Rating: 
Summary: Things that make u go "Hmmmm"? (no more vacations for AB)
Review: You know, I am NOT one to tell an author how to write a book; and since LKH doesn't care what I think, I will state my feelings and hope to spare others the sheer and utter TORTURE that was NiC. Now, don't get me wrong- the series was great. VERY different from what I usually read, but this latest installment was PAINFUL. I started this series after reading MANY reviews on this and other sites, being that it had romance was a plus, but I was ready for a change...and since all of my usual authors haven't released new works, I decided to give LKH's of GP and A Kiss of Shadows....Was excited and very happy at the original ideas of an alternate society. I ordered the first 5 books and anxiously awaited them.....I wolfed down the first 3 and proceeded to order the rest....then I hit the bump in the road that was TKD...(need I TELL you how much of a RAZ fan I am???). I took a break and read A Caress of Twighlight due to the constant RAZ-bashing and JC love-festing and the childish and cold-bloodedness that was Anita. I finished the rest with less enthusiam and REALLY came to a halt after OB....(was HAPPY after BM because I thought we were ACTUALLY getting somewhere with the Tri.) Understood AB was burnt out and needed a break; OK....but THIS....I could BARELY make it through this book and took as TWICE as long to read than OB- had to FORCE myself to finish it because I paid MONEY for this...I could have just waited until CS. Ranting over, I'm here to talk about the story...OOOPS, there WASN'T any! Unless you count how many times could RAZ hate himself and how AB was very selfish and self-centered (big surprise!) and how many times JC would be described as " the beautiful manipulator" (paraphrasing)....and LET's not forget about the cardboard figure who simplified AB's love life....yes, ladies & gents: it's "AB in Drag" otherwise known as Micah: The Nimir-Raj (and his Magical Memember). The first half of this book (being that LKH writes the first couple of chapters following the last book to keep the flow) was very promising; this is where the disappointment comes in...AFTER the marriage of the Marks. I have to say the between the sex, the constant WHINNING AB does of how SICK she is of people who actually HAVE a conscience and morals and really STICK to them (not just when they are convenient), and the CONSTANT hero-worshipping of AB the Goddess...there's not much left. WE hear inner-dialog, conversations and all while AB is SUPPOSED to be concerned about her Pard...then she sleeps w/someone she BARELY knew and it's the "arduer's" fault- so she is yet AGAIN, not resposible for her actions...BS! (And WHY would JC and RAZ leave her w/o anyone representing them???) She has a beast- no, its the Marks... She's has vamp powers and a servant and animal-to-call- who needs the Tri right? OH, and let's not forget that she has a SOULMATE now after flip-flopping between TWO men this WHOLE time; which they are so SAD and PATHETIC (read: neutered) at this point it I am too disgusted to mention them (and I don't even LIKE JC!)... What can I say about Anita: she is spoiled, selfish, and tired, but guess what- RAZ and JC are tired too...I was so GLAD when they finally told her off- but then she resorts to PHYSICAL abuse towards them because she doesn't like what she hears and can't COPE like a normal adult. The Pard is still a laughable mess; the scenes and plot is so degrading to EVERYONE involved and AB saves the day by (quoting a friend) "sucking the life out of you while I stand over here"...did I happen to mention she has NEW and IMPROVED powers??? No thought, just action- per usual in the Anitaverse....AB has just turned into those bullies that used to pick on her; you know, back when we used to feel empathy for her and hoped she would "show them" and win (whine: I'm short and wasn't daddy's favorite; but now I pack "heat" and have neat powers and men ADORE me!)...now I just want her to get knocked off of the HIGH-HORSE she's riding. Who died and left you all-knowing queen of the universe! (Oh, yeah, LKH did.) I felt NOTHING for her but contempt and felt more for the secondary cast that INCLUDED RAZ and JC, while Micah (who got center stage) was floating in the background doing ALL of these courageous things we NEVER got to see but heard and AB takes as fact (WHAT!???)...he leaves you with this creepy feeling that her unwise decision will bite her in the *ss...And, frankly, I hope it does! Then LKH futher insults you after ALL of the character assasinations by summing the book up in a few short paragraphs...(???) The only GOOD parts were seeing Jason, Nate and some others develop into PEOPLE, two Pard members finding love and AB getting told off....That's it!!! After 6 months of meditation and learning; playing Commando Barbie in NM (I love Edward)- THIS is what we get!??? HA- I will continue to watch for CS hoping it will be better (read excerpts- Micah is barely around, AB has gone back to work after living off of superPIMP aka Jean-Claude, and RAZ hits rock-bottom....Thrilling isn't it?). I am almost looking forward to Olaf coming to town..... I found Merry's series more interesting than this and that is just book two. Start from the beginning of the series- then, if you want, work your way up and skim through NiC. You'll THANK me.
