Anne Rice returns to the “Vampire Chronicles”

Dear children, ages ago before vampires sparkled, Buffy kicked ass in Sunnydale and the gang of Mystic Falls showed that a town can actually function with little to no mortals, there was a lady by the name of Anne Rice who delivered a series of books called the “Vampire Chronicles“. In case you’re wondering when exactly you can place this wondrous event, let’s just say Van Halen was in its glory days and in 1994 one Tom Cruise played the brat prince Lestat.

What’s the deal these days? Well gentle listeners, it seems Anne Rice has a new vampire novel in the making and brace yourselves…it will come out this year on October 28. The title of this new tale will be “Prince Lestat” and it’s close to a sequel to “Queen of the Damned” (so be it, less Memnoch, some witty David Talbot and fewer witches to worry about).

“It’s all about Lestat and all about the vampires and what they’re doing right now, how they’re coming to terms with everything that’s happened to them and how Lestat is dealing with demands from all sides that he step forward and become the leader of the tribe,” said Rice.

So… we take some “Kindred: the Embraced” (Lord, I miss that show to pieces), the need for someone to actually lead the merry coven of sophisticated vampires (it seems Maharat it’s not exactly leader material and Marius simply doesn’t want to step up the plate).

The announcement sparked interest over the Internet this weekend and I ponder on the need for a new VC novel. Is there any need for this book? Hasn’t Anne Rice mixed and mingled, from Memnoch up to Merrick while horsing around with the Mayfair witches, and done enough damage to a haunting, delicious tale of sophisticated vampires and their tales through the centuries? Yes, I’m one of those who had been disappointed in the way Anne Rice decided to go with the Vampire Chronicles after Memnoch. I enjoyed the “The Vampire Armand”, I didn’t like “Merrick”, I went through “Pandora” and “Vittorio the Vampire” and had been blue after “Blood Canticle”. I respected the Anne Rice way of spinning the story, it’s the tale she created and by George she has the right to let her muse inspire her, but from “The Vampire Lestat” to “Blood Canticle” I watched a new take on the way the characters were written to the point I was making notes on who the Hell will be left alive and not damaged  beyond repair. Anne Rice was the George R. R. Martin before it was cool the make memes about the “Game of Thrones” author. Why? Read the books. You’ll see why.

Back to “Prince Lestat”. I’ll read it, I was happy when the news showed up on the news feed but I hope Anne Rice gets back to the way she penned “Queen of the Damned” and “The Vampire Lestat”. You see, I grew up with these book in a geekish way and I have no regrets whatsoever. I first saw the movie “Interview with the Vampire” on Halloween 1996 on a German TV channel – I don’t speak any German – and I was hooked. I got the books. I used to read them during the night – hey, I had school and homework to do and those where the early days of Internet…remember dial-up? – with a flashlight and began to read more books. Why? Because Anne Rice blended history with philosophy and culture. She talked about the French Revolution and then threw you into the Ancient Egypt, back in New Orleans, add John Milton, Shakespeare and French poetry and I wanted to read everything. To get what she was talking about through the words of Lestat, Louis, Marius of Armand. I began devouring book after book. Anne Rice, you made high-school seem like a breeze and I owe you on many clever turns on some essays. Thanks Lestat.

What I hope to read in “Prince Lestat”? Wits, flashbacks from the past, a villain arising, some modern times struggles and some structure. For a coven of vampires, Maharet and co. need a leader and us readers want to read more about the vampires code of conduct and all the thou shall nots. Bring them all, bring Talamasca. Bring some new blood in the brood and forsake the witches this time. Let them be on their own.

With a new book, the thoughts about new movies come back with a vengeance and so help me, I want a Vampire Chronicles series on the big screen or on HBO – make Starz as well, they don’t get shy around blood, sex and violence with a touch of intrigue. After “Queen of the Damned” or MTV takes a bite out of Lestat, rumors about “The tale of the body thief” being brought to the big screen grew but nothing happen.

I don’t know about what others think but I have a clear idea about the cast of a potential series and I’m not afraid to share it with the world – hey, a girl can dream:

Lestat De Lioncourt – Alex Pettyfer
Louis Du Pointe Du Lac – Ben Barnes
Nicholas De Lenfant – Cillian Murphy
Claudia – was Dakota Fanning – right, now I need a blonde kid with acting chops- hello Vivienne Jolie-Pitt
Marius – Jason Isaacs
Armand – Dane DeHaan
Daniel Malloy – Jared Leto
Gabrielle de Lioncourt – Michelle Pfeiffer
Mael – Ralph Fiennes
Khayman – Billy Zane
Pandora – Eva Green
Santino – Michael Sutton
David Talbot – Ian McKellen/ Paul Bettany – younger body & Raglan James
Maharet/Mekare – Julianne Moore
Jessie Miriam Reeves – Jessica Chastain
Akasha – Leonor Varela
Magnus – Rutger Hauer
Thorne – Jude Law
Enkil – Oded Fehr
Bianca Solderini – Holliday Grainger

What did we learn today? Anne Rice has a new  “Vampire Chronicles”  tale to tell and by the end of October we’ll see what Lestat was been up too.

Do we need a new VC book? I say yes.