Varney the Vampire or The Feast of Blood was a mid-Victorian era gothic horror story by James Malcolm Rymer (alternatively attributed to Thomas Preskett Prest), which first appeared 1845–47 in a series of pamphlets generally referred to as penny dreadfuls because of their inexpensive price and typically gruesome contents. It was published in book form in 1847. It is of epic length: the original edition runs to 868 double columned pages divided into 220 chapters.
Despite its inconsistencies, Varney the Vampire is more or less a cohesive whole, originating many Vampire themes and conventions, recognizable to modern audiences.