This is the fictional telling of the life of famous author Bram Stoker. Mr. Stoker, who does not gain fame until after his death, when his novel Dracula is published, is a court clerk in Dublin, Ireland who moonlights as a theater critic. After a good review is published about Victorian actor Henry Irving, the two meet and become friendly. Mr. Irving eventually hires Bram to be his assistant while he’s attempting to reopen the Lyceum theater in London. Bram agrees to the position and moves himself and his wife to London. Once there, he realizes that his new position entails a lot more than what was originally described. The men set out to completely redo the theater, get rid of the feral cats that have taken over, and deal with the ghost of Mina.
Mr. Stoker becomes the manager of the Lyceum theater at a time when the acclaimed actors Henry Irving and Ellen Terry grace the stage. Victorian era London is beautifully described, a time when we’ve got everyone from Oscar Wilde to the dreaded Jack the Ripper running about.
This is a beautifully imaginative story, one that weaves fact with fiction seamlessly and it kept me reading through to the end. We learn real things about Mr. Stoker, his friendships, his wife, and his life while he was writing the story that still captivates readers 123 years later.
**I received an ARC of this story from Netgalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

I'm going to say it was more of a 3.5 star . I just felt like I was taken on this journey of feelings with this book the whole time reading.

When I first started, all my thoughts were "This is why we read fiction!". I mean, it's so literary with such gorgeous writing. The storytelling is fantastic. But then my feelings towards it started to fade and I felt like I was being dragged along. And then it would pique my interest in just what a wonderful story this was. And then those feelings would dwindle again.

I would say the beginning and the ending are fantastic, but the middle weaker, in my opinion. I would completely recommend though - it has such beautiful storytelling and it's quite interesting to read about Bram Stoker and how he got the inspiration to write Dracula, his work and relationship with the Lyceum Theatre and Henry Irving and Ellen Terry.

(I'll plan on writing a fuller review for the Literary Hoarders site, because I did copy down some lovely parts of it to talk about. I will add to this review if I do so. Thanks!)

I love the premise of this book! And there was much to like about this story. The time period, historical characters, theatre connection, and the creation of Dracula were certainly draws to this historical fiction.

However, I struggled to get through this book. A large chunk was written in the present third person perspective, which I did not enjoy. It was jarring how many different styles the author incorporated, and at times it was confusing as to who was being written about and when and where the scene was taking place. It was creative to attempt the mixture of present tense, journal entries, and transcripts of recordings, but it didn’t come together in an enjoyable way for me. I also didn’t find satisfaction in the sections which were from the perspective of the theatre ghost, which disappointed me.

I recommend this for readers who enjoy historical fiction and welcome the present third person perspective which is mixed with other perspective styles.

I was excited to read this book but found myself fighting to get through it. Felt like the storyline drug on and never fully connected with characters since I was disinterested.

Everything about this book should have been amazing to me. The setting was beautiful, the writing was very well done, the characters were well-developed and thought out. The setting was so well written - late 19th century Dublin with all the beauty and gloom surrounding it.
But something just didn't catch with me this time around. I regret the fact that I could not get into the story the entire time, perhaps it was my state of mind while reading it, or some sort of outside influence. I could not get interested in the characters themselves and where the story was going. I can see how it would be a beautiful book to someone in the right frame of mind, but it just didn't do it for me.

This ebook was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

An intriguing read that is well-written. Full of drama and lots of humor. A must-read historical fiction.

DNF 41%

This book has such an interesting premise. Bram Stoker ends up being a manager for a theater opened by a famous Victorian actor. However, this book is written as through it was written during the Victorian times and that's really hard to read. In order to understand it, I had to skim. After awhile it felt like a chore to read.

I understand what the author was trying to do but it didn't land.

I found this historical fiction books plot about Brom stoker intriguing but ultimately I was not overly find of the book

Historical fiction at its best such an Interesting read multi layered full of wonderful characters some famous.I couldn’t resist a book about Bram Stoker and those involved with the creator of Dracula.Highly recommend.

SHADOWPLAY - Joseph O'Connor
Europa Editions
ISBN-10: 1609455932
ISBN-13: 978-1609455934
May 2020
General Fiction, Biographical Fiction
London – 1877 to 1912

This is the second biographical fiction novel I’ve read. The genre makes an odd mix. It is based on factual information told in a fictional voice. This story involves three friends, Irishman Abraham (Bram) Stoker, who considered himself a failed writer, Victorian Irish actor Henry Irving, the greatest actor of his era, and English actress Ellen Terry, who was also a famous actress. Irving took over the management of the Lyceum Theatre in London in 1978. Ellen Terry acted as the leading lady in the productions throughout Irving’s management of the Lyceum. Bram Stoker acted as Irving’s business manager. The three form a close friendship.

The story is told in chapters of vignettes mostly from Stoker’s viewpoint and arranged in three acts. The first act begins with Stoker and Irving on a train ride to Bradford in 1905, which leads in the following chapters to Stoker’s memories. He wrote a review for the Dublin Mail about a theater production of Irving playing Hamlet. It goes on to tell how Irving hires Stoker. They go to London to take over the management of the Lyceum Theatre. This act also tells of Stoker meeting his future wife. The two following acts also lead in with scenes from the 1905 train trip which lead to Stoker’s contemplation of his and Irving’s friendship. Stoker loves writing but his stories and books (Dracula) don't sell. However, his friendship with Irving and Terry makes him important. The last portion of the story is a separate chapter taking place on the day Stoker died in 1912.

The story’s language switches between Stoker's movements and the lyrical mental reflections in Stoker’s mind as he moves through his daily life. Ellen Terry also has a few scenes from her viewpoint. Irving’s language when talking to Stoker shows him to be a moody, demanding person with snide and snarky humor, but sometimes it’s hard to understand if it is humor or temper. Stoker remains a quiet and self-contained man but giving and loyal in his friendship. Sometimes in reading, the character viewpoint changes abruptly, which with the language style can slow reading and make it a bit difficult to understand, but what do you expect from a writer whose works helped define the horror genre and two actors famous during their time? It is a very different and interesting approach to a story, evocative, sometimes moody and sad.

Robin Lee

Bram Stoker. No matter what genre you favor, most readers recognize this name. This story may be fiction, but it certainly reads as a biography of a life that would give us Dracula and spawn a never ending story of beasts in the night. Joseph O'Connor tells an excellent story that grips you at the beginning and holds your attention...and imagination...through to the end. The characters are true to life and the community around them is perfectly portrayed. While I never knew I would love this type of book, I did. Prepare for a marathon reading session when you start this one.

Joseph O'Connor's Shadowplay is an absolute delight—a novelization of the relationship among actor and producer Henry Irving, actress Ellen Terry, and theatre producer and author Bram Stoker. This tale belongs to Stoker more than the other two, and O'Connor presents it in a variety of formats similar to those Stoker used when writing Dracula: recordings, letters, journals. Such fun!

This is one of those titles you'll race through, not because it's short or simple (it's a rich piece of writing), but because you can't bear to put it down. O'Connor evokes the readers emotions again and again in all sorts of ways, but never leaves the reader feeling manipulated.

If you're interested in theatre history, the private lives of the famous, the relationships among artists, or just ripping good reads, youu'll want to get started on Shadowplay as soon as possible.

