Lucy Undying starts out as part Dracula retelling through a feminist lens and part gothic sapphic romance. I thoroughly enjoyed the first 2/3rds of the book, as we follow Lucy's point of view of the events from Dracula, as well as learn what became of her after the story. We also follow Iris, a contemporary woman with a lot of family issues who discovers Lucy's diary as she returns to her family home, unaware that her new friend "El" is actually Lucy. As a big fan of the original Dracula, I very much enjoyed how White reconfigures the story to highlight the way in which Lucy is treated throughout the story by the male characters that take center stage, and the way in which her characterization of both Lucy and Iris allow us to respond to them both with empathy despite their past misdeeds. It is a wonderful story of healing and of two people who have been hurt by everyone they trusted finally connecting with someone who will accept them for who they are. It is particularly poignant how Lucy is able to finally love herself and forgive herself by seeing her younger self through Iris's eyes. I was ready to give this book 5 stars!

But that feeling reached its height with almost 150 pages left to go in the story. The third act sadly lost me as the book transitions into a let's get revenge on Dracula plot that devolves into a modern corporate thriller, but with vampires. Getting to this part helped me understand how the reviews for the book we lower than my initial impression and divided. The third act becomes something quite different and sadly a little hokey. I still was able to enjoy it, and I was (mostly) satisfied with the ending, but talk about a profound shift in tone and expectations! The third act is really more of a 3 for me.

My recomendation would honestly be to enjoy the book through 65% (chapter 70) . The end of that chapter would be.a great ending- if you don't mind a change of gears or you are just too curious to stop there, proceed with VERY different expectations. This is some wild stuff!

Thanks to Del Rey and Netgalley for access to an eARC for review purposes.

“Loving someone is always giving them the power to destroy you. But I trust both of us enough to know it’s worth it.”

If you have read or were forced to read Dracula in school and always thought, why do the characters treat Lucy so horribly?? And wanted a form of rectification for Lucy’s story, this book right here is for you! Lucy Undying can be best described as a gothic sapphic retelling set in modern day in a timeline where Lucy Westenra survives against all odds.

I first have to mention the format of this book: it is mostly divided between the timeline of the events happening in the present day, Lucy’s journal entries from 1890, and client transcripts containing Lucy’s ventures after being transformed into a vampire. I found this to be so clever in giving us a full spectrum of Lucy—before and after vampirism. I would also like to note this is a heavily character driven story so if you were not obsessed with Bram Stoker’s Lucy and didn’t write a 5 page essay about her in college then maybe this isn’t for you because the pacing is very slow. However, I really enjoyed the pacing as it allowed for you to truly meet this Lucy and let me just say right now I’ll take Kiersten White’s depiction of Lucy over the original. And let me tell you why. Through Lucy’s entries we see how starved for love she was and how she was used by the people that were there to “protect” her. Through the client transcripts, we learn of Lucy’s life after becoming a vampire and how she drifted place to place trying to find her purpose. Through the present day timeline told in Iris’ POV, we see Lucy being quite cheeky and flirty, allowing herself to open up to the possibility of love. This is what I call perfected character development because we really got to know Lucy through all the stages of her life.

Moving to Iris as she is our other main character, her spirit greatly resembles Lucy’s as she is fighting to be kept out of her family’s plans for her. The plot of this book comes with Iris’ plight of trying to outrun her inheritance, her blood, and the family business, if that’s what we want to call it.

If Lucy is The Terminator, Iris would definitely be The Fearless because this girl doesn’t let much faze her throughout the entire book. The plot of the cult trying to trap and mold Iris to what they wanted her to be was oddly chilling; especially once you get to the later chapters in which the explanation as to why Iris is a vital asset to the whole organization. However, I will say there were some chapters where, let’s just say, Iris wasn’t adding much to the story and kind of dulled in comparison to other parts of the book.

Even Dracula is more fleshed out in this novel as the author sprinkles a couple of chapters namely in his POV but gives you the sensation that you are the one in the book being watched, hunted, and stalked by him. Dracula also possessed a lot of human traits namely some weaknesses which I will not name but, it was very interesting to write him in a way where he was powerless. And then the rippling effects of what that experience will later ensue.

The romance in this was very subtle and honestly I live for it because it focused super heavily on Iris and Lucy’s relationship through their lived experiences with one another, the understanding that they were fighting for the same goal, and not wanting the other to be destroyed within the process of doing so.

