Blood Canticle

I got it! I got it!  *snoopy happy dance*

Anne Rice was doing a book signing in New Jersey for her new book Blood Canticle.  A friend of mine in Joisey went and she bought me a copy and had it signed!  Just got it in the post yesterday!  *more snoopy happy dance*  

I'm excited...I'm excited...*bounce bounce bounce*  This is not my first autographed Anne Rice book.  I met the lady when she promoted Memnoch the Devil and had a book signed then.  But I'm excited to read a new vampire book....mmmm.....already delving into it!  

Ok (/vamipregeekoff)

Can't help but smile when someone is this happy Elle.  Congratulations on your coup!

Can't help but smile when someone is this happy Elle.  Congratulations on your coup!

I'm a bit jealous. Was in Borders just last week looking for that book and they didn't have it on the shelves (and I couldn't be bothered to track down a salesperson to ask when they'll get it)..I thought for sure it would be out here by now.  

Then again, I still haven't cracked open Blackwood Farm yet with me having a backlog of books to read. But still....I need to buy the hardback.

I take it that you already know it's the last of her vampire/witch series. I just hope it has some sort of closure or I'll go mental.

I'm a bit jealous. Was in Borders just last week looking for that book and they didn't have it on the shelves (and I couldn't be bothered to track down a salesperson to ask when they'll get it)..I thought for sure it would be out here by now.  

Definitely odd.  I know Amazon UK has it for sale.

Then again, I still haven't cracked open Blackwood Farm yet with me having a backlog of books to read. But still....I need to buy the hardback.

Blackwood Farm....pretty good book, actually.  I wasn't sure what to expect but it had my attention.  

I take it that you already know it's the last of her vampire/witch series. I just hope it has some sort of closure or I'll go mental.

So she says.  she said she wouldn't write with Lestat anymore after Memnoch the Devil and well.....


Sometimes I think she gets a wild hair up her butt and feels the need to go theatrical announcing, "this is the last!" but she always ends up coming back to it.  You might remember she was coming out with a series of smaller vampire books to sort of tell the stories of some of the other vampires and then they just sort of stopped coming after The Vampire Armand.  (I, personally, don't count Vittorio as part of them and for some reason she has Pandora as being a "new" vamp story but I thought it was supposed to be a part of the Chronicles).  ANYway...point was the whole idea seemed to sort of die out.  Whatever.  I love her books so I'll keep buying them and reading them and just take what she says with a grain of salt and then smile to myself when a few years down the road she comes out with a new book in the Chronicles to feed the masses.  

I'm about half way through the book right now and it's getting very interesting so I'll keep you semi-posted (without spoiling it, of course!)

  Awww wonderful indeed Miss Elle!  Bravo Bravo
                     
                     

Well, I'm almost done my current book and will try Borders again for it. I guess I'm more used to her books being plastered all over in the US so having to ask for it seemed odd.

I think Blackwood Farm scares me, as silly as this sounds, because of it's size so I've put off reading it.  The last book of this size (aside from Taltos) was The Witching Hour and that was really disappointing for me as I just couldn't get into it...and she is tending to be a bit more verbose in recent novels which doesn't help. I'm sure once I get into it I'll be okay though.

I know she seems to get on these "I'm doing this/I'm not doing that" kicks from time to time but I kinda think she means it this time. Mostly because of the devastating, I'm sure, event of her husband's death but also because of her renewed faith. Not that that's a bad thing for her of course. I just think she doesn't have that frame of mind anymore to write about vampires/witches that always had that struggle with religion.

Of course, I'd prefer her to never stop writing as she's one of my favs but I'm curious as to what her "new direction" will be.

What are your thoughts of the movies that have been made of her books?

I think Blackwood Farm scares me, as silly as this sounds, because of it's size so I've put off reading it.  The last book of this size (aside from Taltos) was The Witching Hour and that was really disappointing for me as I just couldn't get into it...and she is tending to be a bit more verbose in recent novels which doesn't help. I'm sure once I get into it I'll be okay though.

I actually had it myself for quite a while before I read it.  But it went pretty quickly, actually, so don't let it put you off.  

I know she seems to get on these "I'm doing this/I'm not doing that" kicks from time to time but I kinda think she means it this time.

I just finished the book the other day and after reading the ending...nope, she'll write another.  It's way too open at the end for her not to.  

Mostly because of the devastating, I'm sure, event of her husband's death but also because of her renewed faith. Not that that's a bad thing for her of course. I just think she doesn't have that frame of mind anymore to write about vampires/witches that always had that struggle with religion.

I think she'll definitely take a break.  It'll probably be a few years, who knows, maybe much more.  But I definitely believe she will write another.

Of course, I'd prefer her to never stop writing as she's one of my favs but I'm curious as to what her "new direction" will be.

