When did the vampire stop being the thing that eats you and become the guy who'd die before he let anything touch you? I went looking for that answer and it happened much earlier than I expected. It was us.
My answer to a TikTok I can't stop thinking about: the monsters we love come out of whatever makes us feel safe. This is how the vampire got there.
If you want to make a whole vampire month (or season) out of this, I put together a free Vampire Personal Curriculum with required reading, a watchlist, games, free resources on vampire folklore and more:
https://www.underthecoversbookblog.com/vampire-personal-curriculum/
LINKS FROM THIS VIDEO
- My friend Victoria's series on the bookish scandals of classic authors (Polidori included): https://www.youtube.com/@bibliolifestyle
- Why the paranormal alpha is making a comeback: https://youtu.be/AaTGtoc8EmU
- Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles in reading order: https://www.underthecoversbookblog.com/vampire-chronicles-reading-order/
- My original Vampire Academy movie review: https://archive.underthecoversbookblog.com/movie-review-vampire-academy/
- My thoughts on The Vampire Lestat season 3: https://www.underthecoversbookblog.com/vampire-lestat-season-3/
Timestamps
00:00 What the monster we love says about us
01:05 Stage one: Before he was hot. Folklore to Dracula
02:47 1931: Lugosi's fan mail
03:54 The four stages
04:28 Anne Rice and falling for him anyway
08:55 Stage two: restraint (Angel, Edward, Stefan)
11:03 Stage three: the partner (Anita, Sookie, Cat and Bones)
14:18 Stage four: the protector (Black Dagger Brotherhood)
16:37 Why the 2000s made the vampire so popular
18:09 The boom cools off, then BookTok brings him back
21:32 The Vampire Personal Curriculum
BOOKS AND SHOWS IN THIS VIDEO
Shop the whole reading list on LTK:
https://liketk.it/6oTfx
(This is an affiliate link, which means I receive a small commission at no cost to you.)
The Vampyre by John Polidori
Dracula by Bram Stoker (and the new audiobook narrated by Jonathan Bailey)
Dracula (1931), Bela Lugosi
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice, the 1994 film by the same name and Queen of the Damned (2002), plus the new AMC show from 2022
John Carpenter's Vampires (1998)
Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and the 2008 film
The Vampire Diaries by L.J. Smith and the TV series
Anita Blake by Laurell K. Hamilton
Vampire Huntress Legend by L.A. Banks
Underworld movie franchise
Sookie Stackhouse by Charlaine Harris and True Blood
Night Huntress by Jeaniene Frost
Jaz Parks by Jennifer Rardin
Undead and Unwed by MaryJanice Davidson
Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward
Argeneau Vampires by Lynsay Sands
Immortals After Dark by Kresley Cole
Midnight Breed by Lara Adrian
Eternal Hunger by Laura Wright
Bonded by Blood by Laurie London
Vampire Academy (2014 film) and book series
Dracula Untold (2014)
From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout
A Bargain of Blood by Vasilisa Drake
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