Angel Time by Anne Rice

From the publisher:

"Anne Rice returns to the mesmerizing storytelling that has captivated readers
for more than three decades in a tale of unceasing suspense set in a time
past -- a metaphysical thriller about angels and assassins.

The novel opens in the present. At its center: Toby O'Dare -- a contract
killer of underground fame on assignment to kill once again. A soulless
soul, a dead man walking, he lives under a series of aliases -- just now:
Lucky the Fox -- and takes his orders from "The Right Man."

Into O'Dare's nightmarish world of lone and lethal missions, comes a
mysterious stranger, a seraph, who offers him a chance to save rather
than destroy lives. O'Dare, who long ago dreamt of being a priest but
instead came to embody danger and violence, seizes his chance. Now he
is carried back through the ages to thirteenth-century England, to dark
realms where accusations of ritual murder have been made against Jews,
where children suddenly die or disappear...In this primitive setting,
O'Dare begins his perilous quest for salvation, a journey of danger and
flight, loyalty and betrayal, selflessness and love."


My thoughts:

This one is going to be a tough one to write about, so please bear with me as I flounder here a bit to try to express my mixed feelings about Angel Time. I want to be completely honest in all my reviews, and this book has both strong and weak points.

I am a huge fan of some of the novels written by Anne Rice, and when she nails it, her writing can be spectacular. I haven't read everything she's written, but I've read enough of her novels to know that not everything is created equally. Some are hit or miss. Angel Time, for me, isn't quite a hit.

I read Angel Time out of curiosity; most know the story by now that Anne Rice has publicly stated that her faith is taking her writing in a new direction. While she stands by her original works (read a fascinating essay she has written regarding this issue here), she has stated that she wishes for her writing to be inspirational and illuminating.

I wholeheartedly support positive and uplifting messages in books, and it is certainly a refreshing change to see her characters have a chance at redemption. But when you approach her novels, you have certain expectations about the reading experience, and there was definitely something missing in Angel Time. I felt like the writing was too sanitized, lacking depth and breadth and scope. Toby and Malchiah, his angel companion, were not "fleshed-out" characters, if you will,and this is very unusual for her writing; she has the ability to create vibrant and realistic characters. I was also disappointed that her breathtaking ability to describe another time, another era (the 13th century England) wasn't explored.

On a positive note, the tale of contract killer Toby O'Dare (he takes his victims by inserting a poisonous syringe) moves along quickly and reads more like mainstream crime fiction than a "metaphysical thriller," so it may appeal to fans of Dan Brown or Ken Follett's Eye of the Needle. There was very little in Angel Time that would cause offense to a reader (nothing graphic or explicit at all), and the persecution tale of thirteenth century Fluria and Meir, a Jewish couple accused of murdering their daughter for her Christian beliefs, was very moving and well-written. Their story carries a very relevant and important message of the need for religious tolerance and understanding, and ends with a message of hope and possibilities for Toby O'Dare.

A message of hope is always good.

3/5 stars

Title: Angel Time
Author: Anne Rice
Publisher: Knopf
274 pages
genre: fiction/suspense/time travel

Preview of Angel Time by Anne Rice

The first book I have selected for the Time Travel 2010 Challenge will be Angel Time by Anne Rice. Angel Time: Songs of the Seraphim is described as a metaphysical thriller that begins in the present day with a contract killer, Toby O'Dare, on assignment to claim another life; in his nightmarish world of killing, he meets a mysterious stranger, a seraph, who offers him an opportunity to save rather than destroy a life. O'Dare is carried back through time to 13th century England on a journey of danger, suspense, and an opportunity for redemption.

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Interestingly, I have noticed that whenever I post about an Anne Rice book, those posts have generated the most comments, interest, and blog visits. This has prompted me to think about hosting a few Anne Rice reading events in 2010. We all have so many new books on our TBR shelf that I know we do not have the time to reread entire favorite novels; however, it might be fun to do a few mini-reads of a chapter or two from an old Anne Rice classic, reread some famous passages, and discuss her writing.

So, dust off those old, tattered paperbacks and "come into my parlor"....let's revisit The Myth and Magic of Anne Rice in 2010.

The House of the Mayfair Witches

This past weekend, my husband and I attended a Christmas concert in the Garden District. Since we were a few minutes early, I suggested we drive around and enjoy all the beautiful holiday lights and decorations that are beginning to be displayed on some of the antebellum mansions in the area.

