| Title | : | Burnt Offerings (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #7) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0515134473 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780515134476 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Mass Market Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 392 |
| Publication | : | First published May 1, 1998 |
That's what I've always said. That's what I've always believed. But now I'm the one sharing a bed with the Master Vampire of the City. Me, Anita Blake. The woman the vampires call the Executioner. From part of the solution, I've become part of the problem. So it hits close to home when an arsonist begins to target vampire-owned businesses all over town -- an arsonist who seems to want to destroy more than just property. It's the monsters who are in danger now. And it's up the the Executioner to save them from the inferno...
Burnt Offerings (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #7) Reviews
-
Hmmm, I noticed most of the reviews here don’t go into any sort of plot here. I couldn’t figure it out at first but now that I’m almost finished with this reread I get it. There isn’t one.
Well, that’s not quite true. There were threads of plot, the vampire council has come to town to rape and pillage the beasties, but really this book is all about Anita gaining power, dealing with her two lover boys and gaining new puppy doggies and kitties who follow her every command. It’s bloody, it’s sexual but mostly in a vile, violent way and it’s so not my favorite of the series. I think I need a break from these books now. I found myself getting grouchy and bored with the oh-so-perfect and all-powerful Anita. I want tomboy Anita The Vampire Executioner back and as much as I complained about the Nike swish descriptions I'd give anything to have them back. If I have to hear another description of a whored up Anita outfit I'm going to gag. -
These books are getting grittier. The Vampire Council comes to town and they are some sadistic motherf*ckers! Torture, rape, and murder are their nice qualities, and Jean Claude and Anita have giant bulls-eyes on their backs. The good news is that Anita keeps getting more and more bloodthirsty herself.
Some days I thought I was becoming a sociopath. Some days I thought I was already there.
sociopaths have the best senses of humor...
In this book we get to meet some awesome new characters: Nathaniel the leopard, and Asher the vampire. I'm excited that it looks like they will be around for a while. But, we also get a lot of Richard. Richard really should have the nickname Dick because it fits him so well. He was always a whiny baby, and now he's a whiny baby who is bitter and angry. It doesn't help improve his sparkling personality.
Calling for the party of one... pity party of one....Richard? Your table is ready at the Get-Over-It Cafe.
The only thing that annoys me more than Richard's jealous baby tantrums is the fact that Anita still finds him so "irresistible". yeah, bitter assholes are so sexy!
On the other end of the spectrum is Jean Claude who is sweet, smart, and totally mature and confident. He even encourages Anita to try and make peace with Richard. He may dress-up everyone around him like gay pirate romance novel covers, but he also showers Anita with gifts and romantic notes. I can handle that! I'll dress like a dominatrix pirate for him any day.
okay, Jean Claude, what do YOU want me to wear? -
Seriously, Laurell K. Hamilton used to write good vampire-slayer novels. Now she writes erotica. Don't get me wrong, I like erotica as much as the next guy (or gal), but when I want to read a vampire slayer novel, I want to read a vampire slayer novel!!! Damn you, Anita Blake.
-
"Why does everything with you have to be so [darned] serious?"
A fire chief approaches Anita Blake to let her know about vampires going up in flames. She notes that then heads off on a date with boyfriend and Undead Master of the City, Jean-Claude. But Anita never can have a date without a million things going off at once. Richard is off his rocker and creating a vacuum in his pack, one that Anita as his lucoi must fix. Jean-Claude is being pressured to join the Council--or face being destroyed. People are getting raped right and left. Can Anita save the day once again?
This is probably one of my more favorite of the Anita Blake books. That said, pretty much every single problem I've had with the previous books in the series remains.
One of the things I liked about this book was the interesting story elements. The combustible vampires. The appearance of the Council. Anita having to keep her pack together. The new, highly fascinating character, Asher. Even the tendrils of reconciling between Anita and Richard (whom I think have amazing chemistry and actually FEEL like lovers, not just people in lust) were fascinating. There are some really great ideas in this book, ones that most definitely kept my interest.
Which is why it is so frustrating when LKH gets in the way of her story with the usual suspects:
1) Anita Blake. What a misogynistic, hypocritical b!tchy woman! I swear to God, there is no pleasing her! If people ignore her, she is upset at how she isn't the center of attention. But when Tammy tries to befriend Anita, Anita brushes Tammy off as a shallow person only interested in the zombie raising aspect of Anita's life.
As for Anita's rampant misogyny, I'll let her speak for herself:"Women are just not designed to look tough."
"No, I was not in tune with my feminine side."
"It made me feel girlish in the worse way."
And then some random character makes the absolute stupidest remark I've ever heard:"'What a man you would have made!' I'd spent enough time around macho guys to know it was a compliment, a sincerely meant one. They never understood the implied insult."
I work in a male-dominated field. Before that, most of my classmates in college were men. NEVER have I heard ANYTHING so sexist.
The other thing I can't stand about Anita is her raging hypocrisy. She tries continually to sell us that she is "in love" with Jean-Claude, but then she makes statements like this:"I had to trust him. Trust him not to hurt me. Trust him not to do something awful or embarrassing. I realized that I didn't trust him. That no matter how much I loved his body, I knew he was other. I knew that what he thought of as okay, was not necessarily okay at all."
What does Anita love about Jean-Claude other than his body or his seduction techniques? Does she love how he makes breakfast? How he calls her up at work to check on how she is? How he makes coffee in the morning? Does she like spending time with him mountain climbing or watching musicals (two things she enjoys doing with Richard)? The only things Anita appears to like about Jean-Claude are A) his incredibly, breath-taking body and B) the sex. Last I checked, both those things were lust. But when Ronnie attempts to call Anita out on her dating Jean-Claude, Anita becomes snippy.
What's even worse is that when either Ronnie and Louis or Larry and Tammy act like a couple, Anita immediately jumps to the conclusion that they are in lust with each other and probably not in love. Honestly, I see more examples of love in Ronnie and Louis' relationship than I ever had in Anita and Jean-Claude's.
2) Clothes, clothes and more clothes! LKH can't go a few pages without detailing everything that a person is wearing--or not. Which means Anita talking about the evening gown she's wearing, and, of course, griping about not wearing her black Nikes, which hide all the blood she steps in.
And because LKH's entire male cast pretty much goes commando in the entire series:"The pants were black linen, clinging smooth and perfect to his body, so form-fitting that I knew there was nothing under the pants but him."
LKH makes it even worse by having Anita stop in the middle of a scene where people are seriously injured to detail all the flowers she planted in her yard. Yes, people, flowers.
3) Too much in too little time. LKH has no sense of pacing. Instead of giving her characters breaks or time to process events (and her audience as well), she pretty much has them facing one crisis after another. Which is why for most of this book, Anita is wearing some stupid dress that would flash her @$$ if she attempted to reach her gun hidden in a belly band (if she felt the need to bring a gun, why make it so unreachable?) and ridiculous 3" heels (that she b!tches about endlessly--honestly, Anita, if you hate them so much, wear something else!). Anita goes from the office to a date, to several posturing events with vampires, to rescuing some of her weres, to a shootout at her house, to Dolph calling her to a crime scene--it's TOO BUSY. It's like eating an entire package of Double-Stuf Oreos in one sitting: SICK and BLOATED!
4) Constant arguing. As usual, most of the "investigating" occurs in long dialogue sessions. And during these sessions, people of course have to argue with Anita for half a lifetime. It's so bad, that when someone DOESN'T put up a fight with Anita, she has to mention it:"Truthfully, it was a damn relief not to have to argue with anyone. No debate--what a relief!"
You gotta wonder, doesn't Anita ever perhaps notice how SHE'S the one involved with all these super-long, drawn-out, excessive talky scenes?
5) Rape, rape and more rape. My God Almighty, is there rape in this book. I swear, everyone gets raped or sexually assaulted. Nathaniel, Sylvie, Jason, even Anita (though Jean-Claude "helpfully" tells her to turn it into "enjoyment" to make it "more tolerable"--instead of, I don't know, KILLING THE GUY WHO IS SEXUALLY ASSAULTING HIS F@#$ING GIRLFRIEND!!). It's just...disturbing. Rape is a serious subject; it shouldn't be tossed around helter-skelter and not treated appropriately (no one really needs any therapy).
6) Good Old Fashioned Misogyny. There is no other woman in this book whose name isn't "Anita Blake" that A) can rescue herself, B) isn't a victim, C) isn't an evil biotch, or D)isn't hated by Anita. Ronnie resolves into a puddle of tears after shooting a guy (Anita also does not respect her opinion); Sylvie is raped and must have Anita enact revenge on her killer (although Sylvie is a shapeshifter). Vicky is a horrible woman who tried to kill a vampire and lied about sexual assault. Liv participated in Sylvie's rape. Yvette abuses Jason and makes him rot while taking Pleasure from him. Anita views Tammy as a slut who sleeps with Larry to learn more about Necromancy and questions Tammy's shooting abilities, even though Tammy is a cop. The female fire officer is killed. Other than Anita herself, there are no strong, capable women in this series that aren't psycho or evil and who are at least respected by Anita. It's sick. It's disturbing.
7) Sex. Already, I can see how sex is beginning to be a more dominant force in the book. I have no problem with it cropping up in Anita's romantic life. My problem with it is this: LKH is starting to use it to solve problems. To heal people. To feed vampires. Anita basically gives Nathaniel a lap-dance, but she is in a dating relationship with Jean-Claude that seems pretty steady. She does something similar with Asher when he demands to be fed (after a billion years of arguing about it, of course). In the previous books, Anita would have rolled up a sleep and slit her palm, and the vampire would have fed off her blood. Slowly, that is going away. And it seems a bit odd, since it hasn't been established in the past.
If you are a fan, you'll probably enjoy this one just as much as the others, maybe a bit less because of the Jean-Claude vs Richard or because of the increasing sex. If you are brand new and wonder if this is indicative of the previous ones: yes and no. Yes, Anita pretty much acts like this in the previous books; no, the previous books had less sex.
My personal opinion: there are probably better vampire hunter books out there, with better action, better plots, better romantic interests, and better heroines. You could do worse, of course, but there is better. I'll be hanging on to the ride, because there are bits I'd like to see how they are addressed in later books. -
I have to admit, Hamilton manages to introduce a new, interesting and intriguing supernatural creature in each book.
Thus it's a shame her main character is so utterly predictable. I now skim through any paragraphs which contain descriptions of Anita's scars, guns, clothes, and hair.
Would it be interesting to extract all these passages from the Anita Blake series and see how much copy-pasting Hamilton has done? Naw.
(Is anyone else sick of reading 'naw'? Naw!) -
First read: April 2006
Re-read: May-June 2017
The plot: Anita is asked to help out on a Firebug case while also figuring out how to balance her responsibilities to Richard's pack and her private life as the girlfriend of Jean-Claude now that the European vampire council have come to town.
What I liked:
- The mythos behind the Firebugs. The idea of these supernatural humans who control fire was fascinating and I liked the casual way in which Anita imparts information about them to the reader. The idea that the majority of them die through spontaneous combustion as they get older and lose control is so clever and sounds realistic for that type of power.
- Anita's protective instinct towards Nathaniel and the other wereleopards and werewolves.
- The details concerning the vampire council in Europe and the political manoeuvrings were very interesting, particularly the inclusion of the Traveller and his abilities.
- The underground/underwater scene at the Church of Eternal Life was especially creepy and horrifying.
- Anita's powers and influence in the supernatural world are starting to grow and make her a force to be reckoned with.
- The inclusion of Dolph and the growing distance between him and Anita is sad but realistic.
- Raina's continued influence on the pack.
What I didn't like:
- Richard. He's moody, angry, blames everyone else for his issues but especially Anita, and worse he strikes one of the female members of his pack across the face hard enough to leave a bruise because she was reluctant to go back and confront a group who until recently had held her captive. I don't understand why Anita has this blind spot where he's concerned; she seems to still believe he's a good guy and he really, truly, isn't. He's a manipulative, abusive, waste of space.
Rating: 5/5 stars -
Yvette pulled Jason in against her legs, cradling his face against her thigh. “Watch, Jason, watch and see what I do to bad little boys”... His eyes collapsed inward, crumbling with rot...
3rd Listen: “I left her alive and screaming threats. Edward would have been so disappointed.”
2nd Listen: “Je rêve de toi.” This was an action packed story in every way. All it needed for another star was Edward.
