In her new novel, perennial bestseller Anne Rice fuses her two uniquely seductive strains of narrative -- her Vampire legend and her lore of the Ma...
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reviews
Apr 01, 2009
Dan
rated it: 
This was the last straw in my decade long relationship with Anne Rice. We had some good times but mutually decided to end our relationship. I loved her three witch books but the vampire stuff had been going downhill since Body Thief.
I hate this book. After years of okay to disappointing novels, this one was all I could stand. I didn't care about Quin and I hated that Rice felt the need to shoehorn Mona Mayfair into the vampire mythos. I found this book so uninteresting I actuall More...
I hate this book. After years of okay to disappointing novels, this one was all I could stand. I didn't care about Quin and I hated that Rice felt the need to shoehorn Mona Mayfair into the vampire mythos. I found this book so uninteresting I actuall More...
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Jun 22, 2010
Synopsis
The main character is Tarquin "Quinn" Blackwood, a child of the Blackwood clan, which is a powerful and old family in New Orleans. Tarquin is haunted by a mysterious spirit named Goblin, who is attached to him spiritually. He realizes that he is unable to defeat this creature alone. Risking his life, Quinn embarks upon a quest to enlist the aid of the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt. Lestat, after a fashion, agrees to help Quinn.
The novel develops as Tarquin recou More...
The main character is Tarquin "Quinn" Blackwood, a child of the Blackwood clan, which is a powerful and old family in New Orleans. Tarquin is haunted by a mysterious spirit named Goblin, who is attached to him spiritually. He realizes that he is unable to defeat this creature alone. Risking his life, Quinn embarks upon a quest to enlist the aid of the vampire Lestat de Lioncourt. Lestat, after a fashion, agrees to help Quinn.
The novel develops as Tarquin recou More...
Sep 27, 2011
Johnny
rated it: 
I liked the language but the story seemed slow to me. Pages and pages of nothing going on. I still feel like the places and people really exist somewhere, so that's a testament to the descriptive, detailed quality to Anne Rice's writing. Overall, I came away thinking that the entire book was just sort of boring. And the big reveal at the end was a bit lame. Or maybe it wasn't telegraphed as much as it seemed to be and the reason I saw through it so easily was because a very similar theme was
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Jul 28, 2010
Lisa
rated it: 
A 3.5, mixing The Vampire Chronicles with The Mayfair Witches, though this book definitely feels more like one from the latter series due to Quinn Blackwood's environs, large dysfunctional family, and spirit companion. Goblin, the spirit whom he has gone to Lestat for help with, feels very Lasher-like at times even though his origins and being turn out to be very different.
Anyone who's read anything of this series will know what to expect from the writing which once again conjures up More...
Anyone who's read anything of this series will know what to expect from the writing which once again conjures up More...
Aug 04, 2010
Jerome
rated it: 
Rice's vampire novels are epics which take us into a world of their own. I didn't know what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. The writing is great. Rice is able to paint vivid, colourful pictures in her readers' minds. The setting for Blackwood Farm is Louisiana, and after reading the book, I find I want to go there! Blackwood Farm tells the story of the Blackwood family, from the initial ancestor Manfred Blackwood and his first, beloved wife Virginia Lee, to Tarquin Blackwood (Quinn), the
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Aug 27, 2011
Bobby
rated it:
Blackwood Farm starts out with great promise. I expected it to become one of my favorite books as the storylines from the Vampire Chronicles and The Mayfair Witches became intertwined. So far it is the worst Anne Rice book I've read, which doesnt' mean that it's a bad book but that it does not live up to the standard set by her other masterpieces. Anne Rice is my favorite author and penned The Witching Hour (my all time favorite book) so I'm more than willing to cut her some slack. When she m
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Aug 09, 2011
I felt that this book had a few great stories in it but all in all, I have to admit to missing Lestat! Having no idea what has happened to him since his dance with the devil, I am starting to have withdraws! Lestat is my crack! On the other hand, the story of Quinn and Goblin is rather entertaining. Having read the story of the Mayfair's, I enjoyed their incorporation into the vampire clan. Although this began with Merrick, Mona is a perfect match for the new brood. To be honest, I thought
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Dec 22, 2007
Meirav
rated it:
Anne Rice writes sex *gasp* who'd believe it. There once was a boy with a perfect family who has a spirit haunting him everywhere, but he becomes a vampire so everything's OK in the giant rich house the boy lives in, his trips to Europe, and his wonderful family. Crap Rice.
Sep 23, 2011
Jane
rated it: 
I have been trying to gradually eek out reading the vampire chronicles and Anne Rice is my favourite author and the Vampire Chronicles is where it all began with me and every book closer to the end I get the more mixed my emotions get...
And so it was with great consideration I began to read the second to last book, Blackwood Farm.
What a great story teller Anne Rice is! I was gripped from the moment I picked the book up and was able to envisage each scene as it developed. More...
And so it was with great consideration I began to read the second to last book, Blackwood Farm.
What a great story teller Anne Rice is! I was gripped from the moment I picked the book up and was able to envisage each scene as it developed. More...
