“A retelling with teeth, THE MADNESS is exquisitely timely and elegantly told, reimagining vampires into our current world with rich imagination ”
Beware what waits in the shadows…
With one unexpected email from her estranged best friend, Lucy, Mina Murray’s carefully curated life is turned upside down. Suspending her psychiatric practice in London, she returns home to the windswept shores of Wales. Faced with everything she’s left behind, she soon discovers that Lucy’s symptoms mirror those of her mysterious amnesiac patient hundreds of miles away.
With nothing but an untreatable sickness connecting the two women, and with Lucy’s life on the line, Mina finds herself asking questions and being drawn ever-deeper into a web of secrets, missing girls, and the powerful, nameless force at its center—one that has been haunting her for years.
As terrible, ancient truths begin to reveal themselves, Mina prepares to confront her own darkest secrets, and with them, an evil beyond comprehension. Together with a group of smart, savvy women, Mina seizes one last, desperate chance to stop the cycle that began so long ago. But there are dangers to inviting the attentions of what might not be a man, but a monster…
“An atmospheric and immersive read! This feminist take on Dracula, focusing on victim experiences and with spot-on commentary about the parallels between men and monsters, is as fast-paced as it is carefully wrought. With bone-chilling imagery and deep characterizations, this is a fantastic reimagining of the classic Dracula tale.
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“Kurtagich has taken THE classic horror novel and dragged it into the twenty-first century in this fabulous, feminist, and fierce retelling. Mina Harker was one of the most passive women in literature, representing Victorian virtue until she is attacked, and then is considered soiled because of it. The Mina of The Madness is intelligent, flawed, and fiercely relatable. She takes matters into her own hands, and forms a band of badass women, reimagining Stoker’s boys club in a manner that will leave you pumping your fist in the air with triumph.
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“I devoured The Madness. A modern interpretation of Dracula cast with familiar characters, the story is deferential, referential and yet wholly its own terrifying achievement. Kurtagich’s writing is lively and gorgeous. This original spin on a familiar tale is guaranteed to keep you turning the pages until the sun comes up. ”
“THE MADNESS is genuinely chilling and endlessly compelling. Welsh folklore, small towns, and secrets - this story is gothic horror at its finest.”
“In THE MADNESS, Dawn Kurtagich has created a stunning Dracula retelling - creepy, insidious and visceral. This book will haunt me for a long time - in the very best way.”
“If you thought Mina Harker deserved more credit, more power, and more agency, this Dracula remix is for you. The Madness zeroes in on the original’s undercurrent of sexual violence and puts its targets–young women–in the starring roles, arming them not only with wooden stakes and arcane lore but also with love and solidarity. Kurtagich’s vampires, like Stoker’s, are vicious, calculating predators, but this time the prey bites back.”
“Darkly evocative and thought-provoking, Kurtagich is one of my favorite writers.”
“Fiercely feminist and fantastically eerie, The Madness is Welsh Gothic at its most intoxicating. Dawn Kurtagich really is the queen of darkness, drawing beautifully on Bram Stoker’s Dracula to deliver a story that’s smart, fresh and frightening in equal measure. This book wraps itself around you like a wraith and refuses to let go.”
“The Madness is everything a great horror novel should be and more—a creeping tale that gets its claws into you and doesn’t let go. It’s a story about pain, trauma, and ultimately hope, and needless to say, it belongs at the top of your TBR pile.”
“Edge-of-your-seat storytelling plus assured writing make this chilling take on the Dracula story a compulsive read. Five stars from me!”
“Writing an original story about vampires is a monumental task, but Dawn Kurtagich has done it. With spare prose and a feminist twist, meet the newest vampire classic. Part thriller, part horror, and one hundred percent compelling.”
“A propulsively dark Welsh gothic reimaging of Dracula which centers on the compelling and lushly drawn women of the tale. Dawn Kurtagich masterfully weaves local folklore with a malevolent conspiracy of powerful men to deliver a novel that is viscerally creepy and unforgettable. ”
“Dawn Kurtagich’s official debut novel! My reading experience of The Madness consisted of the investigation of mysterious psychic trauma... strong female protagonists, and a labyrinthine, Welsh castle all of which are drenched in the pervasive echoes of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I especially enjoyed the mixed-media storytelling including bits of letters, texts, and message board discussions — so interactive and immersive! The Madness checks a lot of boxes for thrill seekers and horror hounds!”