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New Tales of the Vampires #1
Pandora
Anne Rice, creator of the Vampire Lestat, the Mayfair witches and the amazing worlds they inhabit, now gives us the first in a new series of novels linked together by the fledgling vampire David Talbot, who has set out to become a chronicler of his fellow Undead.
The novel opens in present-day Paris in a crowded café, where David meets Pandora. She is two thousand years old, a Child of the Millennia, the first vampire ever made by the great Marius. David persuades her to tell the story of her life.
Pandora begins, reluctantly at first and then with increasing passion, to recount her mesmerizing tale, which takes us through the ages, from Imperial Rome to eighteenth-century France to twentieth-century Paris and New Orleans. She carries us back to her mortal girlhood in the world of Caesar Augustus, a world chronicled by Ovid and Petronius. This is where Pandora meets and falls in love with the handsome, charismatic, lighthearted, still-mortal Marius. This is the Rome she is forced to flee in fear of assassination by conspirators plotting to take over the city. And we follow her to the exotic port of Antioch, where she is destined to be reunited with Marius, now immortal and haunted by his vampire nature, who will bestow on her the Dark Gift as they set out on the fraught and fantastic adventure of their two turbulent centuries together.
The novel opens in present-day Paris in a crowded café, where David meets Pandora. She is two thousand years old, a Child of the Millennia, the first vampire ever made by the great Marius. David persuades her to tell the story of her life.
Pandora begins, reluctantly at first and then with increasing passion, to recount her mesmerizing tale, which takes us through the ages, from Imperial Rome to eighteenth-century France to twentieth-century Paris and New Orleans. She carries us back to her mortal girlhood in the world of Caesar Augustus, a world chronicled by Ovid and Petronius. This is where Pandora meets and falls in love with the handsome, charismatic, lighthearted, still-mortal Marius. This is the Rome she is forced to flee in fear of assassination by conspirators plotting to take over the city. And we follow her to the exotic port of Antioch, where she is destined to be reunited with Marius, now immortal and haunted by his vampire nature, who will bestow on her the Dark Gift as they set out on the fraught and fantastic adventure of their two turbulent centuries together.
383 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
624 people are currently reading
21551 people want to read
About the author
Anne Rice
352 books27.2k followersAnne Rice (born Howard Allen Frances O'Brien) was a best-selling American author of gothic, supernatural, historical, erotica, and later religious themed books. Best known for The Vampire Chronicles, her prevailing thematic focus is on love, death, immortality, existentialism, and the human condition. She was married to poet Stan Rice for 41 years until his death in 2002. Her books have sold nearly 100 million copies, making her one of the most widely read authors in modern history.
Anne Rice passed on December 11, 2021 due to complications from a stroke. She was eighty years old at the time of her death.
She uses the pseudonym Anne Rampling for adult-themed fiction (i.e., erotica) and A.N. Roquelaure for fiction featuring sexually explicit sado-masochism.
Anne Rice passed on December 11, 2021 due to complications from a stroke. She was eighty years old at the time of her death.
She uses the pseudonym Anne Rampling for adult-themed fiction (i.e., erotica) and A.N. Roquelaure for fiction featuring sexually explicit sado-masochism.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,049 reviews
March 10, 2025
The finest thing under the sun and moon is the human soul. I marvel at the small miracles of kindness that pass between humans, I marvel at the growth of conscience, at the persistence of reason in the face of all superstition or despair. I marvel at human endurance.
Pandora ~~~ Anne Rice
Anne Rice is dead ~~ this makes me incredibly sad. I first read Anne Rice at 13 ~~ soon I devoured everything 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 Rice’s stand alone novels. The best of these was Cry to Heaven, now a lesser known work of Rice’s. In fact, it may be Rice’s best work.
Later, when she turned her back on horror and made her highly publicized return to Catholicism, I tried to read Rice’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 to 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 ~~ in fact, it was Kayleigh Herbertson's review of Pandora that first sent Rice and her fans into a tailspin. Herbertson's review received over 300 comments from Rice's followers; she was called a hag, a bitch and one commenter event threatened to infect her with herpes. Rice refused to take responsibility for the attack and instead used her followers to unleash her anger on other reviewers.
Lastly, she began to focus more and more on promoting her son's inferior work as she slowly withdrew from the world. I had now outgrown Anne Rice. Despite all this, I feel like a part of my youth has been taken from me with her passing.
And now, back to Pandora.
When Pandora was first published, Booklist said of it: SEDUCTIVE . . . RICE HAS RETURNED TO THE SOURCE OF HER BEST WORK, her sexy and invincible vampires. . . . Pandora is a superheroine: beautiful, of course, but also smart, fearless, independent, lusty, resourceful, and so pumped up at the end of her breathless narrative, she takes off for New Orleans, hot on the trail of Lestat and Marius. I concur with their take on Pandora.
Too many readers are dependent on plot when reading fiction. To quote my friend, Spenky, I prefer writing over plot. Anne Rice is not a writer to be read for plot ~~ when reading Rice you're there to delve into her vampire mythology and to experience the vivid richness of her written word. Rice is at her best when writing sensually of the horrific.
Pandora is a standalone novel ~~ it was part of the short lived New Tales of the Vampires series. But I do believe that reading the first three books of The Vampire Chronicles will help to put Pandora into better perspective for the reader.
As is often the case in her vampire books, Rice delves into religion ~~ exploring here both the Cult of Isis and the origins of Christianity that so fascinated her.
What made Pandora unique is this story was told from the woman’s perspective. The Vampire Chronicles are very male-centric. But here we have a strong female as the lead. Pandora herself is a match for Marius, Amadeo and Lestat Pandora’s experiences with The Queen, Akasha are written superbly. Also enthralling is the vivid look Rice provides of the ancient worlds of Rome and Antioch. I was transported to this time and place thru the beauty of the writing.
If you desire to return after an absence, to Anne Rice's world then this book is an excellent place to reacquaint yourself with Rice’s style and the world of vampires she has so wonderfully created.
Pandora ~~~ Anne Rice
Anne Rice is dead ~~ this makes me incredibly sad. I first read Anne Rice at 13 ~~ soon I devoured everything 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 Rice’s stand alone novels. The best of these was Cry to Heaven, now a lesser known work of Rice’s. In fact, it may be Rice’s best work.
Later, when she turned her back on horror and made her highly publicized return to Catholicism, I tried to read Rice’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 to 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 ~~ in fact, it was Kayleigh Herbertson's review of Pandora that first sent Rice and her fans into a tailspin. Herbertson's review received over 300 comments from Rice's followers; she was called a hag, a bitch and one commenter event threatened to infect her with herpes. Rice refused to take responsibility for the attack and instead used her followers to unleash her anger on other reviewers.
Lastly, she began to focus more and more on promoting her son's inferior work as she slowly withdrew from the world. I had now outgrown Anne Rice. Despite all this, I feel like a part of my youth has been taken from me with her passing.
And now, back to Pandora.
When Pandora was first published, Booklist said of it: SEDUCTIVE . . . RICE HAS RETURNED TO THE SOURCE OF HER BEST WORK, her sexy and invincible vampires. . . . Pandora is a superheroine: beautiful, of course, but also smart, fearless, independent, lusty, resourceful, and so pumped up at the end of her breathless narrative, she takes off for New Orleans, hot on the trail of Lestat and Marius. I concur with their take on Pandora.
Too many readers are dependent on plot when reading fiction. To quote my friend, Spenky, I prefer writing over plot. Anne Rice is not a writer to be read for plot ~~ when reading Rice you're there to delve into her vampire mythology and to experience the vivid richness of her written word. Rice is at her best when writing sensually of the horrific.