Dec 16, 2009
Katie
rated it:
I am normally a big fan of Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. There, I said it. But this one was terrible. You know, staid plot, boring writing, and real awkward sexual encounters with ghosts. But if you like that sort of thing, go for it.
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Jul 09, 2010
Ali
rated it:
This book...(sigh)...I have to say broke Anne Rice's spell over me. Before this book I found all of her normal plot devices (strange bedfellows, supernatural creatures, really long flashbacks, narcissism) beguiling and entertaining. But usually she chooses one or two of these things and shapes a really awesome story around it. In Blackwood Farm she just decided to take everything she had EVER written about, mix it up together, and then multiply it by 1000. I mean, really?! Vampires, witches
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Jun 10, 2010
I don't even know where to begin with Tarquin Blackwood and his twin who is a spirit who grew up with him. I fell in love with his character instantly because he is gentle and loving. Although he is a vampire he lives amongst his family and sleeps in a bed with heavy curtains to block out the sun. He begins his story with a letter to Lestat. All Anne Rice readers should know and love the one and only Brat Prince. Well Tarquin needs help getting rid of his beloved Goblin because when Tarquin got
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Jun 09, 2011
Bex
rated it:
I ended up pretty disappointed with this book. It is much more a ghost story than it is a vampire story. That concept in and of itself doesn't bother me, but I think it could have been developed differently and made a much better standalone book instead of forcing it into the Vampire Chronicles. I think that Anne Rice really cheated herself and the reader on this account.
The story of Quinn's transformation into a vampire is so completely incidental and unrelated to the main story that More...
The story of Quinn's transformation into a vampire is so completely incidental and unrelated to the main story that More...
Oct 18, 2011
Keshena
rated it:
Tarquin Blackwood has been the boy of my dreams since I first read this book, at not-so-sweet sixteen! I just adore his old-fashioned gallantry. I had not yet read the latter two Mayfair Witch chronicles, and yet was able to follow the story completely, and Blackwood Farm has ample charms of its own even if one isn't a devoted, entirely knowledgeable Rice fan. I've seen lots of reviews dismissing this character as a male Mary-Sue, but anyone who walks away from this book with that
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Aug 22, 2009
Gregory
rated it:
Not bad. If you can get past the fact that only the last 15% of the novel actually qualifies as a "vampire chronicle." If you don't go into this novel with your heart set on a blood-sucking vampire thriller with your favorite pal Lestat at the reigns, you'll enjoy a pretty decent story.
Actually, I find this novel serves as a better blend of Rice's vampire and witch worlds than the book Merrick is touted to do; but for a whole different set of reasons...
I gave More...
Actually, I find this novel serves as a better blend of Rice's vampire and witch worlds than the book Merrick is touted to do; but for a whole different set of reasons...
I gave More...
Jan 09, 2009
Alex
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jan 24, 2010
Evelyn
rated it:
i think i read this one already but can't remember so reading it again...
UPDATE: i did read this book before but it was apparently so forgettable i didn't remember until the last hundred or so pages and even then i wasn't sure til the very end... easy read though and as self-indulgent as only Anne Rice can be when she really doesn't have anything of significance to say...
still, gotta love her vampires - they're such interesting characters. it's because of them that i do More...
UPDATE: i did read this book before but it was apparently so forgettable i didn't remember until the last hundred or so pages and even then i wasn't sure til the very end... easy read though and as self-indulgent as only Anne Rice can be when she really doesn't have anything of significance to say...
still, gotta love her vampires - they're such interesting characters. it's because of them that i do More...
Aug 04, 2011
Pants
rated it:
I knew the series started to go downhill after The Queen of the Damned, but I never expected it to become the ugly mess that is Blackwood Farm. This book is everything that is wrong with Rice's writing: the way she exoticizes people of color and fetishizes bisexual men, the heavy handed purple prose, characters that are so privileged and melodramatic that their suffering is better described as whining, and the gratuitous inclusion of sexual fetishes. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with
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Aug 26, 2011
Dawn
rated it:
While I love Lestat, etc., and I can't say I truly dislike Quinn and some of the Blackwood Farm characters, I only reread this book because I wanted to go back through the entire series. Something irreversible happened to the landscape of the Chronicles because of Memnoch, or more truly, what drove Anne to write it. Don't get me wrong; I like Memnoch and Merrick and even Blood and Gold. But it just wasn't the same universe. She kept inserting tiny threads and leaving them to dangle, and once Blo
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Dec 21, 2011
Katie
rated it:
I love the first five books of the Vampire Chronicles, my favorite of all time. They didn't seem cliche, hackneyed or recycled.
However, I'm wondering if the description above was written by someone paid or high on acid. If anything, this book makes Rice's plot devices and recycled material completely obvious (plot devices are not noticeable in the first books).
This book was entertaining and enjoyable at times, but the following about this book bugs me:
- stum More...
However, I'm wondering if the description above was written by someone paid or high on acid. If anything, this book makes Rice's plot devices and recycled material completely obvious (plot devices are not noticeable in the first books).
This book was entertaining and enjoyable at times, but the following about this book bugs me:
- stum More...
