Last week, I reviewed Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles: An Alphabettery. This brand-new A to Z compendium tells you everything you could want to know about any person, place, or thing mentioned in Rice’s popular vampire series. But who took the time to painstakingly compile all this information, and how did they become such an expert on Rice’s extensive fictional world? The Alphabettery was written by Becket, a close friend of Anne Rice who served as her personal assistant from 2005 to 2017. I reached out to Becket and he was kind enough to send back some detailed and thoughtful replies about what it was like working with his idol and writing the definitive guide to her most prominent series. Read on for our interview. Also, be sure to scroll to the bottom of the post and enter the giveaway to win your own copy of Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles: An Alphabettery!
Month: October 2018
Review of Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles: An Alphabettery
Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles have been around for over four decades now, and with the recent release of Blood Communion, the series is up to thirteen books (fifteen if you count the New Tales of the Vampires). That’s a lot to keep track of, even for the most dedicated of fans. But never fear, the ultimate Anne Rice reference book is finally here! Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles: An Alphabettery, compiled by her personal assistant Becket and with an introduction by Rice herself, comes out tomorrow, October 23. Here’s what you need to know about the hefty reference guide: Continue reading Review of Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles: An Alphabettery
Valentine Wolfe: The Haunting of Mary Shelley Album Review
I usually stick to reviewing literature on this blog rather than music, but I’ll make an exception for especially literary music. This categorization can be used to describe much of the music by gothic metal band Valentine Wolfe, whom I had the honor of interviewing about their relationship with literature last year. Their newest album takes that love of books even further. The Haunting of Mary Shelley, which released earlier this month, is a concept album revolving around the author Mary Shelley and her celebrated novel, Frankenstein. The band describes their genre as “Victorian chamber metal,” which is exactly the sort of sound that pairs perfectly with anguished monsters, regretful scientists, and desperate chases across arctic landscapes.
Continue reading Valentine Wolfe: The Haunting of Mary Shelley Album Review
The Secrets of Chateau Swansea Review
Ghosts, psychics, a mysterious murder, and a missing child … it’s the perfect recipe for a Gothic novel. I’m always on the lookout for new authors who write neo-Gothic tales—stories that continue the legacy of the 18th– and 19th-century genre, yet aimed at modern audiences. The Secrets of Chateau Swansea by R. C. Matthews is the latest book to scratch that itch. Set in the Victorian era, this self-published novel blends mystery and romance in a classic Gothic setting. The book came out just last week and is available as an ebook only. Continue reading The Secrets of Chateau Swansea Review
Modern Journeys to the Underworld
The journey to the underworld has been a popular plot motif for millennia. It can take many forms, but generally involves the hero of the story crossing over into the land of the dead to rescue someone, speak to someone, or otherwise complete a quest. This trope appears in many classic myths, such as the Greek tales of Orpheus and Eurydice or Hercules’s twelve labors. It also became a staple of epic poetry, beginning with the Odyssey, continuing in the Aeneid, and becoming the basis of Dante’s Inferno. Scholars of epic poetry even have a word for this recurrent plot element: katabasis, which means “to go down” in Greek. With such a storied history, it’s not surprising that we see variations on journey to the underworld cropping up in modern fantasy novels. Below are a three of my favorite recent variations on this classic trope: Continue reading Modern Journeys to the Underworld