Pandora is a standalone novel ~~ it was part of the short lived New Tales of the Vampires series. But I do believe that reading the first three books of The Vampire Chronicles will help to put Pandora into better perspective for the reader.
As is often the case in her vampire books, Rice delves into religion ~~ exploring here both the Cult of Isis and the origins of Christianity that so fascinated her.
What made Pandora unique is this story was told from the woman’s perspective. The Vampire Chronicles are very male-centric. But here we have a strong female as the lead. Pandora herself is a match for Marius, Amadeo and Lestat Pandora’s experiences with The Queen, Akasha are written superbly. Also enthralling is the vivid look Rice provides of the ancient worlds of Rome and Antioch. I was transported to this time and place thru the beauty of the writing.
If you desire to return after an absence, to Anne Rice's world then this book is an excellent place to reacquaint yourself with Rice’s style and the world of vampires she has so wonderfully created.
March 22, 2011
Let me start off by saying, I love the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice (I'm reading them in the order they were published). And I have to say Pandora was different than the others - not in a bad way (I quite liked the book). And it was more than just the lack of Lestat in the story (although he is discussed) or the fact that it's set during Ancient Rome (which was well researched, as always, by Anne Rice), No... this story is different because it's Pandora's story, and she's not like a character we've encountered before.
I generally don't like the female characters Anne Rice creates as much as the men (they don't seem to have that same pizazz or edge), but Pandora changed this for me. She has that fire (that edge) and her story doesn't disappoint.
I didn't find the story to be as soul searching as the others... but it still dives into new territory. For one thing, Pandora is mortal most of the story (that's what really makes this story different)... and it makes this book different from the others (deserving of the title "New Tales").
One last thing about the book... is the writing. I thought the writing style in this book was the best of what I've read so far... It's not as overwritten as her other books - and the result is this book is easier to read, easier to understand, and less repetitive than her earlier books.
I give the book 4 out of 5 because I enjoyed every bit of the book (I read it in one day) - I still think "The Vampire Lestat" is the best book in the series, but this one holds up well too.
- Austin James (http://www.AustinJamesHere.blogspot.com)
I generally don't like the female characters Anne Rice creates as much as the men (they don't seem to have that same pizazz or edge), but Pandora changed this for me. She has that fire (that edge) and her story doesn't disappoint.
I didn't find the story to be as soul searching as the others... but it still dives into new territory. For one thing, Pandora is mortal most of the story (that's what really makes this story different)... and it makes this book different from the others (deserving of the title "New Tales").
One last thing about the book... is the writing. I thought the writing style in this book was the best of what I've read so far... It's not as overwritten as her other books - and the result is this book is easier to read, easier to understand, and less repetitive than her earlier books.
I give the book 4 out of 5 because I enjoyed every bit of the book (I read it in one day) - I still think "The Vampire Lestat" is the best book in the series, but this one holds up well too.
- Austin James (http://www.AustinJamesHere.blogspot.com)
September 5, 2016
Although Pandora is part of the "secondary characters" of the famous saga of the Vampire Chronicles, for me is one of my favorite books of Anne Rice. With Pandora, Rice tells us the biography of this enigmatic vampire born in the ancient Roman Empire. Her story is a mixture of hope, tragedy, adventure and above all, love. A great book for all those who want to discover Anne Rice and love the mysterious and romantic side of the vampire. It's a fast reading with a great narrative rhythm.
Spanish version:
Aunque Pandora forme parte de los "hermanos secundarios" de la famosa saga de las crónicas vampíricas, para mí es uno de mis libros favoritos de Anne Rice. Con Pandora, Rice nos relata la biografía de esta enigmática vampira nacida en el antiguo imperio romano. Su historia es una mezcla de esperanza, tragedia, aventura y sobretodo amor. Un gran libro para todos aquellos que quieran leer algo de Anne Rice, de rápida lectura y de ritmo ágil.
Spanish version:
Aunque Pandora forme parte de los "hermanos secundarios" de la famosa saga de las crónicas vampíricas, para mí es uno de mis libros favoritos de Anne Rice. Con Pandora, Rice nos relata la biografía de esta enigmática vampira nacida en el antiguo imperio romano. Su historia es una mezcla de esperanza, tragedia, aventura y sobretodo amor. Un gran libro para todos aquellos que quieran leer algo de Anne Rice, de rápida lectura y de ritmo ágil.
March 3, 2010
• Oct. 22, 2006: This is really an outstanding story overall. There were very few things that took away from it, and even those didn’t bother me that much. Yeah, Pandora is another rich vampire from an aristocratic family. Yeah, Anne Rice said differently when she first mentioned Pandora. Again, that still didn’t take away from the story. This book also reinforced my belief that Anne Rice is really at her best when she is writing historical fiction. The way she brought ancient Rome to life was fascinating. The way she made things seem so normal, yet so interesting was outstanding. I look forward to reading more.
January 12, 2021
Si esperas encontrarte con una nueva historia de Vampiros, lamento decepcionarte, sin ser malo el libro, sí resulta algo lento e insatisfactorio.
Comienza muy bien, no lo puedo negar, pero la narración de la vida mortal de Pandora se va dilatando durante mucho tiempo a lo largo del libro, de forma que su transformación vampírica llega cuando el libro está llegando casi a su último cuarto.
Si quieres una historia de vampiros, te recomendaría cualquiera de los primeros de las Crónicas vampíricas, como Entrevista con el vampiro o Lestat El Vampiro.
Lo que sí hace este libro y hace muy bien y de manera breve y concisa es permitirnos echar un vistazo a la forma de vida y a las costumbres de la Roma antes de Cristo. Hay varias escenas que valen mucho la pena respecto a este punto, que están muy bien narradas y son muy disfrutables, pero en cuanto a escenas vampíricas notables, esta vez brillaron por su ausencia.
Dejo video donde hablo más a detalle sobre este libro:
[https://youtu.be/8ZWG457XzfA]
Comienza muy bien, no lo puedo negar, pero la narración de la vida mortal de Pandora se va dilatando durante mucho tiempo a lo largo del libro, de forma que su transformación vampírica llega cuando el libro está llegando casi a su último cuarto.
Si quieres una historia de vampiros, te recomendaría cualquiera de los primeros de las Crónicas vampíricas, como Entrevista con el vampiro o Lestat El Vampiro.
Lo que sí hace este libro y hace muy bien y de manera breve y concisa es permitirnos echar un vistazo a la forma de vida y a las costumbres de la Roma antes de Cristo. Hay varias escenas que valen mucho la pena respecto a este punto, que están muy bien narradas y son muy disfrutables, pero en cuanto a escenas vampíricas notables, esta vez brillaron por su ausencia.
Dejo video donde hablo más a detalle sobre este libro:
[https://youtu.be/8ZWG457XzfA]
November 25, 2014
"Look, the stars have all but faded. What is it like to be one of them? To be admired only in the darkness, when men and women live with candles and lamps. To be known and described, only in the heaviness of the night, when all the business of the day has ended!"
February 11, 2018
Pandora, by Anne Rice, was written in 1998 and it is the first book in The New Tales of The Vampires series. This is the first Anne Rice book I have read since 2000, where I read Interview With The Vampire and part of The Vampire Lestat. I am so glad I have been finding near-mint conditions of her books at library book sales and started adding them to my collection over the last year. Her writing is on another level of gorgeousness. She writes with such poise, elegance, and mystique. And, from what I remember about her previous book(s) I read, Pandora is no exception to the wonders of her writing style.
One of the things I enjoyed so much about Pandora was all the history woven into the story. The story of Pandora's past begins around 15 BC in the times of the Roman Republic. This story, however, is being told in writing as Pandora (in the "present" time) is writing her story in a letter. Pandora tells us of her travels and her weird dreams/nightmares about blood drinkers and whatnot. Like many vampires we know, Pandora is "a morose, despairing immortal who initially wanted immortality but soon regretted her choice and turns into a dark, indifferent cynic." In this book, we get to learn more about Roman times and religions, about Queen Isis, Osiris, and we get to learn a little more about some other vampires famous in Rice's world like Akasha and Lestat.
If you are a fan of Anne Rice's works, this is a no-brainer to pick up and continue your journey. If you are new to her world or returning after a long absence, then this book is quite nice to pick up and use to reacquaint yourself with her style and the world of vampires she has so wonderfully crafted. This one gets a 4 out of 5 stars from me and I am ready to add this woman to a list of authors whose complete bibliography I want to read!
One of the things I enjoyed so much about Pandora was all the history woven into the story. The story of Pandora's past begins around 15 BC in the times of the Roman Republic. This story, however, is being told in writing as Pandora (in the "present" time) is writing her story in a letter. Pandora tells us of her travels and her weird dreams/nightmares about blood drinkers and whatnot. Like many vampires we know, Pandora is "a morose, despairing immortal who initially wanted immortality but soon regretted her choice and turns into a dark, indifferent cynic." In this book, we get to learn more about Roman times and religions, about Queen Isis, Osiris, and we get to learn a little more about some other vampires famous in Rice's world like Akasha and Lestat.
If you are a fan of Anne Rice's works, this is a no-brainer to pick up and continue your journey. If you are new to her world or returning after a long absence, then this book is quite nice to pick up and use to reacquaint yourself with her style and the world of vampires she has so wonderfully crafted. This one gets a 4 out of 5 stars from me and I am ready to add this woman to a list of authors whose complete bibliography I want to read!
December 16, 2008
This was a discarded library book and I picked it up because the price was right and I thoroughly enjoyed the vampire trilogy that started with Interview and ended with Queen of the Damned.
Pandora's story was mildly interesting at points but mostly irritating. I don't love Rice's style of writing and it's really the plot that enticed my interest in the first 3. I didn't like Pandora, the character, and I couldn't care less about any of the other characters. Half the time that I was reading it I was deciding to just quit when something piqued my interest, and then the cycle would begin again.
Pandora's story was mildly interesting at points but mostly irritating. I don't love Rice's style of writing and it's really the plot that enticed my interest in the first 3. I didn't like Pandora, the character, and I couldn't care less about any of the other characters. Half the time that I was reading it I was deciding to just quit when something piqued my interest, and then the cycle would begin again.
December 4, 2022
Content Warning: pedophilia, grooming, death, violence.
Born in Caesar Augustus's Rome, Pandora grows up with an adoring father who is a Senator, and is educated freely as many women of her time. She is ten years old when she first meets the then-mortal Marius, an encounter that will irreversibly alter her fate. Now, in a café in 1990s Paris, Pandora meets David Talbot, who is eager for her to finally tell her story in her own words.
Pandora is a fascinating, complex figure in Rice's world of vampires. Although she has been criminally underdeveloped, she has the promise of a truly interesting backstory, one of the vampires from the ancient world. Although her character is, obviously, more expanded here, I had the odd feeling the entire time that she was still acting as little more than window-dressing for the complex backgrounds and characters of the men in this series.
Although she's a young woman in one of the most fascinating times and places on earth, Rice mostly glosses over this section of her life. There's a bit of intrigue when she is a little girl, with discussions of Ovid and some of Augustus's court politics, but it never becomes fully fleshed out. Her affiliation with the temple of Isis is another interesting element, but again, it somehow feels almost... boring, or perfunctory. I love how the legend of Isis ties in with Akasha and Enkil; that's probably my favorite part of this book. But as a whole, it's disjointed, a little awkward and fumbling.
I was also disappointed by how few other characters play a part in Pandora's life. Once again, we are stuck with Marius, who is as creepy and inappropriate in this book as he is in all the others, and for the millionth time, I found myself questioning why Rice was so keen to make him such a central figure. His complicated, rather fiery relationship with Pandora is interesting enough, but their first meeting -- when she is a little girl and he is a man of twenty-five -- is uncomfortable, strange, and leaves a distasteful film over the rest of the novel. I won't go into too much discussion of it here, as I've already mentioned it several times previously in my other reviews, but regardless, it negatively impacted my opinion yet again.
The worst part is that through it all, Pandora still feels underdeveloped. She's intelligent, beautiful, and spirited, but really, that's about it. Her innerworkings come across as simple, especially when compared to others in the series. That being said, the portion of the book that takes place in Antioch paints a wonderfully fascinating picture of that ancient place, and I loved her interactions with Flavius, an Athenian slave who has a beautiful, gentle relationship with her. It wasn't awful by any stretch of the imagination, but it certainly isn't the greatest Rice I've ever read.
Recommended if you are interested in Pandora, or some of the lesser known characters in the Chronicles.
Born in Caesar Augustus's Rome, Pandora grows up with an adoring father who is a Senator, and is educated freely as many women of her time. She is ten years old when she first meets the then-mortal Marius, an encounter that will irreversibly alter her fate. Now, in a café in 1990s Paris, Pandora meets David Talbot, who is eager for her to finally tell her story in her own words.
Pandora is a fascinating, complex figure in Rice's world of vampires. Although she has been criminally underdeveloped, she has the promise of a truly interesting backstory, one of the vampires from the ancient world. Although her character is, obviously, more expanded here, I had the odd feeling the entire time that she was still acting as little more than window-dressing for the complex backgrounds and characters of the men in this series.
Although she's a young woman in one of the most fascinating times and places on earth, Rice mostly glosses over this section of her life. There's a bit of intrigue when she is a little girl, with discussions of Ovid and some of Augustus's court politics, but it never becomes fully fleshed out. Her affiliation with the temple of Isis is another interesting element, but again, it somehow feels almost... boring, or perfunctory. I love how the legend of Isis ties in with Akasha and Enkil; that's probably my favorite part of this book. But as a whole, it's disjointed, a little awkward and fumbling.
I was also disappointed by how few other characters play a part in Pandora's life. Once again, we are stuck with Marius, who is as creepy and inappropriate in this book as he is in all the others, and for the millionth time, I found myself questioning why Rice was so keen to make him such a central figure. His complicated, rather fiery relationship with Pandora is interesting enough, but their first meeting -- when she is a little girl and he is a man of twenty-five -- is uncomfortable, strange, and leaves a distasteful film over the rest of the novel. I won't go into too much discussion of it here, as I've already mentioned it several times previously in my other reviews, but regardless, it negatively impacted my opinion yet again.
The worst part is that through it all, Pandora still feels underdeveloped. She's intelligent, beautiful, and spirited, but really, that's about it. Her innerworkings come across as simple, especially when compared to others in the series. That being said, the portion of the book that takes place in Antioch paints a wonderfully fascinating picture of that ancient place, and I loved her interactions with Flavius, an Athenian slave who has a beautiful, gentle relationship with her. It wasn't awful by any stretch of the imagination, but it certainly isn't the greatest Rice I've ever read.
Recommended if you are interested in Pandora, or some of the lesser known characters in the Chronicles.
