Obsidian Butterfly

Rating:
Summary: Anita returns....and while we love it..we worry......
Review: Anita Blake, Vampire Executioner and Animator, travels to New Mexico at the behest of super-assassin Edward (or Death as we're continually reminded) to investigate a series of brutal (what else) and inexplicable murders.

First of all, it's an enjoyable book. It sheds light on Edward (someone we've all wanted to know more about) and manages to extricate Anita from the tangled morass of her personal life in St. Louis. As always the story is fast-moving, evocatively written, and makes us care deeply about the fate of the protagonists..

Yet for those who have read the previous books, the old problems remain...

1. Anita MUST intimidate everyone she meets or die trying.

2. Anita MUST bemoan her status as a monster without actually doing anything about it.

3. Anita MUST threaten to kill both friend and foe with equal frequency.

And she does..it seems sometimes that Anita doesn't have conversations. she can only have confrontations. And sometimes I confess, it grows a bit tiresome. As does the constant threat of rape.

Yet still I and so many others read. Why? because in spite of everything, Hamilton tells a great story, creates a great world, and continues to top herself with action each time. Obsidian Butterfly is no different.

But Anita needs a vacation.

Rating:
Summary: Happy, but missing the guys...
Review: Like alot of you I have been waiting with baited breath for this book... I think Laurell Hamilton is perhaps one of the most entertaining writers to come along in quite sometime. I enjoyed this book very much...just not as much as Burnt Offerings (in particular) and Blue Moon as well, but that is because of my own personal preference for Jean-Claude primarily and Richard secondly. I love the worlds that surround them both, the characters move me and excite me like I have not experienced in a novel in a long time. Don't get me wrong, I like Edward very much and I enjoyed getting to know him better than ever before...not to mention that events that occur in the book make me realize just how much I care about his character as well... I didn't like the introspective Anita as much as her usual confident self..I felt that she was agonizing so much about her own nature that it took a little of the joy that I usually get from spending time in her world. My fondest wish is that she could just be happy in the triumvirate and love both the boys and go from there, her lifestyle is such that she will never be able to have a traditional relationship and she should be able to accept that and accept both of their love, though I have my doubts that Richard could change enough to allow that to happen. Anyway...back to the present book... Edward fans will be the most pleased...the action is hot...the plot is wonderful...and the end is a compulsive page turner... If you adore Jean-Claude and Richard as I do and miss the erotic charge they bring to things like I do, you may mourn their absence... I hope that she will return to them soon...and bring Edward to us for lots of visits...

Rating:
Summary: Obsidian Butterfly
Review: Don't get me wrong. I've positively adored Anita Blake since the first book, but I simply couldn't get through this one. I think Hamilton is an excellent writer, but this book is simply too much. First, Edward only really works as a character if we don't know much about him. Once we know about his personal life, his mystique as the hard-edged killer don't stand up anymore. This was not an "Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter" book, it was a "Lets Demask Edward" book. And Anita did not grow as a person, or so I saw, all she did was have a different cast of men to fall at her feet -- either in death or worship of her beauty/strength/power. The other Blake books are, in my opinion, as close to perfection as any writer can get, but Hamilton seems to keep simply wanting to go more and more grandiose with villians and gross with victims, and this was simply going too far. The book did not further the series at all. It kept it at exactly the same spot.

Rating:
Summary: Passes the time
Review: As all fans of the Anita Blake series know, LKH tends to be repetitive. This book is a study in that fault. I've read all the books, and I am a fan, but that fact doesn't blind me to the glaring omissions and mistakes of her work. Don't get me wrong -- I have greatly enjoyed the series, but I don't think it's for everyone.

I have always liked the Edward character. Yes, I found her exploration of him interesting, but I also agree with other reviewers that the chink in his stone armor was a trite plot device. The new supporting characters, especially Itzpapalotl (Master of the City of Albuquerque), were more three-dimensional than I thought they'd be. I liked the interaction, and I was glad to see the old Anita in action.

I must confess, I did miss JC & Richard. I think this book was a deliberate attempt to avoid resolving the romance issues that may have gotten away from LKH.

I'd recommend this book to a devoted fan, but I think first-timers might find the length of the book (caused by repetitions - sometimes word-for-word), the copy-edit errors and what masquerades as a plot, detracting and irritating.

