Reading order · 13 books · 1976 to 2018 · Set in New Orleans
Vampire Chronicles in Order
The Vampire Chronicles tell the stories of vampires through the centuries, mostly in their own voices. They begin with Louis’s confession in Interview with the Vampire and soon centre on Lestat de Lioncourt, the reckless, charismatic vampire who made him.
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Series facts
- Books
- 13
- Published
- 1976 to 2018
- First book
- Interview with the Vampire
- Latest
- Blood Communion (2018)
- Setting
- Set in New Orleans
The reading order
Every Vampire Chronicles book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
13 books · Set in New Orleans
- 1Interview with the Vampire1976In a room in San Francisco, the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac tells a young reporter the story of his life: how in 1791 he was made a vampire by Lestat on his Louisiana plantation, and how they raised a child vampire, Claudia, together.Buy on Amazon
- 2The Vampire Lestat1985With Lestat de LioncourtLestat de Lioncourt rises in the 1980s as a rock star and tells his own story, from his youth as a French nobleman in the eighteenth century to his search for the oldest vampires and the secret of their origins.Buy on Amazon
- 3The Queen of the Damned1988With Lestat de LioncourtLestat’s music wakes Akasha, the first vampire, who has sat motionless for thousands of years.Buy on Amazon
- 4The Tale of the Body Thief1992With Lestat de LioncourtLestat, weary of being a vampire, is offered the chance to swap bodies with a mortal for a day by a strange man named Raglan James, and finds that the exchange does not go as planned.Buy on Amazon
- 5Memnoch the Devil1995With Lestat de LioncourtLestat is visited by a being called Memnoch, who claims to be the Devil and asks Lestat to help him, taking him on a journey through heaven and hell.Buy on Amazon
- 6The Vampire Armand1998Armand tells his own story, from his childhood in Kyiv to his life as a pupil of the vampire Marius in Renaissance Venice, and the centuries that followed.Buy on Amazon
- 7Merrick2000With Merrick MayfairLouis asks David Talbot to persuade Merrick Mayfair, a witch from the Talamasca, to summon the ghost of the child vampire Claudia.Buy on Amazon
- 8Blood and Gold2001Marius, one of the oldest vampires, tells his story from his making in Roman times, through his long guardianship of the ancient vampire king and queen, to Renaissance Venice.Buy on Amazon
- 9Blackwood Farm2002With Quinn BlackwoodQuinn Blackwood, a young vampire from a grand old Louisiana family, asks Lestat to free him from Goblin, the spirit double that has haunted him all his life.Buy on Amazon
- 10Blood Canticle2003With Lestat de LioncourtLestat tries to free a ghost from the earthbound realms and uncover the secrets of the Taltos, as the stories of the vampires and the Mayfair witches come together.Buy on Amazon
- 11Prince Lestat2014With Lestat de LioncourtA mysterious Voice has been urging young vampires to destroy each other, and the vampires of the world look to Lestat to lead them.Buy on Amazon
- 12Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis2016With Lestat de LioncourtLestat finds himself possessed by an ancient spirit, which leads him to the history of Atalantaya, a lost empire beneath the sea.Buy on Amazon
- 13Blood Communion2018With Lestat de LioncourtLestat tells how he became prince of the vampires and founded the Blood Communion, and of the conflicts that threatened it.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read Interview with the Vampire, The Vampire Lestat and The Queen of the Damned first, in that order. The later books include life stories of other vampires and can be read in publication order.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Lestat de Lioncourt | Quinn Blackwood | Merrick Mayfair | Louis de Pointe du Lac | Armand | Marius de Romanus | David Talbot | Claudia |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Interview with the Vampire | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor | ||
| 2 The Vampire Lestat | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 3 The Queen of the Damned | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 4 The Tale of the Body Thief | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 5 Memnoch the Devil | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 6 The Vampire Armand | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 7 Merrick | ·Minor | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 8 Blood and Gold | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 9 Blackwood Farm | MMajor | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 10 Blood Canticle | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 11 Prince Lestat | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 12 Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 13 Blood Communion | LLead | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor |
Characters in the Vampire Chronicles books
10 characters from Anne Rice’s chart, with the number of Vampire Chronicles books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Lestat de LioncourtThe Brat Prince | 13 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| Quinn BlackwoodYoung vampire | 2 | Blackwood Farm 2002 |
| Merrick MayfairWitch of the Talamasca | 1 | Merrick 2000 |
| Louis de Pointe du LacReluctant vampire | 13 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| ArmandAncient leader of a Paris coven | 13 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| Marius de RomanusAncient Roman vampire | 13 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| David TalbotHead of the Talamasca | 13 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| ClaudiaChild vampire | 2 | Interview with the Vampire 1976 |
| AkashaFirst vampire, Queen of the Damned | 2 | The Vampire Lestat 1985 |
| Rowan MayfairNeurosurgeon and witch | 1 | Blood Canticle 2003 |