January 22, 2013
I haven't read Anne Rice for almost a decade. We parted unfavourably after my third attempt to read Armand, and I haven't returned since. Pandora reminded of why I both loved her earlier works and why I found Armand impenetrable.
The negatives, unfortunately, dominate the first three quarters of the novel. Much as I remember Armand, Pandora spends significant chunks of time locked in her own head. As a fan of first person narrative, this should represent a positive. But the way this is incorporated during the first 150 pages, is drastically different to the earlier Vampire Chronicles. Instead of using the device to gain access to the protagonist's reactions to characters or situations. The narrative seems more like riding a rail car, taking in the sights and sounds of the world but remaining disconnected. When interaction does occur, I simply found both the dialogue and internal monologue, more often than not, irritating. Around page 105 Pandora says:
"This was very rude and irreverent, but I was in a full state of alarm"
For the majority of the book this seems to be her character. Exclamation marks are used gratuitously and consequently everything appears overly dramatised. I suspect this was all done to best imitate translation from the romantic languages and show how Pandora has changed over the centuries. But, personally, I was more interested in learning of Pandora throughout her life, not just the early off shoot where her brash impulsivity seemed alien to what I remember of her character.
The positive aspects of the story and the author's writing, appear once she has received the Dark Gift. At this point the story turns back to the vampire's mythology and this reminded me why Anne Rice's version of vampire lore remains my favourite. It was particularly interesting to witness the fall of Rome and the rise of Christianity through Pandora's eyes. These sections highlight Anne Rice's ability to integrate historical events into a fictional word and I was impressed at her understanding of how and why Christianity took over as it did. It just seems a waste that we spent so much time one minute part of history when there was the potential of a sweeping narrative and intense character study. An opportunity that is unique to character who has lived for 2000 years.
2.5 stars
Ultimately disappointing, but I do still feel the desire to spend further time in this mythology. Hopefully an increase to my age will allow me to enjoy Armand (the next book) in the way I always hoped I would.
The negatives, unfortunately, dominate the first three quarters of the novel. Much as I remember Armand, Pandora spends significant chunks of time locked in her own head. As a fan of first person narrative, this should represent a positive. But the way this is incorporated during the first 150 pages, is drastically different to the earlier Vampire Chronicles. Instead of using the device to gain access to the protagonist's reactions to characters or situations. The narrative seems more like riding a rail car, taking in the sights and sounds of the world but remaining disconnected. When interaction does occur, I simply found both the dialogue and internal monologue, more often than not, irritating. Around page 105 Pandora says:
"This was very rude and irreverent, but I was in a full state of alarm"
For the majority of the book this seems to be her character. Exclamation marks are used gratuitously and consequently everything appears overly dramatised. I suspect this was all done to best imitate translation from the romantic languages and show how Pandora has changed over the centuries. But, personally, I was more interested in learning of Pandora throughout her life, not just the early off shoot where her brash impulsivity seemed alien to what I remember of her character.
The positive aspects of the story and the author's writing, appear once she has received the Dark Gift. At this point the story turns back to the vampire's mythology and this reminded me why Anne Rice's version of vampire lore remains my favourite. It was particularly interesting to witness the fall of Rome and the rise of Christianity through Pandora's eyes. These sections highlight Anne Rice's ability to integrate historical events into a fictional word and I was impressed at her understanding of how and why Christianity took over as it did. It just seems a waste that we spent so much time one minute part of history when there was the potential of a sweeping narrative and intense character study. An opportunity that is unique to character who has lived for 2000 years.
2.5 stars
Ultimately disappointing, but I do still feel the desire to spend further time in this mythology. Hopefully an increase to my age will allow me to enjoy Armand (the next book) in the way I always hoped I would.
June 4, 2025
Look at that, a vampire story I didn't actually hate! I enjoyed the girlboss MC and the ancient Roman setting, although the narrative is strangely obsessed with comparing ancient religions to Christianity. And it was a little annoying that they kept talking about Lestat and I was like "i do not know this man"
May 23, 2012
Pandora wanted to set the record straight about Lestat's version of what Marius said about her. She does so, but not much more was revealed to us about her thousand-year life than the beginning and her transformation into a vampire. She wandered Europe for centuries, but chooses to spend 400 pages on the first 35 years of her life. It was still interesting to read about, but I was hoping for more than a rehash of things we pretty much already knew.
October 6, 2020
I did not find this book engaging as I did so many other of Rice’s books. I found it often confusing and downright boring. A lot of it seemed like a jumbled mess of words, with the meaning lost to me, or rather they were without meaning, I’m sorry to say. It’s not one of her best.
January 17, 2015
I read The Vampire Chronicles and a bunch of other Anne Rice books a couple of years ago and to be honest, I overdosed. It took me around 6-7 years to start another one of her books.
I can never be sure weather I like her style or not. Her ideas are almost always very good, but her writing is lacking. It is a bit over the top and wayyy too melodramatic for me. But nevertheless, there are a few books of hers that I really like, most of all Queen of the Damned, which was so, so inspired. To this day I remember Maharet, Akasha, Rock!Lestat and the rest of the bunch like I have read it yesterday.
Pandora was never one of the characters that I cared much about, she has always been background noise for me. I think the reason behind this might be the fact that before ever starting the books, I watched the QofD movie where she was a weird old lady, not very like her actual description in the books.
But, ultimately, I liked much of the story in Pandora. I have always been a die-hard fan of Ancient Greece, Egypt and the Roman Empire, so it was quite interesting for me, in comparison to Lestat's origin story, which was set much, much later, at a less interesting period. What was it, Classicism? I could be wrong.
Despite liking the story, there was one thing I found extremely annoying, and that was the fact that if you haven't read the Vampire Chronicles, you would be completely in the dark about this. Now, as I pointed out, I read them a while back and by now I have forgotten much of the details from books like Memnoch the Devil, although I remember liking that one in particular. I have no recollection, however, of Armand's story beyond his role in the first three books from the Chronicles. Which means that Pandora felt like another companion book, not like the beginning of another series. It just explains another side of the same story which is part of the Vampire Chronicles. Not to mention the fact that. Pandora is first introduced by Lestat as an ex-courtesan who caught Marius' eye. In the Pandora book though, she explains that Marius was what, trying to keep her virtue by explaining that bitch used to be a hooker? I'm not buying it. I have this nagging suspicion that Rice was simply not planning on writing a book about Pandora so she just came up with a random story. And then, a couple of years later, she was like 'There is still money in our Pandora'. So she wrote an entire book with a completely different backstory under the excuse that Marius, for reasons unknown, made the courtesan thing up. Stop milking it, Rice. Come up with some new characters, why don't you?
Also, the melodrama was at top notch. I mean... Rice's over-the-top love and sex conversations can be a little overwhelming, right?
*** I am once again at crossroads. Maybe I should rate it with three stars. Realistically, I think it is 2.5 stars, but somehow I don't feel right overrating it. ***
I can never be sure weather I like her style or not. Her ideas are almost always very good, but her writing is lacking. It is a bit over the top and wayyy too melodramatic for me. But nevertheless, there are a few books of hers that I really like, most of all Queen of the Damned, which was so, so inspired. To this day I remember Maharet, Akasha, Rock!Lestat and the rest of the bunch like I have read it yesterday.
Pandora was never one of the characters that I cared much about, she has always been background noise for me. I think the reason behind this might be the fact that before ever starting the books, I watched the QofD movie where she was a weird old lady, not very like her actual description in the books.
