Rating: 
Summary: This One Is My Favorite
Review: I've read all the Anita Blake books. I actually have very mixed feelings about them, mostly because I find Anita Blake a hard character to truly like and relate to, and as the books are written in a first person narrative you are stuck in her head, reading only her thoughts (a very limiting style of writing). And with her ever increasing powers, she is more Mighty Morphin' Super Anita now then the very human, complicated woman she started out as. However, I liked her in Blue Moon and I liked how the story took us out of St. Louis. The plot has been described numerous times here, so I'll just give my overall impressions. I liked the storyline, I liked Anita getting away from Jean-Claude for a bit (his pouting boyfriend scene in the beginning of the book is cringe-worthy). I prefer Richard, and frankly have a tough time figuring out why he gets so much [heat] from other readers...except, perhaps, that he's serious competition for Jean-Claude. People seem to forget every manipulative and underhanded thing Jean-Claude does. Hey, I expect it from him, he's Master of the City, but it hardly makes him a good guy. You'd think that having morals, and very human conflicts about being a werewolf was some sort of criminal offense. I think Richard is a far more complex character *because* he struggles with his conscience and his morals and has difficulty reconciling his 2 selves. And frankly THANK GOD for ONE character that has some qualms about Anita's penchant for violence and killing. One of my favorite parts of the book is Richard telling her that if he can't have monogamy from her, she can't have it from him. ITS ABOUT TIME somehow finally called Anita on her annoying double standards. I'm for Richard all the way, but also find myself hoping that all 3 players in the TRI continue to be bonded, and their relationship continues to evolve (after book 10 though, forget it...author blows it BIGTIME). Even though I enjoyed this book a lot, I still can't say that I think Laurell Hamilton is a particularly gifted writer. She has the talent to tell an engaging and imaginative story. I particularly find her idea of having lycanthropy be a disease, like AIDS, very creative (though she doesn't really flesh out this idea very well). But she repeats phrases over and over, her scenes can be very repetitive (past the 3rd book, most readers could probably write the numerous "Anita pulls her gun almost instantly on someone, makes some sarcastic quip and must extracate herself from the room" scenes). She has described at least 3 different characters as "raising as though lifted by strings" and her attention to continuity and detail is not even close to being the best. She also has a very disconcerting fascination with rape and attempted rape. How she has used it over and over in her books gives me pause. Was there any real reason for its inclusion in this book? But of all the books, Blue Moon is the one I would recommend most highly, and the one I would most likely want to reread. It really is a fun read, even with the problems. And just because it isn't said enough, GO RICHARD !!
Rating:
Summary: Another great book in this series
Review: Anita Blake and Richard are broken up again. He can't seem to deal with his lycanthropy or her relationship with Jean Claude. He is spending the summer finishing up his master's degree, studying the trolls of Tennessee. One day Anita gets a call from his brother Daniel. Richard is in jail for rape. This is totally out of character for Richard, and worse yet, he won't hire a lawyer because he's innocent. With the full moon only five days away, Anita and a few of the monsters rush down to save him. The master of the city will not allow Jean Claude, so Anita is basically on her own. As usual Richard is no help. There is alot more going on here than is obvious. People are being found ripped apart and the attacks are blamed on trolls, even though trolls don't kill. A rich man is trying to buy the trolls habitat to look for holy relics, and the local master is very angry and scared of the Executioner. On a good note, a local witch seems to understand some of Anita's problems and is willing to help. This as usual was a very gripping novel. Anita is trying to balance the hit man with all of her new responsibilities. Jean Claude helps when it helps him, and Richard is more of a selfish baby than ever. Anita's character is really developing, great series.
Rating:
Summary: Richard, Richard, Richard
Review: I enjoyed this book, as I've enjoyed all installments of the Anita Blake series. When this book starts Anita drops everything (including Jean-Claude temporarily) and runs off to the Tennessee mountains to rescue Richard. After being accused and arrested for assault Richard is at his most annoying. Whiny, petulant, inconsiderate and unappreciative of Anita's help. Ms.Hamilton does and excellent job of making him throughly unlikable and still making the story itself pretty good.
Of course Anita saves the day, after a lot of bloodshed and an interview with a very, scary, demonic entity. Great book, great writer.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome! Book series I cant put down
Review: This series is awesome. I cant put them down. I read them in 2 days or less. I get so involved. Anita is a powerful and strong woman yet vunerable to the passion that Richard and Jean-Cluade offer her. Being the leader of the werelepords and the lupa for Richard's pack is so over whelming not to add the fact she is part of this triumitve that grows powerful every day. Exciting!
Rating: 
Summary: And the series comes tumbling down...
Review: The series was--passable--from the beginning, but this book has totally ruined it for me. In an attempt to support the paper-thin plot, LKH throws as much sex as possible into the book, even having Anita, in a move totally uncharacteristic and rather disgusting, on the whole, sleep with Richard. The werebeasts seem to bring out the worst in Anita, and I don't like it. The earlier books of hers, that involved blood and ritual for the magic, were far more interesting. It appears that LKH can only attract readers by appealing to their erotic natures. I hope that Anita, Jean-Claude, and Richard come back in a better form in the next book, because I'm bored with horny werewolves and naked wereleopards. There must be some real plot she can use.
