BRAM STOKER'S DRACULA

I've been trying to figure out why I've been so moody and cranky the last two weeks when I realized that I'm missing my Jack Reacher novels.  I was supposed to start book nine over a week ago and I put it on hold to start a book that was suggested by some woman in New York.  I wrote about it last week.  It's a good book, but I really can't wait to get back to Reacher.  I miss Reacher.  I never would have thought I could miss a fictional character this much, but I do.  Such is life with no kids and too much free time on your hands.

In the meantime, I've been thinking about another book.  I've been waking nightly to claps of thunder, flashes of lightning, and the sound of hard rain hitting the windows.  Summer storms are one of my favorite things.  Mostly we have them during the day, but the past three weeks they've been pretty consistent and have been rolling through our neighborhood around two in the morning.  For some reason they keep reminding me of DRACULA.  Why- I'm not sure. 

I first read Dracula this summer when a neighbor suggested it during a dinner conversation.  In short, my neighbor hates the Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyers.  He's never read the books, but he knows enough about them (so he thinks) to form an opinion.  He thinks they are warping the mind of young women across the world and that vampires are evil creatures.  Clearly he hasn't read the Black Dagger Brotherhood by JR Ward.  If he had, his opinion of vampires might be different.  Anyway, he feels vampires are evil and have no place in the world.  Now, lets skip forward three weeks later when we're at dinner again talking about our favorite books.  When I ask what his favorite book of all time is.....he answers, DRACULA!!!  Yes, we laughed, and he admitted his ignorance towards our last conversation.  He even offered to read Twilight out of guilt.  I told him not to bother.  The only book in the series that was worth reading was Twilight itself.  Plus, his opinion is so strong and negative  that he would never make it through the first chapter.  In the end, he let me borrow his copy of Dracula in exchange for two books I bought and hated.

By page seven of Dracula, I was ready to die.  I knew this was going to be the longest book I had ever agreed to read.  I mean really, how many pages of carriage rides do you have to read to get to the real story?  I guess you'll have to read it and find out.  In the end, Dracula was a page turner.  My neighbor said Mina Harker was a true heroine.  She is.  She has the patience, the grace, and the wisdom to lead a small army.  She's loved by all the men in the book.  She's loved so much that any one of them would be willing to die for her. In fact, one of them does.   I'm also equally impressed with Dracula's ability to play games.  While the men are busy following the walking dead around and plotting the end of Dracula, they forget to keep a watchful eye on their beloved Mina.  There time away; allows Dracula to play.  While reading this book I could understand why my neighbor loves it so much.  I ended up loving it, too.  So much that I'm seeking a leather bound copy for my collection.  If you want a great book to read on a dark and stormy day, or night, Dracula is my pick.  You should read it anyway and discover why vampires are so intriguing.