Novelisation of the script to the Hammer classic - actually I should say earlier script, because a number of things were changed for the final movie that pop up in the book, notably:
- a greater role of Baron's servant, Latour, who here threatens Marianne, kills Van Helsing's servant Jacques, and tries to kill Van Helsing but is killed by him.
- Van Helsing falls in love with Marianne... after rescuing her from a night out with the Baron, where the Baron had stripped her clothes off and was about to have his way with her (this is a raunchy hot book), Van Helsing takes her back to an inn, and winds up having sex with Marianne. Marianne is tempted under the sway of the Baron but it's her love for Van Helsing that keeps her from going completely over to the dark side.
- The climax involves the Baron being destroyed by Van Helsing invoking an old curse - where the Barton is punished by the dark side
It was a real jolt to read about Van Helsing having sex with the nubile Marianne (whose beauty is frequently commented upon) - mostly I guess because I pictured Peter Cushing and Yvonne Monlaur going for it. I struggled with the logic of some of it i.e. why the Barton didn't kill Van Helsing when he had the chance, why he kept Marianne alive. But there's plenty of atmosphere, violence (gorged necks, the Baron being attacked by bats), sex (lots of descriptions of Marianne and Greta's naked form, which was pretty racy) and it was an entertaining read.
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