Lastly, the acknowledges drove it all the way home for me which if you’re saying, “But the acknowledgments aren’t part of the book?” Yes they are, and I don’t care! I have to agree with Kiersten White when she notes of Lucy’s treatment in the original Stoker novel, the way she was infantilized, lacked agency over her body, and then shamed for her sexuality by people that were namely the “heroes” was always something that bothered me as well. Not to bash Bram Stoker because he’s dead and all but, you were so wrong for doing our girl Lucy like that. For me after reading this novel, it feels like the true ending and whenever I get around to rereading Dracula, I will always carry this novel in my heart. Because let’s face it: Lucy does deserve a girlfriend.

Thank you to NetGalley & Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was a huge fan when I read The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein, and I big fan of retellings. And Vampires, yes please. Unfortunately, Lucy Undying, missed the mark for me.

3 stars

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Amazon Review submitted
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**TL;DR**: A book for people who hate Dracula and love cringey instalove
**Source**: NetGalley! Thank you for the eArc!

**Plot**: A mess. Basically feels like the author writing some self-insert fanfiction in which she tells Lucy everyone was out to get her and they get to kill Dracula and have sex.
**Characters**: No thank you.
**Setting**: This is all over the place, they travel quite a bit and there is a maybe haunted house but none of it felt well realized.
**Horror/Vampires:** When the cringe is this strong there is nothing else to be appreciated. I suppose if cringe is a horror subgenre for you, maybe?

**Thoughts**:

The way I want to describe everything about this I disliked would make me sound unhinged, truly. This one is billed as ‘A Dracula Novel’ on the bottom of the cover and I beg to differ. I think the best way to describe this would be a ‘Lucy Westenra Self Insert FanFiction’. We get Lucy’s story before and during Dracula, and current day with a young woman who finds her diaries and ends up friends with her.

I’m going to drop spoilers here - if you don’t want them here is my short version. Don’t read this if you like Dracula in any way. I recommend you just reread the original novel or just read anything else.

Now, the short version of this. Kiersten White, in the acknowledgements, of this book states they full believe that the original Dracula novel had an unspoken plot to steal Lucy’s money and fortune (which I find ridiculous). This is the story of Iris (our modern day main character) discovering this and falling in love with Lucy who has been a vampire this whole time. In addition to this we have Lucy moving through history meeting all these women who she either sleeps with or saves (much like a man in many old style fantasy or horror books, these women also have about the same depth as those old style books). In addition to this she single handedly ends World War 1 by stomping her foot at a bunch of old men. We get copious amounts of modern day band references, so many Emily Dickinson quotes, and the worst pet names I’ve ever read (my little cabbage and my little butter chicken).

Any feminism or empowerment we could have gotten for any of these characters is completely lost in how surface level all of this is. It reads like a poorly done fanfiction. Every scene, except the big monologues that you can tell the author had written up and stored for years, is brief and has about the depth of ‘Oh I stomped my foot at these old men and told them to sign a paper and left’.

I don’t claim to be a great writer or highly intelligent but this… was a mess. Just skip it. In fact if you see it in the store, look left, turn left - go elsewhere.

1 Star. I can’t even make a fun rating on this one. No.

I could not get into the writing style. It felt discombobulated and cringy at times. I really felt like a lot of the plot and purpose was surface level. I have seen others relate the story to poorly done fan fiction and I tend to agree with that.

It’s unfortunate because I was very interested in the premise.

This wasn’t what I was expecting it to be. I went into this book having already read the original novel several times and I’ve recently read another Dracula re- imagining/retelling. I’m also currently reading Dracula Daily. Suffice it to say I’m familiar with the original story. Maybe a bit too familiar.

I did like some of the choices the author made to update the story. How would vampires live among us in the modern day? The author had an interesting answer to that question. I don’t think I’ve seen vampires done quite this way. That element of the story might have been my favorite part of the book. Although I did like the relationship between Iris and Lucy, I felt it needed a bit more development. The vampire adventures with Lucy were interesting and kept my attention for the most part. I didn’t really care for how they were presented (the client transcripts). I think the book was full of interesting ideas that maybe weren’t executed the best. I’ll give more details below, please skip reading the rest of the review if you’d rather find certain plot points out for yourself.

I can say that I did enjoy this book, for the most part. It wasn’t terribly written, I just think the plot and pacing needed a bit more work. Either the book needed to be trimmed down or it needed to be a three book series. It almost felt as though it might have been a trilogy or duology and then had to be cut down to one book. Of course, I have no idea if this is true. All this to say that the book was longer than it needed to be. We have too many POVs. We get Iris in present day, Lucy’s journal as a human, Lucy’s therapy sessions in modern day as a vampire, Dracula’s POV, Lucy’s in modern day, etc. There’s also a few others thrown in. Some plot points that we see through Lucy’s POV as a human in her journal get rehashed in Iris’ POV. I thought this was unnecessary and repetitive. Adding Iris’ reactions to Lucy’s journal really slowed the pace down. Overall, I think we needed less POVs. Some just felt unnecessary and others, like the therapy sessions, just seemed like they didn’t quite fit.

