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5ambe11's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Had a bit of a hard time going through certain slow sections but I love the world of the vampire chronicles and ate it up anyway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Murder
Moderate: Sexual violence and Slavery
bunnypearl's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Even with all the content warnings, I found this book much more enjoyable than the last couple volumes in the Vampire Chronicles. I always loved the character of Armand and delving further into his backstory was incredibly interesting, his demeanor and actions further explained by the past.
I thought his relationship with Marius, both mentally and physically, was well-written. Though the reality of it is far from beautiful, the way Rice writes it draws the reader into Armand's mind, making them believe (to an extent) that this love is something that can be perfectly attained--even if it takes a long while. Seeing him go from student to lover to hunter to something impossible to label...it's a long, strange process and Armand's development throughout the story makes this book one of my favorites in the Chronicles.
This story is definitely not for everyone and the content warnings should be checked before reading it, but I enjoyed The Vampire Armand much more than I anticipated.
I thought his relationship with Marius, both mentally and physically, was well-written. Though the reality of it is far from beautiful, the way Rice writes it draws the reader into Armand's mind, making them believe (to an extent) that this love is something that can be perfectly attained--even if it takes a long while. Seeing him go from student to lover to hunter to something impossible to label...it's a long, strange process and Armand's development throughout the story makes this book one of my favorites in the Chronicles.
This story is definitely not for everyone and the content warnings should be checked before reading it, but I enjoyed The Vampire Armand much more than I anticipated.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Torture
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
bordino's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Stalking, Suicide attempt, and Murder
cecilyroseceillam's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I enjoyed the vampire armand a lot, I do have a few criticisms though. It has quite a few weird pacing issues where the first half is extremely extremely slow and then the chapters get shorter and more stakes are involved and ideas/themes feel slightly rushed and then it becomes very slow paced again. I also feel like some things needed to be expanded on and or edited as some things feel very out of place. I also didn’t like the amount SA and CSA on the first two chapters even if it’s meant to be historically accurate. I loved the descriptions of Venice and Italy and Italy began to feel like a character itself which I enjoyed a lot. The way Anne described armand finding new technologies and clothes from that time period was beautiful to read also. I also loved the descriptions of the paintings armand and Marius did, it feel like you had climbed into the paintings and were a part of the colours and egg tempura. I also really appreciated the way this book clarified Memnoch the devil more, and linked back up to the vampire lestat in more detail and added some extra things to them as well as interview with the vampire. Overall I’d recommend the vampire armand if you want a quicker recap like story telling of a lot of history and don’t connect as much with Anne’s much longer, more historically depth work. And I also like that this book has some mystery elements too from armand history and some previous books which get uncovered.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Cannibalism
raybudbury's review against another edition
I may come back to this one but I hate Marius so bad I can’t get through it even though I love Armand. I found out I HATE master/slave as a trope so I guess that’s nice to find out. But the amount of grooming. Also this is supposed to be the good time in Armand’s life yeah 🔫 Marius I have a gun at all times pointed at you. Like I get it it’s the Venetian period BUT Anne could have written this in a more critical way but she chose not to and you can see in this book and other books her feelings on that shit. I’ve been thinking about what I would’ve thought as a young teen and I’m lowkey glad I stopped reading after the third book because I should notttttt have read this book as a teen. Good job teen me. Anyway I’m being critical w it by not finishing this one cause I don’t have a gun to my head and I like to have fun Bianca’s comment on Marius and his boys slayed though. Get that freak.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Slavery, Toxic relationship, and Trafficking
asavagegarden's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this book ruined my life. i think it gave me ptsd, no joke.
this is armand telling david talbot (yes, it makes no sense, it should've been journalist daniel molloy) the story of his life, since he was a child to the current day.
i read this book without knowing much, just having read the previous 5 books in the chronicles, and with misleading ideas in favour of marius de romanus that other people told me. this book is VERY hard to read because it has extremely distressing topics (i will add some trigger warnings at the end) and i highly recommend if you think any trauma could be triggered by this book... do not read. do not harm yourself.
that being said, i still rate this book 5 stars because of how complex armand is as a character, he became one of my favorite characters. i can HATE what happens in this book but still recognize no matter how fucked up it is, that it is a good book. dark and traumatizing.
TW: rape, pedophilia, physical abuse, grooming, sexual abuse, human trafficking, child trafficking and more.
marius de romanus is the worst character to ever exist and i'm sad rice (who i'm sure is in hell for writting this book) didn't kill him before dying herself. this fictional monster is an abuser in all the forms of the word and he commits graphic abuse to children ON page. so please beware.
this is armand telling david talbot (yes, it makes no sense, it should've been journalist daniel molloy) the story of his life, since he was a child to the current day.
i read this book without knowing much, just having read the previous 5 books in the chronicles, and with misleading ideas in favour of marius de romanus that other people told me. this book is VERY hard to read because it has extremely distressing topics (i will add some trigger warnings at the end) and i highly recommend if you think any trauma could be triggered by this book... do not read. do not harm yourself.
that being said, i still rate this book 5 stars because of how complex armand is as a character, he became one of my favorite characters. i can HATE what happens in this book but still recognize no matter how fucked up it is, that it is a good book. dark and traumatizing.
