FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Anne Rice writes grand romances in the traditional sense of the word, the Victor Hugo sense: novels with larger-than-life characters whose epic experiences sweep through all the great themes and emotions of life, death, love, passion, and loss, while also providing plenty of action.

Blood and Gold continues Rice's Vampire Chronicles by taking up the tale of Marius, who was for centuries the guardian of Those Who Must Be Kept, and whose duty to the King and Queen of the Vampires caused him much pain, loss, and suffering. Marius, who originally appeared in The Vampire Lestat and has figured briefly in the majority of the Chronicles that have followed, was an aristocrat of ancient Rome before his conversion to the Living Death. Blood and Gold follows his lonely life through the ages, sweeping from Imperial Rome to Constantinople to Venice during the Renaissance (Botticelli makes a brief cameo appearance) to the present day. His passion for longtime companion Pandora (detailed in a book of the same name, although told from her perspective), results in his loneliness and a centuries-long search for her.

Blood and Gold is one of Rice's finest achievements and has the added benefit of standing completely on its own for new readers. But those seeking the most complete picture of Marius will also want to revisit The Vampire Lestat, Pandora, and The Vampire Armand to understand how he's viewed by those his life has touched. (Greg Herren)

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"The Vampire Chronicles continue with Anne Rice's spellbinding new novel, in which the great vampire Marius returns." "The golden-haired Marius, true Child of the Millennia, once mentor to The Vampire Lestat, always and forever the conscientious foe of the Evil Doer, reveals in his own intense yet intimate voice the secrets of his two-thousand-year existence." "Once a proud Senator in Imperial Rome, kidnapped and made a "blood god" by the Druids, Marius becomes the embittered protector of Akasha and Enkil, Queen and King of the vampires, in whom the core of the supernatural race resides." "We follow him through his heartbreaking abandonment of the vampire Pandora. Through him we see the fall of pagan Rome to the Emperor Constantine and the horrific sack of the Eternal City itself at the hands of the Visigoths." "Bravely, Marius seeks a new civilization in the midst of glittering Constantinople, only to meet with the blood drinker Eudoxia. We see him ultimately returning to his beloved Italy, where after the horrors of the Black Death, he is restored by the beauty of the Renaissance. We see him become a painter living dangerously yet happily among mortals, giving his heart to the great Botticelli, to the bewitching courtesan Bianca, and to the mysterious young apprentice Armand." Moving from Rome to Florence, Venice, and Dresden, and to the English castle of the secret scholarly order of the Talamasca, the novel reaches its dramatic finale in our own time, deep in the jungle where Marius, having told his life story, seeks some measure of justice from the oldest vampires in the world.

SYNOPSIS

The Vampire Chronicles continue with Anne Rice's spellbinding new novel, in which the great vampire Marius returns.

FROM THE CRITICS

Michael Harris - Los Angeles Times

In Anne Rice's novel Blood and Gold, the comparison flatters us--surely one of the secrets of her popularity.

Book Magazine

Rice brings her long-waning Vampire Chronicles series back to life with this passionate book about the vampire Marius, who recounts his life story to a visitor he has invited in out of the cold. Made into an immortal by a band of Druids during the time of Caesar Augustus, Marius, once a Roman senator, spent centuries living an opulently idle life. His primary task throughout the years was to guard the unmoving forms of Akasha and Enkil, the queen and king of the vampires, who caused such a ruckus in Rice's earlier novels. Marius has always been one of the author's more fascinating characters. His florid, foppish recollections of Rome and Venice, run-ins with people like Botticelli, battles with hordes of Satan-worshiping vampires and the never-ending search for his true love, Pandora, make for a satisfying read, something Rice has not delivered in far too long. —Chris Barsanti

Library Journal

After a long, deep sleep, the vampire Thorne looks to centuries-old Marius for guidance as he comes back into the world. Thorne is curious about Marius's life and his relationship to others in the community of Blood Drinkers, and Marius consents to tell all. It is this story that makes up the bulk of Rice's newest entry to the "Vampire Chronicles," the first of which was Interview with the Vampire. This complex tale presents the history of vampires through the eyes of Marius, who offers his perspective on several characters, most of whom have appeared in earlier volumes. Marius, who is something of an erudite philosopher, brings his own spin to the stories of the various undead he has met in his long existence. Though it is not as engrossing as the earlier books perhaps because so much of the story has already been told devoted followers of the series will find new information about familiar characters, and new readers will find this a good introduction to Rice's world of the vampire. Most public libraries will want to purchase. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 6/1/01.] Patricia Altner, Information Seekers, Columbia, MD Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

AudioFile

History and philosophy come together in the engaging tale of Marius, caregiver for "Those Who Must be Kept." We experience the rise and fall of civilizations through the eyes of this ancient scholar, painter, philosopher, and lover of humankind. Roger Rees brings a tender charm to the 2,000-year-old blood-drinker. His voice is irresistible, lush, and seductive. Rees's renditions of the intriguing courtesan, Eudoxia; the beautiful human, Bianca; and the always elusive Pandora are compelling. Each is as unique as her character deserves. Fans of earlier installments of THE VAMPIRE CHRONICLES may find the beginning of this episode heavy with exposition, but once they begin Marius's tale, Rice and Rees transport us through the millennia with practiced ease. S.J.H. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews