Merrick
A novel by Anne Rice

Merrick is the latest, and while certainly not greatest entry into Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles, it is an immense improvement over the somnambulant stories of Pandora, Vittorio and Armand. That being said, Merrick is not the book to bring new readers to Rice's world of homoerotic impotent bloodsuckers. If you didn't like the series before, this book isn't going to change your mind. If you've never read her work and have spontaneously decided to give it a try, pass on this one and pick up a copy of The Vampire Lestat.

Speaking of Lestat, there's little of him in this book. This is not his story, nor is it Louis' -- despite the dust jacket's synopsis. For some reason, Louis now has an all-encompassing desire to speak with the possibly tormented ghost of Claudia: that long dead vampire child to whom he and Lestat gave the Dark Gift and who met her end way back in Interview with the Vampire. One David Talbot reconnects with his former Talamasca colleague Merrick in order to fulfill Louis' request, and their relationship is the true driving force behind this tale.

Merrick is from an offshoot of the New Orleans Mayfairs. Yes, those Mayfairs, that crew of over-privileged and inbred yet festive delvers in the supernatural, chronicled in The Witching Hour saga. Having enjoyed that series, I decided to give Merrick a try. And while there was little actual connection to the previously mentioned-Mayfairs to be seen, Merrick holds her own: a rum spitting witch with attitude.

A large percentage of the book recounts Merrick's story, but it also gives insight into David Talbot, former Superior General of the Talamasca. David's narrative style seems sharper, less meandering, than that of Lestat or Armand. This, unfortunately, does not prevent the tale from becoming occasionally mired in repetitive exposition; it was a bit like a travelogue, with a light smattering of spooky. The most horrifying thing in this book was the thought of wearing velvet in New Orleans. I get the willies just thinking about it.

This aside, Rice's overly-rich writing is a sound cushion for her most succinct story telling in years. Her last several books have seemed more like indulgent essays on religious and sexual philosophy than true vampire lore, but even Merrick is no return to the glory days of The Vampire Lestat and Queen of the Damned. Rice breaks little new ground here... but she doesn't manage to make me regret the time I spent reading this new book. In point of fact, while I was distressed by the seeming trickery of the opening, I was actually intrigued and excited by the ending. After years of putting her books on the shelf after a cursory, and typically disappointing, read through, I find myself actually thinking of the characters and what might come next. This, more than anything, else places the book a notch above the dreck that is The Vampire Armand.

While I'm no longer the naive reader who once thought vampire fiction began and ended with Rice, I'm at least looking forward to her next offering. An accomplishment I thought she just wasn't up to any more.

RE-READ FACTOR: Nope. Not for me. While not bad, it's not good enough for a second visit.

SEQUEL FACTOR: You bet. There's no escape. If not a continuation of events in Merrick, which would be a shame, there are always more vampires in Rice's pantheon to visit.

STRONG CHICK FACTOR: Being surrounded by a bunch of fang-faced nancy boys in velvet would make any chick seem strong, but Merrick fulfills my definition of Strong Chick by not only being smart and powerful, but by using her gifts, if not well, then purposefully.

-- Torrey Daily Simms

Merrick, published by Knopf, is currently available in hardback, audio cassette and audio CD.

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