While we were driving around, I decided to look for the "The Mayfair Mansion" from The Witching Hour on the corner of First Street and Chestnut. (I just recently completed a reread of the book so it is fresh in my mind.) 1239 First Street is actually one of the former homes of Anne Rice and is the inspiration for the house in The Witching Hour. Here it is! It is an exquisite home and a private residence, very unlike the decaying fictional version of the Mayfair witches. Landscaping sheilded the side area of the home near the courtyard/pool area, so I couldn't get too close to take pictures of the side porch where a comatose Deirdre spent her days, nor can you see the dormer windows on the side where Antha fell to her death or the pool where Michael was found. But this is the house where the powerful witches Mary Beth, Julien, and Carlotta lived, and where Jazz Baby Stella threw wild parties and danced the Charleston before she, too, came to a tragic end. The new owners have also changed the color of the house, as it was a violet-gray color when Anne Rice lived there, and the book describes the house as violet.

from The Witching Hour by Anne Rice (p. 5)

"The doctor had never been inside an antebellum mansion until that spring in New Orleans. And the old house really did have white fluted columns on the front...Greek Revival style they call it -- a long violet-gray town house on a dark shady corner in the Garden District, it's front gate guarded it seemed by two enormous oaks. The iron lace railings were made in a rose pattern and much festooned with vines; purple wisteria, the yellow Virginia creeper and bougainvillea of a dark, incandescent pink....

Always he paused at the largest tree that had lifted the iron fence with its bulbous roots. He could not have gotten his arms around the trunk of it. It reached all the way from the pavement to the house itself, twisted limbs clawing at the shuttered windows beyond the banisters, leaves enmeshed with the flowering vines."
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Really cool -- I told my husband I would freak out, though, if I saw "the Man" standing on the steps! (Lucky for me, Lasher was no where to be seen!)

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice

From the publisher:

"On the veranda of a great New Orleans house, now faded, a mute and fragile woman sits rocking. And The Witching Hour begins......"

My thoughts:

Like J.K. Rowling and Diana Gabaldon, Anne Rice has that magic touch that just draws me into another world, another era, where, like a wizard, she mixes up an intoxicating brew of witchcraft lore, wicked tragedy, and gothic romance. We are introduced to the great dynasty of the Mayfair witches beginning in the seventeenth century Scottish Highlands, and follow four generations through Europe, the lavish Maye Faire plantation in Port-au-Prince, Saint-Domingue, to a decaying antebellum mansion in New Orleans and present-day San Francisco. Each generation is haunted and tormented by the powerful and seductive being, Lasher. Beginning with the beautiful Suzanne, the Queen of the May Fair in Scotland, and ending in the present-day with Dr. Rowan Mayfair, renowned nuerosurgeon and healer, will they be able to break the evil spell that binds them tragically to Lasher?

I first read The Witching Hour in 1990 when it was first published and absolutely loved it for its rich, historically accurate depiction of life in New Orleans. I often wonder if readers who were not born and raised here would notice the wealth of details Anne Rice includes in her writings, from architectural depictions, accents, street names, pronunciations, neighborhoods, schools and churches, cultural celebrations and traditions, social commentaries...things that are unique to our city but completely ordinary in our way of life. She is a master of seamlessly weaving historical detail and plot.

On this second reading, I noticed interesting details that are also part of the Outlander series that I so enjoy reading. The second part of the novel is devoted to the history of the Mayfair witches as documented in files by the secret Talamasca organization....their motto is, "We watch.....and we are always here." For example, in describing the origin of the Mayfair witches and their connection to Lasher, we learn that it all began in a circle of standing stones while celebrating an ancient pagan feast:

p. 293
"To which they explained that the people of Highland villages were most attached still to the old customs, and that on the eve of May 1 they built great bonfires in the open grass, these being lighted only from the needfire, and they danced all night about the bonfires, making merry."
p. 311
"Out into the field we went, feeling for the stones before us, and finding the very middle of the circle and standing stock-still in it to feel the wind...I heard the humming as she held my hand; then in a circle we danced together, making small circles round and round as we did. Louder she hummed and then the Latin words she spoke to call the demon, and then flinging out her arms she cried to him to come."

Her writing is enthralling, guaranteed to make you go deep into yourself and examine your own values and truths....highly recommended!

Title: The Witching Hour
Author: Anne Rice
genre: fiction
pages: 1038
publisher: Random House
1990