The Madness is a frightening modern reimagining of Dracula with a decidedly feminist edge. The characters, especially Mina, are all very interesting and I like the way the author mirrors events from the original but making it different enough to still be interesting.

An updated look at vampires that’s fun. When Mina’s estranged friend , Lucy emails her asking Mina to come home because Lucy needs help, she goes. Lucy’s displaying the same strange symptoms as one of her psychiatric patients and another run away girl and Mina can’t figure out why. I didn’t connect with any of the characters, including Mina, but the plot was fun.

This book was excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed the main character with all her quirks and idiosyncrasies. The mental hospital ambiance was good and felt real. As did the dialogue and location. I love the trope of a main character coming back home to resolve something from the past. I also enjoyed the diverse plot of characters as well as a bit of the fantastic.
Thank you to Netgally for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was ok, I couldn’t connect with the main character and felt like I didn’t really know her other than the fact that she’s a psychiatrist. The only reason she left her family was because of being sexually assaulted and that wasn’t explained in great detail. The plot was slow and didn’t have much drive. Good premise and had potential but fell flat.

This has to be one of the best Dracula retellings ever. Without spoiling most of the major plot points of the original novel, this story gave us something haunting which will stay with us for a longtime. The atmosphere is brilliant and the writing is mesmerizing. It's hard not to get pulled into the story.

The work done on the characters is just the best. They were all very well-developed and extremely relatable. The only qualm I had with this was that the ending felt a little rushed. The story would have been a perfect five star had been at least 50-100 pages longer. Nevertheless, I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves horror or gothic stories.

Retellings of classic horror tales has been a thing for some time. Few can compare to The Madness. This novel was fun. All the characters from Dracula are present but none are what you’d expect. A brilliant feminine take on the original. The story is clever and the writing is beautiful. I cannot recommend this more highly.

Exquisitely dark, disturbing, and clever as hell! Kurtagich’s hypnotic retelling electrifies and relentlessly propels the reader forward with one cliffhanger after another. If you think you’ve heard this story before, think again. THE MADNESS is a tour de force of feminist horror.

I read this gorgeous contemporary version of the Dracula story from Mina’s POV over Halloween and believe me when I say it was pitch-perfect! Mina finally gets her agency, her voice, and her power. I LOVED this book.

4.5/5 Stars -
This was my second experience with Dawn Kurtagich's work, and I was pleasantly surprised! I really enjoyed this book. Having read numerous retellings and reimaginings of Bram Stoker's Dracula, ranging from so-so to great, I would place this one between good and great. I loved the reimagining of Mina Murray as a psychiatrist and the way the women took center stage in the story. The gender-bending of characters like Renfield and Quincey added an intriguing twist. I won’t delve too much into the details because the twists and turns are part of what makes this book so enjoyable. It's definitely a strong addition to the world of vampire stories.

I loved this. But I really didn’t know this was a horror. For an adult horror novel, it was very tame. It read more like a thriller than anything.

Mina left her hometown years ago vowing never to return. An email from her closest childhood friend, Lucy makes her change her mind and she immediately heads home. Hoping to breach the chasm between them, she is shocked by how sick Lucy is. The symptoms, mirror Mina’s patient, Renee, and as she searches for answers, all she finds are more questions.
Soon, she isn’t sure what is true. Could a group of powerful men be hurting young, vulnerable girls? How does Lucy fit in? As Mina discovers more, she must come to terms with the incident that made her flee from her mother, Lucy, and the boy, Jonathan that she loved.
I stayed up way too late just trying to figure out where the story was going. I never knew what the next chapter would bring. I won’t say more and risk spoilers. It was a very good take on an old classic. Mina’s past plays a part in the story too, and figuring out what made her flee so many years ago, hooked me as much as the current storyline. A creepy tale, that kept me flipping the pages.

4.5 Stars rounded up

"This is what happens to women."
- Dawn Kurtagich's The Madness

I thought that The Madness, a modern retelling of Dracula, was excellent. If you read Dracula and wished for more Mina, this book is for you. Kurtagich changes many original characters to women and infuses this story with the same anger and vengeance that Kirsten Miller uses in The Change.
I usually read many books at a time but I found that impossible - I couldn't put this one down. The Madness comes out on August 27 - perfect timing for a cozy Autumn read.

5/5 stars

It's been a while since I've read an entire book in one day. But I *really* couldn't put this one down.

When psychiatrist Mina gets a frantic text from her childhood best friend Lucy, she heads home to Wales - to discover that Lucy is experiencing similar bizarre symptoms to her mystery patient hundreds of miles away in London.

Mostly thriller vibes (with a bit of horror thrown in) I was 100% hooked! I loved the female friendships, the Welsh mythology and folklore, the immersive, Gothic (yet modern) vibes.

It was only after the fact that I realized this was a bit of a “retelling” of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I guess I was just enjoying the plot and story so much, I wasn't paying close attention! (Is that a good thing, or a bad thing about my critical thinking skills? I don't know - but either way, I loved reading it!).

It might not be the most creative/unique book I've read this year (or the scariest!) but it was by far the fastest one I've read...I just had to keep going.

