The Vampire Chronicles Collection, Volume 1 [Paperback]

Anne Rice (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2002

The hypnotic, deeply seductive novels of Anne Rice have captivated millions of fans around the world. It all began a quarter of a century ago with Interview with the Vampire. Now, in one chilling volume, here are the first three classic novels of The Vampire Chronicles.

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE
Witness the confessions of a vampire. A novel of mesmerizing beauty and astonishing force, it is a story of danger and flight, love and loss, suspense and resolution, and the extraordinary power of the senses.

“A magnificent, compulsively readable thriller . . . Anne Rice begins where Bram Stoker and the Hollywood versions leave off and penetrates directly to the true fascination of the myth–the education of the vampire.”
–Chicago Tribune

THE VAMPIRE LESTAT
Once an aristocrat from pre-revolutionary France, now a rock star in the decadent 1980s, Lestat rushes through the centuries seeking to fathom the mystery of his existence. His is a mesmerizing story–passionate and thrilling.

“Frightening, sensual . . . A psychological, mythological sojourn . . . Anne Rice will live on through the ages of literature. . . . To read her is to become giddy as if spinning through the mind of time.”
–San Francisco Chronicle

QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Akasha, the queen of the damned, has risen from a six-thousand-year sleep to let loose the powers of the night. She has a marvelously devious plan to “save” mankind–in this vivid novel of the erotic, electrifying world of the undead.

“With The Queen of the Damned, Anne Rice has created universes within universes, traveling back in time as far as ancient, pre-pyramidic Egypt and journeying from the frozen mountain peaks of Nepal to the crowded, sweating streets of southern Florida.”
–Los Angeles Times

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The ornate, casket-like packaging and neogothic graphic design of this immortal trilogy is eerily enticing on its own. But just lift the lid, slide the first tape from its ghostly sleeve, and you'll soon embrace the hypnotic realm of the undead.

Book 1, Interview with the Vampire, opens with the seductive purr of F. Murray Abraham (Amadeus) stating, "I was a 25-year-old man when I became a vampire, and the year was 1791." And so our ultimate antihero, Louis, begins the elaborate retelling of his long, tortured life as a vampire. Winding through the ages, from New Orleans to Paris, we follow Louis and his undying mentor, Lestat, as they feed on humans, whet their carnal appetites, and uncover an underworld of vampire brethren.

Book 2, The Vampire Lestat, brings us up to date, with Lestat waking from his earthen slumber to join the ranks of rock superstardom before sitting down to share the tale of his own haunting initiation into the vampire world. Michael York (Cabaret) puts his wonderfully fluid, cosmopolitan voice to good use, adding a dash of sly humor to this fast-paced, satisfying blend of sex and blood and rock and roll.

Book 3, The Queen of the Damned, takes us back, all the way back to ancient Egypt, exposing the origins of the vampire way. Narrating in eerily serene and gracious tones, Kate Nelligan (The Prince of Tides) leads us gently down this bloody path of immortal desires. David Purdham gives the voice of Lestat a wistful quality, tinged with an evil relish that exposes the master vampire's sanguine tastes.

Anne Rice has continued her Vampire Chronicles beyond these three novels, but that shouldn't make this collection any less tempting to either the undead initiate or certified vampire junkie. --George Laney --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap

The hypnotic, deeply seductive novels of Anne Rice have captivated millions of fans around the world. It all began a quarter of a century ago with Interview with the Vampire. Now, in one chilling volume, here are the first three classic novels of The Vampire Chronicles.

INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE
Witness the confessions of a vampire. A novel of mesmerizing beauty and astonishing force, it is a story of danger and flight, love and loss, suspense and resolution, and the extraordinary power of the senses.

"A magnificent, compulsively readable thriller . . . Anne Rice begins where Bram Stoker and the Hollywood versions leave off and penetrates directly to the true fascination of the myth–the education of the vampire."
–Chicago Tribune

THE VAMPIRE LESTAT
Once an aristocrat from pre-revolutionary France, now a rock star in the decadent 1980s, Lestat rushes through the centuries seeking to fathom the mystery of his existence. His is a mesmerizing story–passionate and thrilling.

"Frightening, sensual . . . A psychological, mythological sojourn . . . Anne Rice will live on through the ages of literature. . . . To read her is to become giddy as if spinning through the mind of time."
–San Francisco Chronicle

QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Akasha, the queen of the damned, has risen from a six-thousand-year sleep to let loose the powers of the night. She has a marvelously devious plan to "save" mankind–in this vivid novel of the erotic, electrifying world of the undead.

"With The Queen of the Damned, Anne Rice has created universes within universes, traveling back in time as far as ancient, pre-pyramidic Egypt and journeying from the frozen mountain peaks of Nepal to the crowded, sweating streets of southern Florida."
–Los Angeles Times

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 1280 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (October 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345456343
• ISBN-13: 978-0345456342
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (64 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #208,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anne Rice was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She holds a Master of Arts Degree in English and Creative Writing from San Francisco State University, as well as a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science.

