Rating: 
Summary: Anita the Bore
Review: I can remember a time when Anita Blake was the coolest literary character in town. Feisty, with a fierce personal code, too much pent-up agression, and a chip on her shoulder the size of Everest. She was also interesting. Now, even with Anita having more self-revelation moments than any fictional character should have, she feels false, tired and uninspired. If you've ever seen the term "Mary Sue", the Anita Blake of the last 2 books is a perfect definition. I've always thought Jean-Claude, the sexy but manipulative vampire, and Richard, the powerful but angst-ridden werewolf, were characters just as interesting and compelling as Anita, sometimes moreso. As the 3 characters make up a magical Triumverate, I liked when the books revolved around the 3 of them and their connection, as well as their tangled relationships with each other. Now the books are awash in more cardboard cut-out studpuppies then you can shake a stick at, with Anita having all sorts of magical connections with each of them in different ways. It wouldn't be such a bad thing if they didn't all fall madly in love with Anita with lightening speed, and exist mostly to reassure her or have sex with her. I keep hoping Edward will show back up in the series and take out some of the excess baggage that plagues this series. And of course, Anita is "in love" with all of them in different ways, which basically means she has sex with them, or wants to have sex with them. She loves Jean-Claude, no, she loves Richard, no she loves Micah (UGH, the WORST!!!), no she loves Nathanial....please, enough !! After the last book, I really was hoping that this author, who I believe is talented, would bring back the magic of her earlier works and stop confusing this series with her other sex-driven series. Sadly, I don't believe that will ever happen.
Rating: 
Summary: Wham Bam? No thank you.
Review: This book continues the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter Series. It is the 11th in the grouping. Anita and her vampire lover Jean Claude are faced with the serious threat of Belle Morte Jean Claude's creator. It was planned that a visit would occur from a group of Belle Morte's other children. They were being sent to see how Jean Claude was doing as the New Master of the City in St. Louis, but when they unexpectedly arrive three months early tension and the threat of violence is imminent. Life is far from normal in Anita's life, and this threat to the ones she holds dear seems just up her alley.
Out of all the books I'd have to say this one went the fastest, the story felt too short. I can defiantly see that it is an introduction for a much larger plotline but I still feel slightly cheated out of some of what I've come to expect with an Anita Blake novel. The side story, the murder investigation, felt like an add on. It was thrown in on the side as a way to further some interpersonal relationship stuff and for the bigger plotlines to come. However, even any head way that might have been made with the interpersonal relationships(Anita and Jean Claude, Jean Claude and Asher, Anita and Richard, Nathaniel and Anita, Anita and Jason, Dolph and Anita) seemed unsteady. It might just be me, but all the talking and soul searching seemed to have taken Anita nothing more then a baby step further. I guess what I'm basically saying is that I did enjoy the book, but it was like reading "Cliff Notes to Anita Blake Vampire Hunter." It was just too short. But my dedication to the series has not wavered, I think I can see what Ms. Hamilton is doing and I expect that with the next novel there will be many surprises.
Of course there were things I liked about they story. I liked how Ms. Hamiltion continues to breath life into the supporting cast. I like Jason and Nathaniel as much as I like Anita. I have always liked how she tires to give them life, feelings, and personality. I like the passion in these books. If your put off by sex, then mayhap you should go with something else, or skip the scenes, because they are hot, steamy, and very vivid. In her work, not only the physical side of sex but the emotional side of love is a strong part in the story. There is almost a fascination with the physical form of a person, sex, sexuality, and how emotions react to all of it. It's an exploration of the hang ups we have about sex and the breaking of those barriers.
Rating: 
Summary: Amazing...
Review: I have read all of L.K.H.'s vampire series, aside from Obsidian, but this is by far the best. It has been a while since L.K.H. has progressed this storyline, and now she has left it open to go in so many directions. I received the first book in her series as a fluke, and now I can not imagine having never read them. I can't wait for the next installment.
Rating:
Summary: Erotic
Review: I stayed up most of the night finishing this book. I enjoyed Asher finally seeing some action. Richard is mellowing a bit and Anita is losing some of her hangups. I can't wait for the next book. The only thing wrong with this book, it just wasn't long enough.
Rating:
Summary: Better than NiC, but not the best
Review: I think my first review got eaten...so... I loved the early Anita Blake books. NiC was only fair. This one is a little better, but not a lot. The graphic sex has stepped up a notch...which is fine...at the cost of the story content dropping down a notch or two...which is not! I hope the trend doesn't continue as graphic sex in books is a whole lot easier to find than good thrillers. The plot is a bit uneven, with subplots jumping around. The final resolution of the main "mystery" seems just thrown in at the last minute and is a bit anti-climactic (no pun intended). The opening story bit is entirely forgotten until the last page or so and then resolved by just dismissing it. On the other hand, an interesting start to a new, major storyline. An end in sight (hopefully) to the subplot of angst-torn Richard. Jean Claude-As-Major-Vampire-Power storyline progressed quite nicely. The Asher story doing well enough. Zerbrowski a [heck] of a lot more fun than Dolph. I'm hopeful that things will get better and I'll keep buying for the moment...but I hope we're not going to bury [awesome] Anita under novels that would be better published by Black Lace.
Rating:
Summary: Good, not as good as before though
Review: I pretty much tore through the early Anita Blake novels and enjoyed them immensely. Cerulean Sins was a bit of a disappointment for me. The graphic sex has been stepped up a notch and the mystery/thriller/story line component has been stepped down a notch. I still enjoyed it, but I hope the trend doesn't continue--graphic sex novels are a dime-a-dozen, good vampire thrillers are a much rarer commodity.
