The Vampyre: The Origin Of Dracula A Tale 1816

Written by John William Polidori

Narrated by Geoffrey Giuliano and The Heretic

A young English gentleman of means, Aubrey is immediately intrigued by Lord Ruthven, the mysterious newcomer among society’s elite. His unknown origin and curious behavior tantalizes Aubrey’s imagination. But the young man soon discovers a sinister character hidden behind his new friend’s glamorous facade.

 

When the two are set upon by bandits while traveling together in Europe, Ruthven is fatally injured. Before drawing his last breath, he makes the odd request that Aubrey keep his death and crimes secret for a year and a day. But when Ruthven resurfaces in London—making overtures toward Aubrey’s sister—Aubrey realizes this immortal fiend is a vampyre.

 

John William Polidori’s The Vampyre is both a classic tale of gothic horror and the progenitor of the modern romantic vampire myth that has been fodder for artists ranging from Anne Rice to Alan Ball to Francis Ford Coppola. Originally published in 1819, many decades before Bram Stoker’s Dracula, and misattributed to Polidori’s friend Lord Byron, The Vampyre has kept readers up at night for nearly two hundred years.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Icon Audio Arts
• Release date: Nov 14, 2022
• ISBN: 9798887675626

John William Polidori

John William Polidori (1795-1821) was an English writer and physician, known for his involvement in the Romantic movement. After Polidori received his doctorate in medicine, he was employed by Lord Byron, acting as his personal physician who traveled through Europe with him. Paid to journal the experience, Polidori began his writing career at this time as well. He wrote plays, poems, novellas, and non-fiction, but is best known for innovating the vampire genre in fantasy fiction with his famous novel The Vampyre.