I also felt that the plot points for the original Dracula story could have been conveyed in a better way. Those that have read the original story will have a hard time recognizing the characters as they have been significantly changed. No, I’m not referring to making Lucy queer. I’m referring to the other changes in Mina, Arthur, and Dr. Seward. The changes to Van Helsing I think were more believable. I actually think making Lucy queer makes more sense than some of the other changes.

There were several moments in the story where I felt that certain things were being spoon fed to the reader. Or shoved down our throats, however you’d prefer to view it. Again, I won’t go into specifics but this happened mostly in Iris’ POV when she’s reflecting on Lucy’s journal. Some of the twists were very obvious. I don’t think some of them were even meant to be a surprise to the reader, I’m not sure. The synopsis gives a surprising amount of the plot away. I’d skip reading it except for the first part where it tells you the premise.

I can’t say that I hated this book. There were things I really did like. I can’t say I loved it either. I will say I still had a good time reading it. This book took some time to finish though. I’d recommend to those that love vampire and or queer love stories. If you’re obsessed with the original Dracula novel, I’d still recommend giving this a try. Just be aware that since this is a re-imagining, things have been changed.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, Ballantine, Del Rey, and the author for providing me with an ARC for review.

Oh, Kiersten White, please write all the vampire stories forever and ever, because I will always be here to read them. Honestly I loved this revision/retelling of Dracula. The one thing that always bothered me about the book was Lucy’s complete lack of agency, and this book does an excellent job of changing that while keeping the original narrative largely intact. I LOVE a retelling that doesn't have to change the original story too much to tell a completely different kind of story, which this does (I'm not saying I totally loved the rather harsh take on the dudes in the original, but for the purposes of *this* story, it makes perfect sense). I like this version AND the original.

Also, it’s just a great vampire story in and of itself, with some shades of Carmilla, the OG vampire story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher of this book for this eARC.

This book was amazing in the first half and then fell a bit flat in the second.

✨4 stars✨

Thank you Random House Publishing - Ballantine and Netgalley for this eARC!!

You know what? I was a little scared that this was going off the rails at about 65%, but somehow the ending stuck the landing and made me love this entire wild ride even more.

I agree with Kiersten White that Lucy from the original Dracula novel needed a girlfriend and bodily autonomy. And this novel DEFINITELY delivered on both fronts. This is a very Unique Dracula retelling for sure and its not going to be everyone's cup of tea. This book is very much the phrase "trust the process".

I adored all of the characters, especially Iris when she got in her gay panic moments. Who knew butter chicken would be a sweet pet name.

Though I've thoroughly enjoyed previous reads from Kiersten White, Lucy Undying was extremely underwhelming.
Was it a me problem?
Maybe? I dunno. Let's call it a fluke.
Typically I enjoy dual timelines and epistolary novels, but I was boooorrred with this one 😭. I found the characters to be very melodramatic and annoying. The pacing was slow but the storyline was easy to follow and even easier to guess where it was going.
Will I still be reading books from White?
YES.
This one just wasnt for me.
Thanks to NetGalley Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Del Rey for the eARC!

Lucy Undying: A Dracula Novel
3.5/5

Iris Goldaming’s mother has finally died, leaving her daughter a multi-level marketing cult, two moldering British properties, and decades worth of emotional trauma. Iris travels to England to sell every bit of her inheritance not nailed down before disappearing into Europe, leaving the weight of Goldaming blood behind. But her mother’s influence reaches beyond the grave and Iris is only saved by the interference of a mysterious (and beautiful) stranger. As Iris searches the house with the help of her savior, Elle, she comes across the diary of one Lucy Westenra, forming a connection across time as reads of Lucy’s burgeoning queer desire for her best friend, her suitors’ controlling influence, and at last- the appearance of Dracula. As their stories hurdle closer and closer towards each other, can Lucy and Iris escape the influence of both their families and greater supernatural powers? Will they also, perhaps, smooch? (obviously)

Reading Kiersten White’s author’s note, I think we have a similar connection to the source material of Bram Stoker’s Dracula. I love Dracula- I’ve written about it academically, I’ve had a song from the musical version in my audition book for years- I think in part because of how much I disagree with Stoker’s points. I think he, in writing a story that plays off the xenophobia and misogyny of his time, stumbled into a compelling tragedy about how our society feeds upon those who do not confine to those norms. While contemporary audiences saw a cautionary tale, a modern perspective leaves it a heartbreaking tragedy told with one of the best uses of epistolary writing out there. I’m fiercely protective of the characters of Lucy and Mina, so it took me a bit to get comfortable with White’s take on them here. I love Mina as a young woman trying to push the boundaries of her role, taking an active part in tracking down Dracula, until she’s tragically forced back into passivity in order to survive. I love Lucy as a bubbly, kind, and sexually realized woman in a time that punishes her for being just a normal teenager, with the desires and impulsivity that can encompass. White and I have very different takes, but we both strongly believe Lucy Westenra deserves a girlfriend, so once I was able to get past the dissonance of her taking such a different reading of the text, I loved her Lucy, too.

Lucy’s relationship with Mina in White’s text mirrors one I had when I was younger and it absolutely broke my heart. The way Iris immediately clocks the unhealthy dynamic while Lucy determinedly defends Mina hurt because it was so real. So was the way Lucy censored herself within her own diary. The layering of Salt Lake City as the setting of the second act- MLM and internalized guilt capital of the world- was also perfect.

I agree with other reviews expressing a greater interest in Lucy’s story than Iris’s. I think Iris’s story had a ton of potential, but it felt far less thought out and grounded than Lucy’s. This meant that the second half of the book hit way less than the first. White has some moments of nuance within understanding familial relationships, but I wish she’d allowed a bit more with Lucy’s with her three suitors and Mina. Without spoilers, I think it might have hit better (and more horrifyingly) if there was more emphasis on the insidious ways social structures can be used to abuse power over women like Lucy rather than having certain folks be straight up completely evil. Another letdown- format! Some of this book is epistolary, mimicking the “found media” format of Dracula and much of the modern horror it’s inspired. This ruled, but the use of this format was inconsistent and thus a bit frustrating.

Anyways, I got super into reading this and stayed up a bit too late. Lucy’s story is so interesting and compelling and while Iris’s felt less thought out after the big reveal at about 2/3 into the book, I wasn’t mad at it, just disappointed compared to my investment with Lucy. I wish Lucy had been our POV character more than Iris- maybe flat out instead of Iris. I think the shenanigans going on at Goldaming life would have been more clearly sketched-out from an outsider’s perspective, too.

I’ve read quite a few things by White at this point and would rank this higher than And I Darken but just below The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein. If you liked that one, I think you’ll like this one, too.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A wonderful retelling of the Dracula legend from the point of view of Lucy Westerna, with plenty of twists and turns along the way. A delightful and affirming reimagining, perfect for spooky season!

Unfortunately this one didn't really work for me, and it was mainly down to the multiple povs and timelines which left me feeling very pushed out of the storylines, all the time. It's all a bit of a jumble, Add in the complete character assassination of several rather classic Dracula characters (Van Helsing in particular springs to mind) and I just couldn't get behind the story.

I particularly didn't like Iris's story, which is set in a modern day, where she meets a rather glamorous and seemingly immortal woman who just so happens to be Lucy (not a spoiler, it's really obvious). And for some reason she's running away from a weird multilevel marketing cult type situation. It was just bizarre. And not in a good way.

Not for me. I wanted more of the historical elements, less of the weird time jumps and even weirder modern day plot.

This definitely would have been 5 stars if it wasn't so long and took me almost 2 months to get through. For a book that's over 400 pages long it felt like it was never going to end. All of that aside, it was still a good book. I loved how it switched between past and present Lucy and Iris, who was obviously my favorite. I wasn't expecting there to be twists in this book and while I did guess one of them pretty early on the others took me by surprise. I loved the romance in this and I especially loved the ending. Kiersten White's books can be pretty hit or miss for me but I really enjoyed this one.

Many thanks to Random House Publishing - Ballantine | Del Rey for the gifted copy for my honest review!

Lucy Undying gave me Castlevania and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue vibes with a heavier gothic influence and more lesbians. I can totally see where some people thought this story moved too slow, as things don’t pick up much until about the halfway point. However, Lucy’s diary entries had me hooked from the get go. The format the author used for storytelling in this book worked really well for me. I loved the different POVs, the short chapters, and the look into Lucy’s life as a young woman before everything changed. The mystery surrounding her death and the Goldamings kept me on the edge of my seat and I had a great time reading Lucy Undying! I do think this book was probably longer than it needed to be, as some of Iris’s earlier chapters could’ve been cut without consequence. Overall, I really enjoyed this unique, gothic fantasy and think it’s perfect for the spooky season!

Thank you to Del Rey, NetGalley, and the author for sending me an early copy!