But, ultimately, I liked much of the story in Pandora. I have always been a die-hard fan of Ancient Greece, Egypt and the Roman Empire, so it was quite interesting for me, in comparison to Lestat's origin story, which was set much, much later, at a less interesting period. What was it, Classicism? I could be wrong.
Despite liking the story, there was one thing I found extremely annoying, and that was the fact that if you haven't read the Vampire Chronicles, you would be completely in the dark about this. Now, as I pointed out, I read them a while back and by now I have forgotten much of the details from books like Memnoch the Devil, although I remember liking that one in particular. I have no recollection, however, of Armand's story beyond his role in the first three books from the Chronicles. Which means that Pandora felt like another companion book, not like the beginning of another series. It just explains another side of the same story which is part of the Vampire Chronicles. Not to mention the fact that. Pandora is first introduced by Lestat as an ex-courtesan who caught Marius' eye. In the Pandora book though, she explains that Marius was what, trying to keep her virtue by explaining that bitch used to be a hooker? I'm not buying it. I have this nagging suspicion that Rice was simply not planning on writing a book about Pandora so she just came up with a random story. And then, a couple of years later, she was like 'There is still money in our Pandora'. So she wrote an entire book with a completely different backstory under the excuse that Marius, for reasons unknown, made the courtesan thing up. Stop milking it, Rice. Come up with some new characters, why don't you?
Also, the melodrama was at top notch. I mean... Rice's over-the-top love and sex conversations can be a little overwhelming, right?
*** I am once again at crossroads. Maybe I should rate it with three stars. Realistically, I think it is 2.5 stars, but somehow I don't feel right overrating it. ***
February 9, 2011
Wow! I love reading stories about vampires and Anne Rice has it going on! I've had this book sitting on my bookcase back home since 8th grade and for some reason I never read it! Well luckily for me, I found this gem the other weekend while I was visiting my parents and am so happy that I finally read it.
In short, this book is about a 2,000 year old vampire named Lydia (aka Pandora) who lived during the height of the Roman Empire (15 B.C.) She is approached by a young vampire named David in the streets of Paris to write down her mortal days leading up to her immortal change. Pandora is reluctant to disclose her past life with this stranger but his charms talk her into complying. This novel read as she is writing her story for David.
Pandora is a strong female lead character who is not only smart and witty, but years before her time in the areas of women's rights and feminism. She approaches religion with such curiosity yet skepticism that I find myself trying to absorb her words straight from the page (or screen he he).
I honestly can't wait to read more of her works on vampires!
In short, this book is about a 2,000 year old vampire named Lydia (aka Pandora) who lived during the height of the Roman Empire (15 B.C.) She is approached by a young vampire named David in the streets of Paris to write down her mortal days leading up to her immortal change. Pandora is reluctant to disclose her past life with this stranger but his charms talk her into complying. This novel read as she is writing her story for David.
Pandora is a strong female lead character who is not only smart and witty, but years before her time in the areas of women's rights and feminism. She approaches religion with such curiosity yet skepticism that I find myself trying to absorb her words straight from the page (or screen he he).
I honestly can't wait to read more of her works on vampires!
March 1, 2011
I actually don't read vampire book. Well, I guess that's the risk (or good thing) of working in a bookshop. I've got curious about this book because of our loyal customer is so totally into this vampire things. When we got 'Pandora' on our list, we called her and she told that she got the book. So I put the book on the shelf to be sold. After a week, no one seem to buy the book and every time I check on the shelf I've grown overly curious about this book, so I end up borrowing the book from the shop and read it before going to bed. To my surprise this book has caught me!
What makes this vampire book interesting is main character, I've always fallin' in love with this strong woman character, plus the setting is in ancient Roman empire. I just love it!
What makes this vampire book interesting is main character, I've always fallin' in love with this strong woman character, plus the setting is in ancient Roman empire. I just love it!
July 27, 2017
Beautiful description and depictions of Ancient Rome and the Mediterreanean. Bonus: Most excellent love story between Marius and Pandora. Some of Rice's finest work!
On a side note, while it's considered Book 1 of the New Tales, I don't really consider this one as separate from the Vampire Chronicles, like I would with Vittorio.
On a side note, while it's considered Book 1 of the New Tales, I don't really consider this one as separate from the Vampire Chronicles, like I would with Vittorio.
September 2, 2024
It's really unusual to read an Anne Rice novel with a female protagonist, so that's a nice change of pace. Pandora, originally known as Lydia, is a young Roman woman, born at the time of the Emperor Augustus. Her father is assassinated, and she journeys to Antioch for her own safety, where she encounters the vampire, Marius. This is the story of her life before she becomes a vampire, and her first days with Marius. The story is compelling and entertaining, but it doesn't truly come into its own until the final third of the book, when Pandora becomes a vampire. Usually Rice novels are much too long, but here I would have appreciated more time spent on Pandora's centuries as a vampire, and there was room for a more rambling plot.
June 12, 2014
Reseñado en mi blog Nanny Books
Tenía entendido que la saga Nuevas historias de vampiros era posterior a la saga principal de la autora, Crónicas vampíricas, pero resulta que no es así. ¡Atención! Esto es muy importante para todos los que estén siguiendo libro por libro de Rice (como yo). El orden ideal para leer estos tomos sería así:
° Crónicas Vampíricas #5: Memnoch el diablo
- Nuevas Historias de Vampiros #1: Pandora
° Crónicas Vampíricas #6: Armand el vampiro
- Nuevas Historias de Vampiros #2: Vittorio el vampiro
° Crónicas Vampíricas #7: Merrick y demás tomos.
¿Se ha entendido? Eso espero, jajaja. Además de las sagas de vampiros, también se debería intercalar la lectura con la saga Las brujas de Mayfair, pero esto sería a partir del séptimo tomo de las Crónicas. Y ya es un terreno más opcional.
Como siempre ocurre conmigo, he leído la saga en mal orden. Se suponía que no debía leer Armand el vampiro hasta que terminara con Pandora, pero lo hice totalmente al revés... Bueno, de todas formas no es que el personaje del vampiro con rostro de angelito me guste mucho, como ya saben...
La historia de esta novela, inicio de una saga paralela a las Crónicas que la autora abandonó prontamente, comienza justo al final de Memnoch el diablo y nos encontramos con un peculiar David Talbot que busca recolectar las historias de los vampiros antiguos. No avanza para nada en el hilo argumental de las Crónicas, por lo tanto es un spin off en toda regla.
Es algo extraño y resulta muy increíble que el inglés David vaya a conocer a los vampiros ancianos, que son más fuertes y antiguos (por algo se llaman Los Hijos del Milenio) que todos los demás, debido a que, en primera instancia, es super peligroso; en segunda instancia, él es una creación de Lestat, y no todo el mundo quiero a nuestro héroe; en tercero, ¿para qué?, ¡está loco!. Si logramos superar nuestro escepticismo al respecto, resulta grandiosa la historia que se nos contará:
Pandora es una protagonista excepcional, una mujer que de humana ya era fuerte y controvertida... de vampira promete muchos dolores de cabeza, para nuestro querido Marius especialmente. Por primera vez en mucho tiempo, Rice nos concede a una narrador femenino. Sin embargo, como suele suceder con todos sus personajes, termina siendo un tanto ambiguo.
La novela, narrada en primera persona a estilo de diario, pronto nos sorprenderá con sus descripciones históricas y paisajistas realmente documentadas hasta el dedillo. Y esto se los puedo confirmar, Rice se esmeró muchísimo con su trabajo de investigación.
