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Like other readers I have become somewhat disillusioned by Anne Rice's books. I haven't really enjoyed a book since Memnoch. The books I most love and always go back to are The Vampire Lestat, Queen of the Damned, Tale of the Body Snatcher, and Memnoch the Devil - others since then just don't seem to compare.
Well...I wouldn't by any means call this book 'spellbinding' or a 'masterpiece' but I will admit that it is a definite improvement over some of its recent predecessors, namely Merrick and Blood & Gold. I found Merrick practically unreadable, the namesake of which I found extremely unlikable and who made me like all the other characters less (Louis, David Talbot, even Lestat) because they were all so absolutely fascinated by her and in love with her. I found Blood & Gold boring and Marius whiny. But Blackwood Farm is a definite improvement. It kept my attention for most of the book although I found the inclusion of the Mayfair characters (especially that horrible Mona) rather tedious and boring, and some things faintly ridiculous (a vampire who is a hermaphrodite, Lestat declaring himself to be in love with Quinn). Although I am really happy to see Lestat somewhat back in the swing of things I have to agree with other reviewers that he has lost some of his former flair. I find Anne Rice's recent exploration of so many second-rate and uncompelling characters rather sad because she already had so many more interesting ones at her disposal (Mekare and Marahet for example). The resolution in the end seems rather convenient though I have no complaints about the exit of Merrick (if only she wasn't replaced by bloody Mona).

I got into Anne Rice more than a decade ago and was a die-hard fan with the original trilogy. Interview, Queen, and Memnoch were my favorite ones. I liked Memnoch especially b/c it really delves into some intense philosophical subject matter. I loved the Mayfair Witch trilogy too. Thought Witching Hour was astounding. The Vampire Armand came along and I couldn't get through it. Stopped reading Anne Rice for years. So I picked up Blackwood Farm at CVS last week and something about the storyline made me want to read it. It's the Doppelganger concept, which can be very freaky. (For you Twin Peaks fans, think Evil Agent Cooper). I read it in just under a week and I couldn't put it down. I think the reason I loved it so much is that I just wanted a good little story out of this book, and wasn't expecting an epic storyline like Queen or Memnoch. This book has GREAT atmosphere-the lush backwoods swamps of Louisiana is the locale. It has dark family secrets, which usually makes for a good book even without vampires. After reading it, I'm inspired now to go back and read Merrick and Blood and Gold. Can't wait to read Blood Canticle too. The whole problem with developing a series is the heightened expectations I think. Interview was startling when it came out b/c it was so original but a dozen books later, the vampire thing is no longer novel. The only way you can sustain it is to come up with really interesting characters you care about (i.e., Lestat, Louis, and David), or introduce new paranormal phenomenon (i.e., witches and ghosts). After reading Blackwood, I'm proud of Anne Rice again and the way she keeps drawing us into her world and makes us care.

I am often at odds with other Anne Rice fans with reguards to which stories I like.

I loved Pandora, but I still thought Blood And Gold was great, I don't feel it merely re-treaded old ground, covered in Pandora and The Vampire Armand. I actually added it up and more than half of Blood And Gold details events outside of those books. And the parts that do retell scenes from Pandora or Armand are different, because they are seen from Marius' point of view. I've always loved his character and it's nice to get to know him a little better.

But this isn't about Blood And Gold, this is about Blackwood Farm.

If you hated Blood And Gold you might not like Blackwood Farm, not for any strong similarities, but if you are one of the people who feel that Rice's writing has gone downhill, I don't sense any major difference between this and her other recent output.

I loved Blackwood Farm. I loved the intimate nature of experiencing the family's history without the tedious charts and family tree of Mayfair Witches. After a while I felt at home in Quinn's house.

I like the character Quinn, and I loved reading about his past, his teachers, and especially Mona.

I didn't like the vampire that sired him very much, but that's more personal taste than anything.

I should also note that I started reading Mayfair Witches *after* I read Blackwood Farm.

But if you are like me, and you didn't mind Memnoch The Devil, loved Pandora, had to fight through The Vampire Armand (all the boring descriptions of Vennis and it takes so long for him to become a vampire), and liked Blood And Gold, for instance, then I think there is a good chance you'll enjoy Blackwood Farm.