Blood Communion: A Tale of Prince Lestat (Vampire Chronicles)

BLOOD COMMUNION, Anne Rice’s new addition to her beloved series of Vampire Chronicle novels, includes some of the most powerful, lucid, and effective storytelling prose she has ever produced. I respect her suggestion that readers not read reviews of this book that contain spoilers. In the following I describe no specific plot line or what happens to characters. I’ll keep my discussion to the broad implications, which are indeed profound. [NO SPOILERS FOLLOW.] This is a tightly-constructed, fast-moving, vividly alive and sometimes deeply disturbing narrative, exclusively told in first person by Lestat de Lioncourt. The narrator wrestles with what his role has truly become as the Prince of the Vampires on a global scale in today’s world—though not every single member of that tribe accepts his authority, which is a crucial point. As always, the fascinating realm into which Anne takes us, and the seductive voice of the narrator, which makes the tale irresistible, entertain lavishly with prose so vivid, while streamlined, that it seems already like a fabulous film or television series to the mind’s eye. Also consistent in all of the Chronicles are the profound philosophical and spiritual underpinnings, though these elements never intrude on the pure entertainment value. Consider this: predators are not evil in Nature itself, in fact they are necessary to the health and well-being of prey populations, in the broader sense, as they tend to cull weaker individuals that are young, injured or sick, and elderly. In Anne’s world here, where mortal humans like us and post-human vampires inhabit the same world that we, the readers do. The only actual evil apparently stems directly from human nature, and its post-human form is basically the same, with the ability to choose behaviors. This evil is ultimately no more than a determined appetite for revenge, vengeance, and a willingness to destroy lives, to destroy beautiful accomplishments, a lack of compassion, simple cruelty, and even a hateful will to cause suffering. Anne’s vampires are not inherently evil because they are vampires—these creations of her limitlessly fertile imagination are far too complex and fascinating to enact “evil for evil’s sake,” as we sometimes see in lesser fantasies. The moral complexity at work in the Vampire Chronicles is every bit as frightening as the “real world” human evils we now face in everyday life. I’m also inspired to consider: if humans lack natural predators that seriously threaten us now, are our populations becoming mediocre? Are human evils such as endless wars, on a deeper level our species acting as our own predators? Further, the possibility of redemption, of acceptance of a healthier balance between predatory instincts and the purposes of a prey population develops as never before in Anne’s new offering: BLOOD COMMUNION. From the very beginning of these Chronicles, which remain unique in modern literature despite countless imitators, the theme of conscious predation—to kill by choice, not only from hunger, with the option to kill only the evil-doer, has been explored. These vampires can read minds, and have exquisitely intense sensitivity, so they know a bad apple: the rapist, serial killer, sadist and unregenerate destroyer of others. Because these remarkably vibrant, complex, evolving characters truly seem to have a “life of their own,” I’m not sure if the author will agree with the following theory of mine. My feeling is that beginning in the first novel of the series, INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, Lestat’s beloved Louis de Pointe du Lac not only helped him enter the modern world of the 19th century. Despite Lestat’s later disclaimer in THE VAMPIRE LESTAT, I feel he actually was becoming jaded and quite monstrous in his predation upon mortals before he met Louis. It seems to me that Louis’s initial distaste for taking human life actually re-awakened the human heart within Lestat, whose struggle with his conscience continues ever since through the series. What Lestat at first viewed as Louis’s weakness, Lestat himself eventually embraced as a virtue. These two are powerfully bonded by love, and at the same time have most often found it difficult to co-exist. In these last few novels, they are accepting their interdependence. Now with BLOODCOMMUNION, Lestat resumes full first-person control in his distinct voice with a story particularly concise, suspenseful, filled with intense action and dramatic changes. The primary theme is how Lestat deals with and comes to accept his position as Prince of his Tribe. He no longer houses the collective “core” of the Vampire Tribe, as The Queen of the Damned, Akasha, then Mekare, and he himself did, until the volume before this one: PRINCE LESTAT AND THE REALMS OF ATLANTIS. Yet now Lestat is still hailed by most of his kind, as their leader, due perhaps partly to his sheer charisma, as well as the fact of his original mortal family’s old noble, if not royal blood. The vampires are presently dwindled in numbers, due to numerous incinerations by Akasha and then Amel, and many recognize the need for a leader with understanding for recent fledglings in the Dark Gift, as well as the extremely ancient ones who continue to emerge. There are a few who reject his authority, and from among them, the major challenge of this story arises. Also, all along Lestat has expressed a certain ambiguity and uncertainty about this role. Initially he stated that he refused to be called “The Prince of the Damned,” though doubtless some of the veneration pleases his vanity. At the same time, the matter of conscious predation returns as an important theme this time around. Yes, these vampires are driven to drink mortal blood, and even to kill, simply to survive, though the older they are and the more ancient the blood they have consumed, the less they need to survive on. In their nature, there is a kind of thirst for blood, not at all unlike the human lust for erotic pleasure—still, these are conscious beings, and they have the choice of what victims they feed upon or kill. This actually produces an ingenious dilemma also timely for mortals, in different ways. This theme of predator and prey gains even more depth here, when Lestat—as he has for the last few novels—periodically fights his own urge to drink of “innocent blood.” Though his conscience urges him otherwise, some mysterious compulsion within him seeks this, as if the quality of the victim influences how the blood affects him in deeper ways. Does he seek to regain more of his own original innocence this way? We certainly know that to drink the blood of ancient vampires, who sometimes willingly share it, renders a younger vampire more powerful. We’ve known for some time, since the last novel at least, that Prince Lestat intends to eventually rule as something like a constitutional monarch, rather than an absolute ruler. His gifted friend and mentor Marius, we are told, is working on drafting a constitution to govern the Children of Darkness. Most likely this will include such issues as principles that relate to vampires killing their own kind (a taboo that led to Claudia’s death in the first book, even though she only attempted it) and shedding the blood of innocent mortals, as well as confining or enslaving other varieties of non-mortal beings. Probably a sort of council or parliament will administer such principles. None of these difficult issues are likely to be subject to simple and absolute “laws,” but given the brilliance of these immortals, the actual text would prove both eloquent and wise—at least within the parameters of the nature and needs of these Blood Drinkers. Perhaps something that lies ahead of these characters beyond the end of BLOOD COMMUNION, is this matter of governance: is democracy subject to abuses actually better than a benign monarchy? Clearly a wise and enlightened monarch is far better than a corrupt president. And yet how do you deal with a corrupt and tyrannical monarch? Please don’t get the impression this is a philosophical novel, despite my discussion. I’m a philosopher by nature, but BLOOD COMMUNION is riveting entertainment, plus a fine work of literary art. I suggest you sink your fangs into this marvelous book and savor its flavors! — Bruce P. Grether

