The Vampire Chronicles #1: Interview with the Vampire

This book has been part of my life for a long time. My lover, whom I have known since high school, already spoke to me about it at the time as a fascinating book. He has reread it several times. Ten years later, I am also reading it to share an important literary experience for him, and to finally get to know Anne Rice who, with her 36 books and her worldwide success, is a must in fantasy literature.

Summary

In 1980s New Orleans, a young journalist spends a long and terrifying night listening to the story of a vampire born in the late 18th century. He becomes one of the few humans, if not the only one, to gain access to a vampire's innermost thoughts and learn how these creatures that haunt mortal nights live.

Impressions

From the first few sentences, I knew I was in for some quality. The first-person narration creates a gripping sense of intimacy. The tone wastes no time in establishing itself: dark, mysterious, slow, pensive and painful, there is plenty of time to savor the horror. This is the kind of book that you know you won't let go after a few pages.

This intimacy that we develop with the narrator is in itself a chilling experience. We begin to follow him while he is still mortal, like us. Then, we witness his transformation into a vampire, and we follow all the physical and psychological consequences. His respect for life and his sense of right and wrong remain intact... for a while. Time will eventually transform him completely into a supernatural creature, who inhabits the world but is not part of it.

While moving at a good pace, this book is very contemplative and rich in detail. The new vampire's experiences are described in such a way that you feel you understand them; you feel empathy for him. It is always dark, and each setting is painted like a picture. Without being explicitly named, red and black stand out clearly and tint the entire universe.

I wasn't scared during my reading, but I was a little anxious. I even had a little nightmare after reading a particularly graphic passage right before bed.

But I really liked how nothing in this book is black and white; everything is nuanced. We all have ideas about what a vampire is; this book destroys many of them. We may tend to judge some of the characters we meet rather squarely; again, we are thrown off. Appearances are deceiving.

Yes, this book is the age of my parents, but I enjoyed my reading immensely, and I recommend it to anyone who is even slightly attracted to fantasy literature. I look forward to continuing the The Vampire Chronicles. Hours of fun ahead.