Lo romántico se mezcla con lo histórico, con lo sobrenatural y con el thriller. Oh, sí, aquí hay de todo, incluso se hace lugar para hablar de religión (una vez más). Veremos el lado masculino de Marius, ¡lo veremos incluso humano! Sabremos de los enredos amatorios de Pandora, tanto como vampira como humana. Y en medio de todo eso, tendremos un par de detalles acerca de nuestra antigua reina caída, Akasha.
El libro es realmente corto, al menos para lo que nos ha acostumbrado Rice. No llega a las trescientas páginas, y la mayoría del contenido es acerca de la vida humana de Pandora. Y ahí se encuentra el fallo único que tiene: deja varias cosas inconclusas y otras tantas las apura.
En fin, me ha gustado, pero no es lo mejor que he leído de Rice. Es de rápida lectura, más breve que otros tomos, igual de interesante. Se los recomiendo solo a aquellos que vienen siguiendo la saga.
Tenía entendido que la saga Nuevas historias de vampiros era posterior a la saga principal de la autora, Crónicas vampíricas, pero resulta que no es así. ¡Atención! Esto es muy importante para todos los que estén siguiendo libro por libro de Rice (como yo). El orden ideal para leer estos tomos sería así:
° Crónicas Vampíricas #5: Memnoch el diablo
- Nuevas Historias de Vampiros #1: Pandora
° Crónicas Vampíricas #6: Armand el vampiro
- Nuevas Historias de Vampiros #2: Vittorio el vampiro
° Crónicas Vampíricas #7: Merrick y demás tomos.
¿Se ha entendido? Eso espero, jajaja. Además de las sagas de vampiros, también se debería intercalar la lectura con la saga Las brujas de Mayfair, pero esto sería a partir del séptimo tomo de las Crónicas. Y ya es un terreno más opcional.
Como siempre ocurre conmigo, he leído la saga en mal orden. Se suponía que no debía leer Armand el vampiro hasta que terminara con Pandora, pero lo hice totalmente al revés... Bueno, de todas formas no es que el personaje del vampiro con rostro de angelito me guste mucho, como ya saben...
La historia de esta novela, inicio de una saga paralela a las Crónicas que la autora abandonó prontamente, comienza justo al final de Memnoch el diablo y nos encontramos con un peculiar David Talbot que busca recolectar las historias de los vampiros antiguos. No avanza para nada en el hilo argumental de las Crónicas, por lo tanto es un spin off en toda regla.
Es algo extraño y resulta muy increíble que el inglés David vaya a conocer a los vampiros ancianos, que son más fuertes y antiguos (por algo se llaman Los Hijos del Milenio) que todos los demás, debido a que, en primera instancia, es super peligroso; en segunda instancia, él es una creación de Lestat, y no todo el mundo quiero a nuestro héroe; en tercero, ¿para qué?, ¡está loco!. Si logramos superar nuestro escepticismo al respecto, resulta grandiosa la historia que se nos contará:
Pandora es una protagonista excepcional, una mujer que de humana ya era fuerte y controvertida... de vampira promete muchos dolores de cabeza, para nuestro querido Marius especialmente. Por primera vez en mucho tiempo, Rice nos concede a una narrador femenino. Sin embargo, como suele suceder con todos sus personajes, termina siendo un tanto ambiguo.
La novela, narrada en primera persona a estilo de diario, pronto nos sorprenderá con sus descripciones históricas y paisajistas realmente documentadas hasta el dedillo. Y esto se los puedo confirmar, Rice se esmeró muchísimo con su trabajo de investigación.
Lo romántico se mezcla con lo histórico, con lo sobrenatural y con el thriller. Oh, sí, aquí hay de todo, incluso se hace lugar para hablar de religión (una vez más). Veremos el lado masculino de Marius, ¡lo veremos incluso humano! Sabremos de los enredos amatorios de Pandora, tanto como vampira como humana. Y en medio de todo eso, tendremos un par de detalles acerca de nuestra antigua reina caída, Akasha.
El libro es realmente corto, al menos para lo que nos ha acostumbrado Rice. No llega a las trescientas páginas, y la mayoría del contenido es acerca de la vida humana de Pandora. Y ahí se encuentra el fallo único que tiene: deja varias cosas inconclusas y otras tantas las apura.
En fin, me ha gustado, pero no es lo mejor que he leído de Rice. Es de rápida lectura, más breve que otros tomos, igual de interesante. Se los recomiendo solo a aquellos que vienen siguiendo la saga.
December 7, 2007
Pandora is the first of the two New Tales of the Vampires, the second being Vittorio. We've met Pandora in the Vampire Chronicles as one of the ancients, and alas, this is her story.
Pandora is a patrician from ancient Rome during the time of Augustus. Her father is a Senator, and she is well educated and literate. Rice brings her laudable talent of recreating distant times and places to bear on this wonderful addition to her vampire catalogue. Pre-Christian Rome operated under an entirely different value system then what came after. Whether one is Christian or not, the Western paradigm is rooted in Christian values, and we rarely realize how these color our lens. Rice is really able do delve into and analyze some of these disparities in Pandora, and I must admit she does quite an admirable job of this. An ancient Roman protagonist that rides the ages up to the modern day allows for an epic contrast and commentary that is rare in a work of fiction. One does not have to read all the Vampire chronicles to enjoy and grasp Pandora, as she can be thought of as a type of Prequel to them. However, I would suggest beginning with Interview and following them chronologically. If you enjoy reading, it is rare to have a quality series that spans 12 books. Savor them.
Pandora is a patrician from ancient Rome during the time of Augustus. Her father is a Senator, and she is well educated and literate. Rice brings her laudable talent of recreating distant times and places to bear on this wonderful addition to her vampire catalogue. Pre-Christian Rome operated under an entirely different value system then what came after. Whether one is Christian or not, the Western paradigm is rooted in Christian values, and we rarely realize how these color our lens. Rice is really able do delve into and analyze some of these disparities in Pandora, and I must admit she does quite an admirable job of this. An ancient Roman protagonist that rides the ages up to the modern day allows for an epic contrast and commentary that is rare in a work of fiction. One does not have to read all the Vampire chronicles to enjoy and grasp Pandora, as she can be thought of as a type of Prequel to them. However, I would suggest beginning with Interview and following them chronologically. If you enjoy reading, it is rare to have a quality series that spans 12 books. Savor them.
December 8, 2020
Trata sobre Lydia, una joven patricia inquieta, impaciente, siempre algunos pasos por delante de su época y conversación de turno ... muy lejos aún de Pandora, la vieja vampira milenaria que participa en La reina de los condenados. Aunque técnicamente pertenece a otra serie, es una crónica más.
De hecho, el principio de la novela enlaza directamente con la devastadora conclusión de Memnoch el diablo. Hace un instructivo y fantástico trazo de la sociedad romana y su periodo histórico así como de algún otro lugar que no quiero desvelar.
Por otro lado, hay más mitología vampírica egipcia. Aparecen "clásicos" de Crónicas como Marius, en esta ocasión para mostrar esa unión legendaria con tanta química explosiva; y nuevos como Flavius, otro de tantos buenos personajes que ha alumbrado la indefinible, melancólica, abismal pluma de Rice.
Tengo que decir que hubo un par de diálogos importantes en que Pandora me descolocó por contestaciones afiladas, algo desproporcionadas a la situación. Pero igualmente ha sido una gran historia que, como he dicho, no desmerece a las crónicas.
De hecho, el principio de la novela enlaza directamente con la devastadora conclusión de Memnoch el diablo. Hace un instructivo y fantástico trazo de la sociedad romana y su periodo histórico así como de algún otro lugar que no quiero desvelar.
