Rating: 
Summary: Not the best of vampire books
Review: This book is part of the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series. Inside, there are zombies, vampires, were-rats, werewolves, and ghouls. The setting is in the future where society is trying to come to grips with the legal status of supernatural beings.Anita Blake is actually an animator (raises people from the grave for a price), but due to circumstances, has created a reputation as a vampire killer. She is also working with the local police department's special squad that investigates crimes, like murder, to supernatural beings. Given this, you would think that the vampires would hate her. Actually, some of them recruit her to solve the mystery. Unfortunately, Anita, and the reader, never gets a clear explanation of why she has been chosen. There are some clues, but for the most part, the rationale is unknown. Nevertheless, her search for the killer takes her to a vampire "strip club," the Circus of the Damned, and a freak party (where humans go to be "teased" and bitten by vampires). She comes across a vast array of characters that makes it difficult for the reader to keep track of. I recommend not putting the book down, or you will be lost when you pick it back up. The book is told from her perspective. The tone is that of a sassy detective who is seen a lot and won't take crud from anyone. To be honest, it reads like a vampire, Harlequin Romance. All the cover needs is a vampire with his shirt torn, exposing his pale, undead (yet firm) muscles. I would not recommend this to someone wanting something "new." The book feels trite.
Rating: 
Summary: GUILTY PLEASURES
Review: HAVE L.K.HAMILTON'S COMPLETE SERIES ON "ANITA BLAKE VAMPIRE HUNTER' HER BOOKS WERE VERY BLOODY READS. BUT I STUCK WITH THE
SERIES, FOR I HAVE TO KNOW WHAT ANITA IS DOING NOW. I WILL BE ONE OF THE FIRST PERSONS TO BUY CERULEAN SINS. JEAN CLAUDE, RICHARD ARE THE FAVORITES IN ALL THE SET. THESE ARE KEEPERS.
Rating:
Summary: First in a series -
Review: I came to "Guilty Pleasures" because of a lady in line in front of me in a bookstore - she had read one of the Anita Blake series previously, and was standing in front of me buying all the rest of them at once to complete her collection. I had heard of the books before, always love a good vampire story, and since when reading a series I always like to start with the first one, I gave "Guilty Pleasures" a try. I am glad I did; the book is gritty, dark, horrific, sometimes funny, even touching in a couple of spots. The world of the vampires is quite well-drawn and pretty much believable. When Anita's friend's life is threatened unless she agrees to undertake the case of solving the hideous vampire murders plaguing St. Louis, I was totally into the book and waiting to find out what horrible thing was able to actually rip the heart from a creature as strong as a vampire. . . But as a mystery, I don't find the book works quite as well as I would have liked. The solution was a letdown, to some degree, as far as the mystery end of the plot -- although the ending of the book itself was fast and bloody and pretty satisfying. What I noticed most, though, was the writing style; being a writer, I could tell from the first few chapters that this was Hamilton's first book; that she was feeling her way along in spots, and still getting to know her characters. That made, for me, for awkward reading, and it actually took me longer to get through this book than most that I read. But get through it I did, and overall it was worth it. Anita's life as both Animator and The Executioner make for such interesting potential you want to know more. Jean-Claude is one annoying character, and I wish she had developed the character of Valentine more, but it's still a good book, and I do plan on reading a few more in the series (in order), as stylistically I am sure each one just gets better and better. Ms. Hamilton has created a pretty fascinating vampire/zombie/werecreatures world, one I would love to visit again. WARNING: The "GQ" (Gore Quotient) in this book is high, and from what I understand only gets worse in subsequent sequels, so buyer beware, these are definitely ADULT novels not for the faint of heart - or squeamish of stomach.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Junk Food Read!
Review: I'm just starting the series, and I'll be reviewing them as you would read them: one at a time without knowing what comes later. I don't usually read either horror or mysteries, but this was great fun, like a ride through a really good haunted house. In this first installment, we meet Anita, who is not just starting out in this business. She already has a lot of backstory and history that adds a feeling of depth to the world and character. People come out of the past, rather than all being invented new. I loved the character (nah, looking like her and sharing her violent attitude in life couldn't influence that) and enjoyed being her for the length of the book. Twenty-four seems a little young sometimes for who she has been and how she comes across, but one can say it's the mileage from her chosen activities. While most reviewers concentrate on the continuing characters, I can't understand how they can review without noticing the chance Philip gives for Anita to be thoroughly human, and Edward for her to be properly scared of the thoroughly human. Philip won me over as grudgingly as he does Anita, and I'm looking forward to seeing Edward again. Note these things about Anita's moral stance as you go. When the Pope made animating a mortal sin, she left Catholicism and became Episcopalian rather than give up raising the dead. She herself says that if she examined her stance on killing vampires, she could not do her work, indicating she is already aware her current principles are not well-founded. If there were writing flaws, the narrative drive, action, and character carried me right past them. I'm easily turned off by poor writing, so I have to call this good. It's scary where it needs to be, gruesome where it ought to be, and sometimes tender when you don't expect it. My only tech complaint is that the fight with the were-rat seemed a bit contrived. That, and Nikolaos is a male Greek name. A girl would be Nikolao. Now, for the minor down side. When I read a book, if I really like it I normally reread it immediately to catch all the nuances I didn't the first time and watch the structure of the plot and the characters build up. I read this and put it aside. It's not deep. You can get everything on the first run-through, and frankly there are some things I'm trying mightily *not* to think about because it will break down the believability of the story-world for me. I want to enjoy it while it lasts. So this book is like a bag of potato chips, not a full meal. I'll read the series now, and probably again in a few years, for light entertainment. I don't know if it will hold up for a third re-read. The basis of how vampires would intersect with the legal system if they were "legalized" (they aren't illegal now, I'll have you know), while supposedly the core of the books, is actually very shaky. In most ways, this is a gread lead character moving in a world where supernatural creatures are viewed as newly natural but doing the usual lone wolf adventures while avoiding official help. It's a good adventure, but the speculation does not quite mesh. I leave you with one final question: why is the drool-object male vampire always French? It's getting to be so cliche.
