It’s safe to say Anne Rice would not enjoy this comparison. She, along with Stephen King, made her dislike of the Twilight Saga clear. What’s more, Stephenie Meyer read little vampire literature. It’s unlikely she’s read Anne Rice, which means any similarities likely stem more from the overall nature of vampires than anything. The fact the two authors had little to do with one another, or that Meyer didn’t research vampire books in general, makes the similarities the more ironic.
Similar themes appear within the two series and, though they differ in more ways than not, these similarities are likely more a result of writing vampires, as well as from the two author’s similar backgrounds. Beyond the obvious commonality, vampires, there are others which seem to come, automatically, with writing immortal beings.
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1) Angst
One can’t discuss vampires without discussing misery. The vampires within Rice’s world can be philosophical and moody. They question their purpose, whether or not God exists, if they should be allowed to live, and if they even can live in a world which changes so much. Her vampires brood more than the heroes of Gothic literature.
Edward Cullen is no exception. He spends way too much time in his head, analyzing situations, questioning his existence, and hating himself. Like Rice’s vampires, he’s old—he comes from another time, which causes him to speak using outdated phrases or to struggle to blend in with modern humans. The other vampires in Meyer’s saga are even older. The Volturi are ancient, having been partially petrified from sitting too long. As Bella meets other vampires, she meets those from all time periods and walks of life.
In Rice’s novels, Lestat seeks out older and older vampires, going even beyond the age of the Romans. Somehow, many vampires in both series manage to adapt to the rapidly changing world—though not without difficulty.
Learning how to use cellphones when you were born in the age of the witch trials would be daunting enough, but having to reckon with your existence as a vampire, and with the pain of never dying, add an additional layer to the whole angst shtick.
2) Animal Blood
Edward Cullen wasn’t the first vampire to subsist on animal blood. Though the Cullen’s would become famous for practicing a so called “vegetarian” diet, the honour of original animal hunter goes to Louis.
Louis is Lestat’s friend and companion. He’s also Lestat’s enemy, but that’s a story for another time. Louis struggles with his nature. He tries to help humans he meets; he tries to justify his existence by attempting to do good. Part of his attempts to be a “good” vampire involve sucking the blood from small animals in lieu of people. It’s not as satisfying, but it gives him strength. Lestat mocks him for this, but Lestat ultimately ends up living off of rats when he becomes too weak to hunt humans.
In both series, drinking animal blood is a sacrifice. As Edward puts it, it’s like a human subsisting on tofu. It’s just not as satisfying and, in the case of Rice’s vampires, it may not be as beneficial. Lestat can live off of rat blood, but there’s an implication he would heal faster if humans were available.
Edward might be the most famous vegetarian vampire, but he has to thank Louis for starting the trend.
3) Immortality & Weaknesses
The weaknesses and strengths seen in both series, for vampires, stem from popular canon, though Twilight removes many of the weaknesses. Even the inability to step into sunlight comes from a different fear. Rice’s vampires, by comparison, are more classic: sunlight will destroy them, turning them to stone, though crosses don’t seem to be so effective against them either.
In both Twilight and The Vampire Chronicles, starvation can’t kill a vampire. In Rice’s works, a lack of blood can weaken a vampire, and make them go mad, but it won’t annihilate them. In Twilight, vampires who are denied blood simply become weaker, less able to fight others of their kind; they also lose the ability to resist blood with time, and thirst can hamper their cognitive abilities, making them as thoughtless as animals.
In The Vampire Chronicles, Lestat buries himself alive. In Twilight, Victoria’s vampire army travels underwater. In both series, it’s safe to say vampires can go without oxygen too, though having access to air is beneficial because it allows them to sniff out their prey. Vampires can see better in the dark, can detect subtleties in scents and the taste of their prey, and can scale buildings with little effort. They can also heal from injuries which would be fatal to humans. For both Rice and Meyer, vampires are ultimately very powerful. Blood is a requirement to thrive, but not to survive.
4) Sacrificial Heartbreak
Edward Cullen can’t bring himself to transform Bella. Though he admits there are benefits to being a vampire, he can’t bring himself to impose the negative sides of the life on Bella. He worries she’ll lose her soul, her chance to lead a fulfilling human life, and ultimately her innocence.
The Vampire Chronicles touch upon romance, though it’s not one of Rice’s vampire stories which bears the greatest resemblance to the plot of immortal heartbreak and sacrifice.
This honour goes to The Mummy. The Mummy, Ramses, is an Egyptian turned immortal. Like a vampire, Ramses doesn’t age, and his eyes change colour—though for his ilk, instead of turning red, they become blue. Those who drink the elixir which made Ramses the way he was also change physically. They seem younger, more attractive, more fit, and very pale. However, Ramses can eat human food. He doesn’t need it, but it brings him satisfaction. In fact, he can eat and drink endlessly.
Eventually, Ramses falls in love with a human woman, Julie. He debates his existence and, like Edward, grapples with guilt. He has hurt people in the past as a result of his condition, and he carries the weight of those deaths on his conscience. Though he can read at tremendous speeds, and eat whenever he pleases, there are downsides to the life. It’s challenging to adjust to such a different world; with it’s cars and boats, it’s almost too loud, too busy. The people he loved before are gone, and it’s an isolating lifestyle. Even with others to accompany him, those who take the elixir are ultimately left by themselves.
