Blackwood Farm

September 2, 2002
Just in time for Halloween, Rice's latest gothic epic blends her beloved Vampire Chronicles with her Mayfair Witches series. Near the dank Sugar Devil Swamp, sinister bayou country where critters far more fearsome than gators lurk, overheated Quinn Blackwood suffers a protracted case of adolescent angst driven by his violent love-hate relationship with Goblin, his spirit-world doppelgänger. As heir to Blackwood Farm and an enormous fortune, Quinn enjoys every luxury the decadent Deep South of Rice's imagination can provide, from culinary delicacies to Jasmine, his equally satisfying mulatto housekeeper. Seemingly hell-bent on seducing everyone within range, regardless of gender, age or consanguinity, he falls into a passionate but fatal relationship with 15-year-old nymphomaniac Mona Mayfair, offshoot of the Mayfair clan of witches. But he cannot control Goblin's ferocious jealousy or his nefarious double's taste for blood, particularly once Quinn is made into a Blood Hunter by Petronia, a malignant bisexual spirit who stalks the haunted family cemetery at the edge of the swamp. Rice fleshes out her slim plot line with gory set pieces of vampire history in ancient Athens, Pompeii and 19th-century Naples. She excels at vivid descriptions of macabre landscapes, gloomy estate houses and the lust that motivates her Blood Hunters and propels her ghoulish narratives. Her dialogue and characterizations, however—even of the durable Vampire Lestat, called upon by Quinn for deliverance from Goblin and Sugar Devil Swamp's unholy spirits—are flat and predictable here. But it's intrigue, eroticism and obsession that fans want, and they'll find plenty of all three. (Oct. 31)Forecast: With a first printing of 500,000, a major ad/marketing campaign (TV, radio and print) and a four-city author tour, this title—a dual main selection of BOMC and an alternate selection of Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club, Mystery Guild, Science Fiction and QPB—is poised to continue Rice's legacy of stellar sales.

June 1, 2002
At Blackwood Farm in the Deep South, young Quinn finds himself shadowed by a disquieting doppelg nger, who gets even meaner when Quinn becomes a vampire. So Quinn searches out Lestat tramping from ancient Athens to modern-day New Orleans to discover the meaning of it all.

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2002
Rice breathes new life into the long-running Vampire Chronicles with the tale of Quinn Blackwood, a young vampire haunted by a menacing doppelganger. Tormented by his familiar, Goblin, who has been with him since his birth, Quinn seeks out the famous vampire Lestat, hoping that Lestat can help him control Goblin. Lestat accompanies Quinn to his family estate, Blackwood Farm, and meets Quinn's great-aunt, Lorraine, who is known as Aunt Queen. Encouraged by Lestat's interest, Quinn shares his family history, beginning with Manfred, who built Blackwood Farm and also a mysterious mansion on nearby Sugar Devil Island. Quinn was raised by his grandfather, Pops, after his mother, Patsy, a selfish country singer, refused to have anything to do with him. At first, Goblin is Quinn's only friend and companion. The other members of Quinn's family are concerned, but eventually they begin to acknowledge Goblin. As the years go by, Goblin grows stronger and becomes jealous of other people in Quinn's life. When Quinn falls in love with Mona Mayfair, a beautiful young witch, he has to grapple with Goblin's jealousy as well as Mona's forbidding family. Not until Quinn becomes a vampire does Goblin become a truly dangerous threat to Quinn and those he loves. Rather than extrapolating from previous Vampire Chronicles, the latest presents a completely fresh story, a gripping gothic yarn that revives the series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)

September 1, 2002
Fledgling vampire Quinn Blackwood makes a desperate appeal to the older, stronger Lestat to save his loved ones from Goblin, a doppelganger out to destroy them. Since Quinn entered the dark world of the undead, the once caring and protective Goblin has amassed tremendous strength and a ruthlessness that cannot be controlled. Lestat is intrigued but refuses to make a decision until Quinn tells his life story. Slowly, the dark, Gothic settings and eccentric characters that make Rice's fiction so fascinating emerge. Quinn, along with his mirror image, Goblin, resides on Blackwood Farm, an immense Louisiana estate. His was an isolated childhood but not an unhappy one. Then, while in his teens, he learns of an ancestor's horrifying crime, one that continues to attract vengeful ghosts. The brightest light in Quinn's life is Mona Mayfair, a delicate, pretty girl who blithely admits to being a witch. With the introduction of Mona, Rice deftly brings together her two popular series, the "Vampire Chronicles" and the "Mayfair Witches." The result is at least as good as Rice's earliest novels because she centers her story on new characters with interesting stories of their own. Using lush, voluptuous prose, Rice tells a complex and mesmerizing story. Recommended. [BOMC, Literary Guild, Doubleday, Mystery Guild, Science Fiction, and Quality Paperback Book Club selections; previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/02.]-Patricia Altner, Information Seekers, Columbia, MD

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.