Rating: 
Summary: Still the best ride a book can give you.
Review: I've been a fan of Hamilton's Anita Blake series since the day I picked up Guilty Pleasures on a rainy trip to the book store. The Killing Dance hooked me in like the other books because of the action and Anita's wonderful wit. The only reason why I give this book an 8 instead of a 10 is because throughout the book I found Anita's incredible resolve weakening because of (what else)the men in her life. It just wasn't, well, Anita. I was especially surprised by how it ended. I can understand lust and sex, but the trust that was required for what eventually happened between Jean-Claude, Richard and herself didn't seem like the thing Anita was ready for, TRUST being a big issue with her, especially considering the fact that she is a person who sticks to her principles at the expense of death itself. I felt I got to know Anita through this series and I admired her mostly for her strong will. I was slightly disappointed by the compromising made on her character but I can't deny enjoying learning more about the vampire and werewolf communities of Anita Blake's universe. My review overall? Anita's still the coolest, weapons-toting chick in my book (no pun intended)
Rating: 
Summary: My favorite book in my favorite series
Review: If you haven't discovered Laurell K. Hamilton yet--I envy you. because you have 9 great books ahead of you--the Anita Blake series. This is a wonderfully fresh take on a somewhat tired genre. Imagine a female Spencer (cf. Robert Parker) turned loose in a world in which vampires, zombies, were-creatures, and ghouls really exist. Hamilton's originality and creativity even prompted her to have the Supreme Court recognize the constitutional rights of vampires, so that staking them is a crime. A fun combination of the vampire and female PI genres that really works.Killing Dance is the 6th novel in the series and my personal favorite. To be sure, it is darker and more violent than some of the earlier books. But some of my favorite characters (Jean Claude and Edward) play major roles. (I love Edward the amoral but honorable hit man who befriends Anita.) And some of my least favorite characters get wasted (no telling--no spoilers here!). Mostly, I love Anita. She is coming to grips with the fact that she is a stone cold killer and that she's not ok with that. The depth of characterization among Richard, Jean-Claude, and Anita thus continues to grow. (Even Edward becomes something of a fully realized character.) I can't really tell you why I loved this book without giving away some major spoliers. So just take my word for it--go buy it. (BUT don't start here--if you haven't read any of the Anita Blake series yet--start at the beginning: "Guilty Pleasures.)
Rating:
Summary: Finally!!!
Review: After reading all of the Anita Blake novels, I must say...Finally! You made the right choice Anita :-)
Rating:
Summary: Save the Last Dance...
Review: As if life wasn't hard enough for Anita Blake: vampire hunter/executioner, zombie-raiser, necromancer - now someone has a contract out on her for half a million dollars. She is notified about this from her seemingly only HUMAN male friend, Edward, who was offered the hit but passed it up. Now, while trying to dodge unseen enemies, she also must try and help a rotting vampire get rid of his icky disease, and try and talk her werewolf boyfriend Richard into becoming more of a - get this - killer. Then, add to all of that the huge decision Anita must face: should she choose Richard, or the vampire Jean-Claude? I'm rooting more for Jean-Claude personally, but I kind of wish she would just choose someone a little more human. I read a lot of reviews from people saying that this is their favorite Anita Blake novel. I can't say it is mine. I was hoping more for the hit-man story to develope, but a lot of the book had to do with ho-hum Richard and his rat pack of wereanimals. However, there was one scene that made this book irresistible, and it started at about page 335. At about page 344, I wanted a cigarette - and I don't even smoke! I'd say this particular part is worth the read alone, and will satisfy any fan who has been loyal all the way up from "Guilty Pleasures". Still, though it is not my favorite novel so far, it kept my interest up until the end, like all of the rest. Needless to say, I can't wait to get onto book seven.
Rating:
Summary: The girl finally makes her choice!!!
Review: ALL RIGHT!!! go Jean-Claude!!! Not that i don't love Richard but he couldn't be the man for anita that Jean-Claude or Edward can be.....speaking of Edward, i'm dying for the next book so i can read about this "favor" that he's going to call in on Anita.....hmmm.....but wow, sex after 6 books....the vamp has been patient...the only thing for me was that, i understand watching Richard go all furry on top of her would be slightly disconcerting, but to completely blow to hell all her morals and will-power for some amazing sex in a hottub?? not that i'm complaining, but it did seem kind of sudden and unexplained....Anita's starting to get confused and a lot more powerful...not a good combination, and then of course there's the triumvirate.....and Richard?? he still loves her, but will he ever forgive her?? i'm eagerly awaiting the next book in may.....keep writing Laurell!!!!
Rating:
Summary: A Nice Read, but a bit Gorey
Review: It's more of a werewolf/lycanthrope novel than a vampire one, but of course Master of the City Jean-Claude is a prominent member. Without giving away too much, the love triangle between Anita, Jean-Claude, and her werewolf boyfriend Richard comes to a head in this novel in more ways than one. Needless to say, don't expect the triangle to die out easily. This one seemed to enjoy the gore a little TOO much, and shows a lot of character flaws in Anita, in my opinion. The woman is starting to annoy me as a lead character, but I'm reading onwards because I like the rest of the cast thus far.
