The Witching Hour (Mayfair Witches, Book 1)

1207 Pages·1990·4.45 MB·English

by  Anne Rice

On the verandah of a great New
Orleans house, now faded, a mute
and fragile woman sits rocking. And
THE WITCHING HOUR begins .…
Demonstrating once again her gift for spellbinding storytelling and the
creation of legend, Anne Rice makes real for us a great dynasty of witches
—a family given to poetry and incest, to murder and philosophy, a family
that over the ages is itself haunted by a powerful, dangerous, and
seductive being. A hypnotic novel of witchcraft and the occult through
four centuries, THE WITCHING HOUR could only have been written by
the bestselling author of Interview with the Vampire, The Vampire Lestat, The
Queen of the Damned and The Tale of the Body Thief.
“THE WITCHING HOUR unfolds like a poisonous lotus blossom redolent
with luxurious evil .… She writes with hypnotic power .… This novel will
delight the senses .… Rice thoroughly enjoys herself as she slides through
17th-century France, the fetid plantations of Port-au-Prince, the pain of
the Civil War South and the seeming ‘normalcy’ of today’s San Francisco
and New Orleans.”
Rita Mae Brown
The Los Angeles Times
“A CAPTIVATING STORY,
ENTERTAINING, RICH, EVEN
MESMERIZING … The same
lovely, descriptive, erotic writing
she brought to her vampires.”
Detroit Free Press
“Anne Rice has stirred quite an intoxicating brew … about the talents,
wizardry, foibles, frustrations and, not least, genealogy of a family of
witches .… (She) can create an atmosphere, whether in San Francisco or
New Orleans, which seems as sensual, dangerous, and intriguing as any
one of her characters.”
The San Diego Tribune
“Compelling … Sensuous … Engrossing … Rich.”
The Wall Street Journal
“Gothic … Erotic and satisfying … Another modern morality tale in the
masterful Anne Rice tradition.”
Self
“COMPELLING …
The author’s powerful writing
and strong imagery keep
the reader enthralled.”
Library Journal
“Rice plumbs a rich vein of witchcraft lore, conjuring the decayed
antebellum mansion where incest rules, dolls are made of human bone and
hair, and violent storms sweep the skies each time a witch dies and the
power passes on .… (Rice) goes for the jugular with morbid delights,
sexually charged passages and wicked, wild tragedy.”
Publishers Weekly
“Anne Rice writes delicious, romantic, gothic tales.”
The Seattle Times
“A steamy new world of southern witchcraft.”
The Kirkus Reviews