Anno Dracula

Anno Dracula begins where Bram Stoker's Dracula didn't end, with Dracula defeating Van Helsing's posse, and proceeding with his plans to take over England. The novel starts several years later - it's 1889, vampires, both rich and poor, are common in London, and society is undergoing a massive upheaval to cope with the changes. Vlad Tepes is now married to Queen Victoria, and as Prince Consort is ruling the land. The plot centers around the hunt for Jack the Ripper, who is killing vampire prostitutes in Whitechapel.

The novel is a lot of fun - Kim Newman pours in historical and literary references by the bucketload - pretty much any historical figure I could think of from the late 19th century was at least mentioned in the books, as well as pretty much every vampire character from the era. It reminded me an awful lot of many of the games run by my good friend Ben, and is filled with similar wit and delight in the characters and settings.

It's well worth a read. It stands up quite well by itself, but it is also the first in a series, which will follow Dracula through the 20th century.