Don’t read it: Christ the lord: Out of Egypt by Anne Rice

I am a big Anne Rice fan or at least I was when I was younger. I have read all of her books, including her books about witches, the south, eunuchs, her erotica fiction and all of her vampire novels that I kept reading long after they were entertaining.

Therefore, when I first heard about her new book Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt, I could not wait to read it. Here was another book by Anne Rice, which could only be great and exciting, especially considering all her previous novels.

How wrong I was. Christ the lord: Out of Egypt is actually the story of the childhood of Jesus Christ. Yes, you would think that the title should have tipped me off about that one, but it did not.

I honestly thought Anne Rice would give us her version of what the childhood of Jesus Christ might have been like, with the usual intrigue and mystery that can be found in all of her other books. Of course, it is still her version of what happened. However, it is written in such a way that it reads more like a factual documentary or biography rather than a cool book of fiction.

This could still be great and interesting, especially if you are into that sort of thing. And by that sort of thing, I mean either religion, history or both of these topics. Unfortunately, they just happen to be the two subjects that I do not really care all that much about.

Especially, when nothing mysterious or exciting happens in the entire story. Needless to say, I had a really hard time getting through this book and at several points I thought about not finishing it at all.

This was only due to the subject matter that I found rather boring and it had nothing to do with the way it was written. Anne Rice has a great talent in writing in a way that is both captivating and easy to follow.

However, when you are not really into the topic, sometimes it really does not matter how well something is written and an uninteresting subject will stay just that, uninteresting.

Perhaps if I had not started reading the book with the wrong expectations, meaning that it would be just like the other Anne Rice books I had read before, I would have enjoyed it more. I guess we will never know if that is true.

Don’t read it!

Comments

Anne Rice has gone religious. Catholic, I think. But she hasn't been very readable for years, possibly decades. I can't remember the last book of hers I read (Lestat was a rock star or something) but I kept thinking...this writer is in desperate need of an editor! Someone with a big red Sharpie who isn't afraid to use it.
J9 said…
I was going to tell you the same thing Jennifer did. I'd heard she'd gone born again christian, so I wouldn't expect any vampire, witch, or erotic writing from her. It's a shame too.
Natazzz said…
Those born again types always freak me out...like they feel they have to make up for lost time by being extra religious...

I reread the Witching Hour recently and I have to say I still enjoyed it very much.