Ramses has some of the elixir in his possession. He could offer it to Julie, but it would mean removing her from her human life. She would have to abandon her career, her loved ones, and the world she’s most familiar with—in order to be with Ramses forever, she would have to give up much of what makes being human so great. Ramses initially decides, like Edward, not to share his gifts (or curse) with the love of his life. He leaves Julie behind, miserable but determined to do right by her.
Julie, though, ends up more like Bella. Without her soulmate, she is miserable. When it becomes clear that her life has been too much affected for her to forget and move on, Ramses returns, relenting and sharing his gift.
Despite the misgivings of both Edward and Ramses, Bella and Julie take to the changes fairly well, and make their immortal love interests just a little less lonely, even occasionally happy, in their eternal existence.
The idea of immortality causing loneliness, and romantic heartbreak, seems to come naturally within the genre. Of course, both stories also have a similar ending: immortality means sacrifice, but it’s worthwhile if shared with the one you love.
5) Wealth & Looks
When Lestat is changed, he is given a great deal of wealth in the form of a tower and no small measure of treasure. Being smart with his assets, Lestat sets himself up with a house and is able to continue living with some level of affluence even as he heads into the modern world. His skills as an immortal also means he’s able to generate even more money—he writes a book and becomes a rock star, feats which bring no shortage of cash. Of course, he probably spends more than he should. His clothes are always lavish; if supernatural good looks weren’t enough, a strong fashion sense seem to be a must for vampires. Lestat, of course, being the questioning type, does wonder why all vampires seem to be attractive. He wonders if only good looking humans are changed to begin with, or if the affliction itself improves a person’s looks.
Twilight has these same motifs: the Cullen’s would never be caught dead (no pun intended) in something that came “off the rack.” Their clothes aren’t flashy…but they’re well tailored, and obviously expensive. The Cullen’s own several homes, various bank accounts, expensive cars, and closets which are the size of small bedrooms. Also, like all vampires, every member of the clan is stunningly attractive. Their features seem more symmetrical, and all types of different looks, whether burly or slight, childlike or handsome, seem to be enhanced by the venom.
Immortality is something all humans want, but it’s closely followed by wealth and looks. If you’re going to fulfill one human wish, why not fulfill them all? For both Rice and Meyer, vampires, for whatever reason, seem to come with looks and wealth as apart of the immortal package.
6) Religious Vampires
Edward Cullen doesn’t exactly talk about “God,” but he does believe in a higher power, and in concepts like heaven and hell, and an eternal soul. Part of why he is so hesitant to change Bella comes from this spiritual belief—he fears that if he bites her, she’ll lose her soul and therefore be barred from heaven. Bella, for her part, is an atheist and finds Edward’s ideas old fashioned. Still, Edward isn’t the only religious vampire in popular literature. Carlisle is very religious, having been the son of a priest, and he keeps a cross in his home, but he wasn’t the first vampire to consider the existence of God.
Anne Rice’s vampires also grapple with religion. Lestat finds he needs something to believe in. If it isn’t God, then it has to be something else. The vampires in the series are startled when crosses appear to have no effect on them. This causes them to question their faith; if God is indifferent to monsters like vampires, does He even exist? Where do vampires come from? The world is complicated, and full of mysteries; with the loss of faith comes new fear. If we are alone, how can we deal with such a vast and scary place? How can we face our existence, if it has no purpose—particularly when it goes on forever?
The loss of faith hits vampires hard, though the oldest among them, of course, practice other religions, believing in gods by other names. Some even see themselves as gods, relying on their supernatural abilities to attain what they want from their human followers—which is usually blood.
This shared thread between the two vampire stories comes from a commonality the authors share in real life: both women are religious. Meyer is a Mormon, and Rice only recently returned to the church after a period of questioning her faith—a theme which appears throughout The Vampire Chronicles. Meyer’s Mormon beliefs do appear to affect certain aspects of her story, such as the fact Edward won’t sleep with Bella until they are married. Of course, Bella isn’t religious, offering an accessible viewpoint to readers who are atheists or who don’t believe in God.
Rice, likewise, had to grapple with inconsistencies in her belief. For the most part, she’s liberal in her thoughts. Though her novels deal with religion, they also feature graphic descriptions and LGBTQ romances. These aren’t plots or descriptions you would expect from somebody religious, and Rice had to reconcile her progressive views with her belief in, and respect for, the church. Meyer still felt comfortable writing her story from the perspective of an atheist; the book caved to Edward’s views, but Bella’s weren’t exactly portrayed as bad—they simply thought differently.
In Conclusion
The fact both authors come from a similar background may also, in addition to their subject matter, help to explain the similar themes and ideas which crop up in their work. There are plenty of differences between their series too, including prose quality, the level of gore, the main focuses of the stories, and even the vampires themselves.
Anne Rice might not like Twilight that much, but there’s no denying that the two authors seem to be interested in similar subjects—not only because of vampire canon, but because of their religious beliefs.
Are you someone whose read both Twilight and Anne Rice? Have you noticed such themes in other vampire books? Let me know!