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 First edition | |
| Author | Tim Lucas |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Melissa Isriprashad |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Gothic horror,metafiction |
| Publisher | Touchstone Books (Simon & Schuster)(original) Riverdale Avenue Books(revised) |
Publication date | June 2005(original) April 2023(revised) |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardback andpaperback) |
| Pages | 403 pp(original) 290 pp(revised) |
| ISBN | 0-7432-4354-4 |
The Book of Renfield: A Gospel of Dracula is a2005novel written byTim Lucas.[1] It is the first of themashup horror-themed novels that rose to commercial prominence later in the decade. It is an unofficialprequel toBram Stoker'sDracula. Like the original novel,Renfield is anepistolary novel written in series of written documents. It focuses mainly onRenfield, mostly remembered for his minor role inDracula as a lunatic that ate flies, rodents and other animals, andDr. John Seward, the administrator of aninsane asylum who is trying to understand Renfield'spsychosis.[citation needed]
The Book of Renfield works mainly as a companion piece to Stoker's original novel. In some cases, excerpts from the actual book are used but are modified and expanded under the pretense thatDracula isnonfiction and that Seward's entries were "edited, and in some instances, rewritten by John L. Seward before he provided them for the use of Mr. Bram Stoker, at the request of Mr. and Mrs. Jonathan Harker". As such, whenever the text fromDracula is used, it is bolded to differentiate the changes.
The book starts with a man discovered outside the ruins of Carfax Abbey, feasting on a rat, whose only form of identification is a handkerchief that reads "R. M. Renfield". He is taken in to Seward's asylum, where his sessions with the doctor reveal fragments of his tragic past and how he came to beCount Dracula's pawn.
 | This article about ahorror novel of the 2000s is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article'stalk page. |
 | This article about aGothic novel of the 2000s is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article'stalk page. |
 | This article about anepistolary novel orfictional diary of the 2000s is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it. See guidelines for writing about novels. Further suggestions might be found on the article'stalk page. |