"The beginning is, as all beginnings are, soaked in blood and shrouded in darkness. The end will be, too, but we'll get there together.
My name is Lucy Westenra, and this is my story."

Thank you NetGalley and Kiersten White for an eARC of Lucy Undying. The following is my honest review.

Lucy Westenra was one of Dracula's first victims. A lifetime of searching for the man who stole her life has led her to present-day London and right into the path of Iris Goldaming, a young woman who is trying to escape her family's legacy. With Dracula hunting his next victim, Lucy and Iris must put an end to the monster that has haunted Lucy since her death.

I love a retelling of a classic tale and Lucy Undying is a fantastic retelling of the classic tale of Dracula. White gives a voice to Lucy Westenra and returns the power to Dracula's victim after the people around her failed her. I loved this Sapphic spin on the original story.

Told in three timelines, we slowly piece together the story of Lucy alongside the present day with Iris Goldaming fleeing from her toxic, manipulative mother's legacy. This way, we get the long history of a character who has lived lifetimes alongside the action of the main storyline. It gave this character a chance to tell her story when she was unable to during her lifetime.

I also enjoyed Iris's story. It reminded me of Isadora's story in White's novel The Chaos of Stars. And the idea of incorporating MLMs into a story about vampires is so perfect. The eeriness of MLMs brings a sort of modern-day horror to this retelling. Forget the blood-sucking monsters that prowl at night, I'm more afraid of the corporations that prey on desperate people.

And of course, the romance was what had me hooked. I love the way that Lucy and Iris love each other. Please give us a sequel because I need more of their adventures.

I fell in love with White's writing after reading The Chaos of Stars and I was very excited to read Lucy Undying. Her writing continues to enthrall me. So many lines and moments stood out for me and I would love to return to this book and annotate it. The familial connections, the twists on the classic tale, the romance were all fantastically done. I took my time with this book, enjoying my read through it and it's one I know I'll go back to again.

I really loved getting to know more about Iris and Lucy and Kiersten White has a beautiful and lyrical style of writing that was perfect for their story.

However, I honestly think I would’ve given this book 5 stars if it were at least 100 pages shorter. Quite a few parts seemed to drag and it ended up feeling like a chore to read. But after the 60% mark, a lot more started happening and it was easier for me to stay engaged. But overall, I really enjoyed it!

I can honestly say that this book didn't disappoint. The cover initially drew me in and then the description hooked me further. I'm a sucker for any kind of retelling of classic horror and if you add in romance as well? Even better. Lucy Undying is as much a growing into your own story as it is a horror and romance. Lucy has to figure out who she is without the drive she had when she was turned and Iris has to learn what it means to be able to escape her family and actually do as she always wanted. I love twists that make a female character more important and grow their roles from the original text. This happens to both Lucy and to Mina in unexpected ways. The science that gets drawn in, the history, and all of the intrigue. Even guessing who Elle was from the very beginning and that no, she didn't actually work for the museum was handled so wonderfully. Please please, please make sure that you get a copy of this book. It's great.

I loved this book. A lot.

At first following three timelines, (with a few more POVs later), this novel follows the stories of Iris, an MLM heiress who wants nothing to do with it, and Lucy, as both a young woman and talking to her therapist as a vampire.

Iris travels to England to make some quick cash off a home she inherited from her dead (and abusive) mother, to run away from the MLM she also inherited. In the process she makes some friends, including Elle, the woman who offered to help her pawn as much as possible. While clearing the house, she finds the diary of an old resident, Lucy.

Lucy’s diary, which we get to read, tells the tale of a young lesbian in the victorian era. She’s in love with her governess, her mother is trying to marry her off, oh, and she met Dracula. In contrast to the innocent girl we meet, we see her as a vampire, talking to a human therapist she saved by accident, recounting her tale after Dracula killed her.

As things come to a head, Iris uncovers the past and must deal with her future, especially as she falls in love with Elle, and with Lucy through her diary.

With a good mix of expected and unexpected twists, this book is a wonderful adventure, horror, and love story, as well as a tale of finding yourself and taking your story back.

Iris and Lucy are both wonderful characters I fell in love with, and I only wish I had been able to read more of their tale. I enjoyed every second of this book, and damn I wasn’t prepared for that ending, though I was pretty happy with it.


If you need a sapphic tale for spooky season, this is a great pick.

I loved the stetting, the gothic vibes were very well done and it was an interesting modern day Dracula retelling. It did lose my interest at points and was a bit long winded. Overall, I did enjoy it. I would recommend and read from this author again. Thank you so much to Netgalley, Kiersten White, and Random House Publishing Group for providing this free ARC.
3.5/5