Blood Communion

by Anne Rice
256 pgs  (Vampire Chronicles series #15)

Fifteen books into Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles series and I think I've gone back and forth from "loving it," to "I'm done" four or five times so far. Even while reading this latest book, I found myself alternating between extremes multiple times. My dilemma is deciding whether the good parts are worth suffering through the bad, and whether Rice is her on worst enemy when it comes to crafting a story that feels like it's leading somewhere.

In this latest installment, Lestat learns that the ancient vampire Rhoshamandes, who killed Maharet, the ancient matriarch of the vampiric family, has resurfaced and is once again picking off members of the hierarchy of vampires. The confrontation between the two of them, which was one of those moments of greatness in the series, should have been the climax and ending of the the book. But instead, Rice places it at about the midway point, and then drags the second half of the book out without an equally rewarding conclusion.

A couple of years ago, when I read Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis, I said I wasn't a fan of the direction the series was going, but that I'd withhold judgment until I'd read the next one. Well, this was the next one, and the jury's still out. I'm not any clearer on where the series is going. I'm hopeful Rice has an idea and plans to get there sooner, rather than later. But I'm afraid she's just wandering around aimlessly with the cast of characters she's spent 15 books, and 40 years, assembling and telling their stories.

★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