Great book

It is interesting how Lestat has evolved over the books and now we see his court and the different people that are in it. This book is a good end to this series. Must read.

Blood Communion: A Tale of Prince Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles) By Anne Rice Genre - Fiction Category - Historical/Paranormal/Vampire/Gothic/Literary Pages - 272 Publication Info - Knopf (October 2, 2018) Format - Hardcover Rating - 📙📙📙📙📙 In Blood Communion: A Tale of Prince Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles) by Anne Rice, she once again hands the quill over to one of her characters and allows them to tell a story in their own words. The narrative is descriptive and filled with the mannerism of the storyteller. In this instance, it is once again the Brat Prince, Prince Lestat or just plain old Lestat giving us an account of current goings on in and around Chateau de Lioncourt and other locations around the globe. We are introduced to some new characters along with all the usual cast of characters from the Court/Coven. I always love when the history of the ancients is a part of the narrative. Not since Queen of the Damned or Memnoch the Devil or The Tale of the Body Thief has the prose been so richly filled with tales of the ancients that is so vividly alive and at times deeply disturbing. At one point toward the end of the book I was searching along with everyone else to find out if what I’d just read is indeed what happened. Twists and turns in this one will have you saying, no, no that can’t happen. It’s very easy to allow yourself to escape into the pages of this book and this entire experience that is The Vampire Chronicles. I absolutely loved this read and think it may very well be one of my favorites from the entire Chronicles library. It’s fast paced, tightly constructed and just sings to you. A must read, be prepared to be taken on yet another wonderful journey. From the back cover: The Vampire Chronicles continue with a riveting, rich saga--part adventure, part suspense--of Prince Lestat and the story of the Blood Communion as he tells the tale of his coming to rule the vampire world and the eternal struggle to find belonging, a place in the universe for the undead, and how, against his will, he must battle the menacing, seemingly unstoppable force determined to thwart his vision and destroy the entire vampire netherworld. In this spellbinding novel, Lestat, rebel outlaw, addresses the tribe of vampires, directly, intimately, passionately, and tells the mesmerizing story of the formation of the Blood Communion and how he became Prince of the vampire world, the true ruler of this vast realm, and how his vision for all the Children of the Universe to thrive as one, came to be. The tale spills from Lestat's heart, as he speaks first of his new existence as reigning monarch--and then of his fierce battle of wits and words with the mysterious Rhoshamandes, proud Child of the Millennia, reviled outcast for his senseless slaughter of the legendary ancient vampire Maharet, avowed enemy of Queen Akasha; Rhoshamandes, a demon spirit who refuses to live in harmony at the Court of Prince Lestat and threatens all that Lestat has dreamt of. As the tale unfolds, Lestat takes us from the towers and battlements of his ancestral castle in the snow-covered mountains of France to the verdant wilds of lush Louisiana with its lingering fragrances of magnolias and night jasmine; from the far reaches of the Pacific's untouched islands to the 18th-century city of St. Petersburg and the court of the Empress Catherine . . About the author: Anne Rice is the author of thirty-six books, including the fifteen books in the Vampire Chronicles series. She lives in La Quinta, California

I truly have enjoyed reading the Vampire Chronicles. I've probably reread these stories innumerable tines. What a wonderful story teller Anne Rice was. I began reading these stories more than 30 years ago. I have loved these characters. I am saddened because there will be be be another Anne Rice novel. She was able to take us into another world with these wonderful characters.

The last of the Vampire series. Great one. Hopefully not the last one she will write.

Consegna veloce, libro perfetto

👍👍👍👍👍

As sad as I am that I reached the last book of the Vampire Chronicles but what a book it is.

前作でヴァンパイアの核となるアメルが分離した（根本の設定がリセットされてしまった）ので、どんなに変わるのかと不安に思いましたが、予想外に今まで通り。ヴァンパイア達の宮廷を作ろうと奮闘しているレスタト達と、それに反対する者たちのせめぎ合いのストーリー。最初のページの「我愛す、故に我あり」には、「いきなりこうきたか！」と。レスタトの身近な三人（人じゃないけど）が襲われた下りでは、「ええっ！もしかしてこれでヴァンパイア・クロニクルズが終わってしまうの？」かと思ってしまいました。でも、後半の修復された舞踏室の天井画や、マリウスのスピーチとレスタトのスピーチにほっこりしました。途中、先の展開が読めてしまったので、星四つ。あと、リオンクール城が予想外に大きい。二千人（人じゃないけど）が踊れる舞踏室とか、ダンジョンとか。レスタト大公頑張れ。