The Vampire Council has come to town: screams rend throats, blood flies, and flesh peels. These vampires give Pinhead a run for his money all while maintaining the height of civility.
I enjoyed the expanding cast of characters and Anita’s adoption, ok takeover, of the Pack/Pard.
This is the book where Richard becomes the pain in ass he is for the rest of the series. It’s an entirely different kind of horror knowing you are eternally bound to a Richard.
Some of my casting choices:
-
Where is all the sex reviewers keep talking about. There are some sexually charged scenes but everything is really tame thus far. This is however my favorite so far. I absolutely loved the fact that Jean-Claude was in almost every scene. I think that he is sometimes portrayed as too weak but I still love me some JC!
I am glad that Anita realized it wasn't that Richard is a monster but that she was afraid of wanting to join the pack feasting on Marcus. Now, she just needs to explain that to Richard. I still prefer Jean-Claude to Richard though. If Richard would just claim his beast I would like him much more.
I am not sure what I think about Nathaniel yet. I know he is a big character but he seems more like a pet than a lover for Anita. I am not sure how I am going to feel about that storyline. I do think I will like Asher though. Jean-Claude needs a friend and it doesn't bother me that Asher might be in love with Jean-Claude.
There are many different relationships in these books. It can get overwhelming but they also keep me very interested. -
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2.5/5
Bu kitap serideki rahatsızlığımı en üst düzeye çıkartıp seriye ara vermeme neden olan ögeler barındırıyordu. Ne mi mesela? Mesela Anita’nın süper güç gibi bir şeye dönüşmesi ve vampir konseyini bile dize getirmesi. Şimdi bu vatandaş ilk kitaplarda sadece bir animatördü, sonra nekromensır olduğunu öğrendik (buraya kadar bir sorun yok), sonlara doğru kurt sürüsünün lupa’sı oldu, yani alfadan sonra kararlardaki en etkili işi, sonra da leoparlarrın garip isimli bir şeyi oldu; hatırlayamadım adını ama leoparlar ona bağlandı diyebilirim. Anita onlara gidin kendinizi camdan atın derse atarlar hani o derece. Ayrıca üç tane vampir izi de var, bir nevi JC’nin “özgür iradeli” insan hizmetkarı ve de sevgilisi ve bu sayedehızlı iyileşiyor, etki altına alınamıyor felan… Kız resmen dişi terminatör olmak üzere, çünkü öldürmek de onu etkilemiyor.
Peki bu kitapta ne yaptı spesifik olarak onu anlatayım. Vampir konseyi şehre gelip JC’nin bir şeyler karıştırmadığından emin olmak istedi. Ama bu sırada da şehirdeki diğer vampirlerin güçlerini emdiklerinden gün içinde uyanan vampirler bir anda arttı. Bir de pirokinetik bir vampir olasılığı ile ilgilendi. Bu vampiri kitabın sonlarında öğreniyoruz tabi ve şahsım adına söylemek gerekirse bu vampiri sevdim de ben. Bu kitapta da yine göründüğü gibi olmayıp gizliden gizliye planlar yapan karakterler var. Ayrıca konseyin de arızalı üyeleri var, kim o? Tabi ki de Hayvanların Efendisi. Bu vampirin özel zevki çevresindekilere eziyet etmek, bir de tecavüze düşkün olan oğlu var ki beni de, Anita’yı da çileden çıkarıyor. Anita ona cezasını elbette ki veriyor ama nasıl, işte burası beni gerdi. Hayvanların Efendisi adlı bu güçlü vampiri kontrol ederek. Söylemeyi unuttum, kurt sürüsünün geçen kitapta öldürülen sadist dişisi Raina’nın bir şekilde içinde yaşadığını da fark ediyor ve onun güçlerini de kullanabiliyor. Eh yuh yani değil mi şimdi? Bu küçük dipnottan sonra devam ediyorum: İşte bu Raina’daki güçle deyim yerindeyse Hayvanların Efendisi’nin kalbini parmakları arasında tutuyor ve vampir ondan o kadar korkuyor ki oğlunu hemen Anita’ya verip toparlanıp kaçıyor.
Sanki biraz da Anita’nın yenilmesini ister gibiyim, ya da en azından birkaç kitap boyunca zorlansın. -
I'm too generous with stars.
