Vittorio, The Vampire is the second installment in Anne Rice's captivating New Tales of the Vampires series. Set against the enchanting backdrop of Renaissance Italy, this novel immerses readers in the opulent world of the Italian Age of Gold.

Vittorio is educated in the illustrious Florence of Cosimo de' Medici and trained in knighthood at his father's mountaintop castle. His life of courtly splendor and country pleasures is abruptly disrupted when an unholy power threatens his entire family.

Amidst the chaos, Vittorio is drawn into a tumultuous relationship with Ursula, a stunning vampire who is among his supernatural foes. As Vittorio embarks on a quest for vengeance, he enters the nightmarish Court of the Ruby Grail, entangling himself further in his love for the elusive Ursula.

Anne Rice weaves a passionate and tragic tale of doomed young love and lost innocence, filled with demonic adversaries, war, and political intrigue. This novel is a vivid exploration of the sacred and profane wonders, as well as the intense beauty and ferocity, of Renaissance Italy.

Spring, 1543. King Henry VIII is wooing Lady Catherine Parr, whom he desires as his sixth wife. Yet, this time, the object of his affections is resisting. Archbishop Cranmer and the embattled Protestant faction at court are watching keenly, for Lady Catherine is known to have reformist sympathies.

Meanwhile, a teenage boy, a religious maniac, has been placed in the Bedlam hospital for the insane. When an old friend of Matthew Shardlake is murdered, his investigation leads to connections to both the boy and the prophecies of the Book of Revelation. Shardlake follows a trail of horrific murders that are igniting frenzied talk of witchcraft and demonic possession. For what else would the Tudor mind make of a serial killer?