The Vampire Lestat is the second installment of Rice's Vampire Chronicles, and imo superior to the first installment. It's easy to look back at Lestat in IWTV and wonder about him, why he does what he does; it's obvious Anne Rice wanted to get into him with this book (to the point where TVL feels a bit revisionist). We get Lestat's human upbringing (sad and lonely), his turning (horrifying), and the life he built as a Vampire (unserious). 

I loved TVL, especially compared to IWTV. Lestat's voice is so fun and brimming with the life Louis refuses to have. It is a mistake to assume this book is fun though, TVL holds an unlimited amount of horrors. I loved how introspective and self-aware Lestat was as a character in this book. Even when he's over-emotional and distressed, there's a charm to him that caused me to sympathize more than I ever did with Louis. The whining is earned (sorry Louis). If you're familiar with the storyline of IWTV, I sometimes recommend that new readers pick up TVL first. That's up to you if it's considered sacrilege, just know that this is what I did years ago and I wasn't confused.