I would like to thank Titan for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review

Publisher - Titan

Published - Out Now

Price - £8.99 paperback £6.99 Kindle eBook

Los Angeles, 1967. Lucy Westenra and Bertha Mason – the forgotten women in Dracula and Jane Eyre – have been existing as undead immortals for centuries, unable to die and still tormented by the monsters that made them.

Lucy has long fought against Dracula’s intoxicating thrall, refusing his charismatic darkness and her ensuing appetite for blood. Bertha Mason, the madwoman in the attic, is still pursued from afar by Mr Rochester, who wants to add her to his collection of devoted female followers.

Then Dracula and Rochester make a shocking return in San Francisco. To finally write their own story, Lucy and Bertha must boldly reclaim their stories from the men who tried to erase them in this harrowing gothic tale of love, betrayal and coercion.

It is often worthwhile when reading a classic to have a closer look at who loses. Not often by that do I mean the villain they often hog the limelight and lead to a host of academic papers but who doesn’t come out well in a story. The victim, the accessory, the unfortunate and ask yourself what did that person do wrong? Where they simply unlucky or perhaps the writer wanted someone to be made an example of for wanton behaviour, poor moral judgement or something else? When do they get to tell their side of the story? Perhaps that tells your more about that society than what a woman did wrong in a cruel controlling world In Gwendolyn Kiste’s fascinating Reluctant Immortals we have two such characters stepping out of their books into 1960s Hollywood and finding their infamous partners are back to seek control and cause chaos for them yet again.

Lucy Westerna dies in the 19th century following an encounter with Dracula and yet now lives as a vampire. With her is Bee aka Bertha Mason aka The Mad Woman In The Attic also immortal through a strange process forced on her by Edward Rochester. Their stories are known in literature and film but no one believes the tales of Dracula and Jayne Eyre to still be true. Rochester seeks Bee and Lucy keeps the ashes of Dracula in several urns but the two have crossed the world avoiding mishaps; being found again and in Lucy’s case also working hard not to take blood. Now they live in a run-down house near Hollywood; keeping a low profile and their only source of joy is watching movies at a increasingly empty drive-in. But then Jane Eyre herself arrives to meet Bee and their reunion causes havoc with Dracula’s ashes being released and Rochester now knowing where the woman who defied him is. Lucy and Bee need to decide to flee or fight back.

This is a hugely inventive and enjoyable story exploring what happened next to two characters often used as footnotes in their main tales. Lucy often portrayed in the media as bringing about her destruction due to having three men propose to her is now a sombre and tired character who just wants a quiet life and instead has taken on the role of minding Dracula’s ashes and stopping his resurrection. Bee is a woman taken from her home in Jamaica by a cruel controlling man and given a strange magic power that keeps her forever young but has become Lucy’s best friend and they share common experiences. Kiste gives these two some much needed depth and examines did they actually do anything wrong. Kiste highlights both Dracula and Rochester are controllers of women who see them as possessions and seek their own pleasure first. This useful feminist take on the two stories is really interesting and Kiste then puts a new spin on the dynamic of Jane and Bee that puts the whole story in a new context. I really liked this re-appraisal of two women wrecked by controlling exes and now trying to live new lives…and then the exes comes back.

The core story is fast paced taking place over a few nights. Rochester’s hunt leads to Dracula’s partial resurrection and the vampire wants his whole ashes back to get him back to full power (although even a partially restored Dracula is pretty cunning, cruel and evil as we will find out). Lucy and Bee drive across LA and San Francisco crossing paths with ex-Vietnam soldiers, hippies and cults who worship in houses. Its an interesting time where feminism is really just beginning but there are still powerful men hoping to create little cults of personality which Rochester flourishes in. Kiste makes us think the monsters have many copycats throughout history and makes us ponder can the result ever change.

The tale has a great deal of suspense and horror. We get a different take on the vampire myth as we find out Lucy can herself ’die’ and come back fairly quickly; Renfield searches for her in a strange vampire mindscape and both Bee and Lucy attract a strange rot/mould that gradually corrupts the homes and vehicles they all enter. This is a story full of a new gothic atmosphere and the pair’s battle with the powerful men who once dominated them never feels easy. There is a cost in emotional torment and also body count. All made quite vivid as Lucy narrates the tale with a sombre tired tone making you feel this is someone who has seen a century pass her by. My one caveat is that I wished we had a little more for Bee to say and do. While her story is really interesting and we get some new facets to her and her life I’d had loved a little more of her own voice and experiences to come through (which feels counter to the spirit of this story) - perhaps one for a future novel if Kiste wishes to.

I definitely enjoyed Reluctant Immortals and think its an atmospheric horror tale making some serious points about the darker side of some of the classics and making connections to issues still facing us today. It also delivers a fantastic night time chase through California and has a few interesting scares and dangerous places to send us to. Well worth your time and highly recommended!