Rating: 
Summary: anita blake series
Review: this series was the best i have ever read. i read the entire series in 2 weeks now i am going through anita withdrawals. i can't wait for the next one
Rating:
Summary: WOW !! WOW !! WOW!!
Review: I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed this book. I've seen some people have been upset with how the series is going. I disagree, It may not be for everyone (gets pretty steamy)but I
do believe that Anita is still in her heart the same character.
Of course she is changing, but who wouldn't. Not everything is black and white. Sometimes good people do bad things. And so what if she's been a little busy in the bedroom, give her a break a girl's gotta have some fun, she's had a hard life with everybody trying to kill her all the time. Also, I am really enjoying the interaction between Anita and her pard, it's like the family (although disfunctional) she hasn't really had. Alot of people may disagree but this relationship is Anita at her best, she made them a home. The new thing with Damian ought to be interesting too. It was a great book, love the series, can't wait for the next one, hope Laurell keeps up the wonderful work.
Enjoy!!
Rating:
Summary: GREAT!!
Review: I don't know why so many people are so diappointed in this book, it was EXCELLANT. The sex seems to be necessray due to the evolution of Anita's character. It's not like she is just jumping everyone, it is the "ardeur". I also hope something does happen with Asher, I'm sick of Richard and I don't like Micah. I can't wait to see what happens next.
Rating:
Summary: Feminist Role Model? HARDLY!!
Review: Anita used to be a really cool character. A female character, that was strong and brave. She had a fierce personal code that applied to her professional life, and her sex life (what a wonderful novelty in most novels). And she had a vulnerability that was touching. She loses that a bit more with each book, and now its gone forever with this book. Characters have to grow, you say? Sure they do. Problem is Anita morphed into something utterly unlikeable. Now she's Anita, most powerful EVERYTHING in the universe, every creature bows before her incredible power, and men are just lined up to worship her. Actually, everyone worships her, and if you don't...you get spit on and banished from the books like poor Richard (run while you can Jean-Claude, you're probably next). Oh yes, she still can beat up all manners of creatures, and with each book she becomes a colder and more vicious killer-how inspiring...NOT. In my world, that doesn't come close to making her a positive female character. In fact, just the opposite. Any stupid bully can beat [up] people or pull a trigger. And giving her all this magical power just means she no longer has need to actually use her brain. I frankly don't understand how anyone can read this book with its "ardeur" garbage, and not be incredibly offended...especially women. Anita had morals when it comes to sex....not anymore, lets give her this curse that makes it impossible to resist sex. What next? A curse that makes it impossible to keep her clothes on? Why have Anita take responsibility for her sexlife when you can just remove her freedom of choice, and put in plenty of meaningless and badly written sex scenes? (Hilariously, this author is quoted as saying that writing sex scenes is one of her strengths LOL) Way to go LKH, a stunning feminist statement if ever I heard one. And of course there are no other intelligent females within spitting distance of Anita. Perish the thought ! Every other female has to be weak, or judgemental, or a victim...we even have the prerequistie lesbian (whatever is takes to keep ever male character in Anita's web). Ugh, its nauseating. A strong female character doesn't offend me, I love them. But someone like Anita Blake being passed off as a strong female character....thats a joke, and an insulting one at that.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed but hopeful
Review: Was I disappointed by this book? Yes. But it is hard to dismiss an old favorite that easily. Meeting familiar characters acting so unfamiliarly is very disconcerting. But the thrill of seeing the strange cast of Anita Blake series again cushioned the disappointment. If you like the series, you would read this book anyway and wait to see how things progress in Cerulean Sins coming in April 2003. If you haven't read any others in this series, better to start at the beginning. Then you can understand why this is not my favorite in the series,
Rating: 
Summary: Anita starts to grow up
Review: First of all I love this series. Jean Claude is great I liked the way his temper flared at Anita, because sometimes there is no pleasing her. Next Richard needs to become a true leader and stop being so soft. Anita was just Anita annoying but funny.
