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Anne Rice’s books have sold almost 100 million copies. When it comes to the gothic horror novel, she’s the undisputed queen. While she’s currently sworn off horror in favor of religious works, she’s still adored by a legion of fans drawn to vampires and the supernatural. Here are the top 10 Anne Rice novels.
10. Pandora – As with Lestat, Louis and Armand, the morose vampire Pandora gets her own novel. An interesting read which stretches all the way back to the days of the Roman Empire.
9. Cry to Heaven – A historical novel dealing with a Venetian noble and a Calabrian maestro. Lots of graphic consensual sex, especially between young boys known as castrati (boys were sometimes castrated in order to preserve their soprano voices). Not for everyone, but it does contain a lot of interesting historical facts.
8. Blood Canticle – This unusual work combines characters from Blackwood Farm, The Vampire Chronicles, and the Mayfair Witches. Some fans loved it, others hated it, but it’s still worth a read.
7. Lasher – The story of witches and demons. This is the second book in the Mayfair Witches series.
6. Servant of the Bones – A historical novel which features elements of horror. Told in the form of a fireside chat, the story deals with the life of a genii named Azriel.
5. The Tale of the Body Thief – Lestat continues to try and regain his lost humanity, a task which is made easier after someone manages to switch bodies with him – leaving him quite mortal. This is the first of The Vampire Chronicles not to feature flashbacks into the past.
4. Memnoch the Devil – In this installment of The Vampire Chronicles, the devil himself pays a visit to Lestat and tries to recruit his aid. Readers get to hear about events from the Bible from the viewpoint of Satan himself.
3. The Queen of the Damned – The third in The Vampire Chronicles, this novel explores the origins of the vampire and introduces a number of new characters. A powerful creature is also killing vampires around the globe, often causing them to burst into flames.
2. Interview with the Vampire – Published in 1976, this was the first novel in The Vampire Chronicles and the first to introduce the vampire named Lestat. The movie adaptation featured an all-star cast including Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise.
1. The Vampire Lestat – This novel was a massive hit and follows the life of the vampiric Lestat, the villain of Interview with the Vampire. Rice fills her novels with plenty of lush descriptions, and Lestat is a robust character who mixes arrogance and self-loathing in equal doses.
This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009 at 10:56 am and is filed under Best Horror Books, Best Horror Writers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
[...] The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice – Arguably better than her first book, Interview With The Vampire. Probably because Lestat is a more interesting character who enjoys being a vampire. The book is full of gothic melancholy and creates a whole vampire history. [...]