Would you recommend this series?

[Michelle]

I definitely think this series is worth reading. It's not like the vampire stuff that's coming out these days, it's dark, existential, and the writing is excellent. Yes, they may be long, and some of them are better than others, but they have deep, complex characters whose lives are interwoven, and they explore so many interesting (and important) themes. I've read up to and including Merrick and plan on starting Blood and Gold very soon. Anne Rice has such a unique, "french" style, it is emotional and beautiful.

[Michelle]

PS For horror vampires, try the just completed The Strain trilogy. Not the best writing, especially in the last book, but the vampires are definitely not touch-feely!

[Cecilia]

I really liked the first two books of Anne Rice's vampire chronicles...Interview With the Vampire & The Vampire Lestat. After reading several of these comments I think I should try giving to rest of the series another try again. For some reason I couldn't get into the third book so quite after the first two.

As far as recommending these books...oh yeah...I definitely recommend them!

--Cecilia

[La Toya]

I would chime in and say read the series. I have read all of them and I like how she grows the character from book to book. I'm one of the few (it seems (smile)) who enjoyed Queen of the Damned. I really enjoyed Tales of the Body thief and Blood and Gold.

[Lawrence]

I liked Interview with the Vampire and Vampire Lestat, but Queen of the Damned put me off completely

[Ginny]

I've read all of the Anne Rice vampire novels. I loved them all. They are exciting and habit-forming.

[Mary]

If you want some "fun" vampires that are not teenage angst, try the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris.

[Michelle]

LaToya wrote: "I would chime in and say read the series. I have read all of them and I like how she grows the character from book to book. I'm one of the few (it seems (smile)) who enjoyed Queen of the Damned. I ..."

I really liked Queen of the Damned too.

[Jason]

Eherod wrote: "I think there might be something to what Alice says about this series. Back in the day this was the best vampire story to have been written (in my opinion). I also don't know what sort of an impact..."

Some excellent points. I don't think I need to add any more.

[Heven]

I have read all of the books in the series except for the last three. I love them, and highly recommend them to anyone that is looking for something to read that is out of the ordinary and not filled with a lot of what I consider "squishy romance".

[Krissyt]

Boring

[Mary]

I've read the whole series, and I liked them.

[Serene]

This series was ground breaking when it first came out. I really liked vampire lestat and interview. The rest were only ok to me.

[La Toya]

Mary wrote: "If you want some "fun" vampires that are not teenage angst, try the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris."

I am a big fan of the HBO series so I'm reading the books as they match up to the season. I'm excited about starting book five soon. I have enjoyed the ones I have read so far.

[Rachel]

I read Anne Rice's posts on Facebook (which I highly recommend. she is fascinating and not at all what I expected--pleasantly); of course many comments are about this series. After a while, the conversations led me to re-read the series. These vampires do not sparkle while whittling away at eternity by romancing moon-eyed teenagers and baiting the local wolf pack. The scenery, history, imagery, strengths and weaknesses of these vampires romanced me when I first read them, and made me feel that flame again when I re-read them. There are places where the reading slows that I hadnt remembered. As to the movies, for me Lestat never looked like Cruise (he could have played the forever teenaged Armand though) Pitt came close to Louie and Bandares, while sexy as hell, was miscast only because Armand was made vampire during the Renaissance as a teen-aged Italian hardbody. The other movies were just...sad. The original question was "Would you recommend this series" and my answer wholeheartedly is absolutely.

[Darrell]

StrÖm wrote: "I wasn't sure if it was worth reading or not. I see alot of mixed reviews on here."

I really enjoyed the vampire series (especially the first three). Ann Rice is credited by some for the recent movement into all the vampire novels/movies that you see today.
Interview with a vampire takes the unique perspective of a human reporter interviewing a vampire about his life from human to vampire to the time of the interview. Ann Rice does a good job of integrating the store in an almost urban fiction way. If you like urban fiction, vampire stories and a unique perspective, then you will probably like the series. Hope this helps.

[Rachel]

@Mary/LaToya--So the TrueBlood series is based on those? I didnt know that! Looks like my TBR list just grew..

[Mary]

Rachel wrote: "@Mary/LaToya--So the TrueBlood series is based on those? I didnt know that! Looks like my TBR list just grew.."

Yes they are, although there is quite a bit of difference between the books and the series. Both are great though.

[Stevelee]

Although Anne Rice's books eventually lost me, the Vampire series, for certain the first three, are most excellent and I highly recommend them - you will not be disappointed.