Rating:
Summary: That's what I'm talking about
Review: I loved this book! The story was so exciting! Jean-Claude is one of the sexiest vampire in the supernatural world. Anita as a hard-as-nails vampire slayer is right up there with Buffy! I loved this book as much as I adored Desires Unleashed by D.N. Simmons.
Rating:
Summary: Jeans and sneakers are not inspiring as ceremonial garb!
Review: The Executioner has arrived. In this well-penned tale, we are introduced to a character who has become one of my all time favorites. Vampire hunter and animator, Anita Blake is dead set in her ways and views of the preternatural world as a whole. Vampires aren't things you date, they're things you kill. But little does she know all of that could change with one encounter with the enigmatic Jean-Claude, a vampire who's powerful in his own right. This is gripping tale that you won't want to put down!
Rating:
Summary: The beginning of a beautiful relationship
Review: Laurell K. Hamilton's style of writing is unique...not many writers are able to use the first-person perspective effectively. The telling of the story from Anita Blake's point of view is quite compelling and offers insights to the fiesty necromancer's motivations. LKH's attention to detail, and obvious research, create a believable world and believable characters that readers will respond to with enthusiasm.
The consummate "bad boy", Jean-Claude is a wonderfully created character with depth and a great potential for growth, even if he is a walking corpse. Sexy and intelligent, he's a romantic vampire at heart with a head for modern business. Readers can't help but falling in love with Jean-Claude...and hating themselves for it.
The social structure LKH establishes for her vampires to work within is quite interesting. They are part of modern society but retain their own sense of "culture". Part of that culture is seen in the Master of the City, Nikolaos, a wonderfully sadistic character...all the knowledge and abilites of a powerful, centuries old vampire with the demanding nature of a child driving her psyche.
Guilty Pleasures establishes the beginning of a beautiful relationship between Jean-Claude and Anita Blake. The entire series is worth a read to see this relationship evolve and unfold, but this one is a must for any vampire fiction fan.
Rating:
Summary: Best dark novel you could start reading!
Review: I've read all the Anita Blake books up to The Killing Dance so far and I am enthralled. This is the best series I have ever read and by the time I reached The Laughing Corpse this series officially became my past-time. I'm more of a video game and movie person myself, but these books stole me away. If you're too timid and can't read gore or sex you probably should'nt start reading it because it gets more explicit as the series progresses. Otherwise, I guarantee you'll get caught up in this series. If you're really into Werewolves, Vampires, etc, you'll enjoy it even more.
P.s. Edward rules...
Rating:
Summary: Compelling reading, horrible writing
Review: The problem with this book, and others in the series, is that Hamilton has absolutely no skill at writing dialogue, little skill at developing plausible characters, and the vocabulary of a high school drop out. Her books are rife with cliches and poor diction, and the heroine herself is so utterly unbelieveable AND unlikeable, it's hard to imagine anyone getting through the first paragraph...
That being said, Hamilton redeems herself to some extent with her knack at writing formula in an engaging way, and an imagination that leaves many authors in this genre in the dust. The story lines and characters (other than the deficient and unappealingly hostile heroine) are so compelling, and sexy... and dangerous... and well, you never know what's going to happen next. I think as readers, we're just dying for Anita Blake to give up her mortality. But then, we have to wait for the next book to see if that's actually going to happen, and it never does, so we keep reading.
One book mutates into another, with slight twists and turns along the way. There is no point in reviewing more than one, as they all kind of congeal into an amorphous blob that oddly enough keeps the brain-dead (like me right before bed) intermittently amused.
Would I recommend this book, or others in the series? Certainly, if you just want a little bit fluffy, kinda scintillating, kinda nasty read but don't want to think about it.
Rating:
Summary: A Fabulous First Title
Review: Ah - the book that began it all. And what a beginning it was. I was initally turned off by the cover title, which gave the impression it would be one of those cliched pieces of sexually flooded, vampire goth cheese.
Instead, this book breathed a gale force wind of fresh air into the genre. A plain old fabulous, fun read, with a heroine the likes of which I had never before encountered; ferocious, blunt spoken, humorous, tough as nails - Anita Blake was the new role model for female action leads. Hamilton's writing fairly crackles with energy and a clean, sharp vitality. It is not elegant but she is astoundingly good at characterization and her descriptive turns can be enthralling at delivering the feel of a scene. This book was striking, nearly shockingly fresh in its attitude and portrayal of a woman lead. It had a fast, swift paced storyline, never meandering, never dull and never predictable. The alternate reality it sets up is wildly interesting and chock full of facts on everything from police procedure to vampire habits. The characters were fabulous, and the feel was streamlined and realistic, as if you had just stepped into the ongoing events yourself. Though mostly action, it laid in bits of everything from mystery, to comedy, to romance to horror. A truely original and exciting debut.
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