In a world where the vampire novel
has reached the point of saturation, I guess it’s time for me to list the top 5
most enjoyable of them that I have read.
With so many horrible vampire stories out there, picking out 5 excellent
ones is a lot harder then one would think.
It would have been much easier to list the top 5 worst vampire novels,
but I’m trying to be more positive. The
other thing I learned from doing research for this list is that I’m not as read
in the genre as I may have thought I was.
There are a number of books that probably should be on this list that
aren’t because I haven’t read them yet. Salem’s Lot, Let the Right One In, Moth
Diaries, I am Legend and Fevre Dreams are all books on my to be
read list. My top 5 list is best novels,
not best series, so I have tried to pick one book, the one I think is the best,
to represent the best that any series of books may have to offer. Other then that, anything with a vampire in
it qualifies. Here’s my top 5…
5) The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and
Chuck Hogan
This
is the only book I’ve read in the series so by default it’s the book that makes
my list. What I love about this book is
that it bucks the trend of the modern vampire story by removing the humanity of
the creature. More like zombies that
suck blood, the vampires in The Strain
don’t talk or fall in love or brood over existential dilemmas as has become
cliché. This is a horror story, not a
romance novel or a teen drama, and it’s done really well and that is what I
love about it
4) Children of the Night by Dan Simmons
As
I’m sure I’ve mentioned many times on this blog, Dan Simmons is one of my all
time favorite writers and never seems to get his proper due in any list of the
best contemporary authors. This is his
stab at the vampire story and in typical Simmons style, it is as much grounded
in reality as a vampire story can.
Simmons does a wonderful job mixing biology and genetics into the
vampire myth. With strong characters,
interesting science and a tight story, Simmons has created a vampire story that
is more action thriller then horror.
3) The
Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
I’m
not sure how to write about this novel without a spoiler. I guess just putting it on this list is in
essence a spoiler. The Historian is a vampire story for people who aren’t big fans of
vampire stories. The whole story plays
out as a historical mystery as a modern character follows up the research left
behind by her father searching for Vlad the Impaler’s tomb. The novel is a wonderful historical journey
through Eastern Europe.
The descriptions are beautiful, the mysteries are intriguing, and the
action is compelling. The novel is as
much Indiana Jones as it is vampire, maybe even more so, but that’s what makes
it such a fun and interesting read.
2) Memnoch the Devil by Ann Rice
This
is the novel I am using to represent the Ann Rice series of vampire stories, a
series that I have a very love hate relationship with. This is the series that can be credited with
launching the vampire craze we have today.
Rice’s depiction of vampires has become the industry standard. The idea of the sad brooding sex crazed
creature came from Rice and has been stolen by hundreds. Without Rice there is no Twilight or Vampire Diaries
or countless numbers of cheesy romance novels.
The series started out great, reached a pinnacle with Memnoch and then
devolved quickly into horrible gratuitous sex tales. While Interview
with the Vampire or The Vampire
Lestat might be better choices for this list because they deal more with
the vampire traits Rice has made famous, I’m using Memnoch the Devil because it is my favorite. Lestat gets drafted by the Devil to take over
his kingdom and a deep and interesting religious debate ensues. I find it to be the most interesting subject
matter of any of her vampire novels and contains some crazy ideas that make for
great reading.
1) Dracula by Bram Stoker
Is
there any doubt that this has to be number one?
It may not be the most well written piece of literature, but really
without Dracula there is no vampire
craze at all. This is the one that
started it all and because of that has earned a spot on the top of the
hill. Still a great monster story over
100 years later, this is the quintessential vampire story.
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