This third entry in the Vampire Chronicles considerably upped the ante for Anne Rice's dark, sensual series, reaching back to pre-Egyptian history to tell the story of Akasha, the first vampire. Vampire Lestat awakens her from her 6,000-year slumber, and she embarks on a campaign of destruction to remake the world with herself as its goddess queen.
"Mesmerizing.... A wonderful web of dark-side mythology."—SFChronicle
"With The Queen of the Damned, Anne Rice has created universes within universes, traveling back in time as far as ancient, pre-pyramidic Egypt and journeying from the frozen mountain peaks of Nepal to the crowded, sweating streets of southern Florida."—LATimes
