Rating: 
Summary: Another Disappointing Installment
Review: Blackwood Farm was disappointing not because the plot was uniteresting but because the writing was so poor. As with so many of her books since The Queen of the Damned, Rice seems to have had no editor--no one to polish her writing. Where her writing used include exquisite descriptions, now it is overly flowery as if her writing has become an exaggeration of itself. It makes one wonder if she is really writing the books herself anymore. I found Lestat's repeated use of the nickname "little brother" annoying in its frequency as well as somewhat contradictory to his character. Quinn was almost too sensitive and melodramatic a creature to believe in or like. I believe it was curiostity, and not a love of the characters, that made me finish the book. The story line itself is interesting, its too bad that Rice's writing no longer lives up to her imagination.
Rating:
Summary: Desparately Needs an Editor!
Review: Rambling, random collection of words and images without plot or point. In Rice's first three vampire novels, but particularly in "Interview..." one always had the impression that the story was going somewhere...that there was a definite point to the tale. Lately, and most particularly in "Blackwood Farm" one realizes that Ms. Rice is being paid by the word, not by the quality of the story. The character's motivations are incomprehensible, their actions random and where characterization exists at all the actions are dissonant with the character's previously stated motives. I wish there were money-back guarantees on Rice novels. I would collect this one.
Rating: 
Summary: The Ending of Anne's Reign
Review: I hate to say this, but this book proved to me that Anne Rice is slipping. Many will hate me for saying this I know, but I also know deep down many will agree when they read this book. This book had to be the most boring novel Anne has ever written besides the Blood Canticle, which is the book after this one as well as the last of the Vampire Chronicles that was a major disappointment as well. This book was centered on a swampland down in Louisiana (where else?), and all Anne could talk of was the irrelevent description of this large mansion the main character, Quinn, lived in, and his Aunt's boots. I mean, who cares about boots! Fashion is one of the last things I pay attention to in a novel. And I think Anne was trying to make some sort of symbol out of the cameos that his Aunt had a plethora of, but I didn't catch on because the explanation of them was so long that I just skipped those paragraphs. I love Anne's descriptions, but not when they center on silly things such as jewelry and clothing, which is what half the words in this book are used for. I mean, who cares? And Anne needs to understand that many don't know of the expensive furnishings in this mansion she just merely labels (not all of us can be as rich as all her characters automatically are), so she needs to elaborate in some places and diminish in other places. Besides this, there's also the problems with the characters, I just didn't get in tune with Quinn, the main character, nor any of the others for that matter. Anne's characters are just growing strangely vague all of a sudden. I could feel no sympathy for Quinn, although I could tell Anne was trying in strained wording to make us feel this way for him. The only good part I found throughout this entire book where I didn't yawn was when Quinn at last got captured by the vampire he was destined to meet(I was waiting for this moment for forever, because it takes more than halfway through the book when the vampire at last comes!) and he's locked in this cage and the vampire tortures him for awhile. But even that gets weird after awhile.
Mainly this book I find a little perverted. I mean, Quinn is a sexually frustrated man throughout this entire book. Anne makes him go through a series of moments that are just too funny, especially when he sleeps with a ghost, although I can't even see how that's possible. And overall the book is dry. Like I said, nothing truly happens. The main storyline is that it's about a rich boy who grows up with his exact twin, except- and here's the twist- no one can SEE him. Scary. Fascinating. Really. And he grows up with this ghost, and the ghost does too, and suddenly Quinn wants him gone as he grows to be a man (both physcially and mentally), and while he's struggling with this spirit, he goes through a series of quests to this old mansion a little away from his own where his deceased grandfather went a long time ago to be by himself, and a lot of ho- hum clues lead to a mystery of his grandfather. Then at the end Lestat, the famous star of the Vampire Chronicles, who sits there listening to this story Quinn tells him like Malloy did with the vampire Louis in Interview with the Vampire, Lestat, with the just as vague character Merrick Mayfair who's supposed to be half witch half vampire, takes hand in trying to get rid of Quinn's twin ghost. It may sound interesting, but trust me, it's not. Book jackets can fool you, and this one does as well.
I give it two stars instead of one just because I loved the memory of the past novels of the Vampire Chronicles that I adored, and also because Lestat came back. But that's the only reason, which makes it a sad extra star. Sorry Rice fans, I think this is the end of Anne's reign, because her next and supposedly last Vampire Chronicles book Blood Canticle is no better whatsoever. If you're a lover of Anne Rice's literature, then go on and read it just to read it, but don't be too surprised if you finish the book and feel utterly empty like I did.
