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A review by arianappstrg
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
dark
reflective
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.0
4: 'It didn't have to end like that... I don't accept it... You talk about things that millions of us won't ever taste or come to understand. And then you tell me it ends like that... You don't even understand the meaning of your own story, what it means to a human being like me'. And that sums up how I feel about this book.
I totally respect how much of a revolution this book was when it was first published not only because it breathed fresh air into the vampire universe/trope/canon but also because of the socio-political context of the period. You can read the story through various themes and events in American history such as opulence and crumbling economies, stardom, AIDS, the Vietnam war, corruption, homosexuality and art. It indirectly touches on all the above, whether that is through its elegant exploration of death, religion, existential dread or our sublime connection to nature and twisted need for blood, control and terror.
Rice humanizes vampires, makes them flawed and vulnerable and pits them against the great binaries; life and death, good and evil, God and Satan, knowledge and ignorance. To this day, I have never read a vampire story that subverts, so discreetly and intrinsically, what we think we know about vampires and human nature. It looks beyond the traditional vampire storyline, strives to be engaging, contemporary and subtly political and refreshingly philosophical. Honestly, you think you're reading about vampires, you think you're falling into that great abyss of fantasy and escapism only to discover that this immense abyss of blood-drinking, sensual killing and existential crises, gradually, starts looking back at you. In our own unique way, we are immortal. We delight in blood. We seek a deeper meaning in life. We lose ourselves. We curse our emotions and go numb. In the end, we are really not that different from Louis, Lestat and Claudia.
There are a few things I would like to say about religion and the quality of the writing. Exploring religion and the nature/existence of God seems to be one of Rice's main objectives, at least, in this first book and though she uses her extended metaphors, similes and all that magical imagery very well the theme does feel overly recycled after a while. I know New Orleans has marvellous sites, churches, and cemeteries for religious worship. I know that the quest for and questioning of God, defying God, living like a God, acting like a God, is part and parcel of the vampire's existential madness. However, there is no need for it to be explored on every other page. I caught myself wanting to skip most of Louis' religious rumblings to get to the bits where he talks about his emotions, his connection to human beings, his love of life and all things beautiful. Rice does a great job unravelling these aspects of her characters, especially when it comes to Louis but I feel there should have been more balance between the grand narratives she chose to explore. At times, I felt she was addressing me directly on the subject of God, like the author was present more than the character. It read like 'now, let me walk you through my PowerPoint presentation on my religious realisations' which is not a bad thing at all, it's just that there is too much of it.
Lastly, I am new to Rice's vampire verse, this is literally the first book of hers I read, but can someone help me understand that freaky 'father-daughter/lover-lover' (and that's a direct quote from the text) dynamic between Louis and Claudia? I feel this needs to be addressed 😂. It was simultaneously engrossing and gross. It is quite possible that human rules when it comes to parenting do not apply to vampire parents and I get that but the number of times Louis describes Claudia as an object of sexual interest is borderline pedophilic 😂. Now, because my little brain is sick and loves reading about all these twisted dynamics I found it, as I said, engrossing but at the end of the day, it didn't really bode well with my morals and took me places I'd rather not go. Still, I thank Anne Rice for making me confront topics I am not comfortable with. Something tells me she is doing exactly that in other books as well.
I totally respect how much of a revolution this book was when it was first published not only because it breathed fresh air into the vampire universe/trope/canon but also because of the socio-political context of the period. You can read the story through various themes and events in American history such as opulence and crumbling economies, stardom, AIDS, the Vietnam war, corruption, homosexuality and art. It indirectly touches on all the above, whether that is through its elegant exploration of death, religion, existential dread or our sublime connection to nature and twisted need for blood, control and terror.
Rice humanizes vampires, makes them flawed and vulnerable and pits them against the great binaries; life and death, good and evil, God and Satan, knowledge and ignorance. To this day, I have never read a vampire story that subverts, so discreetly and intrinsically, what we think we know about vampires and human nature. It looks beyond the traditional vampire storyline, strives to be engaging, contemporary and subtly political and refreshingly philosophical. Honestly, you think you're reading about vampires, you think you're falling into that great abyss of fantasy and escapism only to discover that this immense abyss of blood-drinking, sensual killing and existential crises, gradually, starts looking back at you. In our own unique way, we are immortal. We delight in blood. We seek a deeper meaning in life. We lose ourselves. We curse our emotions and go numb. In the end, we are really not that different from Louis, Lestat and Claudia.
There are a few things I would like to say about religion and the quality of the writing. Exploring religion and the nature/existence of God seems to be one of Rice's main objectives, at least, in this first book and though she uses her extended metaphors, similes and all that magical imagery very well the theme does feel overly recycled after a while. I know New Orleans has marvellous sites, churches, and cemeteries for religious worship. I know that the quest for and questioning of God, defying God, living like a God, acting like a God, is part and parcel of the vampire's existential madness. However, there is no need for it to be explored on every other page. I caught myself wanting to skip most of Louis' religious rumblings to get to the bits where he talks about his emotions, his connection to human beings, his love of life and all things beautiful. Rice does a great job unravelling these aspects of her characters, especially when it comes to Louis but I feel there should have been more balance between the grand narratives she chose to explore. At times, I felt she was addressing me directly on the subject of God, like the author was present more than the character. It read like 'now, let me walk you through my PowerPoint presentation on my religious realisations' which is not a bad thing at all, it's just that there is too much of it.
Lastly, I am new to Rice's vampire verse, this is literally the first book of hers I read, but can someone help me understand that freaky 'father-daughter/lover-lover' (and that's a direct quote from the text) dynamic between Louis and Claudia? I feel this needs to be addressed 😂. It was simultaneously engrossing and gross. It is quite possible that human rules when it comes to parenting do not apply to vampire parents and I get that but the number of times Louis describes Claudia as an object of sexual interest is borderline pedophilic 😂. Now, because my little brain is sick and loves reading about all these twisted dynamics I found it, as I said, engrossing but at the end of the day, it didn't really bode well with my morals and took me places I'd rather not go. Still, I thank Anne Rice for making me confront topics I am not comfortable with. Something tells me she is doing exactly that in other books as well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Slavery
Minor: Pedophilia
A note on the pedophilic element of this novel. For me personally, it's minor and it's indirect but it's most definitely there. It's something in the way Louis describes Claudia, in his whole body language with her and in the thoughts he has about her. And then there is Rice's parallelism of the relationships between father and daughters and lovers which I feel might be disturbing and triggering for people. It was for me so I thought a heads-up was in order.