Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ

What mysteries we are, human, vampire, monster, mortal, that we can love and hate simultaneously, and that emotions of all sorts might not parade for what they are not.
Merrick ~~ Anne Rice



I've decided to revisit my past by diving ~~ once more ~~ into The Vampire Chronicles

When Anne Rice died, I was incredibly sad. I first read Anne Rice at 13 ~~ soon I devoured everything of hers that she had written. Rice shaped me not only as a reader, but as a person. She unlocked an entirely new world for me as I traveled with Lestat and Amadeo. Rice put into words how I secretly felt.

I read the Vampire Chronicles in order ~~ Lives of the Mayfair Witches too. Interspersed among these reads, I read ¸é¾±³¦±ð’s stand alone novels. The best of these was Cry to Heaven , now a lesser known work of ¸é¾±³¦±ð’s. In fact, it may be ¸é¾±³¦±ð’s best work.

Later, when she turned her back on horror and made her highly publicized return to Catholicism, I tried to read ¸é¾±³¦±ð’s The Songs of the Seraphim series, but they were terrible. The magic was gone. The writing had become preachy. And just like that she abandoned Christianity and returned horror. I read Prince Lestat but sadly, Rice was simply repeating herself. Then, Rice began to harass her critics, encouraging her fans to publicly attack those who poorly reviewed her books. Her fans terrorized her detractors. Lastly, she began to focus more and more on promoting her son's work as she slowly withdrew from the world. I had outgrown Anne Rice. Despite all this, I feel like a part of my youth had been taken from me with her passing.

And now, back to Merrick



Merrick ... what to make of Merrick ... The book centers on the witch and voodoo priestess Merrick & Talamasca investigator turned Vampire David Talbot. The first 2/3 of Merrick center on an adventure the two take together. The problem here is that neither character is interesting enough to anchor an entire novel. Merrick really only comes alive with the appearance of the Holy Triumvirate of the damned, Lestat, Louis & Claudia. Yes, that Claudia.

In Merrick, Rice authors an emotional, well-detailed story of black magic, intrigue and forbidden love, that never seems to find its voice.



Merrick should be a compelling character ~~ a Talamasca scholar, a native of New Orleans, descended from Haitian slaves and the white Mayfair clan ~~ yes, those Mayfairs. Merrick is haunted by her own tragic past and quite vengeful, Merrick turns the world of the Immortals on its ear with a scheme of her own, revealing the secret motivations of Claudia and causing the Talamasca to go to war with the damned. With this as her backstory, you'd think Merrick would be one of the most exciting characters introduced by Rice ~~ she's not.



In the end, it is apparent Merrick is a transitional book in the Vampire Chronicles. Sadly, Merrick is not riveting ~~ even if it is well-realized.

So, is Merrick an essential read in this series ~~ yes. What Merrick does is pave the way for one of the most interesting stories Anne Rice has yet to tell.