Thanks for the compliments! Glad you like my blog š
(I get this question in different variations every so often, itās under my #Order of Operations for VC tag, if you want more thoughts on that.)
I always suggest reading all the books, but not everyone can or wants to do that. Those first 3 books tend to be considered as the best of the VC by the fandom in general, but individuals have different opinions.
Iād suggest you go on to book 4, Tale of the Body Thief, and read them in order, bc thatās the order in which AR explored her stories. I donāt know what aspect of VC you fell in love with before, so if you could tell me about that and/or your fave character(s), whether you have an issue with problematic things bc some VC books are more problematic than othersā¦ I could tell you whether you might want to skip Tale of the Body Thief, for example š
On a little further reflection, you can skip: *possible spoilers under the cut*
Pandora – Is mostly about Pandora, and Marius, and their relationship. Pandoraās not really in PL much and their relationship doesnāt have much to do with how Marius is in PL.
Vittorio – This is technically not a VC book, and he has a different origin story and is not part of the VC vampire group.
Blackwood Farm – This is mostly a story told to Lestat and heās not very invested in it, I donāt think many (any?) of the new characters introduced in this book make any more than a mention or brief appearance in PL. It is also fairly cracky.
Blood Canticle – AR said that PL deviates from canon in that it does not include the hybrid VC/Mayfair Witches stuff, but I think she meant this book specifically, which has Rowan Mayfair, who does not appear at all in PL. It is also very cracky.
[Anon refers to this post] I donāt remember! I donāt remember where I get some of my stuff. Sometimes ppl randomly send it to me w/o a source, and sometimes itās stuff that was hosted on a website thatās since been taken down. Iāve been collecting it for 20 yrs and didnāt really think about sourcing back when it was only for my own personal collection.
Itās not like I have a password to a super secret online archive and Iām only leaking out little bits to you! Well, I do still have my own personal collection, but I post the things that are worth sharing.
Hopefully weāll get this kind of stuff for sale or handed to us w/ the new adaptation(s), since thatās a more common thing to do these days!
Most often, Iāll be digging around the interwebs looking for a better quality version of a production still and land on a dead forum, in another language, with a bunch of pics posted, and Iāll go into a userās account there and find another gallery of their collectionā¦ I get lost down the wormhole for a few hours that way, and sometimes find nothing new, sometimes I find smtg I havenāt seen before.
Thatās one of the majorly frustrating things about this fandom, a huge difference for us vs. more recent fandoms, is that the more recent fandoms often get a lot of great behind-the-scenes vids, info and pics. The ppl behind movie!IWTV didnāt give us much in terms of behind-the-scenes extras on the VHS, DVD, or BR releases, and we didnāt get a gorgeous illustrated book like the Crimson Peak fandom got š¦
I think the combination of intense secrecy they needed before & during filming (so as not to spoil anyone), plus after the movie came out, the fact that it had so many societal taboos in itā¦. it pushed the envelope for its time and everyone was quick to make fun of it. Maybe the producers doubted that anyone would want behind-the-scenes materials. Ā
I donāt remember it being as common for all movies at that time, anyway, to share behind-the-scenes stuff. Getting a big behind-the-scenes treatment was more for movies like Titanic or Star Wars.
To the Anon re: the scissor fic:Ā Thanks for the link, Iāll give it a chance and let u know what I think, altho my opinion is just an opinion. I will say I donāt think itās legendary bc Iāve never heard of it before… but others may be aware of it.
In general tho, I support everyone in their pursuit of fanworks: as an audience member or in the writing of fanfic, drawing of fanart, RP of canon or original characters, and whatever other fanwork (discussion, etc) they want to do.
Fresh novels and official adaptations are great but fanworks also do their part to keep the fandom alive, and all are welcome.Ā
With fanworks, my preference is a great idea over technical prowess. Meaning, if the writer struggles with English as a second language but their idea is engaging and stimulating, Iād prefer that fic over one that is perfect grammatically but boring as a concept. Same with art, Iād take a great idea or hilarious dialogue in a comic strip that may not be very well drawn over a gorgeous but lifeless portrait, bc talent with drawing can be improved.Ā
Of course if you have a great idea AND the beautiful writing/art, well, thatās obviously great, too! But I wouldnāt want ppl giving up in the beginning just bc their technical skills are not at the level they see others at. Rome wasnāt built in a day.
Glad that response clarified things and that youāre sticking with it. I really appreciate your followup message!
Just because you read something doesnāt mean you endorse it. When things get too squicky for me, IĀ āeat aroundā them, like youād eat around the bruised areas of a banana. A whole banana is not ruined by a few bruises for me, but I can understand and I donāt judge if it ruins it for others.
I-want-my-IWTV 