She just has too much going on. It's like one moment Anita is talking to some firedude and suddenly all kind of shit hits the fan. LKH CRAMS tons of stuff into her books. It's not totally a good thing because there's too much going on and the story could be tighter. Things like clothing descriptions can be reduced. Better yet, no clothing descriptions. No one cares if their pants are too tight or if Anita doesn't want to flash her underwear. And why is she running around in high heel shoes if she hates them so much? If I walk in high heel shoes it would be stumble stagger fall slip trip crash AUGH!!!!! Yet Anita's all like Rambo in heels chasing people with her Uzi all ready to shoot everyone.
Also, why are these weres so wussy? I'm sorry, but if you can bench press cars, you have no business allowing an almost ordinary human to boss you around. It's as bad as in the Merry series were all of these men have special hands of power and allow that bitch Andais to dominate them and tell them what they can and can't do with their penises.
Also, do you really need so many scenes with out of town vampires tormenting people and raping them? Why do her books have to have so much dang rape in them? Even if you're at the bottom of the pack, you should not put up with that crap. And why does Ronnie puke all over the place when she is a Private Eye and has shot people? Do not weaken strong characters to make Anita look badass.
Why do I keep reading these books? They are entertaining until you get after Either Obsidian Butterfly or Cerulean Sins. Once you get to those books, stop. Don't read any more for your own sanity.
I do like the penguins. It's cute how they were all on the desks and Anita thought, should I take them all? Ignore them? That was adorable. But at some point, you have to jump off of this train of insanity and I can't really find blue Moon anyway. -
Loving this one! It had a lot of Jean-Claude, who i LOVE, and im pretty sure that's why i gave this one four stars.. Or perhaps because a lot happen, nothing was boring, and i actually love the new characters we got to meet! Like Asher, and The Traveler! i do hope we get to see more of those two :)! Anita keeps being hardcore, independent, snarky and a kickass heroine, though if she doesn't really let Jean-Claude all the way in, -not just trough the marks, but in to her heart,- im seriously gonna strangle her... Because, im pretty sure you get that im #TeamJean-Claude! I took me a while to get really started on this book, probably cause i'd read 6 Anita Blake books in 6 days, which probably made it to... much? So i took a break from Anita, and thank god i did, cause then the book because so much more good and exiting :)! Can't wait to read the next book.
Rate: 4 stars. -
4.5
I really like this series.
Normally I'd get bored by now but these books are just that good. Everything is so well written that I can't put them down. -
Con la llegada del Consejo Vampiro a la ciudad, Anita y Jean-Claude se ven forzados a negociar con sus vidas y las de su gente. Anita apenas aceptando que tiene que es ahora tambien la lider de los Hombres-Leopardo, ademas de la "lupa" de los hombres lobo, no solo su deber es protegerlos sino tambien dirigirlos y enfrentarse de la "mejor manera" a los vampiros representantes del consejo.
Pero tambien esta su relacion con Richard y Jean-Claude, Richard esta perdiendo el control de su lobo por su auto-odio y el rencor que siente por Anita, mientras Jean-Claude intenta aceptar que su mejor amigo, Asher, quiere verlo destruido mentalmente.
Mientras tanto deberan intentar averiguar quien esta incendiando los edificios, rescatar a un grupo que quedo atrapado dentro de un edificio y evitar que la asesinen en el proceso.
Este es el primero de los libros que me dejo un sabor agri-dulce, primero el autor esta intentando hacer a la prota invencible, pero a costa de sus amistades con los "seres humanos". Segundo, muchos otros personajes quedaron guindando sin saber que paso despues (Ronnie, Harry, Arnold,Willie, etc). Tercero, traer de vuelta el "espiritu" de Raina, de verdad? todavia con ese personaje?. Cuarto, que paso con Reanimators INC?. Y asi, varias cosas que quedaron en el aire y que el autor fue dejando de lado por la trama principal.
Entiendo que el autor queria que entendieramos como trabajaba el Consejo Vampiro, y lo cruel que pueden ser sus integrantes, ademas que aceptaramos que la mas poderosa de todo el grupo es ella y que estaba aprendiendo a usar sus poderes, pero eso solo le quito profundidad a la historia en general, que es lo que mas me gusta de esta saga.
