Intriguing Swedish adaptation of Stoker’s Dracula novel makes its appearance.

So, background: there’s an Icelandic-language version of Bram Stoker’s Dracula (called Powers of Darkness) that’s pretty gonzo (English translation here). We didn’t know about it for a long time, because it was in Icelandic, which meant that anybody who came across it probably just assumed that it was a straight translation. But it’s not: there’s apparently a good bit more sex, action, and Satanic Masonic Conspiracies in the Icelandic text, which made it ideal fodder for Ken Hite’s The Dracula Dossier (you simply must acquire a copy, if you have not yet done so) RPG supplement.

Anyway, there’s apparently also a Swedish text that’s different from both the English Dracula and the Icelandic Powers of Darkness: “A recent translation of Makt myrkranna (Powers of Darkness) by Hans de Roos has seemingly unearthed an earlier Swedish version of Dracula, Mörkrets makter, which appears to shed new light on de Roos’ theory that Stoker collaborated with Icelandic writer Valdímar Ásmundsson.” Short version of that: a serialized version of Dracula appeared in Swedish newspapers in 1899 that has elements that appear in both the English text (1897) and the Icelandic one (1901).  All of which suggests that possibly the changes in the Swedish and Icelandic texts may have been done with Stoker’s awareness, or even assistance.  That’s very exciting news, for a rather (heh) esoteric value of ‘exciting.’

Via @kennethhite, who will no doubt wince at everything that I got wrong on this subject.