From Bram Stokerâ s Dracula to Stephenie Meyerâ s hugely successful Twilight series of books, writers, artists and film makers have been entranced by the vampiric legend for hundreds of years. In the West, the vampire myth is widely thought to have been based on the life of Vlad the Impaler, a 15th century Wallachian warrior-prince whose devotion to cruelty and killing made the lives of his subjects miserable, bloody and short. However, bloodsuckers of all shapes and sizes feature in many cultures.
Vampires explores these diverse myths and legends, their impact upon popular culture and the possible explanations behind such phenomena. The book also investigates the lives of real-life individuals who have dedicated themselves to the pursuit of blood, drawing on the vampiric tradition for their inspiration.
Charlotte Montague is a freelance writer who specializes in history. Her father was a naval officer, and as a child, she travelled the world with her family. After gaining an M.A. degree in History from Sussex University, she began writing on a variety of subjects including ethnic cultures, travel, and music. Since then, she has continued to write on costumes, on flags, on knots, on body adornment, on sea shanties, and many other topics. More recently, she developed an interest in the history of crime at sea, not only in Europe but further afield. Her current research has taken her to many parts of the globe, including Africa and the Far East, particularly the islands of the South Pacific. She travels for most of the year, but returns frequently to her home, a remote eighteenth-century cottage close to a famous smuggler's cove on the Cornish coast.