The Vampire Lestat
It's been about fifteen years since I first read this book back in high school, but it turns out that I'm still a little bit in love with Lestat. I guess that first love never really goes away. Reckless, blonde, devil-may-care vampires who fall in love at the drop of a hat do it for me every time.
The Vampire Lestat is a much better book than Interview With a Vampire, mostly because Lestat is a much more interesting character than Louis. He's curious without descending into brooding. He tries to be moral without getting self-righteous about it. He makes mistakes, but he's mostly able to learn from them and move on. And he's just so in love with the world around him that you can't help but fall a bit in love with him, too.
This book is epic and romantic. It dragged a bit at times, especially in the middle. But the payoff is so rewarding. I love the deep dive into vampiric lore and how their culture has changed over the centuries. I love the way answers are gradually teased out and how early statements are later revealed to be partial truths or outright lies. For the most part, it's paced very well. It's a lush, engrossing book, and it was formative for me.
And that's the thing - I'm always going to be biased in favor of vampires. Even though I struggled with this book at times, I ended up loving it because I love Lestat so much. It was like being fifteen again and remembering all those over-the-top emotions from that time of my life. I doubt I'll read the rest of the series for the same reason I never did before - it's all downhill from here. But I'll always have Lestat.
The Vampire Lestat is a much better book than Interview With a Vampire, mostly because Lestat is a much more interesting character than Louis. He's curious without descending into brooding. He tries to be moral without getting self-righteous about it. He makes mistakes, but he's mostly able to learn from them and move on. And he's just so in love with the world around him that you can't help but fall a bit in love with him, too.
This book is epic and romantic. It dragged a bit at times, especially in the middle. But the payoff is so rewarding. I love the deep dive into vampiric lore and how their culture has changed over the centuries. I love the way answers are gradually teased out and how early statements are later revealed to be partial truths or outright lies. For the most part, it's paced very well. It's a lush, engrossing book, and it was formative for me.
And that's the thing - I'm always going to be biased in favor of vampires. Even though I struggled with this book at times, I ended up loving it because I love Lestat so much. It was like being fifteen again and remembering all those over-the-top emotions from that time of my life. I doubt I'll read the rest of the series for the same reason I never did before - it's all downhill from here. But I'll always have Lestat.
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