Rating:
Summary: Well....it's not the BEST Anita Blake, by far...
Review: In many of the early Anita Blake works, we met intriguing, dangerous characters as well as complex mystery/crime plots. It was in these works that we also met the character of Anita Blake, the "tough-as-nails" Vampire Executioner...and her "sociopathic" counterpart, Death...aka Edward. For the first 4-5 books, the plotline and witty dialogue dominated, coupled with horror. However, Hamilton then seemed to lose her way, and we suffered (after Bloody Bones) with several books which seemed to deal only with Anita's hormonal overload - not to mention using the "munin" to provide "good girl" Anita with an excuse to sleep with two men - or beings - at once. It was as though someone advised Hamilton that what she was writing wasn't "good enough" to go hardcover; that Vamp fiction fans expect (and get) quasi-erotica. So, Hamilton complied, one presumes, and we were required to plow through Anita's agonies over Richard, her seduction by/of Jean-Claude; her surrender to Richard; her growing powers. To this reader, only her growing powers as a necromancer were of any interest. The "soap opera" aspects bore me, and I'd decided to ditch the series if it continued in this "romance/horror" vein.

I had VERY high hopes for this new work, featuring Edward. But again, Hamilton seems to have lost her way. Yes, we are told, at the end of *Blue Moon* that Anita is not "dating" the boys (IOW, sex); that she is working with the Vargamor to "ride the power," instead of letting IT ride HER. But in this book, Anita seems completely and totally human, with few moments elsewise..so she is not learning about her power; not harnessing it...but, rather running from it; shutting it off, and not using it. This simply seems unlikely, given the character's use of the power in the past. Moreover, Edward's "new" character seems highly disappointing; while he was mysterious and frightening before, now he is shown as a reflection of JC & Richard - warming HIS hands around a normal woman's "humanity," in lieu of finding that which he has lost...or reconciling himself to the mere fact that it IS lost.

It is also a bit tiresome to plod through Anita's countless, and apparently endless, "crises of conscience." EVERY single work, we are treated to a treatise on "how far will Anita go?" in order to stop "the bad guys," and we go over the same old tired ground again and again. I mean, sooner or later, isn't she EVER going to come to grips with either her growing powers, being part of the triumvirate, OR the fact that she's quite the killer? She behaves childishly and immature, which had a certain appeal in the first few books, but, after 50 *sanctioned* (read: legal) kills, and untold others, you'd think that she'd either GROW UP or get another line of work; move to California (or wherever) and simply animate for a living. But Hamilton does not seem to want the character to *grow;* she becomes more powerful; a more-rapid killer; but she doesn't seem to *mature.* And THAT - in a character-driven series - is a death-knell.

I realize Hamilton's conundrum; there are *many* Vamp-fans who expect..nay, demand - romance/erotica in the works they buy. But it is NOT these people that "made" Anita Blake; it is the fans (like me) who normally would *never* pick up vampire fiction, and enjoyed the plots, the dialogue, the fine brisk writing that created the demand for the Blake works. Yes, Hamilton's finally made the "big-time;" this book is in hardcover, unlike the rest. BUT...Hamilton needs to find her way back to the original premise; a wise-cracking P.I.-type tough female who kills monsters, period. If she feels compelled to keep the romance angle going, fine...but a LOT less of it would suit me and others better. And Anita needs to *mature.* Not just age; not simply acquire more powers...but grow up, instead of acting like an 18-year-old with a lot of abilities that she doesn't know what to do with. Lastly, as far as I'm concerned, unless Edward is going to *also* revert to Edward, she can write him out of the series anytime now; he is of no further interest to me. The mystique, the intrigue about Edward is gone, and now he is simply boring. Of course, Hamilton set it up so that Edward MUST return...but perhaps she would be kind enough to kill him off in his next appearance, and replace him with someone she does not feel compelled to make "warm and fuzzy," which is what she has now done with virtually ALL of her reappearing characters..including Anita's lovers, friends, vamps, vargamors, Throne Rokke Clan, wereleopards, ad nauseum. Hell, at this point, the "worst" person in Anita's life is BERT. Enough, already! Anita...come back home to your REAL fans...please.

Rating:
Summary: An excellent new book in a great series
Review: If you haven't read the Anita Blake books this is a good one to start with. The only two characters in this book that are in others are Anita and Edward, and we readers didn't know much about Edward to begin with. Anita's background is incidental to the story. Note: her previous romantic entanglements are not part of this story, except as a problem Anita is thinking about.