Rating:
Summary: Anita to the Rescue!!
Review: In this 8th book of the series, Anita is still growing as a character. But while growing, she is learning that she has to break a few of her own rules to survive. This book is about alot of things but the undercurrent is basically about Anita's relationships with the werewolfs Jason and Jamil, the wereleopards Nathaniel, Zane and Cherry, and the vampires Asher and Damian. She is taught that not every monster is exactly a monster and that these "people" need reassurence and love too. At the beginning of the book, Anita drops everything to run to her ex in Tennessee who has been arrested on attemped rape charges. When she gets there she realizes that there is more in the air than the stinch of false charges. She brings with her an assortment of vamps and were, some of which were sent by Jean-Claude, because of a threat by the local master vamp of the city. Anita is still providing protection to those with her as Lupa and Nimir-ra and alot of the book focuses on that fact. Anita learns exactly what it means to be lupa when she is possessed by the munin of a past lupa who hated Anita. She is now having to learn to battle and control the munin before it distroys her. Because of the munin, Anita is thrown into a situation that she cant get out of..but Richard is worried at first but is more than happy to help her. Can we say.. ITS ABOUT TIME!!
Rating: 
Summary: A Great Read!
Review: "Blue Moon" by Laurell K. Hamilton finds our heroine, Anita Blake, necromancer and vampire executioner, at a crossroads in her life. Can she live with the things she has done? How far has she fallen from God's graces? As Anita examines her life, she is involved in yet another dangerous adventure, which sweeps the reader away into Anita's weird and wonderful world.
I have trouble saying this book was excellent, because I am not a Richard fan, and though I have tried really hard to like him, I just can't do it. So, because Anita betrayed Jean-Claude, her super sexy vampire lover, with Richard, who could not be more wrong for her, the entire book was tainted for me as a result. With that said, however, it is still a thrilling and fun-filled read that I did enjoy, just not as much as all the others.
In this 8th instalment of the series, Anita receives a call informing her that her ex-fiancé, Richard Zeeman, junior high science teacher and alpha werewolf, has been arrested for rape in Tennessee. Anita drops everything and goes to help Richard, despite the fact the local Master Vampire has forbidden her to enter his territory.
When Anita arrives, she starts trying to solve the mystery of who would want to frame Richard for rape and why. It becomes immediately obvious that the local police are corrupt, and are trying to run them out of town. But that's not all Anita has on her plate. Colin, the Master Vampire, is giving Anita and her entourage serious problems, threatening them and harming their people. Anita also has to observe the appropriate werewolf politics as she deals with the local werewolf pack. Add in several of Richard's angry ex-girlfriends and a demon and you have one heck of a story!
One thing I really enjoyed in this book was getting to know some of the secondary characters better. We get to see a lot of Anita's wereleopards, Nathaniel, Cherry, and Zane, Jason and Jamil the werewolves, and two of Jean-Claude's vampires, Asher and Damian. Though I liked the inclusion of these seven people as integral characters in the story, I couldn't help but miss Jean-Claude.
"Blue Moon" is most definitely worth reading despite the problems I had with it, which are more due to my personal opinion than actual flaws in the story. Hamilton has once again created a fast-paced and exhilarating tale that will completely absorb readers. When you need to escape from your everyday troubles, Anita's wild world of vampires, werewolves and zombies is the perfect solution. So don't miss out on the fun, buy this book (and all the others) ASAP, I guarantee you won't regret it!
Rating:
Summary: You find a series like Anita Blake once in a blue moon...
Review: And this newest edition is as page-turning as the others. Anita's werewolf boyfriend is in jail on a charge that is obviously false. Anita's on her way to rescue him...even if it means rescuing him from himself. Add to the plot one very annoyed master vampire, a bunch of were-people, a police force obviously up to something not quite legal and just for good measure throw in some ghostly beings and it's another fast-paced Anita Blake story!
Rating:
Summary: THE BEST ONE YET!!!
Review: THIS IS THE ONE, READERS!!! THIS IS THE ONE WHERE ANITA AND RICHARD GET IT ON. IT IS ABOUT TIME!!!! THIS SERIES REMINDS ME OR THE X-FLIES...WHICH MULDER KISS SCULLY.
NEW READERS, I SUGGEST YOU READ THE GUILTY PLEASURES FIRST AND THEN YOU WILL GET HOOKED ON THIS SERIES. YOU WILL PROBABLY ORDER 2 AND 3 AT ONE TIME. KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK, MS. HAMILTON
Rating:
Summary: Wholly disapointing.
Review: I really like the Anita Blake series in the beginning. I thought Jean-Claude was too fun for words, and couldn't wait to see what developed between him and Anita. I thought that Richard the putz was (FINALLY!) dispelled.
Man, did I not like where this book took things.
All I can hope is that Richard dies soon, and Anita realizes her idiocy, because otherwise, I'm going to call this series a bust.
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