As part of our celebration of World Book Week, this article from The Guardian lists ten top vampire books of all time. Eight of the ten are from the original heyday of vampire fiction, the nineteenth century. Bram Stoker’s Dracula, probably the most famous, was written in 1897 and appears to have been the culmination of a literary tradition that began in 1816 with John Polidori’s The Vampyre.
An interesting aside – Polidori was Lord Byron’s physician, and Byron was also involved with Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein. It’s interesting to see the influence his associates had on horror fiction – as in, they created two of the most famous monsters of all time. As far as I know there’s no connection to werewolves, though, which have a more cinematic origin.
So if you’re a vampire fan, enjoy! See if you can match some of the personality types found in The Vampires’ Guide to Dining to these historical fiends.
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