She is the author of over 30 books, most recently the Toby O'Dare novels Of Love and Evil, and Angel Time; the memoir, Called Out of Darkness;and her two novels about Jesus, Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt and Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana,

Anne publicly broke with organized religion in July of 2010 on moral grounds, affirming her faith in God, but refusing any longer to be called "Christian." The story attracted surprising media attention, with Rice's remarks being quoted in stories all over the world.

Anne is very active on her FaceBook Fan Page and has over 550,000 followers. She answers questions every day on the page, and also posts on a variety of topics, including literature, film, music, politics, religion, and her own writings. She welcomes discussion there on numerous topics.

Her latest novel, The Wolf Gift, a werewolf story set in Northern California in the present time, will be published on February 14th, 2012. With this book, Anne returns to the classic monsters and themes of supernatural literature, similar to those she explored in her Vampire Chronicles, and tales of the Mayfair Witches.

Her first novel, Interview with the Vampire, was published in 1976 and has gone on to become one of the best-selling novels of all time. She continued her saga of the Vampire Lestat in a series of books, collectively known as The Vampire Chronicles, which have had both great mainstream and cult followings.

Interview with the Vampire was made into a motion picture in 1994, starring Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Kirsten Dunst and Antonio Banderas. Anne's novel, Feast of All Saints about the free people of color of ante-bellum New Orleans became a Showtime mini series in 2001.

Anne Rice is also the author of other novels, including The Witching Hour, Servant of the Bones, Merrick, Blackwood Farm, Blood Canticle, Violin, and Cry to Heaven. She lives in Palm Desert, California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chronicles of the vampires, October 23, 2005

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Vampire Chronicles Collection, Volume 1 (Paperback)

Anne Rice revamped the vampire-horror genre with the publication of "Interview with the Vampire," a supernational drama from the vampire's own mouth. It became an unexpected hit, and spawned a series of sequels that came to be known as the Vampire Chronicles. The first three books of the series are compiled here, and arguably remain her best.

"Interview With the Vampire" is the story of Louis, a grieving young widower and plantation owner, whose life is turned upside down when he meets the charming vampire Lestat. Lestat offers him a way out: become a vampire. Louis accepts, but once it's done, he finds that vampirism is more than he bargained for -- especially for his conscience.

"The Vampire Lestat" takes a totally different tack, showing us the world through the enigmatic, charming Lestat's eyes. After years of dormancy, Lestat wakes up in time for the early MTV years of the 1980s, becoming a rock star in the tradition of Ozzy and Black Sabbath. And like Louis, Lestat relates his long life's story -- how he became a vampire, his wanderings over the earth, and his investigations into the origins of vampirism itself...

"Queen of the Damned" builds on that research. Lestat's metal music has caused quite a bit of mayhem -- but not this much before: Akasha, Egyptian queen and mother of all vampires, has reawoken from her comalike sleep. The lesser vampires are having strange dreams, some are being murdered by the ruthless queen. Apparently she wants to kill virtually all men. What is more, Akasha has taken a shine to the roguish Lestat himself...

Vampiric autobiography is a given in Anne Rice's bibliography -- she has plenty of bloodsuckers telling us about their lives. But Lestat and Louis's were not just the first ones, but perhaps the most compelling and rich, especially since the two had such radically different viewpoints -- including of one another. Is Lestat a heartless fiend, or a roguish good-craving bad boy? I'd lean towards the latter, to be honest.

The first two books are quite personal -- one is Louis recounting his own miserable life and un-life. Then we get Lestat, a radically different viewpoint, a guy who enjoys his un-life even more than his mortal existance. Finally, there's an epic view of all vampires, throughout history, from the ancient Egyptian queen to the modern biker vamps.

Despite the more controversial recent novels, Anne Rice's first Vampire Chronicles are often reckoned to be modern horror classics. Rich, intriguing and far deeper than you'd think vampire fiction would be.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!, November 14, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Vampire Chronicles: Interview with the Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, The Queen of the Damned (Anne Rice) (Audio Cassette)

I didn't know Anne Rice untill three weeks ago. I read her book 'Interview with a vampire' and i didn't stop reading untill i read it out. I love the story and the way she wrote it. The story is emotional, and sometimes a bit scary, but always beautiful, just like all of her other books. Anne, we love you!!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great edition of Anne Rice's infamous Vampire saga, March 31, 2008

By 

candyapples (Daly City, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Vampire Chronicles Collection, Volume 1 (Paperback)

This review is for this particular edition.

I love that the first three (and argueably best) books of the Vampire Chronicles were combined with sleek and well designed cover art. The cover was actually taken from the short-lived Broadway musical, 'Lestat', and this was made as an obvious merchandise tie in. It was nice to see, nonetheless.

It's of a much better quality than the mass market paperback versions and a better deal at $13, since each mass market edition will cost you about $7. The book itself is rather heavy (about 4 lbs), so if you have weak wrists it may be a struggle for you to hold, but text is large and easy to read, the ink does not smudge like the mass market editions do, and the pages are thin and smooth.

If you're contemplating 'plunging into the stream' (the words that the Vampire Lestat himself 'lives' by) by giving Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles a try, than buy this particular version. I can't recommend it enough.