Steve

[Ashley]

I liked the series but eventually abandoned it. Because many of the characters overlap the books became very repetative with the same events being retold but from a different characters perspective.

[Robert]

Highly recommended if you like passionate, subtly erotic, very gothic stories. I don't usually read vampire books, but I adored these and I think she's a very gifted writer.
I've read:
Interview with the Vampire (1976)
The Vampire Lestat (1985)
The Queen of the Damned (1988)
The Tale of the Body Thief (1992)
Memnoch the Devil (1995)

My favorites were 1, 2 and 4. But 3 was good and had some amazing moments. The only one I wasn't crazy about was Memnoch the Devil. I think she got overly ambitious with that book.

[*Kashi*]

you have to give it a try at least "ïnterview"
I enjoyed the first 4 books. haven't read anything after "Menoch". too much religion for my taste.

[Lisa]

The first two novels definitely, and the third one is fun but a bit over the top, however after that it goes terribly off road.

[Lisa]

BTW, in later years I read and ended up loving Blackwood Farm, but Blood Canicle (the next book in the series, after Blackwood) was horrible.

[Sally]

I love this series. When I was in 8th grade it was the best thing ever.

[Jennifer]

The series is still worth reading. The "new" breed of vampire series just isn't up to the sensuality that this series so eloquently displays. Vampires are not meant to be saviors of the world, they are meant to be sensual dramatizations of what all humans desire whether they know it or not, and that is eternal life. Albeit it is life lived in the dark and drinking blood, but the desire to live forever, and do what one wants, is what the vampire really represents. Not this highly sexualized versions we have now. Anne Rice created classic vampires of the Count Dracula variety, and I could go on for pages about him and what the myth of the vampire truly represents.

[4030lisa]

I enjoyed this series. The writing style was a little different than what I had been used to choosing, but I'm glad I did as I find I rather like the taste of 'Rice'! (At least so far as Lestat and his associates are concerned.) The books did manage to take me out of my day to day world and transport me into another place and time and that to me, makes it worth a positive comment here. Even beyond here, if asked, I would recommend them to you wholeheartedly.

[Pandora]

Would definately recomend this series! I first found Interview with the Vampire in a refuge my sisters were staying at, in 1979! Still got the tatty paperback copy and it's a bit worse for wear...but can't bear to throw it out, I loved it so much! This started my obsession for the series, and Anne Rice novels!

[Cass]

Any one who has not read this series deffintily should i have to addmit interveiw with a vampire starts kind of slow but its an amazing book still and make sure you read queen of the damned by ann rice!

[Donna]

Robert wrote: "Highly recommended if you like passionate, subtly erotic, very gothic stories. I don't usually read vampire books, but I adored these and I think she's a very gifted writer.
I've read:
Interview wi..."

These were my favorites in the series as well. At the end, they might as well have been written by a ghost writer. The series veered so far left of where it started. It had a good run, though. Cry to Heaven, The Feast of All Saints, and the Mayfair Witches trilogy area also amongst my favs.

[Cass]

im not really into vamp books but their was something about intervview with a vampire series that mad me keep reading

[Jabberwocky]

Carol L wrote: "Loved the Vampire series. ADORED the Mayfair Witches. Have read them all twice."

The first few books the vampire series were okay,after Queen Of The Dammned, I began to lose interest. but like Carol, I LOVED the Mayfair Witches. The witching hour... one of my favorites of all time.

[Sean]

I was an avid Anne Rice fan when I was younger and loved the first three books of this series. I still recommend them with the caveat that they are not like the current crop of vampire stories.

[Pixie]

You should definitely read this series. I found that the first book of this series was rather slow paced for my taste but the rest of the books were amazing.

[Ricotn]

It is definitely worth reading the vampire series. They are dark and such fun. I haven't read her Mayfair Witches series. Should I?

[Donna]

Ricotn wrote: "It is definitely worth reading the vampire series. They are dark and such fun. I haven't read her Mayfair Witches series. Should I?"

Just like everything, taste in novels and their content are subjective. I thought the series was wonderful and recommended it to several of my friends. Some liked it, some did not. It was definitely innovative and addictive for me. It's quite detailed in a way I find fascinating. Try it.

[Terry]

As always, it depends what you like and what you're looking for. The first two are excellent books that invoke character and scene very well. They're very sensual books, and there are very few teenager or teen angst love stories in sight. The locations (New Orleans, Eastern Europe, Paris, et al) are a big part of the books; these are Vampires in settings, and the settings matter.

