The most recommended books about Transylvania

The Aswang mythology of the Philippines is fascinating and storied, a menagerie of creatures as horrific as any from Transylvania. This novel by a Filipina-Canadian author about a young man returning to his roots to find more werewolfery than he bargained for delves into its fascinating lore with cultural authenticity.

A beautifully written account of an Englishman who ventures to rural Romania and ends up staying after he falls for a gypsy girl.

The author captures a seemingly idyllic, pastoral way of life and describes it with such grace that I was left longing to join him swinging a scythe in the hay meadows or sitting by a crackling wood stove after a day of splitting logs.

Although the book covers a period of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, the world Blacker documents could be from a century ago. It’s a moving, wistful, sometimes amusing, and eventually poignant account of a way of life that likely no longer exists; recommended for all arm-chair travellers or anyone with an interest in Romania.

Leslie Klinger’s annotated version of Dracula is one of the most recent editions, and it surely is the most entertaining one, suitable for readers who are no Dracula experts (yet). Some of his comments build on the (purely fictional) assumption that the Count himself had his hand in editing Stoker’s text. In a single instance, when it comes to the historical Dracula family, Klinger drops the ball, but he makes a unique contribution to Dracula Studies by comparing Dracula’s final text with that of Stoker’s typescript, found in a barn in Pennsylvania in the 1980s. His attention to geographical details greatly inspired my own research into this matter. The book comes with a number of illustrations and helpful appendixes.

I picked up Dracula in my desire to read more classics. I was not prepared for what a page-turner it is! The first chapter will send chills up your spine and the pace never slows. I especially love how Stoker employes multiple narrators and narrative devices (letters, journal entries, etc.) to tell the story of the evil and mysterious Count Dracula. Happy to say that the original Dracula story is also the best.

This funny and fascinating memoir is a great read and provides a window into what life was like behind the Iron Curtain in the 1960s, under a brutal and oppressive regime. 

Mackay spends two years in Romania’s capital, Bucharest, as visiting professor at the University. Spied on, treated warily by locals, and forbidden to travel, he nevertheless finds ways to see the country and gain insight into its culture and people.

Whether you want to find out more about Romania or you just want a captivating read which will open your mind to how different life can be without the freedoms and privileges we currently enjoy in the West, you will love this book.

This is a really thorough, fascinating encyclopedia of all things vampire––from folklore to nineteenth-century literature to obscure religious movements to comic books and movies to true crime. Whatever you want to know about vampires, this book will have it or tell you where you can find it. J. Gordon Melton is a total fanatic when it comes to vampire lore and he encouraged me early on when I first began researching the vampire community. Besides vampires, Melton loves to collect obscure information and data on all manner of religious groups. He once described himself to me as “a very greedy scholar” because there are so many topics that he tracks and researches. He can also tell you the best used bookstores in any city in America.  

If you want a little mystery, intrigue, and adventure sprinkled into your historical romance, I don’t think you can find anyone better than Emmanuelle de Maupassant. Her Lady’s Guide series is perfect for you if you want to be rescued by a hero or glorify in a powerful heroine. It’s packed full of mysterious gentlemen, mistaken identity, adventure, travelling across Europe and of course, steamy delightful encounters… 

I admit. I stalked Quinn at Dragon Con. It took me all day to finally summon the courage to approach her and fangirl out. It was after a panel, and no one else was waiting to talk to her.

A most prolific, brilliant, and underrated author, her Saint-Germain series is astounding and profoundly impacted and inspired me. Her main character is faced against impossible odds, which he resolutely and astutely conquers each time while protecting those he holds dear.

The books’ settings move through the sands of time and across continents, all uniquely accurate. Her PhD in history sings through these historical fiction books (hundreds of them) that don’t quite fit into any one genre. She created her own—a literary goddess.

As a Romanian-born reader who is fascinated by Vlad the Impaler's life and folklore I was drawn to Grigorcea's presentation of the ancestral homeland and Dracula's haunting legacy. Her portrayal of a post-communist society still grappling with its past echoed my own experiences and observations. 

The atmosphere is eerie, dreamlike in places, and the lines between history and fiction are blurred. But Grigorcea's exploration of fate and the enigmatic figure of Dracula adds depth and complexity to the story. Yet it is not a bloodthirsty vampire novel or a modern Dracula à la Bram Stoker - which I appreciated.

It's a novel that delves not only into the historical and supernatural, but also into the enduring power of Romania's cultural heritage. Overall, a captivating and evocative read that held my attention.

This novel, published in 1879, is set in Romania at the time of the 1877-8 Russo-Turkish War. It is significant for its setting because it predates Dracula (1897) in being set in Romania (home of Transylvania). Nizet was a twenty-year-old Belgian woman who encountered Romanians in Paris who told her about how Russians had treated them during the war. Nizet created the character of Captain Vampire to represent how Russia acted like a vampire toward the Romanians, even though they were Russia’s allies. Captain Vampire’s behavior is shocking yet fascinating. As a critique of war, the novel is extremely relevant today given Russia’s recent invasion of Ukraine. Personally, I am amazed by how a woman who never saw a battlefield could capture war’s essence so vividly.