Blood Noir (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #16) by Laurell K. Hamilton

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05/31/08

Rex rated it:

bookshelves: series

Read in May, 2008

SUPERSLUT POWERS, ACTIVATE! Superslut Anita Blake is back! While the overall story was good, Hamilton's attempt at erotica, as usual, was lacking. When reading erotica, I expect, well, MORE. The erotic sections are bland and unimaginative. The horrible display of BDSM is appalling in that Hamilton has a main character in the series IGNORE the safe word. No matter how well the characters know each other, there is no justification for ignoring the safe word.

If Hamilton wants to...more SUPERSLUT POWERS, ACTIVATE! Superslut Anita Blake is back! While the overall story was good, Hamilton's attempt at erotica, as usual, was lacking. When reading erotica, I expect, well, MORE. The erotic sections are bland and unimaginative. The horrible display of BDSM is appalling in that Hamilton has a main character in the series IGNORE the safe word. No matter how well the characters know each other, there is no justification for ignoring the safe word.

If Hamilton wants to improve the erotic portions of her work, she should provide more details to fire the readers' imagination. Longtime readers know that Micah is better endowed than Richard who is in turn larger than Jason, but in erotica, size matters, give us the details - how large is large? In "Blood Noir" we are told several times that Anita is riveted by Jason's stomach - could not figure out if he was doing crunches or what, but it would help the reader to have more detail. I presume since Jason is a stripper that he has an appealing and ripped body, but details would help feed the imagination. It takes more to fire the imagination than stating that Jason has business-short blond hair, a shade of blond of which Hollywood stars are envious. Yes, we know Jason, he's been a supporting character forever, but please provide details if you want us to lust over him in the scenes. Lack of more personal details and more imaginative sex, drags down the erotic sections of the book as it has with previous books. Unfortunately, by this point in the series, the ardeur is played out. How many people superslut Blake can perform with to save everyone is to cliché, as we all know that is the only way Anita can save the day anymore.

Excluding the unimaginative erotic portions of the book, the story was a nice piece on Jason. Jason has been one of my favorite characters since his to brief appearance back in "Lunatic Café." It's good to see him featured and learn more about his past, his family, and his motivations. Fortunately, as in the last few books, the erotic scenes are becoming fewer, but unfortunately, they are the only scenes giving the book direction.

What was missing was the paranormal. Where was the zombie raising? Where was the use of Anita's necromancer abilities? Is her power growing? If so, how and to what extent? As in the last few books, the Mother of Darkness makes some appearances and Anita goes in superslut mode. Anita appears to be a necromancer in name only these days. Gone are the days of true action and paranormal abilities outside the tiresome ardeur.

I miss her stuffed toys, her coffee mugs to irritate Bert, how she flaunts her wardrobe at Animators, Inc. to irritate Bert. I miss new and/or interesting villains - dragging out the Mother of Darkness storyline into each and every book is becoming repetitive and indicative of lazy writing. Anita lacks substance these days as she threads water. What happened to the days when Anita was trying to save children and people and struggled with real world issues in a paranormal world?

Please do not get me wrong as the book is a good read for the Jason story, but for the love of God, please do yourself a favor and skip over the bad erotica unless bad porn is your thing.
(less)

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02/13/08

Athena rated it:

bookshelves: paranormal, vampire

Read in February, 2009

I have decided to write off this series and not pick it up every again. Hamilton has no sense of timing or style any longer. She repeats phrases within paragraphs of each other. Her one liners don't hold the same endearing quality and charm they once used to. My fiance' skipped entire chapters of "sex scenes" to get to the story and had it read in a matter of hours.
The message boards are alight today! Part of the problem might be her "die hard" fans that won't hear any ...more

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06/21/08

Elizabeth rated it:

bookshelves: paranormal, recentlyread

Read in June, 2008

I wouldn't say this continued the downhill drive of the Anita Blake books, but perhaps it hit a plateau. It has the same flaws as most of the recent books in the series- poorly written erotica, far too much navel gazing, not enough meaty plot- but the flaws seem to have been acknowledged and have been worked on.

There were only two of the over-the-top erotica scenes, both with Jason (although one included Nathaniel), although I could have done without the preceding chapter of discus...more I wouldn't say this continued the downhill drive of the Anita Blake books, but perhaps it hit a plateau. It has the same flaws as most of the recent books in the series- poorly written erotica, far too much navel gazing, not enough meaty plot- but the flaws seem to have been acknowledged and have been worked on.

There were only two of the over-the-top erotica scenes, both with Jason (although one included Nathaniel), although I could have done without the preceding chapter of discussion of who, where,why, and how the sex was going to take place before each scene. There was a third scene that is only alluded to, which is even more pleasantly surprising. I don't think we can expect a change from the multiple partners and graphic yet not sexy scenes- that seems to, as Anita would say, "flat do it" for LKH- but at least she seems to be using the scenes and lifestyle reasonably.

