Rating: Summary: Awe inspiring book! Review: A story about how that vampires are not just monstorous creatures who have no feeling what so ever for their victims but about how human that these immortals could be. That they, even when having to feed on humans, deal with these situations as an immortal passing through time. That they are indeed human themselves. Showing limitations, bias, hatred, and all emotions that are common in all human beings. A must read
Rating: Summary: Beautifully Written Review: This book was gorgeous painting for the mind. The writting flows like poetry, and the characters have been deeply built. It has changed my view of the dark and twisted tales of vampires. Anne Rice is a genius. I can't put my feelings into words about how much I enjoyed reading this book.
Rating: Summary: Blood & Love Review: The cassette-recorded version of Anne Rice's novel is read wonderfully by F. Murray Abraham. He won the Oscar for "Amadeus" and has appeared in many films. His voice has excellent resonance and is greatly expressive. He tells this tale compellingly. As Louis the Vampire tells his story to the young journalist, we are drawn into the psyche of his once human existence, his Catholic roots in Louisiana, and his difficulty in leaving his humanity behind. Rice universalizes the vampire horror yarn as an intense psychological profile, giving it a depth of reality. As we learn about Louis' relationship with Lestat, we are fascinated and repelled. As Claudia becomes part of their vampire family, Abraham does a great job of conveying the ice running in the child's veins compared to the sensitivity and caring in Louis. The tale really becomes riveting as it moves to Paris and the Theatre Vampire comes in contact with Louis & Claudia. Sucking blood never sounded like a particularly erotic activity to me; but as Abraham milks Rice's dialogue, it becomes intensely erotic. Claudia's demise and Louis' teaming with Armand makes the climax rush to a fever pitch. I enjoy listening to tape versions of books during driving times. Abraham's version of this Anne Rice tale is excellent. Enjoy!
Rating: Summary: Great book Review: When I first read this book, I couldn't put it down. I had heard some friends talking about the Vampire Chronicles and the series sounded interesting. This book begins with Malloy, a man who "collects lives". He follows Louis into an old building, where the tale of Louis' life unfolds onto several tapes. His multi-century life tale begins with the end of his mortal life, describing how he was chosen by Lestat and taken into the world of the living dead, his search for knowledge of why he was what he was. In a turn of events, he begins a new life with Claudia, their little vampire child, until the Louis and Claudia plan Lestat's death (at the time, I hated Lestat. After reading Lestat's book, I now want to scream 'NO!' every time I read Interview). The move on to Europe, where they meet with Armand and his coven of backwards vampires. It is there that Louis finds the curse of the beauty of being a vampire - he is destined to a life of solitude and loneliness.
Rating: Summary: The First and the Best Review: Readers who are only familiar with Anne Rice's later, more self-indulgent work are likely to be pleasantly surprised by Interview With the Vampire. I certainly was. After a disappointing introduction to the legendary New Orleans author through the weak Violin, I was only interested in reading Interview because of its role in promoting the vampire revival of the 90's. I thought that reading it would be an act of research and contrition. I was wrong.This is a strong, lush, and original (at the time, though much-imitated today) piece of writing. The blend of the erotic and the horrific is true to the spirit of the original Dracula. The attention to detail that would become so over-the-top in Rice's later books is well-balanced and poetic here. The characters are at once individual and mythic (though admittedly some of them are a little given to navel-gazing.) The dilemma of the child-vampire is an excellent addition. If you are interested in horror, in vampires, or simply in a good read, you should try this book.
Rating: Summary: Very Good Review: In a word, Interview with the Vampire was excellent. In two words, excellent and wonderfully-written. The story centers around a vampire, Louis, as he descibes his life from the time he became a vampire. What makes this book so good is both Anne Rice's excellent and descriptive style of writing, and the reality with which she portrays Louis's character. As you progress through the book, you can see the his character and personality evolve, from a weak and sentimental vampire to a powerful and detatched killer. His emotions play an important part in the book, from his hate to Lestat, to his love of his child-companion, Claudia, to his admiration to the arch-vampire Amand, and are almost always the driving force of his actions. When I first picked this book up, I expected a gory and grotesque story. While the plot has much action, and there are many scenes of killing and dismemberment, this book didn't strike me as a horrific one. This book isn't a very easy book to read, as the language is pretty high level and it deals much with Louis's philosophic musings and the inner workings of his mind. The plot is also sometimes very complex, and you see instances where various vampires quarrel over something that happened a century prior, and that causes the plot to be very confusing at times. I'll admit that this book didn't make me want to pick it up each time, but once I started, I couldn't put it down.
Rating: Summary: vampires: reflecting human nature Review: This was the first vampire book I've ever read, and it wasn't really what I expected at all. It was better. The story, presented as an interview (naturally) traces the life and after-life of the vampire Louis from suicidal young man to cold, calm, veteran killer. Rice dispels many cliches with the *shocking* revelation that vampires are not repeled by crucifixes or garlic, and can see their reflections in mirrors. Louis himself is a most sensitive vampire who learns to both appreciate and fear the heightened senses of his kind. He also has a difficult time adjusting to killing, and hates his own innate cruelty as much as he craves blood. Louis has many thoughtful reflections on the concepts of death and evil that even mortals may find revealing (and which never sacrifice the pace of the unraveling drama). His introspective personality clashes with his irrepressible and often reckless master/creator, the vampire Lestat. Lestat uses the addition of the child vampire Claudia to their "family" as a means of keeping Louis subordinate. Through her immortal vampires, Rice actually addresses the theme of human nature: sensual, paradoxical, and often cruel.
Rating: Summary: Curse of the Vampires Review: I love vampires. Always have, onscreen and on the published page - from Bela Lugosi's Dracula (seen countless times on the old Saturday afternoon Shock Theater) to Stephanie Rothman's hip 1970 VELVET VAMPIRE. So it was with great enthusiasm that I approached Anne Rice's work several years ago, and it was with slight disappointment that I exited it each time. I don't know why she doesn't appeal to me the way she does to so many others. "Read the first one, read the first one!" my friends all admonished. "It's the best." So I did. I have just finished INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, and I'm no more an Anne Rice enthusiast than when I started. Maybe it's the book's lush overwriting, its constant purple prose, its almost endless striving to be elegant. Maybe it's the violence. Some of it does go "over the top", and I am usually not a prude about such things. I don't know. I'm just left as cold as one of the blood hunters Rice depicts. Oh Rice has "skills", to coin a popular teenage phrase. She can create a memorable set piece that has the reader turning pages. And there are a number of memorable moments in this book. The initiation of Claudia. The "death" of Lestat. The fabulous Parisian Theater of Vampires. The concluding scene with the young reporter. Each is riveting, even enthralling. But in-between those scenes there is too much chatter, too much introspection, too much - huff and gruff. I appreciate the book's classic status. And I'm going to continue reading Anne Rice, hoping the magic spell she has cast on millions of readers will soon ensare me.
Rating: Summary: It's ok. Review: This book starts very, very slow, but picks up quickly and finishes very well! When you read it, stick with it through the dull parts, it's worth it.
Rating: Summary: UGH! Review: After everyone's review I thought, wow this must be a great book. Boy was I wrong what a WASTE OF MONEY. This was the first book that I picked up written by Anne Rice and it is my last.
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