Rating: 
Summary: Best in years!
Review: I must say I was pleasantly surprised by this book! I religiously read the first books in the Vampire Chronicles, but became bored after the Tale of the Body Thief. I did like the Mummy (a must read) and the Mayfair Witches. This book has the spirit of the first ones as well as a new twist with fledgling vampire Quinn's doppelganger, Goblin, and the fact that Quinn is another of "Oncle" Julien Mayfair's progeny. Of course, the brat prince, Lestat, must be present as well. A good read!
Rating:
Summary: Now This was A Good Book
Review: Man, I have been looking for a book to read that just takes you on a journey. This was the book, I read it non-stop. I was so happy to be reading another Anne Rice book, that made me laugh,get a surprise, and talk out loud. It just so happens I read Blood Canticle before this one so I had to go back and read dear Quinn's tales of woe. Damn he had nothing to complain about he was a rich, spoiled brat, very much like Lesat, that could be what lead to the attraction. This book was a joy of words, and I wished there was more. I've got my fingers crossed.
Rating:
Summary: The "Old" Rice at her best...
Review: I am not going to review this book in the traditional way of relating a small outline, and then doing an "I liked it, I didn't like it" 3rd grade book report.(...) It is magnificent. The story is wonderfully woven and told, and the joining of two of the finest lines of modern day literature - The Vampire Chronicles & the Mayfair Witches - is simply a joy to read. Do yourself a favor; find a nice, quiet spot with no noise or distractions. Pick up a nice glass of wine, and then just read for the pure enjoyment of it. (...)
Rating:
Summary: Better than most of her recent works
Review: Which, of course, isn't saying much. Is she really in such desperate need of money that she needs to give us yet another book that's clearly only half finished?
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not Rice's Best
Review: Having read almost everything Rice has written and everything she has written about the Vampire Chronicles, I can say that this is not her best work. Rice does a good job with an exciting story-line, which is usually the strongest part of her work. Her character development struggles a little bit in this book as with the rest of her recent work. The main character struggles with his sexuality and the homo-erotic prose is stronger in this book than in her other works. Lestat, usually the star, is only part of the backdrop and not seemingly himself. He is understanding, open with his feelings, and overly supportive. The whole book had a "too good to be true" aspect to it that detracted from an otherwise gripping storyline. Everything the teenage main character tried to do worked, despite the odds, and it seemed to be presented in a flippant and casual manner. This gave the book a slapstick overtone that was never present in the original Vampire Chronicles. In those works, the characters struggled mightily with their obstacles and challenges and success was never a certainty. In this work, the characters and the challenges they face in life are simply too shallow. In essence, Rice's story was so good that it worked in spite of her recent drop in quality.
Rating: 
Summary: A Page Turner
Review: I got into Anne Rice more than a decade ago and was a die-hard fan with the original trilogy. Interview, Queen, and Memnoch were my favorite ones. I liked Memnoch especially b/c it really delves into some intense philosophical subject matter. I loved the Mayfair Witch trilogy too. Thought Witching Hour was astounding. The Vampire Armand came along and I couldn't get through it. Stopped reading Anne Rice for years. So I picked up Blackwood Farm at CVS last week and something about the storyline made me want to read it. It's the Doppelganger concept, which can be very freaky. (For you Twin Peaks fans, think Evil Agent Cooper). I read it in just under a week and I couldn't put it down. I think the reason I loved it so much is that I just wanted a good little story out of this book, and wasn't expecting an epic storyline like Queen or Memnoch. This book has GREAT atmosphere-the lush backwoods swamps of Louisiana is the locale. It has dark family secrets, which usually makes for a good book even without vampires. After reading it, I'm inspired now to go back and read Merrick and Blood and Gold. Can't wait to read Blood Canticle too. The whole problem with developing a series is the heightened expectations I think. Interview was startling when it came out b/c it was so original but a dozen books later, the vampire thing is no longer novel. The only way you can sustain it is to come up with really interesting characters you care about (i.e., Lestat, Louis, and David), or introduce new paranormal phenomenon (i.e., witches and ghosts). After reading Blackwood, I'm proud of Anne Rice again and the way she keeps drawing us into her world and makes us care.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book for a Rice fan.
Review: I loved how the story criss-crossed with the Mayfair Witches.
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