As if I didn’t have enough theatre in. my life, I went to read about it too. But to be fair, not just any theatre, The Lyceum theatre in London. The place that has witnessed its share of greatness, the place one devotedly managed by Bram Stoker. Yeah, that guy, the only ordinary person to legitimately reach immortality through vampirism. But first, he was a mere Dublin clerk, whisked away on a promise of an adventurous and challenging employment to London by Lyceum’s star and impresario. Thus began a decades long professional and personal relationship that was unbalanced, emotionally abusive and often frustrating, but nevertheless it changed the lives of both men. And yes, it was technically a love triangle with Ellen Terry, the most famous actress of her time, but Stoker was much too meek and proper to ever act upon it, so it was a wildly uneven triangle at best. Stoker was also married, but then they all were, Stoker’s wife seemed pretty great, actually, but he was much too dedicated to his job to be a proper spouse, all his eggs were in that theatre basket. Well, maybe a few eggs went to his writing, but that was never appreciated in his lifetime, not by anyone. In fact, irony of ironies (unless I’m using it wrong and it’s something other entirely) is that only the age of cinema brought Dracula to popular attention that theatre failed to do. The fact that Stoker’s widow was industrious enough to sue the first unofficial adaptation for copyright and win certainly helped. This was the kind of woman that Stoker has all but outright neglected during their long marriage in favor of chasing dreams of camaraderie and glitz. Strange man. And if you think this book will help you get to know him more…well, it might, but not a lot. There are physical descriptions (he was a fitness fanatic), there are descriptions of his work, there are a lot of descriptions, but none of them really convey the mystery of Stoker. The closest you get is to understanding the man is by understanding his magnum opus’ origins, this is something the book excels at and Dracula fans will get a lot of enjoyment out of all the easter eggs throughout the novel, obvious and otherwise. Because it is a fascinating thing…for a seemingly ordinary man to produce such an extraordinary story. So for that alone it’s worth a read. Other than that, well it’s certainly interesting for historical fiction fans, there are a lot of details of the time, real events, etc. The writing’s good, but not especially dynamic. I didn’t care for the constant shifts of narrative, change of tenses and perspectives seems overutilized and unnecessary. The description makes the book seem somewhat more exciting than it actually was, in fact the book is quite subdued, which, for a book set mostly in the wildly unsubdued environment that theatre is, almost odd. But at any rate, I enjoyed it enough. Some things more than others. Thanks Netgalley.

Shadowplay has so many famous characters and has such a interesting premise. The book is well written and the characters are interesting.

It’s hard to go wrong when you have a novel about love and loss, greatness and failure, mixed in with the magical world of behind the scenes theatre and some of the greatest names in C19th acting and literature, and yet, I couldn’t entirely love this book. There were wonderful and emotionally powerful sections of great clarity, but these were embedded in a wider framework which was sometimes too meandering and hard to grasp. Perhaps I struggle when real people and events are manipulated to create a work of fiction, and perhaps that is my failing, a preference for knowing exactly what is fact and what is fiction and I was never sure how far to believe the story we were being told. This isn’t to say that this is a poor novel, far from it, it is really quite extraordinary how O’Connor convincingly weaves the lives of Bram Stoker with Henry Irving and Ellen Terry along with cameo appearances from the likes of Wilde and Shaw. His exploration of sexual preferences, both hetero and homo sexual, outside of the social norms of the time is fascinating, and his analysis of marriage and relationships is at times painful and heartbreaking. This is a book that targets you at an emotional level. And all the time the presence of Bram’s iconic novel ‘Dracula’ hovers in the background, teasing us with its potential to both terrify and fascinate. I would recommend reading the book to anyone interested in the history of theatre and literature, as well as those who appreciate a revealing look at relationships both on and off stage.

Till recently, I knew nothing about Bram Stoker beyond his name, as the author of Dracula. I didn't know he was the theatrical manager for Henry Irving, and worked with Ellen Terry -- about both of whom I did know a little more, largely thanks to my reading of the theatre-mad Robertson Davies. So when the chance to review a new novel about the theatrical trio came up, I jumped on it.

Though I was not sure what to expect, fortunately it turned out to be a delight. I did not realize the scheduled release date was only in May! I already want to recommend it, because it's one of my favorite books of the year.

In a nod to Stoker's famous epistolary novel, it's presented as an assemblage of letters, memoirs, transcripts and other invented documents. And it mainly covers the time around the composition of that novel, exploring how an obscure Dublin clerk became the manager for the eccentric, extravagant genius Irving and his Lyceum Theatre in London -- while compulsively penning the weird and occult tales that brought undying fame only after his own death.

The Lyceum was a brilliant but ultimately doomed venture that strained Stoker's family relationships and sometimes perhaps his sanity.  The story is full of ghosts -- one is reputed to haunt the theatre, but there are also the dim remnants of childhood trauma, unfulfilled dreams, inadmissible longings. The actor's playing out of a "second self" is a recurring motif, echoed in the shadow-worlds that Stoker creates in his writing. Such "shadowplay" gives power to art, whether in acting or in writing, but it is also a dangerous enterprise, as it taps into the hidden and unfulfilled sides of the human self. To convey that danger and that power, with a strong dash of Irish comedy, is no small achievement.

