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S.T. Gibson’s A Dowry of Blood is a harrowing Dracula retelling. The story is told from the perspective of the vampire’s bride, Constanta. It details her turning and falling hopelessly in love with a monster. I went into this book blind, originally thinking it to be a gothic romance. Needless to say, my assumption was far from accurate but this book exceeded my expectations.

A Dowry of Blood is written in the form of a final love letter from Constanta to her ‘savior’. Constanta opens their story by professing how dearly she loved him, and just how sickening and cruel he turned out to be. She strips her lover of his name, just as he had stripped everything she used to be from her. He molded her into an obedient pet rather than a wife, and took away her voice and her original name. In a final goodbye, Constanta strips him of his own name, only addressing him by You. 

“You did not let me keep my name, so I will strip you of yours. In this world, you are what I say you are, and I say you are a ghost, a long night’s fever dream that I have finally woken up from.”

This last letter is Constanta reclaiming her voice and her power. He can no longer control her, no longer keep her quiet. 

Throughout the story, you see the vampire lord use Constana’s love as a means of control. He becomes her savior and she idolizes him in every sense of the word. In the beginning, she is a shiny new toy to keep him company in his endless life. As the years stretch, he loses his infatuation with her and begins to collect and turn other humans. Constanta also begins to wish to engage more with the world, to see and feel more than she has been allowed to. He manipulates Constanta into also wanting these new companions, convincing her this is what she wants as well. 

This is where we meet Magdelena, a Spanish aristocrat with an affection for politics, and Alexi, a poor boy from Russia who steals and models for artists to make money to eat. When the vampire feels as if his brides are slipping away, he decides to entice another to bring a spark back. He uses these newer brides as a means of manipulation. 

Constanta is much much older than Magdalena when she is brought into the ‘family’. When she sees the way her husband is trying to seduce her, she feels a riot of emotions. Jealousy, fear, desire. She wants a companion who is her equal, yet is unsure what that means for her position as a bride. Is he bored with her? Is he unsatisfied with her love? 

When Magdalena is turned and joins them, Constanta realises the issue does not lie within herself. It is him. He could feel Constanta wanted more. More freedom, more life, more vibrancy to the lonely lifestyle she had been forced into. He was losing control over her, but with Magdalena in the mix, she had found a purpose again.

Not only does her lord fall for Magdalena, but she does as well. Constanta feels the need to protect her from his cruelty and violence. He had created this relationship dynamic because he knew Constanta’s love for Magdalena would stop her from ever leaving, because that would mean running from her as well.

Eventually, the cycle continues with Magdalena as well. He prevents her from communicating with the outside world, the politicians and people she had correspondence with. Magdalena had a strong affinity for freedom and independence, and when he began to isolate her as well, she grew severely depressed.

“You were so far into our heads your gentle suggestions so often felt like our own thoughts.”

The lord then sets his eyes on Alexi, the poor boy from Russia. Just as Magdalena was a spark for Constanta, Alexi was the spark for Magdalena. Constanta begins to recognize these patterns of abuse and rewards. She can no longer hide her fury and the motherly instinct to protect these new pets the vampire has seduced.

The once quiet and obedient Constanta finds her breaking point, and the three brides betray their lord and kill him in their wedding bed. Finally, they have found the freedom and power once granted to them years ago.

A Dowry of Blood is a tale of deceit, betrayal, and fury. One of my favorite elements of this book is the format. I think setting the story up as a final love letter from Constanta to the vampire lord made for a much better format than the typical chapters. It is told as the nightmare it was, a goodbye as much as it is a fable about regaining power from someone who had taken so much from you.

Bluebeard’s Castle

While A Dowry of Blood is a Dracula retelling, it also has elements of other famous literature. Specifically, it made me think about Charles Perrault’s fairy tale “Bluebeard’s Castle”. In this story, we learn about a newly wed bride who marries a very wealthy nobleman. When she is taken to his castle, he gives her the keys to all of the doors, but forbids her from opening one door in particular. Overcome with curiosity, she opens the door to find all of her husband’s former brides, butchered and murdered.

In A Dowry of Blood, we see this reflection in a certain part of the story where Constanta cannot overcome her curiosity to break into her lord’s workshop. Inside, she finds a box containing letters sent to different lovers and brides all across the world, some before her and some during the time she was married to him. It is in this moment where we see Constanta’s first doubts about the life she was promised. She realized that she had not been special, and had not been chosen first. Constanta realizes that even if he claims to love her, he could just as easily kill her if she became too difficult, just as he had with his other wives. 

The vampire lord is the same as Bluebeard, enticing poor and wanting women and getting rid of them as he pleases. Constanta knows she will never be safe, and was never anything more than a replaceable bride.