I finished Merrick last week. My apologies for just getting around to posting this.
Merrick is a crossover novel that combines the world of Anne Rice’s vampires with that of the Mayfair witches. When I first began reading, I said that I wish that I had re-read, or at least read summaries of, the Vampire Chronicles and the Mayfair novels. However, as the novel progressed, the details of those books came back to me. Any details that were necessary to this plot were reviewed and explained.
The novel centers around the relationship between Merrick, a powerful witch descended from the Mayfair clan, and David Talbot, newly made vampire & companion to Louis. Their long relationship, told through David’s flashbacks, began when young Merrick was brought into the folds of the Talamasca. David’s obsession with the beautiful young witch was immediate. Their adventures span from the mysterious beauty of New Orleans to the lush jungles of South America.
David is forced to seek out his old protege, Merrick, when Louis asks him to gain her help in contacting the ghost of Claudia, Louis’s vampire child. Though hesitant to drag Merrick into the tempting world of the vampires, David contacts her. The novel ends with the appearance of Claudia, which leads to the revelation of Merrick’s great plan and the re-emergence of Anne Rice’s greatest vampire, Lestat.
This installment is typical Anne Rice, full of multi-dimensional characters and lush landscapes. It is easy to fall in love with the world that Anne Rice has created.
Next up...the third installment of The Lying Games, Two Truths & A Lie.