TW: rape, pedophilia, physical abuse, grooming, sexual abuse, human trafficking, child trafficking and more.
marius de romanus is the worst character to ever exist and i'm sad rice (who i'm sure is in hell for writting this book) didn't kill him before dying herself. this fictional monster is an abuser in all the forms of the word and he commits graphic abuse to children ON page. so please beware.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
shellfish's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Suicide attempt
While there isn't literal incest, a major relationship does have a pseudo-incestuous dynamic, i.e. a relationship between a minor and a father figure.armand's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
wow. this was easily one of the most devastating books i’ve ever read.
armand is my favorite vampire of the series, and it was very painful to get through this book. although i wanted to read more about his backstory, story ripped my heart to shreds. i disliked marius before, but he is now one of my most HATED literary characters of all time. i’ve seen many people demonize and bash on armand’s character for being Strange and Offputting… and while i understand why some people can find him to be uncomfortable, why is he the way he is? he was a child when he was made and he suffered, while being a human child, repeated CSA, physical and mental abuse and grooming, by the hands of his immortal maker marius and mortals alike. he never got to have a childhood, and was thrust upon a world full of sick individuals that twisted his perception of the world and those around him.
and throughout the series, we see how the abuse that he suffered affects his relationships with other people throughout the series.
he didn’t achieve a deep, long-lasting romantic relationship, but he found love in his two “adopted children”, his brother and sister, sybelle and benji. and it makes me very glad! this little family is just what he needs. i feel for him, and this book only deepened my appreciation of the character.
on another note, anne rice’s purple prose in this is lovely! loved the philosophical monologues, and how descriptive it was. her writing is beautiful to me, but i did have MAJOR issues with how graphic the sexual content was in this depicting the life of a teenage boy, and how romanticized the dynamic between marius and armand was (although i understand that this was in the victim’s pov… but it could’ve been handled better) for a book about how predatory adults traumatized a person forever in a teenage body, the topics surrounding this could’ve been handled WAYYY better (didn’t have much hope bc this is an anne rice book but geez)
armand is my favorite vampire of the series, and it was very painful to get through this book. although i wanted to read more about his backstory, story ripped my heart to shreds. i disliked marius before, but he is now one of my most HATED literary characters of all time. i’ve seen many people demonize and bash on armand’s character for being Strange and Offputting… and while i understand why some people can find him to be uncomfortable, why is he the way he is? he was a child when he was made and he suffered, while being a human child, repeated CSA, physical and mental abuse and grooming, by the hands of his immortal maker marius and mortals alike. he never got to have a childhood, and was thrust upon a world full of sick individuals that twisted his perception of the world and those around him.
and throughout the series, we see how the abuse that he suffered affects his relationships with other people throughout the series.
he didn’t achieve a deep, long-lasting romantic relationship, but he found love in his two “adopted children”, his brother and sister, sybelle and benji. and it makes me very glad! this little family is just what he needs. i feel for him, and this book only deepened my appreciation of the character.
on another note, anne rice’s purple prose in this is lovely! loved the philosophical monologues, and how descriptive it was. her writing is beautiful to me, but i did have MAJOR issues with how graphic the sexual content was in this depicting the life of a teenage boy, and how romanticized the dynamic between marius and armand was (although i understand that this was in the victim’s pov… but it could’ve been handled better) for a book about how predatory adults traumatized a person forever in a teenage body, the topics surrounding this could’ve been handled WAYYY better (didn’t have much hope bc this is an anne rice book but geez)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Blood, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment
reclusivebookslug's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
My favorite of the Vampire Chronicles to date. Also made me cry the most. I've always been eager to learn more about Armand and this fulfilled all my hopes for his story. The ending reads to me as cautiously hopeful, which is an unusual but appreciated turn for Rice (maybe the ending to QOTD could be categorized similarly).
I love how Louis, Lestat, and Armand's different voices are so clearly distinctive in the books they narrate. I had gotten used to reading from Lestat's POV, but I was really put into the headspace of Armand here. Similarly, I found it clever how Rice distinguished the three different iterations of Armand with his names -- Andrei, Amadeo, and Armand. You get a real sense of his desperation for purpose and guidance, which is so strong he is able to adapt to strikingly different ways of life and codes of morality to best suit the situation he finds himself in.
I love how Louis, Lestat, and Armand's different voices are so clearly distinctive in the books they narrate. I had gotten used to reading from Lestat's POV, but I was really put into the headspace of Armand here. Similarly, I found it clever how Rice distinguished the three different iterations of Armand with his names -- Andrei, Amadeo, and Armand. You get a real sense of his desperation for purpose and guidance, which is so strong he is able to adapt to strikingly different ways of life and codes of morality to best suit the situation he finds himself in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Rape, Slavery, Blood, Trafficking, and Stalking
carrionkid's review against another edition
4.0
Overall, I think the last 2/3rds of this book really make it worth the read. The first third is ROUGH, filled to the brim with gratuitous CSA that the author doesn't seem to have an issue with. But from there on, I think it's a strong addition to the series even if some of the events actively contradict past books in the series. It's visceral and raw and a very good change of pace from the other books in the series. However, the CSA definitely knocks it down a star.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol