Scan barcode
A review by hollyway
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
5.0
I first read this book in 2007 when I was 12/13. It was probably the first real adult book I read and became an instant favourite. That was almost twenty years ago!! So I thought it was time to revisit it and figure out whether Interview with the Vampire qualifies as a favourite book or merely a foundational one.
Well, I can safely say it is a favourite, favourite, favourite, and I knew within pages that it would be. The narrative voice is impeccably dramatic, rich and spellbinding, the characters are iconic and the world is built up for us in descriptions so gorgeously original that I couldn't help but soak up every word. I was surprised and pleased with how genuinely creepy and disturbing it was at times, as well as hypnotically beautiful.
Beyond simply being effective in its style, this is a deeply philosophical novel in the vein of Frankenstein. Louis' eternal anguish over his very nature is agonising. Though he is lamenting life eternal and the parasitic nature of the vampire, it all echoes very human concerns. Themes of grief, love, hate, lust, self-loathing and the very meaning of life reverberate throughout every page of this novel - but never preaching to the reader, merely searching hand in hand for answers to unanswerable questions.
Though I struggle to conceive of what the hell I got out of this book at the ripe old age of 12 lol (I have to imagine that 90% of it went over my head) I'm not at all surprised at the way the characters and their relationships stuck with me over the years. No matter my distance from the novel, no matter the fact that I have never watched the movie all the way through and haven't yet watched the new adaptation, Louis and Lestat have remained vivid in my imagination this whole time (I'm surprised at how little I remembered of Armand, though, cos um. oh my god?). They are the kind of characters that truly take on a life of their own, tuck themselves in your pocket and travel on with you. I'm glad I met them when I was a kid and it was a pleasure to get reacquainted with them.
God I love reading!!!!
Well, I can safely say it is a favourite, favourite, favourite, and I knew within pages that it would be. The narrative voice is impeccably dramatic, rich and spellbinding, the characters are iconic and the world is built up for us in descriptions so gorgeously original that I couldn't help but soak up every word. I was surprised and pleased with how genuinely creepy and disturbing it was at times, as well as hypnotically beautiful.
Beyond simply being effective in its style, this is a deeply philosophical novel in the vein of Frankenstein. Louis' eternal anguish over his very nature is agonising. Though he is lamenting life eternal and the parasitic nature of the vampire, it all echoes very human concerns. Themes of grief, love, hate, lust, self-loathing and the very meaning of life reverberate throughout every page of this novel - but never preaching to the reader, merely searching hand in hand for answers to unanswerable questions.
Though I struggle to conceive of what the hell I got out of this book at the ripe old age of 12 lol (I have to imagine that 90% of it went over my head) I'm not at all surprised at the way the characters and their relationships stuck with me over the years. No matter my distance from the novel, no matter the fact that I have never watched the movie all the way through and haven't yet watched the new adaptation, Louis and Lestat have remained vivid in my imagination this whole time (I'm surprised at how little I remembered of Armand, though, cos um. oh my god?). They are the kind of characters that truly take on a life of their own, tuck themselves in your pocket and travel on with you. I'm glad I met them when I was a kid and it was a pleasure to get reacquainted with them.
God I love reading!!!!