Amaranthine Books, an awarded Croatian publisher dedicated to creating beautifully designed special editions of great books, has truly outdone themselves with their latest creation – Dracula. They literally gave their own blood, produced soil from Transylvania, and spend months working late nights creating a new edition of the age-old horror classic.
Amaranthine Books’ unique take on the classics
Zagreb based publisher Amaranthine Books is far from the average, run-of-the-mill publishing house, as they solely focus on re-creating the classics, giving their own twist to each book.
With a unique creative concept, the end result does not only make the book truly special but also provides an enhanced reading experience. By focusing on quality on all levels, Amaranthine produces books that last; books that you’ll buy for yourself, but leave to those who come after you.
After the success of their first title, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, especially the award-winning Hyde Edition, which is notable for being printed on black paper and double-sided illustrations, Amaranthine Books has released its next title – the legendary Dracula!
…the book comes in a sleek wooden box, beautifully carved and numbered, hiding a big surprise – a piece of real Transylvanian soil behind the small plexiglass window. The book shares all the wondrous art of its counterpart, but it has the title written in real blood of the creatives who worked on the project…
A book sensitive to light, just like Dracula
Dracula by Amaranthine Books comes in two luxurious editions: Transylvania Edition and Scholomance Edition, with both books draped in red, richly textured fabric, underlining Dracula’s opulence.
A common misconception is that Dracula was killed by sunlight, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth – he is merely sensitive to it, it makes him weaker. Therefore, creative director Marko Matijašević and illustrator Vedran Klemens decided to make the book sensitive to light. The cover and sixteen stunning illustrations inside the book absorbs light and then glows in the dark.
Both editions are printed on Pergraphica Natural Rough 100 gsm, paper exclusively available at Europapier, with the edges, painted black.
Real Transylvanian soil and a title written in blood…
The Transylvania Edition of Dracula, named after his domain, aims to offer a new reading experience of this famous novel. The number of copies – 666 numbered editions – was inspired by the point in the story where it is mentioned that Dracula was a student of the devil himself in the great underground halls of Scholomance. The book comes in a special slipcase with a wood motif, and the title of the book is pressed in the material, making it elegant and non-intrusive.
The second, Scholomance Edition, aptly named after the supposed place of Dracula’s education, is the ultimate collector’s item. The idea was to create something truly unique, without taking anything away from its counterpart, Dracula – Transylvania Edition. The number of copies – 50 numbered editions – was inspired by the number of boxes of Transylvanian soil that Dracula has shipped to London because he can only rest on the soil of his homeland. That is why the book comes in a sleek wooden box, beautifully carved and numbered, hiding a big surprise – a piece of real Transylvanian soil behind the small plexiglass window. The book shares all the wondrous art of its counterpart, but it has the title written in real blood of the creatives who worked on the project (don’t worry, it is sealed after drying!) – see the video below of the making-off.
Also, each book comes with a bookmark in the shape of a wooden stake, a precautionary method that ensures that you and Dracula remain on the same page, so to speak.
You can purchase your own copy at the Amaranthine Books webshop. And make sure to read Marko Matijašević’ The Making of Dracula article over at Amaranthine Books blog.
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