Rating:
Summary: Anita grows up?
Review: This, the eleventh book in the Anita Blake series, is an interesting but not altogether successful blend. It has all the Hamilton trademarks--sex, action, humor, a growing mythos, sex, etc. But it goes beyond the usual gore and heavy breathing, as Anita finally begins to get some insight into her psychology. What she sees has an impact on her relationships with her friends, lovers, and pack. The Anita Blake series started out as a mixed genre paranormal fantasy-mystery series, with the sex and romance thrown in for good measure. Anita was basically a good Catholic girl who happened to be a licensed vampire execution--she killed monsters, she didn't date them. However, as the story arc has evolved, so has Anita. She has learned that between black and white there are many shades of gray, and that the monsters are not always furry or fanged. Indeed, as a powerful necromancer, she herself is a monster in many peoples eyes. As she becomes more and more powerful, she must constantly deal with new powers and new definitions of what she is, who her friends are, and where her duties lie. This book continues Anita's emotional growth as she finds herself participating in a menage a trois (Asher, not Richard) and having to confront the fact that she cannot give fully of herself to anyone, no matter how much she loves them. All of this goes on, of course, in the midst of yet another set of crises. Vampire politics, international terrorists, and lycanthropic serial killers must all be dealt with while she stumbles through her personal life doing things that the Anita Blake of the frst books could never have done. I doubt that many of Hamilton's fans read her works for hidden meanings, but the Anita Blake series has become a continuing tale of emotional growth and maturing. Anita's challenges are unique to her character and her universe, but everyone must come to terms in their own way with the ambiguities and evils of the world. Even though she is a powerful (and empowering) figure, Anita's confusions and misteps in her personal life are reminiscent of similar issues that must be faced in real life. I think this is part of what makes the series so popular (that and the sex). This said, Cerulean Sins is not the best book in the series. It's overlong and a bit self-indulgent on Hamilton's part. Anita's personal growth and her relationships with her various significant others are important, but a little more emphasis on the story line would have improved the book (how DOES this woman earn a living if all her time is spent on were and vampire politics and on the ardeur?) Overall, Cerulean Sins was an adequate addition to the series, but not the best. I gave it three stars because I had reactions similar to those of other readers who felt that the sex scenes were overdone and that the last half of the book seemed rushed. The book could have been more tightly edited, but it's still an ok read, especially with a little judicious skimming (if you've read one ardeur scene, you've read them all) Nonetheless, I'm semi-eagerly awaiting the next book in the series and am hoping that Hamilton can get the series back on track. Anita and her friends are too interesting to let them wither away.
Rating:
Summary: Cerulean Sins
Review: Perfect I love every book in this series I have read them over and over it is a very addictive series be warned. Read them all
Rating:
Summary: Getting tiresome
Review: Although I am a great fan of Laurell K Hamilton, this last book in this series was a disappointment to me. There seemed to be two separate plots in this particular book, her professional life and her personal life, and they did not flow well together. She might as well have not mentioned any zombie raising or police work at all. Anita's sex life is also getting a little out of hand and the fact that she keeps coming up against an even more powerful evil force and defeating them is getting tiring. I did like the growth of the other characters like Jason and Asher, and the police stuff was good - just wish there had been more. Unlike many people, I did enjoy Narcissus but this book seemed like a repeat of Burnt Offerings but with the sub-plot of the ardeur thrown in. I will probably continue reading any new Anita novels but it is no longer as exciting as it used to be. I'm hoping that her next Merry adventure will be better than this Anita one.
Rating: 
Summary: Better Then NIC, But....
Review: ...that isn't saying much. Gone forever are the Anita Blake novels of old, and I for one grieve for them. I like character evolution as much as the next reader, but switching genre's is perhaps going a bit overboard. The overall emphasis on Anita's sex life makes for tedious reading, especially since Anita is still an unbelieveably immature and self-involved character, and blissfully ignorant of that fact. I was sorry to see Richard run further into the ground, but not suprised. I'm betting he's gone in another book or 2. But I was even sorrier to see Jean-Claude come off so lifeless, pardon the pun. Much emphasis is put on Asher and Jason, 2 interesting characters that I was happy to see explored, but they just get turned into 2 more adoring worshippers of Anita. And the original two men that were so integral and fascinating in earlier books, Richard and Jean-Claude seem to be yesterdays news. Its depressing. Maybe one day Ms Hamilton could actually be bothered to give Micah some character and inner-life. She certainly seems to be hitting the reader over the head with the wonderfulness of him. After 2 books, he's about as deep as a puddle and about as interesting as watching paint dry. Or perhaps men that look like women *and* can share their clothing, while never having a contrary thought, are interesting to Ms Hamilton. I suppose its possible. The mystery side of these books had potential, but Anita waving her federal marshall status obnoxiously in the face of local police was really nauseating. I understand its fiction, but if she acted that way towards a real officer of the law she'd last about 5 minutes. Shouldn't one have some general respect for the law to carry a badge? And I won't even mention the incredibly reckless actions Anita takes which puts innocent people in danger. No worries though, Micah tells her its OK, so then it must be so. Oh please !!! I think I've hit the end of the road with LKH. I was really hoping that NIC was an aberration and this book would return to the form of old. But Anita Blake has turned into the classic "Mary Sue", and there can be no denying that. Its obviously what the author wants which is her perogative, so this is where I get off.....sadly
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