Also, the philosophical angle to immortality (and therefore mortality) is well-explored. The contrast between Books 1 and 2 is an excellent example of point of view being a factor; the reliability of both narrators is extremely questionable, which I loved. The second book introduces a grand weep of history (the third even more), which is fascinating.

What they're not is Twilight: The Prequel. Also, I'd tend to agree about the later books. Parts of 3 and much of 4 are excellent, but there is some cringeworthy stuff in them (I'm still convinced that Anne Rice tried to write a rock star character in 3 without ever having been to a rock concert; that's how it seems). And 5... don't even go there.

My own recommendation: read One and Two if you like Vampires as a concept, not if Twilight is all you like. Although, George RR Martin's Fevre Dream is a better Vampire novel than anything Meyer or Rice have written.

[Jennifer]

I have Fevre Dream. I borrowed it from a friend and have not read it yet. Is is really that good?

[Boris]

Its a good series, but you realy have to get into it and Love the style of the narative and the characters. Otherwise it will not be an easy read. Also, you can't read Vampire chronicles without Mayfair Witches,because in the end both series cross over. However, don't make a dessicion about Vampire books just by reading Interview with the Vampire. Its very different from the other books (and it was writen like 15 years before the second book- Vampire Lestat). Read Vampire Lestat and than you'll know if you will continiue any further. And after reading Vampire Armand, take a brake from Vampires and read all 3 Mayfair Witches novels. This way, when the cross over starts you will be 100% familiar with the characters and their storis

[Terry]

Okay, Vampire Lestat is probably on a rough par with Fevre Dream, maybe, but it's for sure an outstanding book, and definitely better than the others in the series in my opinion. A really cleverly worked take on Vampire mythology, and a very touching story.

[Lindsey]

I would totally recommend, these books still sit pride of place on my bookshelf and I have re-read them a number of times, particularly the 1st three. The characters are captivating, the setting is always beautifully depicted and they stand the test of time as some of the greatest vamp books ever written.

[Minnie]

I definitely recommended them, Anne Rice is a great world builder and her characters are rich and complex. In terms of vampire lore these books are a must, at least for me they were the first introduction I had to the genre. They shaped my outlook on what classic vampires should be like.
I will say that towards the last books of this series, much of its initial shine is gone, as I think Anne Rice's creative mind was invested on other projects. But besides that, an incredibly good read.
I will point out that they differ a lot from the more mainstream sex filled, alpha male ridden vampire books from now a days. Oh and of course they especially differ from shiny, moody and melodramatic teenage vampires featured in "young adult" books.

[Steven]

Read "Bram Stoker's Dracula" before any of the other vampire books/series. That one set the standard. But the first two Anne Rice vampire books are pretty good.

[C.C.]

I loved the series. I hate some titles in the series though: Memnoch the Devil (1995), Blackwood Farm (2002)
Blood Canticle (2003). They dealt a lot in Catholicism. I'm not Catholic & it was just too much. However, I love Lestat. Anne Rice crafted a great and memorable character.

[Carol L]

Definatley YES to the Mayfair Witches Ricotn....hope you love them (PS, several re=reads adds lots of detail!)

[Maxi]

I loved Interview with a vampire. It was a great book. However, although it is recommended that you read this before any other book in the vampire chronicles, the best for me is really Queen of the damned, Tale of the Body thief and memnoch the devil.

[Jennifer]

Steven wrote: "Read "Bram Stoker's Dracula" before any of the other vampire books/series. That one set the standard. But the first two Anne Rice vampire books are pretty good."

Me too. I read Dracula when I was about 13 or 14 before I had even heard of Anne Rice, and that kind of set the bar for Vampire novels. I think that she did a great job with "Interview with a Vampire", the "Vampire Lestat", slipped a little on "The Queen of the Damned", and the Mayfair Witches was a lot of fun to read

[Katie]

Her vampire and witch books are a great read and a good story. I've been reading them since '88 when I was in high school. I havent tried her new book about werewolves but If it's anything like her older books then it should be good. I tell everyone that they should at the least give her books a chance (the older ones). Her vampires don't sparkle so if your wanting a teenie bopper omg book ..... then it's not the vampire series for you.

[Rw]

I really enjoyed the whole series and the other books that Ann Rice wrote. My only problem with her writing is that I never feel like she is able to put herself in the shoes of a man. Basically, in all her books, the men are effeminate. As skilled a writer and story teller that she is, maybe she makes the men effeminate on purpose. Who knows?

[Olivia]

This series makes you want to be a Vampire. Sensuous and alluring . . . you want to be bitten.