As far as the plottiness of the book is concerned, it was a little light until the end. Mostly, there is a lot of introspection and wibbling from Anita about her relationship with Jason, and a lot of background on Jason, his hometown, and his family... and then wham! Quite a bit of action at the end. Still, we haven't seen a lot of Marshal Anita Blake in recent novels, so it was nice to see those elements re-emerge. It gives me hope there may be even more in the next novel, as from what I understand, this was intended to be more of a "side" novel ala Micah. Anita even references both of her jobs, as federal marshal and reanimator, so maybe eventually we'll actually see her do them again.

As you can expect, there is of course a lot of wonky ardeur complications, Marmee Noir antics, and ever more were-animals insinuating themselves into Anita's life. However, in the plus column, although we see the usual wanky Richard, we also see Richard as he was in the early days. Dare I say I have hope for his character, too?

All in all, it seem that LKH has heard her fans' concerns, and is addressing them to some small degree. I do believe that some things will never change, and those that keep reading the series will have to live with the ardeur and the "his-em", as I have heard LKH call Anita's bevy of men, as well as Anita's continually growing powers. I think the best we'll get is a blend between old Anita's action-packed adventures and new Anita's erotically charged ones. I guess I can live with that.

ETA: Reading reviews, I remembered a couple other little quibbles I had. First, the dialog. My god, these characters should not be tossing "like" into their sentences like teenage MySpacers, especially when it's inconsistent with their speech patterns from previous books. As well, every time Jason referred to someone as "soooo hot," it yanked me out of the conversation. I know he's supposed to be a bit frivolous on the surface, but really; again, he's not a thirteen year old girl. I like Jason, he's one of my favorite characters, so LKH, please, stop undermining him.

Second, complete FAIL on understanding how birth-control works. One missed pill should not create the pregnancy angst and drama that it did in this book, especially since Anita's pregnancy "scare" a few books back was a complete false alarm.

Ahem. Anyway. Two stars. Or, for Anita and company, like soooo two stars.

ETA 2 (last time, I swear): This is a response I posted to a review that assumed that those of us that are critical of the book are prudes and should just stop reading if we hate the books so much (you know, the typical "troo" line of thinking):

"I don't think it's fair to call fans disappointed with the series "prudes" or "whining wankers." I'm personally a fan of romance and erotica, so the sex isn't the issue for me. It's how the characters have changed so drastically from where they started off. Re-read Guilty Pleasures or The Laughing Corpse and then re-read Danse Macabre. It's barely believable that this is the same protagonist, and the same series. That's the issue most of us have. Yes, I understand character development, but the series has become something completely, totally different than where it started, and many of us, who still consider ourselves fans, miss seeing Anita working at Animators Inc and solving crimes, which has gone missing in favor of the long, involved, detailed sex scenes. That's the problem, not the fact that the sex is present at all. I cheered when Anita initially slept with Jean-Claude after so many books of sexual tension. I didn't cheer, however, when Micah raped her, or the swan-mane changed on top of her, or when we had a whole book with no action (DM). YMMV. That's the nature of reading and forming an opinion. Just don't call it prudery."

I keep reading because I remember those first 8-10 books, and hope the series will return to its full potential. I don't know about you guys, but that's why I don't just stop reading.(less)

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06/09/08

Amanda rated it:

recommends it for: Absoluetly no one, I'm embarrased I even read it

LKH has a talent for stretching out a single, seemingly pointless scene into chapters of painful-to-read dialogue between characters that does nothing to further the plot. In the course of the last 5 books, Anitas harem of men have become amaeteur therapists for Anita, making unbelievable and often ridiculous observations (re: her beauty, innocence, naivitee, selflessness, etc) that she herself (we are supposed to believe) has never considered. These eye-rolling therapy sessions provide unconvin...more LKH has a talent for stretching out a single, seemingly pointless scene into chapters of painful-to-read dialogue between characters that does nothing to further the plot. In the course of the last 5 books, Anitas harem of men have become amaeteur therapists for Anita, making unbelievable and often ridiculous observations (re: her beauty, innocence, naivitee, selflessness, etc) that she herself (we are supposed to believe) has never considered. These eye-rolling therapy sessions provide unconvincing justification for Anita's dramatic 180-degree character reversal, in which she transformed from a self-righteous, morally-superior paragon of justice into an intrepid, promiscuous supporter of the BSDM scene.

The plot: Jason's father is dying of cancer and he wants Anita to accompany him home and pretend to be his girlfriend to correct his father's false impression of him as gay. Upon their arrival, Jason's uncanny resemblance to his cousin, the son of a presidential hopeful, creates a media furor over a case of mistaken identity that also has causes problems for Jean-Claude among the vampire community when its reported that Anita has left Jean-Clause to marry his pomme de sang. During the uproar, Marmee Noir the momother of all vampires makes another play at waking from her millennium-old sleep (which she's been doing for the last 3 books now???) and causes trouble for Anita by trying to possess her.