Pero bueno, sigue siendo interesante, sigo queriendo saber las aventuras de Anita, y ahora estoy casi segura que esta serie de libros va a ser de las infinitas, pero mientras me siga interesando la historia continuare leyendo los libros. -
This was an interesting one but at the same time had some serious flaws for me.
The relationship story was back in force *groans* but at least we saw some interesting shapeshifter dynamics from Anita's leftover role of Lupa and her new role for the wereleopards.
Richard is still annoying, the squeaky clean upstanding citizen with a deep dark lust filled side, its like some bad porn movie plot almost. They could have been made into an interesting character but instead they are the stereotypical scorned not-quite-lover with lots of dark pouty looks thrown in for good (or bad) measure.
The Council members had some interesting abilities but these were in no way really explored or explained, it was just 'here is the big bad, be scared' and the seemingly constant threat (and reality) of rape and violence just seemed a really poor way to show menace when it could have been so nuanced.
I liked Warwicks character and I hope that gets explored a bit more later on, Yvette was just a rehash of the rotting girls, Padma (not queen Amidala) and his son were too much 'I WILL CONTROL YOU' and Asher was partly interesting and at least his change of heart on Anita and Jean Claude seemed reasonable. Traveller was just odd, you got a bit of a sense of him but again it just seemed like she needed to reach for a bigger power since Anita et al have gained power themselves.
As an episode it was ok but not great, I've heard too much that this series goes downhill in later books I just hope i'm not seeing it already. -
Well the slow downhill slide continues in this series. the first 5 books were good supernatural/Urban Fantasy action stories with some romantic overtones. Nice world setting and some new ideas on the the usual supernatural tropes. Good reads with action to carry the story from beginning to end. after book 5 the Supernatural romance begins to dominate the plot and is slowly morphing into Supernatural erotica. Only a couple of action sequences in this book to carry the plot to the end, the rest is devoted to long passages of the main character's conflicted erotic/romantic feelings. I know that as of book 10 they totally shift to this new format overall. I understand the writer was just giving the majority of the readers what they obviously wanted, series sales back that theory, but I sad to see the loss of a series that could of rivaled Jim Butcher's Dresden Files for a Urban Fantasy action read. Recommended for now
-
Except for Yvette and her constant "I'm going to rot on you" threats, this was as enjoyable as the rest. You can certainly sense that this series is taking a turn for sex fest town.
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Book 7, still hooked.
Possibly best yet in series (I say that after every book). Although coincidentally also most graphically violent; the sexual violence scenes were vile and maybe unnecessary. Still managed to captivate as Anita an co. become more powerful and relationships between characters develop. -
Although some readers didn't like this book as much as the earlier ones (due to the increased sexual violence) I found I liked it quite a lot (not the violence, the story around it). There is an increased need to suspend my disbelief, though, and that is not a good sign. I was scared in that wet, dangerous basement . . . and I wish Hamilton would spare a little more backstory for some of the police/fireman characters. I'd like to know more about Dolph, and Wren, the fireman new to this book, seems like he is interesting too. I'd like to see Larry (and Officer Tammy, for that matter) a bit more, too.
The council members who have, for lack of a better term, invaded St. Louis are a scary, creepy bunch. I liked the Traveler . . . well, like might not be the right word, but y'all know what I mean, right? I found the Master of Beasts, Padma, more than creepy . . . and his interactions with his son did nothing to endear him. Pretty sure he will return at some future point to seek revenge from Jean-Claude, Anita and Richard.
The emotional links among the triumverate have only gotten stronger, and Anita is coming to appreciate her increased strength and healing abilities. She is also quite a lot more comfy with the monsters than say, Dolph would like. Even should Richard succeed in finding a new lupa, the pack already loves Anita, and transitioning to another lupa will not be easy. Then there are the leopards . . . Nimir-ra, leopard queen, they call her. -
Sigh....A big disappointment. I returned this to the library after only 150 pages. This is book 7 in the Anita Blake series and I loved books 1-3, liked books 4-6 and then this one just blew.