For fans of thrillers, modern gothics, female protagonists, and a bit of Dracula.....go check this out.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. All views expressed are my own.

THE MADNESS by Dawn Kurtagich
Forthcoming August 27, 2024

A modern day take on the Dracula legend, The Madness is author Kurtagich’s first foray out of YA novels and if this book is any indication, adult readers are in for a fun ride. Taking characters well known to gothic horror readers, she weaves a tale wrought with all the dread of the original source novel but with an updated feel.

Mina Murray is a doctor of psychiatry working in London. Long ago she left her home in the Welsh countryside due to a trauma she has yet to deal with. Leaving behind her mam (her hometown’s local “witch”), her friends Lucy and Quincey, and her love, Jonathan Harker.
While treating a patient with bizarre symptoms that stump her and her ornery superior, Dr Seward, Mina receives word from her old friend Lucy that she’d like her to come see her, professionally. Returning to the site of her personal anguish, she discovers Lucy is suffering from many of the same mental and physical symptoms as Renee, her patient in the city.

She discovers that recently many girls have disappeared in the area, seen getting into a long black car and never seen again. Mina’s snooping leads her to team up with the mom of one of the missing girls, as well as Quincey—herself a copper. Meanwhile she has a run-in with old flame Jonathan that progresses into a resurgence of whatever their former relationship was heading towards.

I really enjoyed this reimagined use of Stoker’s characters. Fitting them into a modern world with current technology like cell phones and the internet really updates the legend and allows for many surprises along the way.
This is also a tale of personal traumas and ways we deal with them, so consider yourself warned.
But at its heart, this is a vampire story, and you’ll get everything you like about that genre here. Dark castles, mind control, paranoia, malevolent villains, physical manifestations of wickedness, forces of good trying to defeat the evil…it’s all present.

Anyone who is a fan of the original classic won’t want to miss this one! I can’t wait to see what Kurtagich has in store for us next!

Thanks to @netgalley and @harlequintradepublishing for the ARC of this title. All opinions are my own!

I was a big fan of this authors previous books. The Dead House being one of my faves! So I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her newest release. I dare say I loved this one even more than The Dead House. I loved the modern day retelling of Dracula and I’m a sucker for mixed media formats! Highly recommend!

This modern day loose retelling of Dracula was a great, entertaining read. I was hooked from the get go and ended up reading the whole book in less than 24 hours.

I went in without realizing it was a Dracula retelling, but thinking of the characters names and wondering when the vampires would make an appearance. Before that, though, I really enjoyed what I thought was a very well written horror book, with a slightly psychotic FMC and an extremely interesting storyline.

I really enjoyed this book. The action kept me on the edge of my seat, and I was so invested in finding out what was going to happen, I had a hard time putting the book down. What a great read. Totally recommend for any Dracula, vampire and horror fans!

Thank you to the publisher, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and NetGalley for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had absolutely no idea what world I would be entering when I clicked on #TheMadness. This unique tale blends gothic horror with strong female characters. It boasts perfect atmospheric settings that make your heart pound! Castles and secret underground clubs are the places young women discover they have become prey.

The story revolves around Mina, a psychiatrist, who notices patterns in her friend as well as a patient that are peculiar. This causes her to set out to figure out what the connection could be.

Thank you so much @htpbooks for granting me access through @netgalley. Mark your calendar! This one will be out at the end of August!

The Madness by Dawn Kurtagich follows our main character—who is a doctor—as she explores multiple mysterious cases of an unknown illness among young female patients. She returns to her childhood home to uncover the truth, not knowing what really awaits her, lurking in the shadows in the small Welsh town!

This book was an absolute blast to read! It was fun, exciting and left me wanting more! The character dynamics and relationships as well were well written and fleshed out, and the writing was brilliantly vivid and detailed.

A five star read for me. A huge recommendation if you’re a fan of gothic horror!

_The Madness_ by Dawn Kurtagich is a contemporary reimagining of the story of the vampire Dracula intertwined with details of Welsh folklore and folk practices. Mina is a psychiatrist who fled her home for London after a traumatic experience, but is called back to Wales by her close friend Lucy who is suffering from a mysterious sickness. Lucy’s symptoms are similar to those of one of Mina’s patients, leading Mina to research missing girl cases and how Lucy is connected. It’s an interesting retelling told from the perspectives of strong female characters.

A modern retelling of Dracula with a feminist twist, The Madness tells the story of a psychiatrist named Mina who has to uncover a sinister mystery surrounding multiple missing women.

The novel itself wasn't exactly my cup of tea. I'm not entirely into the gothic chiller subgenre, but it was by no means a flop. I went into it blind and simply didn't connect with any of the characters. The opening hooked me, but soon after I was finding myself losing the plot.

If you're a fan of strong female protagonists, psychological horror, and Dracula, definitely check this one out!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!!

THE MADNESS was the perfect book to cuddle up to on Halloween night! Cleverly plotted, with just the right balance of mystery, paranormal and horror, this book is perfect for readers who embrace the spookier side of fiction!