What to expect: more campy self-revelations by Anita as told from the p-of-v of multiple, fawning male studs, boring it-takes-me-three-chapters-to-write-this-scene sex, and another attempt by the author to villify Richard. (Incidentally, he remains the only lover in Anita's revolving harem who doesn't fawn all over her, which is perhaps the reason his is written as a such a pathetic, self-loathing sap.)

Who's missing: Jean-Claude has a phone conversation with Anita, but otherwise remains absent; Asher is mentioned in passing; Damien is missing entirely (thank God!); Edward is on hiatus.

Anita's new conquests: Crispin, a 21-year-old weretiger and Alex Pinn, another weretiger, both of whom she "mind-rolls" with the ardeur under the spell of Marmee Noir.

The plus: you don't have to read the 4-chapter miniumum of gratuitous sex between them since Anita wakes up with amnesia in the hotel room after a 2-say sexathon with the new guys.

Anita's new powers: she magically takes back her "rage" from Richard, gains Jason as her personal animal to call, and Richard gains the power to roll Anita with his own form of ardeur that only works on Anita

The plot thread left hanging: the other masters of the city perceive Jean-Claude as weak because Anita is screwing multiple men, but he's monogomous to her, and the only way to correct this (in the world of LKH) is for Anita to allow Jean-Claude to start having sex with other men for real. Oh, and Anita may need to deliberately infect herself with other wereanimal viruses to combat the 2 tigers she has now. (less)

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07/08/08

Beth(MN) rated it:

bookshelves: 2008, paranormal-romance, shapeshifters, urban-fantasy, vampires, werewolves

Read in June, 2008

recommends it for: LKH addicts who just can't help themselves

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

I am a newcomer to the Anita-verse. A friend had been urging me to give the series a try for years and I kept blowing her off because it didn't sound like my thing. And then the controversy started. And it blew up to such magnificent proportions complete with full-fledged internet flame wars that I knew I couldn't hold myself back any longer and I picked up the first book in this series: Guilty Pleasures.

That was in the spring of 2007. I hadn't been terribly impressed with Guilty Pl...more I am a newcomer to the Anita-verse. A friend had been urging me to give the series a try for years and I kept blowing her off because it didn't sound like my thing. And then the controversy started. And it blew up to such magnificent proportions complete with full-fledged internet flame wars that I knew I couldn't hold myself back any longer and I picked up the first book in this series: Guilty Pleasures.

That was in the spring of 2007. I hadn't been terribly impressed with Guilty Pleasures, but I gave Hamilton the benefit of the doubt because it was the first book in the series and I had to admit that it had been somewhat entertaining. I was as surprised as anyone to discover that by the third book in the series, Circus of the Damned, I was completely hooked and kept trucking right along with the rest of the series.

Keep in mind that the entire time I was reading the series; I already knew what to expect. I'd read the complaints and fan disappointment about Anita, the ardeur and her hodgepodge harem of vampires and wereanimals, so I knew it was coming and took it all with a serious grain of salt when the fluids began to gush and flow.

For that reason, I think those things that have been such a disappointment to so many other readers seemed somewhat blown out of proportion to me. I'd gone into the deal knowing that Anita would eventually change from a prudish workaholic into a craveaholic sex fiend with a penchant for rough play and dirty, dirty bedroom (bathroom, living room, kitchen) recreation so I wasn't shocked when it happened and I tolerated it.

And then I read the most recent installment, Blood Noir. And seriously? I finally get it.

This was one of the most painful books I've ever read. Thankfully I'd opted to NOT purchase this one and had added my name to the waiting list at the library so I only just finished it last night.

First of all, what in the world was up with the first five chapters of this book?!? I don't have a problem with sex in books. I LIKE sex in books. But this sex did not leave me wanting to go into a room alone somewhere and light a candle. This literally had me squirming in discomfort and gasping in horror. The character's conversations about the sex that was soon-to-be-had occurred too early in the book and without enough of an introduction to put it in an appropriate context. I'm assuming the purpose of having a graphic threesome between Anita, Nathaniel and Jason so early on was to establish a "reasonable" premise for Anita to agree to fly to Asheville to meet Jason's abusive, dying father and the rest of the family. Buuuuut...

It flat out DIDN'T do it for me. Sorry Anita. Sorry Laurel. -5 stars straight off the bat for that filthy hogwash.

