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The Brides

A dark Dracula prequel full of toxic love and monstrous ambition

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The Brides

By: Charlotte Cross
Narrated by: Anna Popplewell, Sam Woolf
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About this listen

Deliciously read by Sam Woolf (The Crown, The Witcher) and Anna Popplewell (Chronicles of Narnia, Reign)

'Haunting and seductive . . . I drank in this wonderfully sapphic, gothic tale with a sense of ever-deepening dread' - Francesca May, author of This Vicious Hunger

Chilling, gothic and utterly gripping, The Brides is a stunningly original reimagining of Bram Stoker's Dracula – with a devastating sapphic romance at its heart.

'Come to me, and be mine for eternity'

1884. When Mafalda journeys to Budapest to care for her grieving aunt, her secret love, Lucy, hurries from London to comfort her, with chaperone and lady’s maid in tow.

But lady’s maid Alice, blessed and cursed with the Sight, is tormented by terrifying visions. When chaperone Eliza falls prey to a disturbing wasting illness, the women hope to seek the healing waters of Transylvania. At a nobleman’s invitation, they set out for Castle Dracula.

In the depths of the forest, miles from civilization, their host reveals his true intentions; a monstrous ambition which will tear the women apart.

And not all of them will survive.

'Dracula's worthy successor . . . chills and delights in equal measure' - Johanna Van Veen, author of Blood on Her Tongue

Perfect for fans of Hungerstone by Kat Dunn and The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.

Fantasy Gothic Horror Paranormal Supernatural Thriller & Suspense Exciting Heartfelt

Critic reviews

An astonishing literary magic trick, managing to sew itself seamlessly into Dracula in a way that wholly honors the original while forging new ground with vibrant compelling characters and a story that held me rapt (Jennifer Thorne, bestselling author of Diavola)
The Brides is Dracula's worthy successor: a gothic, sapphic epistolary novel that thrills, chills, and delights in equal measure. I loved every page! (Johanna Van Veen, author of Blood on Her Tongue)
Haunting and seductive, The Brides held me in its thrall and I drank in this wonderfully sapphic, gothic tale with a sense of ever-deepening dread (Francesca May, author of This Vicious Hunger)
An epistolary gem. Part homage, part reinvention, here the titular brides of Dracula are rich, vivid characters with needs and hungers of their own, saturated with the atmosphere and tragedy of the gothic. A deft, heartbreaking successor to Dracula's bloody legacy. (M. K. Hardy, authors of The Needfire)
A beguiling and intricately woven novel glistening with bloody suspense, flush with mounting dread, Charlotte Cross's debut The Brides is an accomplished successor to Stoker's gothic masterpiece. The story sank its teeth into me and wouldn't let me go. (Leigh Radford, author of One Yellow Eye)
Cleverly interwoven with its source material, elegant and timeless . . . Destined to be the standard by which we measure versions of classics in the future: the more you know and love Bram Stoker's original, the more you will enjoy The Brides (Marian Womack, author of The Golden Key)
The Brides slides into the Dracula corpus as if it's always been there – a prequel and a sequel all at once – while at the same time feeling new and fresh and wholly, entirely its own. A must-read for anyone who loves Dracula, or vampires, or nuanced, meticulously researched explorations of the women living in the shadows of well-known narratives (Bar Fridman-Tell, author of Honeysuckle)
A chilling feminist gothic horror that kept me reading late into the night (Scream Magazine)
Gothic, elegant, and deeply reimagined. The novel is ideal for readers who appreciate character-rich storytelling, haunting mood, and historical depth. Fans of atmospheric horror and historical romance will especially find much to admire here (HorrorTree)
All stars
Most relevant
I wasn’t sure what to expect of this book; it’s been receiving a lot of hype and the premise of a backstory to the brides of Dracula is right up my street. I was slightly put off by the marketing (as seems very on trend at the moment) that suggests above all else it is a “sapphic” love story. I’m a fan of horror, but not really love stories, of any kind. I’m glad to report though that whilst the book has two female characters who are in a relationship, and the implications for them in Victorian society, I felt that was just part of the bigger mystery of what happened to a group of women who come into contact with Dracula; we know some did not survive, but not which ones or what happened to them. The mystery gradually unravels through a dual timeline, epistolary format. It is a slow burn, but I was engaged from the beginning and enjoyed getting to know all the characters well before the vampiric parts. The horror action is scattered gradually through the book, and even the climax isn’t too graphic, so don’t expect a pulse racing thrill ride. But the atmosphere is captivating, and I can see why some have likened it to The Historian, which is a favourite of mine. There are references to minor events in Dracula, which I now want to re-read to see how well woven this story was with the original work!

A slow burn gothic delight

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This book is beautifully written, utterly atmospheric and spine chilling at times. Loved the narration, utterly immersive.

Brilliant debut

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I loved this book from beginning to end and I couldn’t put it down.
I have loved anything Vampire or Dracula inspired my whole life. And this book slots right in, complimenting Dracula lore.
I loved how human, this book made the evolution of the brides and I really felt involved and cared about their lives. Which was credited to the rich backstory the author created for each character.
And I loved the way all the ‘brides’ lives were interwoven, it had me hooked.
I will definitely listen to this book again and anticipate enjoying it just as much.
The narration was also brilliant, I felt I was hearing the voices of the characters as they wrote.
If you enjoy Dracula or vampire lore at all, then read this book. A female perspective on an often more male dominated story. And just a different perspective on the story as a whole.
I loved loved loved it.
If this is the authors debut novel, I can’t wait to read more.

Brilliant

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