Feb 12, 2010
Jason
rated it:
I was very disappointed by this novel. Having read reviews that suggested Anne Rice told a "really mean ghost story", I was looking forward to just that. This turned out to be stock writing, stock plotting, stock characters, and just about every stereotype of New Orleans you can think of. If Anne Rice is the favorite daughter of New Orleans, it must be because there are no other daughters.
Now, in this story, she sets up a very good situation, that could have really been a grea More...
Now, in this story, she sets up a very good situation, that could have really been a grea More...
May 15, 2008
Grace
rated it:
This novel marked the downfall of the series for me with the inclusion of the Mayfair witches. There's a reason I didn't read the Mayfair Witches series, and that's because the witches didn't interest me whatsoever. Furthermore, Mona Mayfair is pretty much the least likable female character ever written. I'm sorry, but I find it difficult to relate to or feel sorry for a 15 year old, spoiled, selfish, rich, manipulative nymphomaniac. At least in Merrick, the inclusion of a "Mayfair"
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Jun 08, 2007
Israel
rated it:
El libro narra la historia de Quinn Blackwood, un joven rico convertido a vampiro que narra la historia de su vida (para variar), describe su infancia en la mansión de la familia Blackwood y en la que todavía vive. Nos cuenta también su amor por Mona Mayfair a pesar de que mantiene una agitada vida amorosa y pide ayuda a Lestat (quien acude realmente para salvar las moribundas crónicas de Rice) para solventar un problema debido a su naturaleza vampírica.
Un poco forzada la mezcla de m More...
Un poco forzada la mezcla de m More...
Oct 09, 2007
Sherry
rated it:
"Welcome to Blackwood Farm: soaring white columns, spacious drawing rooms, bright, sun-drenched gardens, and a dark strip of the dense Sugar Devil Swamp. This is the world of Quinn Blackwood, a brilliant young man haunted since birth by a mysterious doppelgänger, “Goblin,” a spirit from a dream world that Quinn can’t escape and that prevents him from belonging anywhere. When Quinn is made a Vampire, losing all that is rightfully his and gaining an unwanted immortality, his doppelgänger beco
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Nov 28, 2011
Kristin
rated it:
I got my long overdue Anne Rice fix with this one. Somehow, she fell off my radar in the last 10 years or so, but I wanted to read something Halloween-ish this October so I picked this up and boy, I'm glad I did! This book is a perfect blend of the Vampire Chronicles and the Lives of the Mayfair Witches series, and every bit as good. It's crazy-- the vampires and the witches are hanging out now! Throw ghosts into the mix and now it's a party! And, she brings Mona Mayfair back...awesome.
Jan 11, 2010
Serenity
rated it:
In comes Quinn--a name that I have since fallen in love with--a young vampire with the balls enough to seek out the legendary Brat Prince for help. As he pleads with our favorite vampire, he paints us the story of his life and his entrampment in the unnatural world of ghosts, spirits, and vampires. His fascination with the strange, spiteful Rebecca; his ghoulish counterpart; and his recieving of the Dark Gift. It provides a very southern mood to the reader, and while the story may not center aro
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Feb 18, 2011
Lori
rated it:
I am not exactly "into" Anne Rice's Vampire novels. I enjoyed her 'spirits' books better (Taltos was a long-lived spirit but didn't like it as well as her other spirit/entity novels prior tol TALTOS).
But I listened to Blackwood Farm (audio book) and LOVED it. Perhaps because the narrator did a PHENOMENAL job with voicing & highly accenting the character's voices.
Have listened to it twice. Perhaps I'll try getting into her previous Vampie Chroniches some time.
But I listened to Blackwood Farm (audio book) and LOVED it. Perhaps because the narrator did a PHENOMENAL job with voicing & highly accenting the character's voices.
Have listened to it twice. Perhaps I'll try getting into her previous Vampie Chroniches some time.
Aug 23, 2009
Kate
rated it:
I was surprised that I liked this book as much as I did. I was planning to skim it to see if anything happened to a few Mayfair Witch characters I liked. Instead, it had interesting characters and 80% of the book wasn't about vampires at all and had a wider array of paranormal activity. I hesitated to give it 4 stars because the ending was rushed and kinda lame, but overall I really enjoyed it. Wish I could say the same for the next book in the series.
Feb 20, 2010
Aprille
rated it:
I sit here shaking my head. It started out okay, but ended up taking way longer than it should have. The narrator was not someone I cared about a lot - too much a child of privilege, too obsessed with the labels for high end brands of clothing, etc. And one of the main "big twists" was a reach. Trying to do something new & different? You don't have to go that far. I did not find it compelling, a source of conflict or interest or intrigue.
Feb 04, 2010
Patrick
rated it:
I think I actually liked this book more than most people, which is saying something considering I just rated it two stars. It's not a good book by even the most charitable standards. Perhaps the few things I did like I enjoyed because of the sheer absurdity, such as Lestat filling the role of a James Bondian super spy. I read this years ago when it first came out, and it was the last Rice book I read... and the last I ever expect to read.