As the novel progressed, I calmed down and finally felt like I was easing into the swing of things and while I was slightly annoyed by the look-a-like cousin kafuffle that resulted with Keith Summerland and the lack of any concrete reason that there was anything for Anita and Co. to be truly concerned about, I felt myself thinking, "okay, maybe there are 3 stars in here somewhere, if only Hamilton would just remember her plot and not let the--"

Ok, forget it. Because suddenly the bachelorette party happened and someone flashed their "cookies." And then the 48-hour-long foursome that involved Anita, Jason, a strange stripper and a news reporter happened. And then Marmee Noir hallucinations and Richard (!) randomly showed up. And all of a sudden I was like HOLD UP! There aren't that many pages left in this book and literally nothing has happened except some crazy hotel sexin' that has taken up the entire middle and most of the end of this book!

And then all of a sudden, the poor, underdeveloped plot attempted to take off in what was probably supposed to be an Anita Blake "action sequence" but it was so horribly rushed that it felt like a cop out. And you know what? The "action sequence" and plot resolution took up fewer chapters than the nasty threesome scene from the beginning of the book. Seemingly out of nowhere, we're told (not shown) that Keith Summerland has run off with a Master of the City's wife, another vampire named Lorna. And that because Jason looks so similar to his cousin, the Master's human servant and vampire pawns can't tell the difference and abduct Jason instead of their real target, Keith Summerland. Jason is tortured. Anita saves him. The end.

The moral of the story is that 1) you can color me disappointed but 2) I'm probably not going to stop reading the series. I'll continue to rely on my local library for the goods (so sorry amazon) because I don't want these books on my bookshelf but I feel like I've already invested so much into this that I must see it through right on through to the sloppy end. (less)

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06/06/08

Simone rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Hey, does anyone else remember when the Anita Blake books were actually kind of mysteries, with plots and everything? Instead of page after page of the most boring-ass relationship dissection discussions ever, all of which you have read several times before? Seriously, this book advances the overall plot in the Blake oeuvre not at all. Ninety percent of the book is Anita and Jason either talking about sex or having sex, with special guest appearances by other characters having sex or talking ...more Hey, does anyone else remember when the Anita Blake books were actually kind of mysteries, with plots and everything? Instead of page after page of the most boring-ass relationship dissection discussions ever, all of which you have read several times before? Seriously, this book advances the overall plot in the Blake oeuvre not at all. Ninety percent of the book is Anita and Jason either talking about sex or having sex, with special guest appearances by other characters having sex or talking sex with Anita. And all of the discussions and sex acts serve to prove two things: 1., Anita remains frustratingly dense about the most basic social interactions and psychology, and 2., despite this fact, she is still the hottest woman ever and everyone and everything in the world, whether male or female, living or dead, human or not, desires to have huge amounts of sex with her.

Then Marmee Noir makes one teensy and ambiguous move, and then you get the standard last chapter that attempts to wrap up and advance every idea brought forth in the rest of the book in 3 sentences or less.

The writing in this series has also continued to go seriously downhill. I used to love the dark atmosphere the early books created, but more and more, this series reads like transcripts from a sex addict's boring therapy sessions. Personally, I feel that Hamilton has fallen too much in love with her characters, and ignores things like PLOT that tend to get in the way of her endless noodling around in her beloved characters' psyches. (The fact that she over-identifies with Anita has been obvious since one compared the author photo to the character's physical description in the very first book, but this trend has also gotten worse as time goes on.)

One more petty thing that bugged the heck out of me this time around - all the characters took to saying "like" a lot, and it was punctuated incorrectly EVERY TIME. For example, someone would say "That's like really awesome of you," as opposed to "That's, like, really awesome of you." (And sad to say, that's pretty much the typical level of the discourse in this book.)

I certainly don't think I'll be rushing out to buy any more of these. (less)

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01/23/08

Tricia rated it:

bookshelves: books-that-suck

Read in May, 2008

recommends it for: no one

Keep in mind that LKH is one of my favorite authors....

But WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?? Did she forget where she left off in "The Harlequin?" WTF?

This book is a repetitive, disappointing, 340 page, meaningless stroll with Jason.

Why?..... seriously, Why?

I think I'm finally giving up, and that saddens me, because I thoroughly enjoyed this series up until Cerulean Sins. That's 11 amazing, edge of your seat, MUST HAVE, at Barnes and Noble at 3:...more

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08/20/08

Lori rated it:

bookshelves: urban-fantasy

Read in July, 2008

Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton is the 16th (good golly) installment in the sexcapades of Anita Blake, (theoretical) Vampire Hunter. I hate to begin a critique of a book I am trying very hard to be impartial about with snark, but sometimes I just can't help myself.

Ok, game face.

Hamilton has taken a lot of flak for what her series has become and I am not in any way an apologist. When I sit down to think about how the series has evolved over the years, it makes me--like m...more Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton is the 16th (good golly) installment in the sexcapades of Anita Blake, (theoretical) Vampire Hunter. I hate to begin a critique of a book I am trying very hard to be impartial about with snark, but sometimes I just can't help myself.

