The Tale of the Body Thief
Tale of the Body Thief is the fourth novel in Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles, following The Queen of the Damned. Published in 1992, it continues the adventures of Lestat, as he regains his lost humanity.
Tale of the Body Thief is a contemporary novel set entirely in the late 20th century. This is a departure for Anne Rice, who often takes readers into the past.
Overview
In the story, Lestat becomes highly depressed, remorseful, and suicidal because of his vampiric nature. Although he tries to limit his victims to murderers, serial killers and other criminals, he nonetheless caves into temptation once in a while. He also suffers from constant nightmares concerning his late "daughter," Claudia, whose death he blames himself for.
However, he is presented with an offer he cannot refuse. A mysterious figure, Raglan James (the "body thief"), approaches him several times with hints as to his power - the ability to switch bodies. Eventually, he proposes to Lestat that, for a multi-million dollar fee, he is willing to let the vampire take on mortal form for a day.
Against sound advice from vampires and his mortal friend David Talbot, Lestat jumps at the opportunity. Unfortunately, James has no intention of ever switching back, and Lestat is forced to scheme to get his body back.
Plotline
Lestat nearly dies after becoming human again - his new body is wracked by pneumonia, which he ignores during a tour of Washington D.C. in the middle of winter (though not spelled out, it is hinted that Raglan James purposely infected his body beforehand to get rid of Lestat). He is saved by a nun working at the hospital, Gretchen. He enjoys a short love affair with Gretchen before she returns to South America, and Lestat sets out in search of his body.
After losing his "body," Lestat is completely ostracized by his fellow vampires. Marius becomes extremely angry at him for leaving such a powerful body to a thief. Likewise, his friend Louis likewise turns him away, arguing that Lestat ought to be happy to be human again. His only ally is David Talbot, the elderly head of the Talamasca.
From the history of the Talamasca, Talbot reveals that James was a gifted psychic who once joined the order, but was kicked out for constant theft. He is a complete and utter kleptomaniac who enjoys stealing for the thrill of it - it is revealed that every single thing he owns, from his house to his body, was stolen or schemed for. However, he also has major psychological problems, and his life is a series of cycles - he gets rich by theft, than often ends up in prison. Dying of cancer several years previous to the novel's beginning, James tricked the inmate of a mental institution into switching bodies with him, allowing him a type of immortality.
It is James' lack of imagination and petty thievery that allow Talbot and Lestat to track him down. Despite his newfound wealth and powerful new body, James continues to steal jewelry from people. He also makes a conspicious show of his wealth, boarding the QE2, and taking blood victims along the ship's path. The pattern allows his pursuers to easily track him down.
On the cruise ship, Lestat manages to regain his body, but both James and Talbot disappear. Upon rejoining Talbot in Florida, Lestat is surprised to find that his friend, despite earlier protestations, wants to become a vampire. However, while taking his blood, Lestat discovers a final trick - during the last switch, James took over Talbot's body to gain his trust. Lestat angrily attacks James, crushing his skull in a manner to prevent him from ever switching bodies again.
At this point, it appears the tale has a happy ending - Raglan James is dead, the formerly elderly David Talbot now inhabits a young body again, and Lestat has his body back - and has finally come to terms with his vampiric nature. Rice actually warns the reader not to read on if they like this ending.
However, Lestat, regaining his "evil" nature, decides to make Talbot into a vampire against his wishes, and despite the role Talbot played in saving his life. At the ending, he is confronted by an angry Louis and Talbot, and their future relationship is uncertain.
Motifs
In many ways, Tale of the Body Thief lays the groundwork for the following Vampire Chronicles novel, Memnoch the Devil. David Talbot, in his occult fieldwork, has begun to understand the nature of the spirit world, and actually claims to have seen god and the devil sitting and talking in a cafe.
Lestat's adjustment to his human body takes up a major portion of the book - after almost two centuries of being a vampire, he finds he has trouble with the basic human nuances of eating, defecating, and taking care of his body. One of the realizations made by Lestat is that he took his powers for granted for too long; only after the tale is he able to fully appreciate it.
The story is extremely ironic as well. James is described as a petty thief who keeps making the same mistakes over and over. Despite everything he goes through, Lestat ends up doing much the same thing at the end. Despite being a novel of "personal growth," Lestat remains much the anti-hero he always was.
The novel is also ironic in the cues it leaves behind. For example, one of the "hints" Raglan James leaves Lestat is a copy of H.P. Lovecraft's short story, The Thing on the Doorstep. In the Lovecraft story, body-switching also takes place, and has an added twist when a third party gets involved without the narrator's knowledge. Lestat doesn't bother reading the short story; if he had, he might have anticipated Raglan James' final trick.