In the second book of her Vampire Chronicles, Anne Rice delivers a more intricate and expansive tale, with a broadened cast of characters, yet told with the same evocative description and musing language that made the first installment captivating. The tale is, from the beginning, presented as a “correction” of the titular interview which is the subject of the first book. This is, according to the narrator anyway, a more true version told by Lestat, who of course paints himself in a more flattering light as the center of the narrative. The tale follows the lives of several characters across centuries, and each era is detailed with care, making the historical fiction immersive and believable. The narrative at times waxes philosophical, at others delves into topics of grief and angst, and then at times has a refreshing sly humor to break the darkness. Anyone who enjoyed the first novel should read this one also, and it is a good choice for anyone who loves gothic horror and vampires.
Content Analysis:
Profanity/Language: 4 religious exclamations; 53 mild obscenities; 5 derogatory names.
Note: There are a few uses of “bloody” as a profanity, hell used to refer to a place, or “damned” used to refer to people suffering eternal torment. (These uses are not tallied.)
Violence/Gore: A murder with no details given, characters drink blood and kill humans for sustenance many times throughout this book; a report of animals killed by predators ; a teen is beaten as punishment; a fight between a character and animals in which the character is injured and animals are killed, with blood and gore described; reports of witches burned; report of public execution; report of bodies left in the street; a few fights without major injury; characters cry blood tears a few times; character kill other characters by drinking their blood in descriptive scenes a few times; a character is shot, with bloody injury described; a character fantasizes about killing a man; a character bites their tongue during a kiss to allow another character to drink their blood; a few fights in which characters are burned, lose limbs, or in which bloody injuries and broken bones are described; characters find bloody corpses a few times; characters are trampled by horses; a character has visions of a man being tortured; a few verbal threats; a few characters are buried alive; a character has wounds from old injuries; characters lick blood from a man’s face; a few reports of human castration; a few characters are burned to death; a house is burned; a myth talks about a man being dismembered; report of a character punished by having limbs removed; report of a suicide with few details; report of people killed in a war; a few reports of human sacrifice; many people are burned, drowned, or have their blood drained as part of a sacrificial rite; report of many people burned to death; minor property damage; report of a murder with blood described; characters drink blood from each other without killing a few times; a character is crushed to death, with blood described; report of people wearing human skulls as part of their clothing; a character is tortured with no details; report of a grisly injury in which a character is stabbed many times; report of a character executed by burning; a car is destroyed by an explosion.
Sex/Nudity: Mention of “sex manuals”; mention that people are scantily dressed; a few scenes in which a man and a woman kiss; a teen goes to bed with a young woman, and it’s implied…but not explicitly stated…that they have sex; a woman says that she has fantasies about having sex with many men, but no details are given; a woman talks about the pain of childbirth, but it is not graphic; two men kiss then go to bed together, and it is implied that sex follows; a few sensual scenes in which two men or a man and a woman drink each other’s blood; mention of rape as a metaphor; report of a man visiting a prostitute; mention of an outfit accentuating a woman’s breasts; a few reports of human castration; a male minor is forced into prostitution; a mother and her son embrace and kiss romantically a few times; characters are naked in a non-sexual context; adults hold hands; two men walk with their arms around each other; two male characters have a romantic and physical relationship that is central to the narrative; a man considers how attractive his mother’s body is and briefly lusts after her; a man looks at a woman’s breasts when helping her change clothes; a character bites their tongue during a kiss to allow another character to drink their blood; adults hug a few times; a man considers biting a woman’s breast (though she is clothed at the time, no nudity); an adult man and a boy share a romantic relationship, with physical intimacy such as kissing and drinking of blood, but no actual sex is described; a young man is kissed by many people as part of a ritual.
Mature Subject Matter:
This novel contains mentions of venereal disease; poverty; famine; abortion; capital punishment; and rape. It actually includes murder; corporal punishment of a child; death of a pet, death of a parent, death of a lover; death of a sibling; suicide; cross-dressing; prostitution (including in one case a minor); terminal illness; mental illness; arson; homosexuality. A man and his mother have a relationship that is sensuously physical, and incest is vaguely implied but never confirmed. This book contains a passage that Christian readers of certain denominations may find offensively sacrilegious.
Alcohol/Drug Use:
Adults drink champagne and wine; mention of poisons; adults smoke hashish: report of snuff use; a child drinks wine.