The sex in this book was soft porn, but I liked it anyway. I think the plot was a little thin but the sex and violence made up for it and made it interesting. The new people and development of others could make for interesting reading in books to come. If you like Anita you may also like Merry Gentry Laurell's other series. Enjoy!!
Rating:
Summary: One angry and childish woman
Review: Maybe if I had read the other 9 books featuring character Anita Blake before this one I could get a better grip on just why this woman becomes violently angry in every other paragraph. In this particular book when she isn't having sex in some form or other with the main male characters, she's threatening to shoot them. I found the Anita Blake character and this book childish and rather melodramatic. Considering the subject line you'd have thought there would have been more meat on the bone as the saying goes but alas the was no real plot to follow unless the ardeur was to supply that also.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Porn
Review: I fully agree with the many reviewers who say this series -- which started out great -- has degenerated into nothing more than a vehicle for LKH to try and write porn. Many of us hoped that her "Kiss of Shadows" series would satisfy this unfortunate desire of hers to write smut but apparently it has not. And she is ruining what was such a wonderful series. Anita Blake was a young, tough, smart woman who was also a Vampire Executioner and Necromancer. She had a smart mouth, was funny and insightful. She even managed to have morals and standards within her strange situations. What's not to like? Why ruin a good thing -- and call it "charactor development"?? Because Anita IS ruined. It's almost as if LKH was writing backwards and instead of improving, she's getting worse. NiC hardly had a plot at all. This problem is most noticable in the last few books. Does a plot get in the way of LKH writing porn? Apparently. The final scene was so rushed and slapped together it appeared as an addendum, not the final slam-bang ending. And she wound up all the issues that had run through the entire over-long book in the epilog! Was Anita really going to be "furry" at the full moon? What about Richard? Was she going to be kicked out of the werewolf pack (and, by the way, is EVERYone in St. Louis a were-something? It must be quite an event every full moon) Can JC accept Anita being a total slut? All these things were dragged endlessly through the book and were dealt with in 2 pages. Reeeaaallly bad. Does Ms. Hamilton read reviews? Does she notice that her readership is unhappy? Does she give a rats behind? If she really wants to write porn, she should do it. But not in an existing series that was not designed for it and is not benefiting from it. Check the book out of the library but don't waste your money.
Rating: 
Summary: Anita, Powerpuff Girl?
Review: The 10th book in the Anita Blake-Vampire Hunter series continues the disturbing trend of the last few books, especially the last 2, of heaping ridiculous power after ridiculous power onto Anita Blake. Thats fine if you're into reading comic books heroines that leap tall buildings in a single bound and "kick-...", but if you are looking for complex, mature, human females, you're probably going to want to skip these books from here on out. Anita doesn't even remotely resemble one anymore. I gave the book 2 stars for the marrying of the marks in the beginning....a start that promised a better book then delivered, and Jean-Claude finally losing his temper with the childish Anita.
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