Released: 1995                

Publisher: Ace Books

Format: Paperback

ISBN: 0-441-00197-1

The Circus of the Damned is the third book of the Anita Blake series, opens with Anita turning down job from the vampire hating group who wants her to reveal to her the resting place of the Master of the City, whom Anita does not even confirm knowing, and then she’s off to investigate a crime for the police. The victim has multiple bite marks, of different sizes, pointing to multiple vampires, which is highly unusual. It also means that Anita has to seek out Jean-Claude’s help, and she head to the Circus of the Damned, a supernatural circus.

There she meets Yasmeen, a master vampire ally of Jean Claude’s, and super hot human Richard Zeeman, but before she can get the information she came for the main ring’s attraction a giant Cobra, reeks havoc eating the snake charmer. Anita, as his vampire servant, is forced to allow Jean-Claude to combine their strengths to defeat the snake.

Richard emerges as a romantic interest, though she doesn’t know much about him, she is instantly attracted to him, which I have to admit I’m loving him much more than Jean-Claude. Edward is back, and issuing threats, or rather promises. He’s after the Master of the City and he’s willing to do anything, even torture Anita to get it. And Anita has to tread a fine line to keep this dangerous man as an ally. And Larry Kirkland, an inexperienced fellow animator is introduced.

As the bodies stack up, some coming back as dangerous animalistic vampires, and more people endangering her life to get to get to Jean-Claude, she discovers that some aren’t who she thought they were, and further becomes what she was avoiding.

The story has some wonderful plot twists, even if some of the villains are a little cartoonish at times. But the action is pretty nonstop, making this a hard one to put down. The further development of headstrong Anita is excellent, and the level of danger she’s in is greatly ramped up as the book progresses making this story one not be missed.

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Released: 1994                

Publisher: Ace Books

Format: Paperback

ASIN: B000NR69Z0

The Laughing Corpse is the second in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton. This time there is a greater focus on her job as an Animator when a wealthy man wants her to raise a very old corpse. She refuses because the only death big enough to raise a corpse of that age is a human death, and there are some things that even Anita won’t do. Again the name of the book refers to an establishment in the book, this time a comedy club.

In the midst of more serious problems, Anita is being fitted for a bridesmaid dress, where her scar are an issue. Which is the least of her worries, she also comes face to face with a voodun priestess whose learned how to put a person’s soul back into their decaying body. When Anita raises the dead they have a shelf life, and they aren’t really back, but Dominga’s are a whole new breed and she’s selling them. And Jean-Claude, the new Master of the City, whose given her the first two vampire marks wants her to start acting like the human servant he wishes she’d be.  

This book builds upon the world of the first and is as interesting as it is inventive. It is much darker than the first, and the body count just may be higher, definitely the zombie body count is. It is a bit gruesome and not for the faint of heart, but is beyond excellent. Anita is more likeable even as her morals are stretched to the extreme, and even at his pushy insistent moments Jean-Claude is charming.

The action is nonstop, and the ending is surprising and satisfying. A very enjoyable read.

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Released: 1993                 272 pages

Publisher: New English Library

Format: Paperback

ISBN: 978-0450595608

The first in Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series is Guilty Pleasures, which is also the name of Jean Claude’s club.

This first story works well building Anita’s world where vampires live side by side with the living. Anita Blake is a strong and sassy character, a small woman in a large man’s world. She’s a professional animator, a necromancer, and a licensed vampire executioner. They call her the Executioner.

The vampires are beautiful and enthralling, but they’re also very deadly, living by their own code, and barely in line with the law. Anita views them as monsters, even if the law protects them to an extent. And these beautiful monsters seek out her help when there own are murdered, and when the Master of the city, Nikolaos, demands your help, you help her even if she looks like a prepubescent child because she’s scary powerful.

Jean-Claude is taunts and teases Anita, even as she spurns his attentions, even though she is attracted to him. As Anita tries to solve the case she gets sucked further and further into league with the monsters, and finds herself at odds with human hitman Edward. Along the way there are not only vampires, but also wererats, ghouls, other animators, and fellow humans.

The plot holds up well under the constant action, never really losing momentum until the story is complete. The entire story is fast paced and intriguing a really good first for the series.

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Released: 01/6/10 120 pages
Publisher: Marvel
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 978-0785136330
The second book in Laurell k. Hamilton's Anita Blake series to be adapted into a comic book form, this is book two of three.
It picks up where the last one left off with a zombie attack. But the action pretty much stops there, hopefully to pick up in the final edition. The pacing just didn't work this time. Lots of dialogue, hardly any detective work, did Anita really do so little and have everything just fall into her lap in the books.
I wasn't all to impressed with the artwork. Anita is a hard character at times, she's small, and she's overly tough, but her expression range from surprised to angry with nothing in between, and at times when that face couldn't be the correct one, making it hard to gage her response to the situation. The panels of course were dialogue heavy, but with everything hastily drawn a lot of the feeling you get from the book is lacking in this translation.
The frustration felt over Anita being hard headed in regards to being Jean-Claude's human servant and eventually lover felt more empty and less consequential. I loved the book, but this one just didn't measure up.

