Stoker's Wilde

by Steven Hopstaken, Melissa Prusi

Overview

"Historical details and supernatural monsters abound, but it is the odd couple of Wilde and Stoker, with their diametrically opposed personalities and interesting quirks, that drives this story. Pass this volume on to readers who are hungry for more historical stories with a supernatural frame." - Booklist





Longlisted for The Guardian's Not the Booker Prize 2019.

Years before either becomes a literary legend, Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde must overcome their disdain for one another to battle the Black Bishop, a mysterious madman wielding supernatural forces to bend the British Empire to his will. With the help of a European vampire expert, a spirited actress and an American businessman, our heroes fight werewolves, vampires and the chains of Victorian morality. The fight will take them through dark forests in Ireland, the upper-class London theater world and Stonehenge, where Bram and Oscar must stop a vampire cult from opening the gates of Hell.

FLAME TREE PRESS is the new fiction imprint of Flame Tree Publishing. Launched in 2018 the list brings together brilliant new authors and the more established; the award winners, and exciting, original voices.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781787581715
Publisher:	Flame Tree Publishing
Publication date:	05/30/2019
Series:	Stoker's Wilde , #1
Pages:	384
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Steven Hopstaken was both born and raised in Michigan and currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Together with his wife and writing partner Melissa Prusi, he is the co-author of the Stoker’s Wilde series, featuring Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde as vampire hunters.

Melissa Prusi was born and raised in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. She’s been a video editor, a semi-professional film reviewer, a three-time champion on the quiz show Jeopardy!, and a Guinness world record holder (1990 edition, for directing the longest live television show).

Interviews

What is the book about?

It’s a story set in Victorian England where Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula, teams up with Oscar Wilde to stop a vampire cult led by a mysterious madman known as the Black Bishop.

What are the underlying themes?

The novel explores the corruption of unrealistic Victorian morals as it entered the modern age, and the personal price one pays for coming into contact with evil.

Did you base your characters on anyone you knew?

Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde did know each other in real life. They were both originally from Dublin, and Oscar’s brother went to school with Bram. Bram actually wooed away Oscar’s fiancée and eloped with her to London. The two men were forced to move in the same circles when Wilde became a playwright and Stoker became the manager of the most famous theatre in London.

Who influenced you most in the writing of the book?

The original novel of Dracula was our biggest influence. As an homage, we wrote it in the same style: Like Dracula, Stoker’s Wilde is an epistolary novel told in journal entries, letters and news clippings. We also drew heavily on Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, which has similar themes.

Is there any advice you can give someone starting to write?

Create a detailed outline, so you don’t get lost. If dealing with historical characters, do your research first. You’ll be surprised at what you uncover and how it can help propel your story.

Where did you write?

Mostly in our home office. We try to treat it like a job, and get the most done when we’re in a place where we can shut out the rest of the world for a while. But, if we’re finding it too easy to get distracted by housework or cats, we’ll take our laptops and go to a coffee shop for a change of scenery.

Did you write in silence, or to any particular music?

Steve tends to tune everything out. He’s used to writing advertising copy and news stories in noisy offices. Melissa likes to put her earbuds in and listen to music; it helps her tune out other distractions and focus on the writing.

Did you find it hard to write? Or harder to edit your own work?

Editing your own work is harder than writing. It helps to take a break between the writing and editing phases, to get some perspective on the story. But once we started editing, the hardest part was stopping – sooner or later, you have to submit the manuscript!

What was it like to be edited by someone else?

Enlightening! Fresh eyes see the flaws you can’t. We’ve rarely had a rewrite make a story worse.

What are you writing now?

We are plotting out the sequel, Stoker’s Wilde West, where Bram Stoker and Oscar Wilde come to America to help Teddy Roosevelt put down a vampire uprising.

And, we’re working on a young adult novel where a girl gets a cell phone installed in her brain.

Editorial Reviews

This story provides horror, adventure and humour throughout, the need to protect the human race against the evil plans that threaten them.

Lacy Ace Book Reviews

"Historical details and supernatural monsters abound, but it is the odd couple of Wilde and Stoker, with their diametrically opposed personalities and interesting quirks, that drives this story. Pass this volume on to readers who are hungry for more historical stories with a supernatural frame."

Booklist

I absolutely loved it, it's thrilling, exciting and funny as hell-it's a rollercoaster ride through Victorian values, secret societies and deep, dark secrets...there is nothing that I did not love about it! Roll on book 2!

Rachel Read It

A fun throwback to classic horror, playing off of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, this tale stars fictionalized versions of both Stoker and Wilde, brought together through circumstance to hunt the undead throughout England [...] This husband-and-wife writing team offer a solid choice for fans of vampire lore and atmospheric, historical horror.

Library Journal

A piece of work that is more original and creative than any novel I have read in years.

High fever Books

"Stoker's Wilde is immensely entertaining and engrossing...this novel was an utter delight."

The Haunted Reading Room

"Hopstaken and Prusi have done their homework and produced a pleasing period penny dreadful."

Publishers Weekly

"Hopstaken and Prusi have done their homework and produced a pleasing period penny dreadful." - Publishers Weekly

"Stoker's Wilde is immensely entertaining and engrossing...this novel was an utter delight." - The Haunted Reading Room

"Stoker's Wilde is a brilliant book, its clear the authors really know their subject matter." S. J. Budd

"Historical details and supernatural monsters abound, but it is the odd couple of Wilde and Stoker, with their diametrically opposed personalities and interesting quirks, that drives this story. Pass this volume on to readers who are hungry for more historical stories with a supernatural frame." Booklist

"This is a great suggestion for people who like historical fiction with real characters and supernatural elements." - Becky Spratford, RA for All

“A fun throwback to classic horror, playing off of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, this tale stars fictionalized versions of both Stoker and Wilde, brought together through circumstance to hunt the undead throughout England [...] This husband-and-wife writing team offer a solid choice for fans of vampire lore and atmospheric, historical horror.” - Library Journal

“A piece of work that is more original and creative than any novel I have read in years.”- High Fever Books

“I absolutely loved it, it's thrilling, exciting and funny as hell-it's a rollercoaster ride through Victorian values, secret societies and deep, dark secrets...there is nothing that I did not love about it! Roll on book 2!” - Rachel Read it

“This novel is a sweet mix of supernatural horror and Victorian social commentary [...] Very enjoyable read! A dash of the truth mixed with a bit of the fantastical smothered in a nice dose of classic monster horror — very entertaining book! - My Interdimensional Chaos

“This story provides horror, adventure and humour throughout, the need to protect the human race against the evil plans that threaten them.” - Lacy Ace Book Reviews

"This is a must-read for Horror lovers.” - Terror Tree

From the Publisher

"Stoker's Wilde is a brilliant book, its clear the authors really know their subject matter."

S.J Budd