O'Connor writes in a vigorous, playful style that is not at all Victorian, and yet he somehow effectively evokes that era, especially the emotional and sexual turmoil that underlay its external propriety. But ultimately this is not a study of sex and death, but a story of love: the love that grew between three gifted, sometimes tormented, but thoroughly remarkable people. I've no idea how historically accurate it may be, but emotionally it rings true, and leaves me with a sense of having met these characters, or at least having seen them play out a part of their lives on the "stage" of the novel.

With a memorable guest appearance by Oscar Wilde, ample glimpses backstage for theatre lovers, and supporting roles by the spouses and children of the central trio (with some remarkable characters in their own right), there was so much to enjoy, and to learn. I do plan to read Dracula now and then to go back to see what references I missed. Whether you've read Stoker's masterpiece or not, I urge you to check this out, too.

This fictionalised account of the life of Bram Stoker in Victoiran and Edwardian London was immediately appealing to me.. There is some fascinating interwoven history regarding Henry Irving and Ellen Terry, Oscar Wilde, Yeats and even Jack the Ripper. O'Connor writes this novel in a very dickensian style, thick with description of eccentric characters, the seedy streets of London and the stranglehold of fear created by the Ripper. O'Connor can certainly write an atmospheric paragraph.However after a while i did start to wonder when something would axtually happpen. The story has no real poiints of drama, you feel like its building towards something that never actually arrives. Stoker tries and fails to become a successful writer and Irving is alternately loving and vicious towards him, until, in a protracted final part of the novel, they both, eventually die.. Stoker remains a character shrouded in mist and uncertainty, we remain unsure of his loves his feelings and his motivations throughout. So, much to admire in this book but a challenge to read and not fully rewarding of the effort.

There was so much about the synopsis that had me excited - Victorian England, Jack the Ripper, theater, Bram Stoker writing Dracula...there was so much potential. This book had moments where I felt invested, but unfortunately, it never quite worked for me. The writing style was strange - it jumped from letters, to journals, to narrative and there were many times where it was unclear who's perspective I was reading from. It felt very choppy and hard to follow.

I really enjoyed the parts that gave insight into the writing of Dracula, as well as the fear of Jack the Ripper terrorizing London. However, there was never enough of those plot elements. I feel like the author was trying to do too many things with the story, making it feel convoluted and confusing. I feel like I don't quite understand what story the author was trying to tell.

Bram Stoker, newly married, leaves his native Ireland to accept a position in London. Henry Irving, famed actor, has hired him as manager of his rundown theatre, the Lyceum. An arduous task lies ahead for Bram, battling constant expenses and repairs and much frustration from his boss. The city is paralyzed by the horror of Jack the Ripper’s brutality and the theatre itself is haunted. Bram battles his own demons as he walks the city in search of answers to calm his unsettled artistic soul. He falls in love with Ellen Terry, the famous actress and sometimes lover of Irving. Finding solace from the belittling remarks of his boss in a remote part of the theatre, he slowly records the story of Dracula, the creature that will bring him fame many years later. The art of Shadowplay asks its audiences to accept the story-telling of cut-out figures just as the theatre asks audiences to accept the actors’ interpretations of its plays. Joseph O’Connor’s readers are asked to witness various actions and musings about life and love from characters cut out from history and to interpret what is real and what is imagined.

I’ll preface my review by saying this book was well written. I learned a great deal of the times, London, theater, and the characters, which is part of the joy in reading historical fiction. It was difficult to follow at times; the style of writing (to reflect the time and place) was overly wordy for my liking. However, I loved reading Dracula which was my attraction to Shadowplay.

The story unfolds with Bram Stoker heading back to Dublin from London. Bram Stocker writes plays, with the hope of an eventual published novel. Until he fulfills his dream, he has agreed to work for Mr Henry Irving at the Lyceum theatre in London as his personal assistant.

He marries his girlfriend Florence and they move to London to embark upon his new career (and perhaps a segue to the literary recognition to which he so aspires).

The heart of the book regards the relationship between Henry Irving (Shakespearean actor), Ellen Terry (highest paid actress) and Bram Stoker (unknown playwright/author). Theirs was a friendship that would stand the test of time; each so very different from the other, yet dependent on the other two. Very endearing in the depiction of the intertwined trio.

A lovely read; if you’re a fan of Dracula you will enjoy!