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Released: 1/5/10 432 pages
Publisher:n Onyx
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0451412768

This is the second book in the Dorina Basarab series, and this one is just as fast paced as the first. Dorina is a dhampir- half human, half vampire, whose lucky to be alive. Most are insane because of their genetic make up, experiencing bouts of rage, violence and blackouts, and Dory is no exception. She just uses the rage to her advantage. And most are murdered just as soon as they are born, but Dory was spared because her father is Mircea Basarab, brother to Dracula, and Radu, and high ranking vampire Senator.

All Dory wants at the moment is some peace and quiet after the mess her life has been, but she gets anything but. Her father hires her to bring in a vampire, one that everyone is after. Her roomate, Claire is back from Fairy with trouble of her own, and Senator/Champion Louis Cesare is stirring up trouble as well. And there's also Dory's drinking of fey wine to control her blackouts. It's magical properties are addictive and said to slowly drive the consumer insane, but that's not all its doing. Besides controlling her blackouts and seizures, its also giving her visions with a touch of the hand.

Karen Chance's books are always so fast paced they give me whiplash. The plots are intricate, and extremely detailed. And even though I try to read them slowly they always end before I'm ready for them to. It's highly explosive, and addictive, very hard to put down. This series interweaves characters from Chance's Cassandra Palmer series as well, so although you don't have to read both series to appreciate the story, it will enhance the experience.

The action is fast, but doesn't feel shallow, the characters are feel real and fleshed out, and the sparks between Dory and Louis Cesare are hot. And I love the inventfulness of her characters, the understated brilliance and the humor. The scenes are so rich that I find myself discovering new things with each read.

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Released 10/7/08            384 pages

Publisher: Onyx

Format: Paperback

ISBN: 978-0451412621

The first book in the Dorina Basarab series, takes place in the same world as Karen Chances’s other series that follows Cassandra Palmer. Because of that series many of the secondary characters are already known to readers. Dorina’s father is the famous Mircea Basarab, brother of Dracula, and she’s asked to track down her uncle, who’s escaped his prison. She agrees to help when her father offers to use his influence to help locate Dory's missing, Claire, who has gone missing, even through Dracula is the only thing that truly scares her.

Dorina is dhampir- half human, half vampire hybrid whose been on her own kicking butt for about 500 years. Unlike Cassie, she knows full well what she’s capable of. The heroine is strong, almost too strong making everyone else seem weak, naïve or incapable at best.

Along for the ride is Louis-Cesare, the dueling champion for the vampire senate. Together there’s tons of heat and chemisty, but more than most others, he comes off as inexperienced. The Frenchmen showed vulnerability in the Cassandra series, but here it was like he was stuck in a miasma of emotions.

Just as with all her other books, this one is extremely fast paced. And while the story works well in this format, the inconsistencies between the two series are a little distracting, but the dialogue is sharp and entertaining.

To new readers, it may be hard keeping track of all the characters and politics without having first read the Cassandra books, but there is enough explanation that they’ll be able to follow the story, though they may feel as if they are missing something. The Dracula storyline works well, those the secondary one concerning Claire is a little inconsistent, mostly being wrapped up with Claire explaining where she was during a battle scene which was probably not the best time. Not my favorite book by Ms. Chance, but a nice first outing for Dory.

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Released: 1/1/10
Publisher: HQN Books
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 978-0373774319

When tough as nails demon assassin/Angel Lysander meets the sexy sultry harpy Bianka, sparks fly. Lysander has never known love, lust, or any of those other messy emotions. Bianka who is naughty by nature, and never one to turn down wicked good time instantly tempts his soul.

His solution to kill her, just kidding, he decides to kidnap her (which isn't that a little naughty of an angel) and turn her into a good girl. But Bianka is a harpy, and even if she wanted to, she can't be completely good, its just not in her.

Gena Showalter is a master of taking two unlikely characters, and making sparks fly. Although the novella is short, the story isn't lacking. It has all the heat, wit, action, and romance that is expected with the Lord of the Underworld series. Lysander struggles with his desires, trying to understand what makes this harpy so special, when none other, good or bad has been able to illicit this reaction from him. And as much as he wants to go with his instincts he's afraid of falling, literally.

And a little cameo from fan favorite lord of Promiscuity, Paris, serves to kick up the heat, making it hard to pass up, because lets face it what is a love story without competition? Gena does a good job of weaving in the angel world with the Lords of the Underworld mythology, while introducing and setting up future characters.

The plotting is excellently paced, and makes the short 140 pages feel like a complete story.

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