Ok, game face.

Hamilton has taken a lot of flak for what her series has become and I am not in any way an apologist. When I sit down to think about how the series has evolved over the years, it makes me--like many fans--nostalgic for the early books of the series when she was fighting the good fight. The novels used to follow a case of some sort she was helping the police with or her work as an Animator (that would be a raiser of the dead, not a cartoon-maker). It used to be edgy, engaging and adventurous. The world that Hamilton has created, an alternate earth where vampires and werecritters are 'out' and everyone knows about them, is interesting and rife with storytelling potential. Nonetheless, more and more, it's all about sex and Anita's ever-growing list of metaphysical powers, lovers and emotional issues.

The story follows Anita and her friend-with-benefits Jason as they travel back to his hometown. His father is dying, and she has agreed to pose as his girlfriend in a last-ditch effort on Jason's part to convince his estranged father once and for all that just because he liked theater and dance in school doesn't mean he's gay. Throw in a bit of mistaken identity, a few old girlfriends and a visit from the mother of all vampires and you've got a party.

I've read that this was originally written as a novella and fleshed out for publication as a full-length book and, well, I could believe it. I think it would have been better as a novella, because the stuff crammed into the middle about Marmee Noir (the aforementioned progenitor) is kind of haphazard and left largely unresolved.

In what I think is a first for Hamilton, Anita's two-day sex binge is actually done 'offscreen'. There are actually only two explicit sex scenes in the whole book, the rest (two-day binge and aftermath aside) is actually quite a bit of character development. We learn a lot more about Jason, who has been a favorite character of mine for a long time. His relationship with Anita gains more depth, and I'm glad to see Anita finally connect to someone outside a bedroom context. She has a lot of lovers but very few true friends.

Finally, I have to mention Richard. I really hate the lengths to which Hamilton has gone through to vilify Richard, Anita's long-estranged love interest. I understand that she based him on someone she loved and that when they broke up she felt a need to eviscerate him in prose. What I hate is that she just can't let it drop. She has to keep bringing him back, gives us a glimpse of redemption and a hope for resolution, and then drags him back through the mud. Enough already! I won't spoil what happens, but I will say that there is significant character development with Richard in this book that may open the door to some sort of future resolution with him.

I read this book in two days; I could not put it down. I'm not sure what that says, but I guess it didn't suck as much as the last few. It was shorter, if nothing else, and holy crap she actually kills some vampires. I'd recommend it to the folks who are fans of the series or (like me) still following it in the hope that it will redeem itself. It's left me with a little hope, at least.(less)

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05/23/08

Amanda rated it:

Read in May, 2008

recommends it for: no one, really, unless they like boring naval gazing sexual and personal politics

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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07/28/08

Jackie "the Librarian" rated it:

bookshelves: adultfiction, blood-sucking-fiends, magic, misery--oh-misery, thriller

Read in July, 2008

recommends it for: If you're not hooked already, don't read this

I can't stop reading these books - every single time Hamilton sucks me into the relationships, even though they are ludicrous. Gee, why should Anita feel weird about having sex with ten men at once if that's what does it for her? Let's analyze this for half a book, shall we?
And don't worry about the mystery, that'll get wrapped up offstage in the last chapter. Now, back to Anita and her ardeur issues...
This time, Jason is dreading going home to visit his ailing father in the hospit...more

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05/31/08

Amanda rated it:

Read in June, 2008

I've read every Anita Blake book but have never purchased one. This wasn't an exception. I've honestly been getting a little tired of the porn aspect of this series, and while Blood Noir is steeped in sex, I enjoyed this book better than most.

Blood Noir essentially centers around Anita and Jason, the werewolf. Jason's estranged dad is dying of cancer and he wants to return home before he passes on. Apparently, Jason's dad thinks Jason is gay and Anita comes along to prove otherwise. ...more

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01/31/08

Jamie rated it:

bookshelves: urban-fantasy

Read in May, 2008

More of the same, and the writing quality has gone downhill. I have enjoyed even the later (patently ridiculous) Anita Blake books, but this one was disappointing. It would have been better left as the novella she originally intended. There's not much story here.

I cannot believe she brought Richard in yet again to enact the exact same little drama as in the last 6 or 7 books. It's gotten to where I roll my eyes every time Richard shows up. It's the same scene, over and over agai...more

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02/13/09

Navah rated it:

bookshelves: 2009, adult, horror, supernatural, urbanfantasy, vampires

Read in February, 2009

There is no question that the last few books in this series have lowered my expectations substantially. The last Anita book I really enjoyed was Obsidian Butterfly, partially because it featured my bestest best character Edward, and partially because it was all about the less erotic aspects of Anita's life--her preternatural hunting abilities and her necromancy.

