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Post by dem bones on Dec 30, 2008 10:57:35 GMT
Loren Estleman - Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula (Penguin, 1979: Originally Doubleday, 1978: New English Library 1978 [hardcover])  Brian ForbesBlurb: HOLMES AMONG THE UNDEAD ...
A mysterious schooner runs aground in an English harbor Its cargo, fifty boxes of earth; its only living passenger, a black dog. The captain's lifeless body is lashed to the wheel—completely drained of blood. Soon, a rash of bizarre nocturnal crimes terrifies London. Plainly, this is the work of Count Dracula - and a case for Sherlock Holmes.
Lovers of the Holmes stories will find their hero in a new role here, as the avenger in a realm where pale corpses rise from their graves and go forth by night to feast on blood.
"The marriage with Bram Stoker's gothic fantasy takes place so smoothly and convincingly that one wonders why the connection was not made before." — Sunday Times
"All of a piece with the original Conan Doyle stories ... admirably done" — Best Sellers The way of it was this. Holmes and Watson - with some very token assistance from a certain Mr. Abraham Stoker - were responsible for ending the King Vampire's reign of terror in England, but that malodorous deranged glory seeker Van Helsing wanted all the credit! The Dutch ego-maniac leaned on Stoker throughout the writing of Dracula to up his role at the expense of Baker Streets finest who were entirely written out! For shame! Fortunately, Watson wrote up the investigation in manuscript as The Case Of The Sanguinary Count, and it remained unpublished until Estleman found it stuffed down the side of a box-load of rubbish he'd purchased at auction. So now we finally get to know the truth! I certainly don't remember it quite as favorably as the Best Sellers reviewer, but we'll see how we get on. Holmes and Watson are called in within hours of The Demeter landing at Whitby, it's solitary surviving crew member lashed to the wheel .....
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 12, 2012 10:48:12 GMT
While there has yet to be a Sherlock Holmes/Dracula novel even remotely frightening, Loren D. Estleman's Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula is worth reading. On 11 September 2012, Titan Books reprinted it in its Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series. Attachments:
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ssppookkyy
Crab On The Rampage
Long live pulp horror!
Posts: 13 
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Post by ssppookkyy on Sept 11, 2013 18:19:31 GMT
Although not particularly scary it is a good romp which is at times absurd. The radio adaptation is fun if a little silly in places.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 10, 2016 11:35:03 GMT
Although not particularly scary it is a good romp which is at times absurd. The radio adaptation is fun if a little silly in places. The BBC Radio version of Sherlock Holmes VS Dracula (19 December 1981) can be downloaded from here: www.oldtimeradiodownloads.com/drama/saturday-night-theatre/snt-bbc-81-12-19-x-sherlock-holmes-vs-dracula In some respects it is better than the book. For instance the few Americanisms have gone. It is a pity that the film version (announced around 1993), with Timothy Dalton as Holmes, was never produced. |
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Post by ripper on Oct 11, 2016 16:11:12 GMT
Although not particularly scary it is a good romp which is at times absurd. The radio adaptation is fun if a little silly in places. The BBC Radio version of Sherlock Holmes VS Dracula (19 December 1981) can be downloaded from here: www.oldtimeradiodownloads.com/drama/saturday-night-theatre/snt-bbc-81-12-19-x-sherlock-holmes-vs-dracula In some respects it is better than the book. For instance the few Americanisms have gone. It is a pity that the film version (announced around 1993), with Timothy Dalton as Holmes, was never produced. I thought the book was okay and quite fun, but the americanisms were a bit distracting. It got the seal of approval from Mrs. Ripper, which is saying something as she is no fan of horror. I hadn't heard of a proposed film version back in 1993--a shame it didn't come to pass. |
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 12, 2016 12:08:41 GMT
I thought the book was okay and quite fun, but the americanisms were a bit distracting. It got the seal of approval from Mrs. Ripper, which is saying something as she is no fan of horror. I hadn't heard of a proposed film version back in 1993--a shame it didn't come to pass. The book and radio version were faithful to Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and Stoker's Dracula. Any such film now would inevitably be a steampunk action film full of CGI effects. |
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Post by ripper on Oct 12, 2016 13:03:56 GMT
I think I caught the radio version when it was repeated on one of the BBC radio stations and I agree that it and the book are faithful to Conan Doyle. I don't mind fantastical elements such as vampires, zombies etc featuring in Sherlock Holmes pastiches as long as SH and JW react to them in a manner consistent with Conan Doyle's characterisation.
As for the film version, yes, produced today it would have to be crammed with CGI and have enough action to fill a Rambo movie.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 20, 2016 12:56:15 GMT
This is one of Sidney Paget's original illustrations for "The Adventure of the Norwood Builder".  Here is the homage to Paget on the American and British hardcover edition of Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula. Note that Holmes has lost his cigarette.  Here is the horrible cover to the Penguin paperback of Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula. They should have used the hardcover version.  |
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Post by Michael Connolly on Oct 7, 2017 13:09:14 GMT
From Amazon's blurb for Mark A. Latham's Sherlock Holmes - A Betrayal in Blood (Titan Books, 2017): "It is 1894, and the news of a Transylvanian nobleman's death at the hands of a certain Professor Van Helsing is the talk of London. Unsatisfied at the acquittal of the professor, Mycroft Holmes asks Sherlock to investigate what truly led to the deaths of Lucy Westenra and the mysterious aristocrat. The newspapers are full of inconsistencies and wild supernatural theories, and as Holmes digs deeper, he suspects that those hailed as heroes are not what they seem. The clues point to an innocent man framed and murdered for crimes he did not commit, and Holmes and Watson find themselves targeted at every turn, as what began as a quest to clear one man's name reveals a conspiracy that draws them to the mountains of Transylvania and the infamous Castle Dracula."  Has anyone else read this book? Its pointless "rationalization" of Dracula's doings in Bram Stoker's original novel is ridiculous beyond any common sense. In this instance, the supernatural solution is more plausible. Avoid! |
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Post by Michael Connolly on Sept 17, 2019 13:11:58 GMT
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Post by Michael Connolly on Jan 24, 2020 13:54:23 GMT
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Post by Michael Connolly on Aug 9, 2020 9:34:49 GMT
I've just got a relatively cheap copy of the first British hardback edition of Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula in near mint condition. Its production values are superior to those of the first American edition. The dealer seems to have a second like new copy of the British one around the same price. If anyone is interested (or to start a fight) I can provide the relevant details.
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Post by Michael Connolly on Aug 10, 2020 9:41:11 GMT
I've just got a relatively cheap copy of the first British hardback edition of Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula in near mint condition. Its production values are superior to those of the first American edition. The dealer seems to have a second like new copy of the British one around the same price. If anyone is interested (or to start a fight) I can provide the relevant details. I didn't mean to indicate that I liked my own post! |
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Post by andydecker on Aug 10, 2020 10:09:26 GMT
I've just got a relatively cheap copy of the first British hardback edition of Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula in near mint condition. Its production values are superior to those of the first American edition. The dealer seems to have a second like new copy of the British one around the same price. If anyone is interested (or to start a fight) I can provide the relevant details. I didn't mean to indicate that I liked my own post! Why not? It is impeccably written and without a fault. |
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