to relax a bit and read one from someone else. I’ll admit that, in spite of the usual “capable girl on cover” meme that dominates paranormal fiction these days, I found the cover unusually striking, prompting me to turn it over for a look at the back. The cover text promised that Lucy, the character from Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” awakens as a new vampire to discover the lies Mr. Stoker has spun for his so-called novel, deciding then and there to seek him out for an explanation. Sounded good to me!

While certainly alternative fiction, it wasn’t a retelling of Dracula so much as it re-envisioned the character of Lucy; even author Bram Stoker has been relgated to a character himself. What was surprising were all of the other elements introduced in the book, borrowing bits of British Empire history and legends to fuel the plot. At first, these things suggested they might overwhelm the characters with a ridiculous number of story points, but the central character of Lucy kept the story grounded and moving along.

Continue reading “Just Finished: “Incarnation” by Emma Cornwall” →