As popular and influential as Bram Stoker's classic tale of nocturnal menace
is, this 1897 novel did not invent vampire fiction, nor was it alone in feeding
the Gothic fantasies of the Victorian period. IDW Publishing presents an
expertly selected menu of outstanding vampire stories that either informed or
benefited from Bram Stoker's hugely popular creation. These eerie tales of the
undead - some 22 in all - form the core cannon of classic vampire
literature. Chosen and introduced by celebrated literary scholar and author
Leslie S. Klinger (The New Annotated Dracula), with illustrations by an
array of noted horror artists, In the Shadow of Dracula brings to
adventuresome readers stories of nocturnal terror that have lived in Stoker's
shadow for too long. Authors include M.R. James, Algernon Blackwood, and Bram
Stoker himself. Included are what's considered the first true vampire story
1816, as well the classic novella Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu, the first
vampire tale with a lesbian theme (it's been adapted to comics and film several
times), and "The Family of the Vourdalak" by Aleksei Tolstoy (he's the cousin of
the famous one), which gave Boris Karloff one of his greatest roles.