The objections: No real plot to speak of, an officially loathsome unlikeable Anita who is becoming increasingly worshipped by the other characters who have become ridiculous, and uninteresting. Scenarios only seem to be set-up for their sex appeal - At one point Anita's erstwhile werewolf ex-boyfriend is installing some equipment in the house. Said installation obviously requires he take his shirt off (though not pull back his sexy,wavy golden brown locks which fall alluringly in his eyes) and parade around the house in only his jeans and a layer of drywall. It makes no sense and screams porn flick. After this the novel devolves into a series of increasingly personal conversations and actions which take place in front of an audience of anywhere from 3-20 people.
I was pretty crushed that the series that started off great became this dull, uncreative and annoying. I don't recommend straying past book 6 in this series though who knows, maybe it improves again? -
[Feb 2020] For some reason I picked this one up and reread it a couple of months ago. The ending section of this book is magnificent and is what keeps this book as a 4 star, the rest I can take or leave.
[Aug 2019] Definitely enjoyed this Reread, I’m not urging to continue reading it right now but I will pick up the next at some point soon.
[2016]
I loved seeing the change begin in Anita. Excited to continue. -
4.4 stars, strongest Anita Blake since The Laughing Corpse.
I realize I'm a ways behind here -- I've found that if I read these without a few months break between books, I get vampire-overdose. Anyway, the previous 3 or 4, while good, didn't blow me away.
So I'm pleased to report that Anita Blake is back to full voltage, with more complex plot and characters and a (somewhat) lower body-count. The Grand Guignol's still here, as is Hamilton's ability to make a fundamentally silly premise into a great story.
In this outing, the Vampire Council's come to town from Europe, on suspicion that Jean-Claude has gotten uppity after killing councilor Earthmover (aka "Mr. Oliver" in the last book) -- not realizing that J-C's human servant (& girlfriend) Anita is the one who pulled the trigger. Moving at the usual breakneck pace, Anita becomes both acting-alpha werewolf and leoparde-lionee' for the St. Louis Wereleopards. Thankfully, Rafael narrowly keeps his throne as King Wererat -- for a while it looked like Anita would win the Triple Crown. I know this sounds silly -- and it is -- but the mixture of silly with serious -- giggles with gore -- is one of Hamilton's signature -- and best -- story-devices.
Add the well-researched police (and, this time, firefighter) procedural, and the snappy tough-girl dialog: Dolph, her boss on the Regional Preternatural Investigation Team, is admonishing Our Heroine:
"Try not to kill anyone this month, Anita. Even in clear self-defense..."
"I haven't killed anyone in over six weeks -- hell, nearly seven. I'm cutting down."
I suppose by writing up Anita Blake #7 I'm preaching to the choir -- if you're new to the series, this *isn't* the place to start (go all the way back to #1, Guilty Pleasures; all are in print) -- but whathehell, I write these things mostly for my own amusement. Good thing, too -- be tough to make a living (or even much spare change) writing book reviews. Anyway, I'll soon be caught up to Hamilton's newest, and be reduced to impatiently waiting for the next new Anita, just like all the rest of you guys....
Also see Christina Schulman,
http://www.epiphyte.net/SF/burnt-offe...
"This is the sort of book I stay up all night reading, even though I won't respect it in the morning."
[review written 1999, first posted to rasfw. Lightly revised, 2019] -
Bu seride artık Jean Claude dışında hiçbir şey dikkatimi çekmiyor yorum yazmak için kitabı elime aldığımda bunu anladım. Normalde bu ay sekizinci kitabı okuyup bir süre ara verecektim ama onu bile elime alasım yok. Çok güzel başladı ama yedinci kitaba kadar zor dayanabildim. Bir önceki kitapta şikayet ettiğim binbir türlü olay Yanmış Kurban da daha beter hale geldi. Bunlardan birisi de Anıta karakterinin mükemmelleştirilmesi. Halk kahramanı, olağanüstü canavarların süper kadını haline getirildi kadın.Bir yerden sonra da ne gerek vardı canım buna diye söyleniveriyor okuyucu haliyle. Bir de şu gereksiz Anıta erkekleri sorunu var. Kadına herkes aşık herkes hayran adeta bir kusursuz erkek çekicisi. Tamam bunu da kabul ettik bir yerde ama herkesle aynı anda nasıl flörtleşiyor bunu anlamıyorum.Sinir olmaktan başka hiçbir şey hissetmiyorum artık seriye karşı. Bütün heyecanımı ,aldigim zevki Anita'nın gereksiz dramaları ile mahvetti.