There is nothing wrong with steamy sex scenes in books, but the problem with Laurell K. Hamilton is that when she writes th...more There is no question that the last few books in this series have lowered my expectations substantially. The last Anita book I really enjoyed was Obsidian Butterfly, partially because it featured my bestest best character Edward, and partially because it was all about the less erotic aspects of Anita's life--her preternatural hunting abilities and her necromancy.

There is nothing wrong with steamy sex scenes in books, but the problem with Laurell K. Hamilton is that when she writes them, she gets distracted and seems to think that there is no need to write anything BUT them. Which is why I could not finish Danse Macabre--and I finish every book I read, no matter how crappy. I could not get through a book in which literally every time anyone does anything it culminates in sex. And I mean "anything" like, walk into a room. Sex. Shake hands. Sex. Have a conversation. Sex. When your main character is a walking porn star, there's not really any room for plot.

But maybe LKH get tired of writing porn. Because in The Harlequin, she went a whole 150 pages until her characters even had sex. Chock full of plot! It's a little sad that my standards for LKH are this low now (not that they were ever extremely high) but that's what it is. I now judge her books on whether or not there is any actual plot/character development at all. Anyway, based on my new criterion, and the sludge of porn porn porn that LKH has ground me down with over the last five books, I was hugely impressed with The Harlequin.

And based on the same criterion, I also enjoyed the hell out of Blood Noir.

This was not a flawless book. It was not even a great book. But even though it starts with a big fat porn scene right off the bat, afterwards it devolves into something resembling actual plot, and that goes on for a while. And when there are more big fat porn scenes later on in the book, they are tastefully timed and acutally plot relevent.

There is some interesting character development (or what passes for it in an LKH world.) It focuses on Jason, who is my favorite LKH-verse character after Edward. We learn why Richard has been so douchey for all these books (and then he proceeds to show us that even without outside influence, he's just a big old douchebag.) Anita is on vacation, so she is separated from most of her man harem, which is always nice (Though don't think she won't add to it during the course of this book. Anita picks up new men for her harem like some people pick up tacky souveniers.) And there is actually some use of the ardeur that's interesting and doesn't make me roll my eyes. And the moment where Anita explores her anger was such a shining LKH scene that it was like a throwback to the old days.

All this is not to say that the book was not flawed. Anita is still a big old Mary Sue, with her magical sex powers and the way she's super and awesome and her powers are so amazing and everyone wants to get with her, and everyone wants her as their human servant. And there's still too much coincidence and plot-hopping and melodrama.

But let's be honest, we don't read these books because they're high literature. We read them because they're fun. And this one, while not quite as fun as old-school Anita Blake, is pretty entertaining.(less)

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05/27/08

Nancy rated it:

recommended to Nancy by: Hamilton
recommends it for: Fan bases Blake fans...

A bit dissapointed...too much sex not enough zombies...we need some of Hamilton's old style back in play.

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07/20/08

CJ rated it:

bookshelves: erotica---not-so-vanilla, fantasy

Read in July, 2008

recommends it for: anyone still sticking with Anita Blake series praying for Ms. Hamilton to come to her senses

Okay, Ms. Hamilton is s-l-o-w-l-y working her way back from career suicide. This is still not nearly as well written as her earlier Anita Blake's. Now some of that is simply a matter of taste - do you want a story that centers on a plotline and mystery to be solved with a kick ass protagonist who's flawed but fascinating and who is about as real as a protag gets while still being in possession of some supernatural abilities, or do you want a story that centers on relationships that are unusual t...more Okay, Ms. Hamilton is s-l-o-w-l-y working her way back from career suicide. This is still not nearly as well written as her earlier Anita Blake's. Now some of that is simply a matter of taste - do you want a story that centers on a plotline and mystery to be solved with a kick ass protagonist who's flawed but fascinating and who is about as real as a protag gets while still being in possession of some supernatural abilities, or do you want a story that centers on relationships that are unusual to say the least and one woman's struggle to manage a hism (that would be the other side of a harem) and learn to control super powers that seem to increase exponentially with each new story to the point that she's almost a deity along with trying to convince her hism that "It's okay for me to be sleeping with as many guys as I want to (oh, wait, as many guys as my superpowers INSIST that I sleep with) but if you so much as look at another woman, you're out of here, pal." It's a matter of taste.

On the bright side: you will NOT have to wade through 400+ pages of mediocre sex scenes masquerading as exciting alternative sex before even a hint of a plot peeks through the body fluids. You WILL get to see Anita almost touch the fringes of non supernatural society once more, like she did so often in the beginning when she was the liason between the supernatural cultures and the police who had no clue about the supernatural creatures they were pitted against. You WILL get to see some kick ass action that was once the hallmark of Ms. Hamilton's Anita Blake series. You will be treated to some of the one line zingers that are some of the most enjoyable parts of reading Ms. Hamilton's Blake series. There are several, and she usually puts them right at the end of the chapter for one of those phenomenal punch endings. Gotta love that!