Hamilton takes Anita out of St. Louis and sends her to New Mexico to deal with some thing that's been killing the locals. She goes at the request of her old teacher Edward, the only guy alive who's tougher than Anita herself. She finds herself surrounded by Aztec vampires, serial killers, and drug-dealer necromancers, not to mention a hostile police force, and she's fighting against all of them to make sure no one else gets killed. This was a great adventure.

As a warning, this book contains some serious gore and violence.

Rating:
Summary: A BIG disappointment
Review: Is Hamilton grasping here, or is it just me? How many pages can we spend talking about each article of clothing Anita wears, each weapon she puts on...and if I hear about her Nikes one more time, I'll hurl the book across the room.

Anita is turning into something I never wanted to see, someone that is too perfect. She's a "Mary Sue": every man wants her, every woman envys her, she's strong, she's pretty, she saves the day. Edward--I just didn't like him in this book. The whole plot with Donna was ridiculous.

And can we say sloppy editing? On one page, Anita's Uncle Otto is from Hapsburg, while on the next, he's from Hamburg. Let's make up our minds and read the galley's before we go to final print, hmm?

I don't know why this book was printed in hardcover; it's getting a treatment it doesn't deserve. Earlier books were better; this one disappoints.

Rating:
Summary: The Old Anita Is Back!
Review: This book reminded me of the Anita Blake we all grew to love before she got romantically involved with JC and Richard! I loved this book so much. Especially learning more about Edward. I thought he was a scary guy when he went cold and isolated. I was wrong. He's even scarier when he shows his emotions.

The book was more like the old style of Anita. How so? Anita is not the super woman she was in Blue Moon and Burnt Offerings. She had very few new magical powers. She relied more on her wits and firepower. The mystery was the key plot focus - not who she was going to sleep with next. This book was a GREAT way for Anita to get back into what she does best - killing the evil monsters who harm the innocent.

Rating:
Summary: Not Good
Review: I was vastly disappointed in this book. Yes I know it was to be a book for Edward fans and it is that but I came away with it feeling like Hamilton was trying to dodge resolving some of the situations she's made for Anita back home. Instead of seeing Anita grow, I felt like Hamilton gave us a whole new group of characters to be awed by the Anita we already know. It made the plot seem repetative and contrived. As for Edward, I did not like the way he was painted here. I enjoy the Edward we met in the other books. The cold blooded, calculating hunter. I felt that his character was made into a stereotype in this book. Hard boiled man, made soft and fuzzy by innocent love and children. Just didn't read as anything but tripe and predictable. I hate to say it but if Hamilton has gotten this hackneyed with the Anita Blake world I'd rather she just move on to another character and another series then produce anything else that looks like Obsidean Butterfly.

Rating:
Summary: Laurell K. Hamilton is the best
Review: On an alternate Earth, preternatural beings live along side humans who fear and loathe them. Human Anita Blake is a renowned vampire hunter, needed by law enforcement but loathed by many nosferatu who believe she is a genocide executioner. Anita loves both a werewolf and a vampire. However, she obstinately has refused to see either one of them for over the past year. Because of their species, she is terrified of giving herself to either of them.

The only person capable of killing as well as Anita happens to be Edward, better known as Death. He has saved her life on several occasions and she owes him for killing one of his cohorts. Edward calls in his marker, asking for her help with a preternatural creature like none he has ever encountered before. Anita comes to Santa Fe to meet an Edward totally different then Death. Edward is engaged to a woman with children and he seems to cherish all of them. As she works with Edward to defeat this seemingly invincible creature, Anita now knows she cannot hide from her own nature.

The newest Anita Blake novel, OBSIDIAN BUTTERFLY, is a great tale that is the best story in a wonderful alternate earth series. Part of the reason the story line is so good is that the enigmatic avenging angel Edward plays a starring role that makes him more complete and human. Anita retains her take no prisoners attitude, but is beginning to show signs of doubt and the need to choose that makes her even more complex of a character than before. This heart stopping, mesmerizing tale captures the audience's attention from the very first sentence and gives them a reading experience like no other. First time readers of this novel will scamper for this talented author's previous books.

Harriet Klausner