The Vampire Companion [Paperback]

Katherine Ramsland (Author), Anne Rice (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1995

"The meaning of The Vampire Chronicles is still unfolding for me, and is as much connected to God as to the Devil, as much connected to pleasure as to pain. That the books are entertainment seems a given, and for that I'm grateful. That they can be seen as a religious journey is also clear. I am immersed in the questions, and praying for the answers. Lestat, c'est moi. I want you to love all of my characters. I am, in the writing of these and other novels, as ambitious as Dickens. I want everybody to cry when Claudia dies, just like they did for Little Nell."

-- Anne Rice

February 8, 1995

Interview with the Vampire. The Vampire Lestat. The Queen of the Damned. The Talc of the Body Thief Memnoch the Devil. With her bestselling, epic saga, Anne Rice has reinvented the legend and literature of one of fiction's most popular and captivating archetypes. Now, Katherine Ramsland, Anne Rice's biographer, has completely revised and updated the ultimate reference guide to the world, history, and adventures of these haunting characters, from the unforgettable Lestat to Rice's newest chilling creation, Memnoch the Devil.

Written with the full cooperation of Anne Rice -- and now with more than 1,200 entries -- The Vampire Companion offers an insightful exploration, appreciation, and interpretation of all the characters and events, names and places, symbols and themes in the five volumes of The Vampire Chronicles, including more than one hundred pages of new entries on Rice's latest vampire novel, Memnoch the Devil. Everything that readers might want to explore further is annotated and analyzed in this entertaining and enlightening work: the unforgettable characters of Louis, Lestat, Claudia, Akasha, Armand, and Memnoch; the important points of interest on Lestat's fascinating tour through Heaven and Hell; ancient lore; Rice's unique contributions to the mythos of vampires; the literary inspirations that echo through the novels; Rice's own reflections and revelations about her work and about the movie Interview with the Vampire; and much more.

Richly illustrated with new photos, drawings, maps, and a complete time line of events in The Chronicles, The Vampire Companion is as captivating as the phenomenal saga it explores. It is a guidebook that no visitor to the world of Anne Rice should be without.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

This is the completely revised and updated, ultimate reference guide to the world, history and adventures of the characters from Rice's Vampire Chronicles. Everything the reader might want to explore further is annotated and analyzed in this entertaining work: the unforgettable characters of Louis, Lestat, Claudia, Akasha, Armand, and Memnoch; the important points of interest on Lestat's fascinating tour through Heaven and Hell; ancient lore; Rice's unique contributions to the mythos of vampires; the literary inspirations that echo through the novels; Rice's own reflections and revelations about her work and the movie Interview with a Vampire; and more.

From the Publisher

This is an indispensable book for the vampire lover in every one of us--and if you're a fan of Anne Rice, this is a must-have. It covers everything about the world of the vampires, as shown in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, THE VAMPIRE LESTAT, THE QUEEN OF THE DAMNED, THE TALE OF THE BODY THIEF, and MEMNOCH THE DEVIL. But the paperback edition of this book added something more: the never-before-published short story that Anne Rice wrote that was the basis for her novel, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE. Plus it was written by Anne Rice's biographer and authorized by Anne Rice herself, so this is really an important guidebook.--E. Zack, Sr. Editor, The Ballantine Publishing Group

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 608 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Rev Upd Su edition (August 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345397398
• ISBN-13: 978-0345397393
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,005,742 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Katherine Ramsland began her career as a writer with Prism of the Night: A Biography of Anne Rice. She had a bestseller with The Vampire Companion. Since then, she has published 40 books and over 1,000 articles, reviews and short stories. From ghosts to vampires to serial killers, she has taken on a variety of dark subjects. She holds graduate degrees in forensic psychology, clinical psychology, criminal justice, and philosophy. Currently, she teaches forensic psychology and criminal justice at DeSales University. Her books include The Forensic Psychology of Criminal Minds, The Human Predator: A Historical Chronicle of Serial Murder and Forensic Investigation, Inside the Minds of Serial Killers, Inside the Minds of Sexual Predators, and Inside the Minds of Mass Murderers. Her background in forensic studies positioned her to assist former FBI profiler John Douglas on his book, The Cases that Haunt Us, and to co-write a book with former FBI profiler, Gregg McCrary, The Unknown Darkness, as well as The Real Life of a Forensic Scientist with Henry C. Lee and A Voice for the Dead with James Starrs. She speaks internationally about forensic psychology, forensic science, and serial murder, and has appeared on numerous documentaries, as well as such programs as The Today Show, 20/20, 48 Hours, NPR, Coast to Coast, Montel Williams, Larry King Live and E! True Hollywood.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A must-have for all Rice fans, July 18, 2001

By 

Eimear Coffey (Dublin, Ireland) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Vampire Companion (Paperback)

I bought this book having already read each of the vampire chronicles, as well as several of the "New Tales of the Vampires". It was probably a good thing too, as it's quite possible that if you haven't read all the books, the Companion will give away some very important plot twists.

However, the book is obviously meant as a guide and reference point for people who are already very familiar with Rice's vampires, and not for people who are too lazy to read the books. A mind-bendingly comprehensive "encyclopedia" of everything you could possibly want to know about anything to do with the first 5 vampire chronicles.

This book is made even stronger by the fact that it was written in conjunction with Anne Rice, and as such contains many asides and comments from her on the development of her characters, how she feels about them, and of course, the much-publicised parallels between the child vampire Claudia and her own daughter, who died of leukaemia at the age of 5.

While there are many people who think Rice is extremely long-winded and a trifle strange to boot, those of us who thoroughly enjoy her fantastic novels and seductive characters will wonder how we ever made do without the excellent Vampire Companion.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Reference Guide to the Vampire Chronicles, May 19, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Vampire Companion (Paperback)

"The Vampire Companion" is a very exhaustive encyclopedia of most of the terms, characters, locations, and events in the Vampire Chronicles series. It only covers the first five books in this series, though ("Interview With the Vampire", "The Vampire Lestat", "The Queen of the Damned", "The Tale of the Body Thief", and "Memnoch the Devil"), which may bother more die hard Vampire fans. Information on the other four books ("The Vampire Armand", "Merrick", "Blood and Gold", and "Blackwood Farm") is obviously missing since they were published after this book.

Just about everything's included in this mammoth 500+-paged book: maps, illustrations and photos, bits of Anne Rice information, a time line, in-depth character biographies, etc. Even the unpublished short story of "Interview With the Vampire" is included, which originated the novel one year later.

If you're an Anne Rice fan--and especially if you enjoyed the Vampire Chronicles--then I highly recommend this official reference guide to her popular vampire series, even though it only covers half the books in the series. (Hopefully, there will be another revised edition published soon.) But for what it does cover, "The Vampire Companion" is very thorough and worthwhile to Vampire fans. This is certainly a book worth owning, since it answers just about every question you've ever had about this series and then some.

Also recommended: Katherine Ramsland's "The Witches' Companion."

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An essential companion for fans of the Vampire Chronicles, March 20, 2002

By 

D. Movahedpour "doeadear" (CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Vampire Companion (Paperback)

If you have read the first four books in the Vampire Chronicles and enjoyed them, then this book is for you. It cross-references characters, plots and themes from each of those books, plus contains exhaustive research. It should be on the shelf next to the books, almost as a study guide, certainly as a welcome addition.