On the dim side: you will still have to wade through 18 pages of dialog when the characters can't possibly ACT, they have to psychoanalyze every possible thought and emotion. They even psychoanalyze their need to psychoanalyze. It's like a Shakespearian death scene....you know, where the guy's stabbed in the heart but manages a 15 minute soliloquy while collapsing, then revives enough to add another paragraph and a half to the first part? Yeah. Like that. And you'll also have to suffer being hit in the head by a 2 by four every other page as every single minor character in the book is amazed and impressed by the fact that Anita is "not like most women". There actually are a few of us out there who aren't doormats. Honest, there are. But you surely wouldn't think so from reading Ms. Hamilton. She's convinced, as are all of her minor characters, that the fact Anita can take a punch and give one, is willing to stand up for herself, and doesn't care to play silly mind games makes her some kind of freak of nature. And just in case you didn't get the mile high neon blinking sign that shrieks "Anita isn't like most women!!" she'll repeat it again. In case you missed it the first half a billion times. You'll also have to put up with Anita's ability embrace a double standard...it's fine for her to sleep with whomever she wants - the men in her life had just better learn to accept that or they can hit the road. But if any of the men she sleeps with even in the most casual sense dare to look at another woman (OR man), they're gone. Think she'd put up with that kind of treatment from a man? Of course not. But she has no problem telling her men to put up with that treatment. You'll also have to put up with some weak plot. Let's see.....how about the evil twin brother thing? Cuz that's never been done before except on every soap opera and every Harlequin romance ever written. So let's make it the evil twin STEP brother!! And let's see...oh, wait, how about the "can you fake being my fiance to convince my parents I'm in a steady relationship" plotline? Wow, that's only been done in half a dozen movies, a couple hundred Regency romances and several dozen soap operas. What a GREAT idea!!

Still, it's better than the last 2 books from Ms. Hamilton. I'm almost convinced that it's not Jude Devereux writing under Laurell K. Hamilton's name. Almost.(less)

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06/24/08

Samantha rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Once I gave up that Ms. Hamilton isn't going to go back to the "old" Anita then I have enjoyed these books for what they are. The first part of the series was about Anita, the vampire executioner. Then as she slowly started to get to know the Master of the City and the leaders of the other were-animals she started to change. I think that's what most people do. They change. Most of us aren't the same as we were in high school and definitely don't want to be. I'm not the same person I wa...more

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06/12/08

Lori rated it:

bookshelves: vampire

Read in June, 2008

I've been somewhat disappointed in Hamilton's last few books. This one is mainly about her relationships with the various men in her life, her powers, the threat of Marmee Noir, and helping one of her male friends on a visit home to see his dying father. The problem? His cousin, the son of a presidential candidate, is in town, too, for his wedding, and they look so identical that the media won't leave Anita's friend alone. Mayhem ensues, danger abounds. Someone is after his cousin, but who, ...more

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06/12/08

Donellacandra rated it:

Has a copy to sell/swap — Read in June, 2008

I think Laurell said it best on her MySpace when someone asked her what the book was about:

"BLOOD NOIR is about friendship and love, and telling the difference even when the boundaries are pretty blurred by conventional standards..."

"BLOOD NOIR taught me, and Anita, that we didn't know all that much. That, though Jason seemed like an open book, in fact, he'd kept most of his past hidden, at least from Anita and me. Did Nathaniel know more? They are like be...more I think Laurell said it best on her MySpace when someone asked her what the book was about:

"BLOOD NOIR is about friendship and love, and telling the difference even when the boundaries are pretty blurred by conventional standards..."

"BLOOD NOIR taught me, and Anita, that we didn't know all that much. That, though Jason seemed like an open book, in fact, he'd kept most of his past hidden, at least from Anita and me. Did Nathaniel know more? They are like best guy friends, so maybe Nathaniel knew more, but neither of the men shared it with Anita. Of course, she did the girl sin, she didn't ask. To be honest, it never occurred to me to have her ask about Jason's past. He was just always there, our friend, our confidant, and sometimes lover for Anita. By the time I finished writing BLOOD NOIR I knew more about Jason's past than I do about any one's but Anita, Richard, and Jean-Claude..."

"So, what is the book about? It's about love, and friendship. It's about family and the damage they can do to you. It's about forgiveness. It's about how far you would go for one of your best friends, and what you'd do to keep them safe. Yeah, there's sex in the book, and it's damn good sex, thank you very much. But it's not what the book is about. There is violence in the book, and killing, and kidnapping, and torture. But that's not what the book is about either.

