Publisher's Weekly Review
First published in Iceland in 1901 under the title Makt Myrkranna ("Powers of Darkness") but not discovered by English-speaking Dracula scholars until 1986, this early translation of Bram Stoker's landmark vampire novel, retranslated into English for the first time, provides an illuminating look at an act of literary interpretation. Icelandic translator Valdimar Asmundsson was faithful to the basic plot of Stoker's story, but he took some liberties with its telling, including adding in new characters, having Dracula scheme with the world's power elite to enslave the masses, and describing in lurid detail a bloody bacchanal involving the vampire and his cultists in the crypts beneath Castle Dracula. Noting that the Icelandic version features a preface by Stoker and some plot elements that Stoker mentioned in his story notes but later rejected, English translator de Roos speculates that Asmundsson may have been working with an early draft of the novel. De Roos's abundant annotations are insightful, and the translation, although pulpier than Stoker's original, is a fascinating gloss on a literary classic. (Dec.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Library Journal Review
This work, originally believed to be an Icelandic translation of Stoker's 1897 novel, Dracula, is actually a different version of the story by Asmundsson (1852-1902), who edited the Lady of the Mountains literary journal. It was largely unnoticed until 1986 when Dracula scholars found Stoker's preface to the Icelandic work. In 2014, translator de Roos (The Ultimate Dracula) realized that it was a retelling. A preface by Stoker indicates that he was aware and approved of -Asmundsson's 1901 work. In a foreword, Stoker's great-grand-nephew Dacre Stoker writes that he believes his uncle orchestrated the differences between his original version and the Icelandic one, which is shorter, more forceful, and more erotic since it was not subject to English censorship laws. In the Icelandic version, the account of Harker's stay in Transylvania is expanded, the epistolary format is dropped in Part II, there are new plot elements while others are omitted, and the style is altered. This volume includes extensive annotations, a floor plan of Dracula's castle, an introduction by the translator, Stoker's original preface. VERDICT This thoroughly documented work is recommended for Dracula scholars, but general readers of horror will also enjoy the story.-Denise J. Stankovics, Vernon, CT © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
