Apr 08, 2009 00:00
So, the epic fail that is Twilight (and I'm sorry to anyone who is in love with them, but I enjoyed them, but they are seriously made of fail) kinda put me onto a vampire kick. Not that I haven't loved vampires for as long as I can remember, but it prompted me to read The Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice. I have read them before, but it was quite a while ago, and I think I read some of them out of order and over a wide span of time with other books between.
I, of course, started with Interview with the Vampire. I seriously love this book. And I like it more than The Vampire Lestat. I really, really do. And I realized (as I was reading the latter) that it is because I like Louis better. I think that I identify with him more. I really like the Lestat that we come to know in his own book, and he truly is the best vampire in the history of vampires, but I still like Louis better. But I also love the relationship between Louis and Lestat. We learn so much about the history of vampires in The Vampire Lestat while we also learn of Lestat's history. Lestat is fascinating in his own way, in a different way than Louis. Louis is so easy to identify with, because he tries so hard to find meaning in what he is. He wants to know why, and how, and at the same time he can be drawn into the beauty of the world around him. Lestat...Lestat has the same issues of evil and good as Louis (though Louis doesn't really get that in Interview), but at the same time, Lestat is driven to be the best at whatever he is and does. He has no concept of being half-hearted. And Lestat finds that he doesn't need a reason behind what he is. That he is is enough for him.
And now, on to The Queen of the Damned. And if you have seen the movie and not read the book, do yourself (and Anne Rice) a favor and read it. Because the train wreck that was the movie does not do it justice. Not even a little. They tried to put The Vampire Lestat and The Queen of the Damned into a single movie and then twisted everything up until it was barely recognizable. Don't get me wrong, it was an enjoyable movie as long as you took it separate from everything else even remotely associated with The Vampire Chronicles. Including The Interview with the Vampire movie. But it didn't make sense in the whole scheme of things.
And after Queen is The Tale of the Body Thief which is also very enjoyable. But my favorite of all the books, at least at this point, is Memnoch the Devil. It is truly an amazing novel that twists faith and belief and religious themes and religious history into something...truly unique. At least in my opinion. I shall have to remember to post a review after I read it again...
vampires,
books