People get hung up on the sex and violence in my books, but just like real sex and violence, it seldom is what defines your life. Violence can define your death, but seldom your life. What's the book about? It's about love, and honor, and the price the innocent pay for the stupidity of others. It's about Jason letting Anita into more of his world, and taking me along for the ride. It's about a character that has been my imaginary friend for twelve years, finally being ready to tell me his story."

It is not as high action as some of her other books, but it is a very important one that teaches Anita about the importance of friendship (not that she didn't already know, but it showed her again.) I think it made it clearer to Anita what Jason meant to her and how far she was willing to go to keep the people she loved safe (kinda like with Chimera).(less)

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06/09/08

Merry rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Rating: A

Jason has to go home, his father is dying of cancer and only has a few weeks left. Although estranged from his family for over 3 years, Jason feels he has to at least say goodbye, but he is afraid of the abuse he will face, since his own father doesn’t respect him, and refuses to believe Jason is straight, Jason’s mom begs him to bring a girl home so his father can die in peace. The only girl Jason would trust to come home with him is the one he will never ask, but when ...more Rating: A

Jason has to go home, his father is dying of cancer and only has a few weeks left. Although estranged from his family for over 3 years, Jason feels he has to at least say goodbye, but he is afraid of the abuse he will face, since his own father doesn’t respect him, and refuses to believe Jason is straight, Jason’s mom begs him to bring a girl home so his father can die in peace. The only girl Jason would trust to come home with him is the one he will never ask, but when she offers all bets are off. What will happen when Anita and Jason make the trip to Promise North Carolina, will they survive the family inquest?

I love Anita Blake and the world that Laurell K Hamilton has created for these amazingly intense characters. There is an infinite amount of pleasure I get from revisiting St Louis and my favorite people who dwell there.

I’m a huge fan and I always have been and I always will be, I love seeing Anita become more human because for a while there I thought her more of the monster than the ones she is given the authority to kill. However, something happened to Anita when she became Nimir Ra of the Leopard Pard, she started to feel and understand emotion that ran deeper than her necromancy. I love watching her character grow in ways that I never would have believed possible. There is a scene where she is with Jason that actually made me get a little misty because it was a defining moment in this series and for their characters. Hamilton’s characters aren’t only three dimensional, but the individual flavors she pours into them makes me so eager to have the next one written and in my hand. I am always jealous when someone starts reading this series for the first time because to be able to fall in love with it was an awesome adventure.

I know there are people out there who read LKH just to count the sex scenes to me that is just wrong because they miss all the emotion that LKH puts into these characters. There are moments that I cheer for these characters I have grown to love so much and there are times when I am in total shock of what they go through for each other and because of each other, but each moment in these books matters.

(less)

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06/04/08

Kathryn rated it:

Read in June, 2008

Laurell, dear, I understand that you have to write these books as stand alones even though they're episodes in a series. I know it lets all the people who are coming onto the scene this late in the series know what's going on and what has happened in the past to get where we are now... And I admit that this time you didn't do nearly as much recapping as you did in the past few books but dont forget to keep the plot & the sex going at a fast enough pace that we poor addicted Anita readers dont ge...more Laurell, dear, I understand that you have to write these books as stand alones even though they're episodes in a series. I know it lets all the people who are coming onto the scene this late in the series know what's going on and what has happened in the past to get where we are now... And I admit that this time you didn't do nearly as much recapping as you did in the past few books but dont forget to keep the plot & the sex going at a fast enough pace that we poor addicted Anita readers dont get bogged down and start eye rolling about all the repeated information.

I liked this book. But like Harelquin it felt like the actual story was underdeveloped. You have something crazy and interesting happening but you dont really delve so deep. Some new crazy metaphysical thing happens to you that makes you have crazy sex, but this time you glossed over the sex & the metaphysics. How did you manage to START the book off with a menage a trois but still gloss it over? I didn't even get turned on for crying out loud! You glossed over most of the story except for the whole Summerlands-who-so-deeply-affected-everything-without-ever-making-an-appearance thing. That may have been the catalyst to the craziness but it was hardly as important as you made it seem with all the repeat references. I am confused by the fact that you used to have these amazing action sequences, amazing crazy plot twists, but now its getting rather blah-ze (yes I know that's not how its spelled). And why not just name this book "Jason" the way you named the other offshoot episode "Micah" it'd be a little more true to form. And why did every Jason smile have to do with parting people from their money? I mean yes we know he's a stripper & a talented one... But if he's so beautiful & you love him so much why is the parting with money thing even coming up? Really? Are you shelling out dough? No! so shut up about it.

I liked this book, I did, but I didn't love it. I used to love them. I miss the books you wrote that I could love. I shouldn't have bought this one. I'm only hurting myself by paying for letdowns. I'll be hitting the library for all future episodes until you can prove yourself worthy of love again.
*sigh*
Sincerely,

A despondant fan.(less)

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