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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
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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.
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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!
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Summary: Read this first.......if you get a chance
Review: I read the series out of order, sitting through Blood Canticle first (eeew)because I didnt know this was still available. It is still the best. If you have seen the movie, know that the book was first, and the stories do change from page to screen. First off, the lives of Louis & Lestat are far more tragic than you could ever feel the depth of on screen. There is history, traditions, subtle nuances in here you just cant watch in a movie. The characters are strongly developed. They truely are the saddest group of vampires you will ever meet. These characters are the strongest, and if you dont fall in love with them in just a few pages, your'e ,ost likely made of stone ! Ms Rice has taken a creature formerly associated with sheer terror, and made it the very sourceof all human emotion, suffering, and pain. I notice that alot of people fall in love with books in what is referred to as the "prime" of thier lives. In reading this, one can see why. The simple allure of being "perfect" and "preserved" forever. To have a lifetime to change, grow, and perfect ones true image. Its a book you cant put down ! VIVE Lestat !
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Summary: Poetic, erotic, and deeply engrossing.....
Review: The first book of the Vampire Chronicals was the finest of the series. Anne Rice's words are spellbinding, and almost force you to feel Louis's pain, horror, and despair at killing, which he must do to live, as well as the ecstacy of the killing, the taking of blood. His love for Claudia is a palpable thing, you can almost touch it, as well as his hatred of Lestat. The writing is lyrical, almost musical. Some find the homoerotic imagery disturbing (Although as Rice's vampires have no sex, I really don't know why). I am of the opinion that Louis is her finest character, far subtler and richer than the over-the-top Lestat. I read this book in one ten-hour sitting, I became so engrossed so quickly. Anne Rice has written many wonderful (and a few laughable) books, but this is her jewel
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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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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.
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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.
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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.
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Summary: ~Marvelous~
Review: This has been a truly MARVELOUS book to read. I just finished it yesterday and was engrossed with it. Spellbound. I saw the movie first and was intrigued by it, as well as intrigued by my recent interest in New Orleans and Concrete Blonde's song "Bloodletting". I wasn't sure how much I'd like the book due to the fact that I'm not a typical vampire-obsessed Anne Rice fan.. I've never read her before now. But this story was so compelling that its magnitude surprised me. It saddened me how the interviewing boy treated Louis' confessions at the end.. the movie ended very differently. The entire story is tragic yet eloquently beautiful. Read it, read it, read it!!
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