Rating:
Summary: As Satisfying as an Ice Cream Sundae
Review: I have read all of the novels in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series and the "The Killing Dance" is one of the very best and my own personal favorite. Readers would be well-advised to start the series with the first novel "Guilty Pleasures" and enjoy the development of each of the characters instead of starting with this novel.The book explores the growth and development of each of four main characters; our heroine Anita Blake, junior-high school teacher and alpha werewolf Richard Zeeman, mysterious bounty hunter Edward, and master vampire of St.Louis Jean-Claude. A huge bounty has been placed on Anita's life by an unknown money-man and Anita must somehow protect herself until the time limit expires. Anita puts a lot of effort into survival, a skill at which she has had a lot of practice and at which she excels. Several plots run simultaneously throughout the book with the action being non-stop and rivetting. Everything ties together nicely at the conclusion, with just enough dangling ends to make us want to start the next installment "Burnt Offerings" right away. Anita's hard-boiled attitude and biting sarcasm provide several instances where the reader can't help but laugh such as her commentary on a dinner party; "There were three kinds of people at Catherine's dinner party; the living, the dead, and the occassionally furry." Her dry sense of humor serves to break the tension at just the right moment; "What do you say to boyfriend A when he finds you naked in the bed of boyfriend B? Especially if boyfriend A turned into a monster the night before and ate someone. I bet Miss Manners didn't cover this at all." Readers will devour this novel like an ice cream sundae; satisfying yet leaving you wanting some more. Top ratings are well-deserved.
Rating:
Summary: A much needed and exciting character development for Anita
Review: Book 6 of Laurell K Hamilton's Anita Blake series gives a refreshing new twist to her tough as nails necromancer. The story starts with the complicated love triangle between Anita, the vampire Jean Claude and Richard the werewolf who happens to be a teacher. It continues with dangerous politics as Richard finds himself in a struggle to take control of his pack without the violence everyone wants him to use and Anita and Jean Claude must join to help him to do this. Considering the breathtaking pace at which Ms Hamilton paces the story with it's high tension sexual moments and it's nail biting combat, it becomes impossible to lay the book down and you'll find yourself propelled to read it in one sitting. Longtime readers of the series will likely be in for a surprise as Ms Hamiltons departs from her previous formula for writing the Anita Blake books and truly adds even more detail and depth to her much loved character. As always with the Anita Blake series, the supernatural, the backstabbing politics and one woman's struggle to scrape a living raising the dead will sure to delight the reader and make us all wait with anticipation for the next novel
Rating:
Summary: Sex, blood, and rock-n-roll
Review: This is definitely my favorite Anita Blake novel yet. Why? Because it finally fulfills the promise of 5 previous books' worth of sexual tension between Anita and her two suitors, the vampire Jean-Claude and the werewolf Richard. And trust me, things do not turn out the way you'd expect. As always, there are several subplots in this book that ultimately get woven together. One has Anita learning there's been a half-million dollar hit placed on her. Another involves a request from one of Jean-Claude's vampiric rivals, Sabin, to heal his disfiguring disease. And then there's Richard, who finally grows a pair and decides to go forward with his coup of his werewolf pack, throwing out the old leaders, Marcus and Raina. If, however, you're like me and you care more about the characters than the eighty-seven guns Anita carries and exactly how she uses them, all you're going to care about is that Anita finally makes her choice between her boyfriends, after several steamy scenes with each (and one with both!). The relationship between all three takes a surprising turn, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it's handled in forthcoming books. The only downside is the often-interminable descriptions of werewolf culture. Every time we turn around, there's another (often contradictory) point of protocol that has to be explained to Anita. Frankly, Hamilton gets carried away, instead of making it a simple hierarchy. It's all an effort to make the final showdown between Marcus and Richard a fairer fight, but it gets in the way of us believing that lycanthropes live normal lives three and a half weeks out of every month. On the other hand, maybe reminding us that the werewolves aren't human was Hamilton's point, since Anita's acceptance of Richard's double life is key here. After nagging him for months to accept violence, can she really handle seeing her maybe-fiancé rip out someone's throat with his teeth? What about Jean-Claude, who looks like he may be willing to give up on ever being with Anita? (And this may be the first time, apart from a kiss in the very first book in the series, that I really believed how in love with her he is.) Oh, yeah, and someone wants Anita dead, bad (although the revelation of who took out the hit is anticlimactic at best), which brings mysterious hit man Edward back to her side in the dubious role of protector. The best book to date in an above-average series. Very high on sex and violence (sometimes at the same time).
Rating:
Summary: :-)
Review: excellent!
Strong in sex and gore, so if you can't handle or don't like it, don't pick this book up.
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