Dracula's bloodline (University Press of America)

This engrossing book tells the story of the Florescu family, from its feudal blood ties, to the notorious 15th century figure Vlad Tepes (Count Dracula), right up to present day, touching on such diverse personalities as the Kennedys, Bill Clinton, and Michael Jackson.

In the tradition of Alex Haley's Roots, Dracula's Bloodline relates a multi-generational saga through the prism of one family's narrative, from medieval Eastern Europe to the post-Communist era.

The book provides an inside look at Romania's bloody and turbulent history-a mostly untold narrative that embraces the cruel Ottoman invasions, vying boyars seeking to change the political order at home, and the toppling of the Ceausescu regime.

The story of each century is told through the eyes of one Florescu (or more) who had a unique perch from which to view his or her contemporary society. Florescu and Cazacu drew on research that had mostly been kept in family hands.To track the Florescu footprint down through the centuries since the 1400s, they used many sources: the Brasov archives in Transylvania, select letters, unpublished diaries, and extensive family documents that have been scattered from Europe to the United States.

This fully indexed book offers many photographs from family archives, as well as a glossary of terms and titles, and a full genealogy showing the Florescu's family links to Vlad Tepes.