Reviews with content warning for Stalking - Interview with the Vampire

This book has the most developed characters of any vampire novel I've read so far. It took a while, but the main characters really grew on me and the ending really left an impression that I wasn't expecting.

It was slow to read at times, especially the beginning, but once I got into it, I was engaged in the story, and by the end, each character arc ended in satisfying and bittersweet ways that further endeared me to them.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves vampires, and would advise them to try to stick with it to the end.

I know Louis and Claudia have a father-daughter relationship...however why did Anne Rice feel the need to have them call each other their lover etc? Like... I know it's not like that but I felt icky sometimes idk if that was just me.

I loved Louis and Arnard, I interpreted their relationship as queer (idk how u wouldn't), and it was funny how Louis would keep internally justify their love as platonic, metor-mentee kind of bond but PLEASE they were spewing the most romantic lines. I was crushed by the ending, they were so close to happiness together.

In the end, I felt so bad for Lestat, and I liked how full circle Louis arc was as he finally understood Lestat, and in a way became like him by the end.

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stooby's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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thesawyerbean's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A dark, eerie and dramatic memoir of the life and experiences of a vampire named Louis, told in the context of an interview with a terrified but intrigued boy.
The story unfurls before us, laced with treachery, eroticism, death, love and a lot of blood; paced with twists, turns and climaxes; and underpinned with a nuanced discussion on existence and the concept of good and evil.

What made me not enjoy it as much as I could’ve was the lack of connection with the protagonist. I know fundamentally he is supposed to be evil as a murderous vampire, but I think in reading vampire fiction we suspend the vilification of this inhumanity as one both expected and understood. However, the seeming obsession in contemporary vampire fiction of making important characters have involvement in the slave trade/confederacy is so off-putting and honestly needless. In addition, his relationship with Claudia (although a grey area considering her actual temporal age), was very strange and gave off similar vibes to that in Lolita. Overall my empathy with Louis was extremely stunted from the get-go which made the rest of the story quite the slog.

That was a shame indeed, as the writing is incredible - vivid, atmospheric and poetic. If my gripes with the characterisation were non existent I’d be tempted to give it 5 stars just for that. As an important part of the vampire canon I’d say this was worth the read, especially for spooky month.

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delaney_de_spain's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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mothstrand's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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mysimas's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I first saw the film when I was a child, a little older than ten perhaps; I was allowed to stay past my bedtime to finish it, and it was unlike anything I had seen before. I’ve been fond of it and the characters ever since, even if I now think the story a tad too melodramatic and emo for my tastes.

The book, I never liked as much - frankly, it’s bit of a slog at times, showering you with unnecessary words where much fewer would suffice. I’m sure at least half its shine stems from nostalgia. But like with the movie I’m fond fond fond and will keep coming back…

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