BOOKS: Anno Dracula: Kim Newman

Sep. 10—Vlad Tepes, better known as Dracula, has married Queen Victoria, reclaiming her youth while taking control of the British Empire as prince consort.

British citizens opt to become vampires, adding his "polluted blood line" to the Empire's population. Vampirism has become trendy in all social classes of the late Victorian era of 1888.

Meanwhile, the "Silver Knife," who becomes known as Jack the Ripper, is hunting vampire prostitutes on the streets of Whitechapel.

Opponents of Dracula's reign have been executed — such as Van Helsing — or shipped off to concentration camps — enemies of the state such as Sherlock Holmes.

Meanwhile, a secret cabal works behind the scenes with a spy who hopes to infiltrate the palace with the help of an ally — a vampire of an older and more pure blood line than Dracula.

"Anno Dracula" was first published about 30 years ago but it is a fun triumph of storytelling for any readers who enjoy vampire tales set in the late 1880s and anyone who enjoys spotting a mix of historical and literary figures.

Author Kim Newman fills the pages of "Anno Dracula" with a palpable mix of historical and literary characters and references and has great fun with all of them.

One favorite is a scene where Dr. Jekyll is testifying in a coroner's inquest about the Whitechapel killings and the court artist adds bushy eyebrows and other menacing features to his sketch of Jekyll — a reference literally "Hyde-ing" in plain sight.

The book imagines what may have happened if the team that opposed Dracula in the Bram Stoker novel had failed to stop him.

But the best thing about "Anno Dracula" is Newman's deft handling of the title character.

Dracula permeates every page of this book. He is the catalyst of everything that happens.

Dracula effectively rules the British Empire; he initiates changes that are taking England back two hundred years in not only its standards but even in the way people are ordered to dress. Every character is shaped by Dracula's rule.

However, I was nearly 300 pages into the book before it dawned on me that Dracula had not appeared in even one scene. Everybody is talking about him and living the consequences of his actions but he remains "off stage."

He does make an appearance but Dracula is all the more powerful and menacing by remaining unseen through the vast majority of this novel.

Newman penned sequels to "Anno Dracula" which may be worth seeking out. But this first book is definitely worth finding for Dracula and vampire fans.