Por otro lado, hay más mitología vampírica egipcia. Aparecen "clásicos" de Crónicas como Marius, en esta ocasión para mostrar esa unión legendaria con tanta química explosiva; y nuevos como Flavius, otro de tantos buenos personajes que ha alumbrado la indefinible, melancólica, abismal pluma de Rice.
Tengo que decir que hubo un par de diálogos importantes en que Pandora me descolocó por contestaciones afiladas, algo desproporcionadas a la situación. Pero igualmente ha sido una gran historia que, como he dicho, no desmerece a las crónicas.
May 10, 2018
There were many strong areas of this story but the ending was not one of them. It kind of petered out. Pandora was my first Anne Rice novel. I can see why she is popular and it has nothing to do with vampires. She understands the craft of storytelling and uses history to her advantage. She is mindful of the forces that shape history and her story portrays how cities & Empires evolve with time being their great enemy. Philosophy, religion, myth, paganism & superstition are all explored in this book in the very human search for the mysteries of the universe.
4 and a half stars.
4 and a half stars.
August 27, 2023
I made an important new friend last year. Aside from cooking for each other, doing magic, and talking, our ritual is the club. We look beautiful together. We skip the hours long lines for the techno, goth or synthwave clubs, and groups of tourists stare at us, wide-eyed. We exist in our own pearlescent cosmos on the weekend. We spend hours on our make-up, on our nails, on our outfits and our spells.
I never had this before. I felt ugly since the day I turned 13. My wonderful friend is teaching me all this, in my thirties, glittering night out after night out. He says I am beautiful, and I have no choice but to believe him. I stand a little straighter these days. I put care into myself. Sometimes we pretend we are vampires. I’d forgotten how much fun it is to play-act through all these years of ugly adulthood.
We talk a lot about books. Our ideal of beauty is kindness and intelligence, underpinned by mystery. We had the same favourite books as children: The Mists of Avalon, Der Kleine Vampir, Homer’s Odyssey. He also loved the Vampire Chronicles, of which I only read Queen of the Damned. I was extremely dubious of that candelabra of a book. He told me to give the series another chance, to read Pandora.
I wish I had read these books as a preteen. I think I would have enjoyed them more then, and been more ready to fall under their spell. Rice presents some rich tableaus as usual, but her characters are cold boring statues who monologue in the middle of them. Marius is forever ‘weary’, Pandora herself is feminine and reflective. We are told about their intelligence via name dropping of famous authors, particularly Ovid and Shakespeare. There is a lot of lore about Akasha. Rice tells rather than shows continually. She never allows you to discover how you feel about something. She sweeps in with soap opera generalisations before most characters have had time to meet.
I love books set in the ancient world, but I found this tale a little basic after having read John William’s stunning Augustus just last year. Pandora is a 90s story, with 90s characters, just set in a thinly-researched ancient world. Our main character likens garum to ketchup, dismisses her Caesar’s daughter Julia as a ‘slut’ and mentions Ovid to the point of obsession.
Her and the other vampires are sharp-chiseled supermodels with a superiority complex. Rice has her own internal lore, but I wish they were more wild, wind-swept, more like something outside of our human understanding, instead of these manicured bachelor of philosophy students. The world had more mystery in a simple tropical suburban evening of my awkward teens than in all of this heavy description.
In many ways the vampires remind me of myself at the club on the weekend. I look very beautiful, I am kind, and I can say many mysterious and even halfway intelligent things. But it’s a mask. It’s a role, a healing game I am playing for the night. I know one day this will pass, and I will leave the club and not come back.
I understand why my friend loved these books. They are an invitation to play, to pretend to be one of the weary ‘chosen’. But there are more mature and more complex stories to choose from, and these feel like a step backwards, rather than forwards.
I have to think about what I’ll say about this book to him. Should I be honest, or should I deflect? All I really truly know is that we’re going out today, to weave our own vampiric spell on a darkened floor, and that I won’t be wasting my time with Rice’s shallow brand of play again.
I never had this before. I felt ugly since the day I turned 13. My wonderful friend is teaching me all this, in my thirties, glittering night out after night out. He says I am beautiful, and I have no choice but to believe him. I stand a little straighter these days. I put care into myself. Sometimes we pretend we are vampires. I’d forgotten how much fun it is to play-act through all these years of ugly adulthood.
We talk a lot about books. Our ideal of beauty is kindness and intelligence, underpinned by mystery. We had the same favourite books as children: The Mists of Avalon, Der Kleine Vampir, Homer’s Odyssey. He also loved the Vampire Chronicles, of which I only read Queen of the Damned. I was extremely dubious of that candelabra of a book. He told me to give the series another chance, to read Pandora.
I wish I had read these books as a preteen. I think I would have enjoyed them more then, and been more ready to fall under their spell. Rice presents some rich tableaus as usual, but her characters are cold boring statues who monologue in the middle of them. Marius is forever ‘weary’, Pandora herself is feminine and reflective. We are told about their intelligence via name dropping of famous authors, particularly Ovid and Shakespeare. There is a lot of lore about Akasha. Rice tells rather than shows continually. She never allows you to discover how you feel about something. She sweeps in with soap opera generalisations before most characters have had time to meet.
I love books set in the ancient world, but I found this tale a little basic after having read John William’s stunning Augustus just last year. Pandora is a 90s story, with 90s characters, just set in a thinly-researched ancient world. Our main character likens garum to ketchup, dismisses her Caesar’s daughter Julia as a ‘slut’ and mentions Ovid to the point of obsession.
Her and the other vampires are sharp-chiseled supermodels with a superiority complex. Rice has her own internal lore, but I wish they were more wild, wind-swept, more like something outside of our human understanding, instead of these manicured bachelor of philosophy students. The world had more mystery in a simple tropical suburban evening of my awkward teens than in all of this heavy description.
In many ways the vampires remind me of myself at the club on the weekend. I look very beautiful, I am kind, and I can say many mysterious and even halfway intelligent things. But it’s a mask. It’s a role, a healing game I am playing for the night. I know one day this will pass, and I will leave the club and not come back.
I understand why my friend loved these books. They are an invitation to play, to pretend to be one of the weary ‘chosen’. But there are more mature and more complex stories to choose from, and these feel like a step backwards, rather than forwards.
I have to think about what I’ll say about this book to him. Should I be honest, or should I deflect? All I really truly know is that we’re going out today, to weave our own vampiric spell on a darkened floor, and that I won’t be wasting my time with Rice’s shallow brand of play again.
March 27, 2020
So I finished reading this book. That's good old Anne Rice style.
I imagined Pandora as some cold woman. But in her story I saw she was a strong Roman woman, who was well-educated, always told her opinion, loved to read books and maybe was even smarter than any man. I just love her feministic side mixed with her passionate side. Maybe Pandora fell too deep into religious things and I think Marius had all rights to argue with her telling what nonsences all cults are.
The whole storyline was great in my opinion. I liked many historical persons, philosophy and so many feelings. But the book ended so fast. I think it was an amazing story if I started to feel emptiness after reading it and thinking why it ended so fast.
And this book gave me so many feelings... Pandora reminded me of my beloved one whom I called my beloved Pandora as in the last pages of book. It was some personal feelings I found in this story. And love scenes made me shiver. I saw how Marius and Pandora were bonded to each other. A true love bond.
So in conclusion I shall say that this book was amazing, touching my heart and giving me so many feelings, so much "food for mybrains".
