Interview with the Vampire
Ratings309
Average rating3.8
15
Ratings309
Average rating3.8
This is the story of Louis, as told in his own words, of his journey through mortal and immortal life. Louis recounts how he became a vampire at the hands of the radiant and sinister Lestat and how he became indoctrinated, unwillingly, into the vampire way of life. His story ebbs and flows through the streets of New Orleans, defining crucial moments such as his discovery of the exquisite lost young child Claudia, wanting not to hurt but to comfort her with the last breaths of humanity he has inside. Yet, he makes Claudia a vampire, trapping her womanly passion, will, and intelligence inside the body of a small child. Louis and Claudia form a seemingly unbreakable alliance and even "settle down" for a while in the opulent French Quarter. Louis remembers Claudia's struggle to understand herself and the hatred they both have for Lestat that sends them halfway across the world to seek others of their kind. Louis and Claudia are desperate to find somewhere they belong, to find others who understand, and someone who knows what and why they are.
Louis and Claudia travel Europe, eventually coming to Paris and the ragingly successful Theatre des Vampires--a theatre of vampires pretending to be mortals pretending to be vampires. Here they meet the magnetic and ethereal Armand, who brings them into a whole society of vampires. But Louis and Claudia find that finding others like themselves provides no easy answers and in fact presents dangers they scarcely imagined.
Originally begun as a short story, the book took off as Anne wrote it, spinning the tragic and triumphant life experiences of a soul. As well as the struggles of its characters, Interview captures the political and social changes of two continents. The novel also introduces Lestat, Anne's most enduring character, a heady mixture of attraction and revulsion. The book, full of lush description, centers on the themes of immortality, change, loss, sexuality, and power.
([source][1])
[1]: http://annerice.com/Bookshelf-Interview.html
Reviews with the most likes.
Very well written book, although the flourished, Victorian prose is lost on me. I mainly liked the overall idea of the book, and what it set in motion in the world of the vampire genre, as with the creation of the Vampire: The Masquerade RPG.
The protagonist, Louis, is kind of stupid and the ethics of the story are incredibly lack lusting. Maybe I have to give credit because of the time the events took place, but for a well read man, one who knows his Socrates, to see nothing wrong in killing indiscriminately or not to be able to see evil in degrees is disturbing. But ignorance is necessary to keep the feeling of hopelessness and dread the book sets out to establish.
The villain, Lestat, is kind of a shallow and one dimensioned, but still satisfying, depiction of a monster. There were some attempts made in order to add more nuances to his personality, with Louis evolving his opinion of him the more time they spent together. But still, Lestat is just a psychopath who enjoys torturing and killing his victims. And Louis, the vampire he sired, is too naive and inexperienced to make the distinction between what he perceives to be two inexorably bonded traits: being a vampire and being a psychopath.
I like my characters stoics, but Louis can't help but despise his vampiric nature, and Claudia to bewail in vain about her eternal childish features. But these aspects also contribute to the story being told, making it a bit more interesting as well. Lestat and Armand are the only ones who fully accepted what they are.
So, for the depiction of vampires as more then just monsters, because of Louis conflicting nature, his fear of what he is becoming, fear for his immortal soul, if it has not been dammed already, I approve this novel.
For anyone who likes vampires, read the RPG, 2nd or 3rd edition. You will forever judge everything else vampire related to the lore described in that book.
I read this for my first time ever in anticipation of the show and really enjoyed it! It was unlike what I expected, though I can't really articulate what I expected, and I enjoyed it. Going in with virtually no spoilers, I was very much along for every twist and turn.
Après avoir enfin lu le Dracula de Bram Stoker, je me suis décidé à lire une autre oeuvre emblématique du mythe vampirique : Interview with the Vampire, de l'écrivaine américaine Anne Rice.
Outre son succès auprès des lecteurs, ce roman est également connu pour son adaptation sortie au cinéma en 1994, avec Brad Pitt et Tom Cruise dans les rôles principaux.
Le titre nous renseigne d'abord sur un point : nous allons lire un entretien avec un vampire. Enregistré par un jeune journaliste à la fin du XX° siècle, le récit du vampire prénommé Louis nous fait découvrir le mythe du vampire revisité par Anne Rice.
Louis est né en Louisiane à la fin du XVIII° siècle, il avait une vingtaine d'années quand il a été attaqué et transformé en vampire par Lestat, avec qui il va partager sa vie pendant de longues décennies malgré leurs différences de personnalité. Lestat est sans scrupule, sans foi, là où Louis doute, culpabilise, s'interroge sur l'origine des vampires, refuse sa condition de tueur sanguinaire.
Quand Lestat vampirise une jeune fillette, le duo devient un drôle de trio, avec les deux “pères” d'une vampire qui ne ne grandit pas, condamnée à garder son corps d'enfant. Les aventures de Louis vont ensuite l'amener en Europe centrale, puis à Paris, où sa vie va changer à nouveau.
Ce qui traverse ce livre du début à la fin, c'est la quête de Louis pour comprendre le bien et le mal et sa place dans le monde. C'est aussi l'histoire d'une relation complexe entre Louis et son “maître” Lestat, comme entre un fils et un père qui ne se comprennent pas.
J'ai tendance à considérer ce livre comme celui qui a donné naissance au mythe moderne du vampire, en le rajeunissant et en le remettant au goût du jour, à l'époque où le roman est sorti en tout cas, c'est-à-dire au coeur des années 1970.
Il y a des passages passionnants dans ce roman, d'autres un peu moins, mais j'ai pris du plaisir à le relire. Je crois même que j'ai plus apprécié cette seconde lecture que la première. Suffisamment en tout cas pour me donner envie de lui les romans suivants des Vampire Chronicles d'Anne Rice.
This book stole my heart and my soul and ripped them apart. I love it.
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