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I loved this book.
We learn more about how the three are connected and you can genuinely see how much Anita loves both Richard and Jean-Claude. I wish she would let one of them in wholly though I don’t know if she even knows how. She calls them monsters but she isn’t completely human either so she doesn’t really have room to talk.
The traveler was an interesting character I would like to see more of him. I feel like he was a him.
Thank god for not a lot of fire, I have a huge phobia of it and it was nice that there wasn’t a lot in this book.
The scene with the vamps in the basement that was pretty intense I liked how this book it felt like all action all the time.
Liked the narration as I have with the ones before. -
Right at the beginning of this book a person with pyrokinetic abilities is described as being loose in the city. Sounds good and fits the title of the book and the description. But, then nothing happens on this theme for over 300 pages. This is a case of literary bait and switch.
Almost the whole book is about petty squabbling between members of the Vampire Council, the local vampires and various factions of shape shifting were beasts. Hamilton does a good job of forging an emotional connection to the characters but uses various methods of torture and violence to achieve that.
People have told me the first half a dozen books of this series are the best. Based on this one (#7) I believe they are right and I may drop the series at this point. -
honestly, i’m surprised i’m not bored yet
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Vampire Hunter? Vampire humper more like...and feel free to replace the vampire with whatever creature takes your fancy as, since breaking her vow of chastity in the last book, it seems that now everyone is invited as Anita stops using her guns to solve every situation and relies on groping instead. It's a wonder what it seems a good snog can do!
Anita's powers also continue to inexplicably grow - now she's not only 'The Executioner', liaison to the Regional Preternatural Investigation squad, and necromancer, but also Jean-Claude's human servant (and part of a power triumvirate with he and Richard), lupa to Richard's werewolf pack and leopard lionne/munin/Nimir-Ra (and the kitchen sink) to the wereleopards and easily more powerful that anybody that she comes across. In short, a Mary Sue, and hopefully something shall come along shortly to limit her powers otherwise it's going to become incredibly dull reading, no matter how many sex scenes Hamilton throws in. And while we're on that subject, I love a good sex scene as much (if not more so!) as the next person, but there has to be a reason for including it before it becomes nothing other than titillation for titillation's sake. If I'm not invested in the characters or their stories, they could hump the world without my pulse quickening in the slightest.
So, whilst I'm still enjoying reading these the pleasure is tinged with annoyance - see also the douche-ing up of Richard to make Anita's preferences more palatable, the over-reliance on rape or the threat of rape and one last niggle - how in hell is Anita keeping her job at Animators Inc? I can't remember the last time she did any work for them and if I were Bert I'd have told her to sling her hook by now. -
I really hate the council. The only half decent one is the Traveller and even he is a piece of work.
I am always surprised that the vampires don't want to be legal. I guess I can understand them but honestly it seems stupid. I'm glad that Yvette's master's plan didn't work out and that she died. She was a sick weirdo.
I felt bad for poor Warrick. He was tortured for years and was only finally free when he died. I was sad that he had to burn to death but happy he took Yvette with him.
Fernando was even worse then Yvette. I can't believe her raped Sylvie! I'm glad that Anita gave both him and Liv to Sylvie at the end so that she could feel avenged. Anita is really a good Lupa and exactly what the pack needs.
I was glad that Anita was able to back down Asher. I can't remember if he stays or not but I'm glad that she didn't have to feed him. He can be a real bastard.
Edit: July 2020
I have not changed my mind about the council. They are like the worst of the worst politicians. I really hate their attitude of we are in the world but not of it.
Yvette dying was a wonderful highlight. Poor Warrick died too but I imagine him in some happy place now that he is rid of Yvette.
His powers were interesting. A rotting vampire who's animal to call was a butterfly and who was a pyronetic. O.o
In a small way I find Fernando funny is a sick and twisted part of me. He is so stupid it's almost funny. Like I can't understand how he lived this long. I'm so glad he is dead. I almost feel bad that Liv is dead. Almost. I'm happy Sylvie got her revenge and her 'souvenirs'.
I'm glad to see the wereleopards introduced here. My favorite part.