Yes, it will be interesting to see what she does next.  

What are your thoughts of the movies that have been made of her books?

I haven't seen some of the others (meaning the non-vampire ones).  Interview is the fav.  I still think there were others who could've pulled off the role of Lestat better, but Cruise pulled it off well despite.  Queen of the Damned....*shudder shudder twitch*  do I HAFTA really discuss it?  *twitch twitch twitch*  HATED IT.  Ok, done.

Blood Canticle was a good read but I found the climax of the book almost anti-climatic, really.  Blackwood Farm had more interesting shifts and changes when the climax came than this one, but you know, it's got Lestat in it and he's my fav, so of course, I love it.  

Hope you can find it and give it a read!

I just have to say that we saw Anne Rice outside of her house in New Orleans a few months ago.  She still looks very sad and oh so much older since Stan died.   :'(

I really must read some of her newer books as I stopped for some reason after Queen of the Damned.  

I did finally pick it up at Borders last week. Still wasn't up on the wall where I used to always find the new release but at least it was on a table display for gift ideas.

I've taken off from work the 2-1/2 weeks over the holidays starting next week so I'll hopefully get stuck into Blackwood Farm then....aside from the quick weekend trip to London on the 19th.  

I really do hope that she keeps up the storylines as I don't think there could ever be a proper ending that'd keep me happy. Even if she kills them all off, you just know they could come back!

It's a shame that Interview was the only really decent film of her books. I've blocked Queen of the Damned from my memory. Exit to Eden was almost criminal. I think there was supposed to have been a tv series of Feast of All Saints under a different name but I never saw it.  Wasn't The Mummy a film too or did that never make production. My memory is failing me on Rice trivia.

I think Cruise actually did a good job although I wasn't too sure when I heard he had been cast. Antonia Banderas is absolutely yummy in it but that's probably just me...  

I really don't like having a book backlog so hopefully I'll get through BF soon so I can have a go at BC (surprisingly small book!).

I just have to say that we saw Anne Rice outside of her house in New Orleans a few months ago.  She still looks very sad and oh so much older since Stan died.   :'(

I really must read some of her newer books as I stopped for some reason after Queen of the Damned.  

Yea, that's what I thought when I saw her picture on the inside cover of the latest book.  I should ask my friend who had it autographed what she thought.  Anne's had it rough the last few years as she's had her own health problems as well.  I understand she was in the hospital for problems with diabetes for a while some time back.  I think she's way too young to give up on life and just die, but then what do I know?  I'm sure she's very lonely right now.  Hopefully her son and the rest of her family and friends are doing their best to love her through it.  I'm sure her fans are providing what support they can.

I did finally pick it up at Borders last week. Still wasn't up on the wall where I used to always find the new release but at least it was on a table display for gift ideas.

I've taken off from work the 2-1/2 weeks over the holidays starting next week so I'll hopefully get stuck into Blackwood Farm then....aside from the quick weekend trip to London on the 19th.  

Well, if you have any available time, let us know and we can meet up for coffee while you're in town!

I really do hope that she keeps up the storylines as I don't think there could ever be a proper ending that'd keep me happy. Even if she kills them all off, you just know they could come back!

Well, that's just the thing.  When Memnoch came out she did this dramatic thing of going about saying Lestat had left her and she felt that would be her last story with him.  Of course he popped back up anyway.  With Blackwood Farm and Blood Canticle she has some new vampirey characters to work with now so perhaps she'll focus on them.

It's a shame that Interview was the only really decent film of her books. I've blocked Queen of the Damned from my memory. Exit to Eden was almost criminal. I think there was supposed to have been a tv series of Feast of All Saints under a different name but I never saw it.  Wasn't The Mummy a film too or did that never make production. My memory is failing me on Rice trivia.

I don't recall all of them either.  I'm sure it's on her website somewhere.  

I was really hoping that the movies would follow the books and at the very least do the first 3 in the series.  I think the notion of that happening fell away when David Geffen left the project.

I think Cruise actually did a good job although I wasn't too sure when I heard he had been cast. Antonia Banderas is absolutely yummy in it but that's probably just me...  

Yes, Antonio Bandares did a fab job playing Armand!

I really don't like having a book backlog so hopefully I'll get through BF soon so I can have a go at BC (surprisingly small book!).

What you will find is that Blood Canticle simply picks up where Blackwood Farm leaves off.  They're both good reads!  I'll be interested to know what you think!

Am I the only one who will admit to reading her "Sleeping" Beauty series?  

Am I the only one who will admit to reading her "Sleeping" Beauty series?  

I read one of them.  At first it was kind of an erotic turn-on, but then it was total overload, to the point where it just felt like a very clinical list and got boring.  For me, anyway.

Am I the only one who will admit to reading her "Sleeping" Beauty series?  

Nope.  I read them!