I imagined Pandora as some cold woman. But in her story I saw she was a strong Roman woman, who was well-educated, always told her opinion, loved to read books and maybe was even smarter than any man. I just love her feministic side mixed with her passionate side. Maybe Pandora fell too deep into religious things and I think Marius had all rights to argue with her telling what nonsences all cults are.
The whole storyline was great in my opinion. I liked many historical persons, philosophy and so many feelings. But the book ended so fast. I think it was an amazing story if I started to feel emptiness after reading it and thinking why it ended so fast.
And this book gave me so many feelings... Pandora reminded me of my beloved one whom I called my beloved Pandora as in the last pages of book. It was some personal feelings I found in this story. And love scenes made me shiver. I saw how Marius and Pandora were bonded to each other. A true love bond.
So in conclusion I shall say that this book was amazing, touching my heart and giving me so many feelings, so much "food for mybrains".
January 14, 2010
I loved this book with a passion! It is an amazing story that hooks you from the first chapter. The way it is written is amazing. Anne Rice is an amazing novelist. I love her books. The brother book to this, "Blood and Gold", Marius's story, is heartbreaking and exciting.
Both books have so much in them its like reading three books in one, but it isn't overwhelming. The plotline carries very smoothly. I loved these books so much and would recommend this to anyone with a stomach for death and a heart for love.
Both books have so much in them its like reading three books in one, but it isn't overwhelming. The plotline carries very smoothly. I loved these books so much and would recommend this to anyone with a stomach for death and a heart for love.
June 21, 2021
I really liked reading a book about Pandora, a vampire who is very mysterious and not as involved with Lestat as others (atleast from what I’ve read in the main series so far). After reading this book, Pandora is probably my favourite female character written by Anne Rice. Shes cunning and her strong will is shown throughout the book in interesting ways.
Pandora is actually human for a large portion of this book. It was cool to see into her human life leading up to her becoming a vampire, but I would have liked to see more of her stories that came in the centuries that passed. It was great seeing more of Marius again of course, and David, every character adores David and I love that lol (how can they not?), the new character Flavius was a favourite as well.
I prefer reading from Lestat’s perspective, but this was still very enjoyable. It was nice to see another vampires story.
Pandora is actually human for a large portion of this book. It was cool to see into her human life leading up to her becoming a vampire, but I would have liked to see more of her stories that came in the centuries that passed. It was great seeing more of Marius again of course, and David, every character adores David and I love that lol (how can they not?), the new character Flavius was a favourite as well.
I prefer reading from Lestat’s perspective, but this was still very enjoyable. It was nice to see another vampires story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 1, 2022
Well...truly a product of the 90s. I didn't care for the mystery/visions from an ancient Goddess plot at all, I hope the next books focus more on the interpersonal drama, that was fun and also a different time period, I hate the Romans
March 10, 2025
The last few anne rice books I’ve read have been a bit disappointing so this just reminded me how much I loved her stuff. It was also quite reminiscent of the original trilogy which I loved!!
I wish these books were not so male centric at times as when anne rice writes from female perspectives (jesse reeves in queen of the damned and pandora) I enjoy her writing so much. New favourite anne rice novel I fear
I wish these books were not so male centric at times as when anne rice writes from female perspectives (jesse reeves in queen of the damned and pandora) I enjoy her writing so much. New favourite anne rice novel I fear
September 25, 2024
The first chapters and the last couple of chapters were the most fun. The middle was too slow.
May 16, 2022
2.5*
Mi primer libro de Anne Rice y es una experiencia agridulce.
“Si siembras por doquier las semillas de la desconfianza, acabas sepultado en un campo cubierto de maleza”
Nada más empezar el libro, el capítulo 1 me confundió mucho. Yo suponía que no tenía que leer Crónicas Vampíricas antes, pues por algo ésta serie tiene su propio nombre y numeración, pero me encontré con un montón de personajes y referencias de la ficción de Anne Rice imposibles de seguir.
Por su parte, el último capítulo es aburridísimo. No solo no aporta absolutamente nada a la trama, sino que es otro montón de personas históricas y referencias también imposibles de seguir. Es que, ¿Quiénes son esas personas? Y no me juzguen, simplemente es un periodo histórico que no me interesa mucho, y sobretodo, nada de eso es importante narrarlo en un “libro de vampiros”
Pero bien, lo que hay en medio de esos dos capítulos es otra cosa. Les ha pasado que leen libros de ficción y piensan “esto podría ser real” (?). Pandora tiene mucho de eso.
Si bien, la prosa es bellísima sin llegar a ser artificiosa, el mayor problema es que la mayor parte del libro es aburrida y, cada vez que piensas que toma fuerza, vuelve a decaer en descripciones y referencias poco atractivas.
Honestamente, no entendí al cien por ciento todo lo relativo al vampirismo y la mitología presentada por la autora, e incluso me parece innecesario y más un pretexto para amarrar una historia sobre una mujer empoderada a su saga Best Seller y, por consiguiente, vender más.
Y es que, la parte “no vampírica” de Pandora es excelente. Todo lo relativo a su personaje y sus tratos con la sociedad de entonces, su carácter y sus decisiones son lo que sostiene ésta historia. Pero que, como ya dije, decae cada vez que creemos que toma fuerza.
“No te aferres a la razón en un mundo donde existen tal numerosas y horrendas contradicciones”
Lo Mejor: Pudo ser una gran novela histórica.
Lo Peor: Parece que Anne Rice se obligó a conectarla a Crónicas Vampíricas, aunque eso supusiera sacrificar lo que pudo ser el libro.
Mi primer libro de Anne Rice y es una experiencia agridulce.
“Si siembras por doquier las semillas de la desconfianza, acabas sepultado en un campo cubierto de maleza”
Nada más empezar el libro, el capítulo 1 me confundió mucho. Yo suponía que no tenía que leer Crónicas Vampíricas antes, pues por algo ésta serie tiene su propio nombre y numeración, pero me encontré con un montón de personajes y referencias de la ficción de Anne Rice imposibles de seguir.
Por su parte, el último capítulo es aburridísimo. No solo no aporta absolutamente nada a la trama, sino que es otro montón de personas históricas y referencias también imposibles de seguir. Es que, ¿Quiénes son esas personas? Y no me juzguen, simplemente es un periodo histórico que no me interesa mucho, y sobretodo, nada de eso es importante narrarlo en un “libro de vampiros”
Pero bien, lo que hay en medio de esos dos capítulos es otra cosa. Les ha pasado que leen libros de ficción y piensan “esto podría ser real” (?). Pandora tiene mucho de eso.
Si bien, la prosa es bellísima sin llegar a ser artificiosa, el mayor problema es que la mayor parte del libro es aburrida y, cada vez que piensas que toma fuerza, vuelve a decaer en descripciones y referencias poco atractivas.
Honestamente, no entendí al cien por ciento todo lo relativo al vampirismo y la mitología presentada por la autora, e incluso me parece innecesario y más un pretexto para amarrar una historia sobre una mujer empoderada a su saga Best Seller y, por consiguiente, vender más.
Y es que, la parte “no vampírica” de Pandora es excelente. Todo lo relativo a su personaje y sus tratos con la sociedad de entonces, su carácter y sus decisiones son lo que sostiene ésta historia. Pero que, como ya dije, decae cada vez que creemos que toma fuerza.
“No te aferres a la razón en un mundo donde existen tal numerosas y horrendas contradicciones”
Lo Mejor: Pudo ser una gran novela histórica.
Lo Peor: Parece que Anne Rice se obligó a conectarla a Crónicas Vampíricas, aunque eso supusiera sacrificar lo que pudo ser el libro.
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