Bullet (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #19)

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Bullet (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #19)

3.77 of 5 stars 3.77 · rating details · 15,372 ratings · 876 reviews

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The music came back up and the next group of little girls, slightly older, came out. There was a lot of that in the next hour and change. I liked dance, and it was no reflection on the kids, but my will to live began to seep away on about the fifth group of sequined children...

Anita Blake is back in St. Louis and trying to live a normal life-as normal as po...more

Hardcover, 356 pages

Published June 1st 2010 by Berkley Hardcover

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Jun 04, 2010 Amy or "Ames" rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of erotica inc. m/m, m/m/f, f/f, BDSM

Shelves: read-in-2010, libricide, vampires, urban-fantasy, erotica, do-not-own, i-heart-the-cover-art, glbt, menage-or-polyamory, series-abandoned

Stay away from it. Stay away. If you had any love for this series at any point, do not read this book. If you do, make sure you're a fan of erotica including m/m, m/m/f, f/f, and BDSM.

It’s shocking the abrupt u-turn the series takes with Bullet, deciding that sex (and lots of it) is better than guns, blood and action. The death of a character (not an important one so don’t worry) was anti-climactic, it was a good scene but I expected the death to be of someone a lot closer to Anita, and therefo...more Stay away from it. Stay away. If you had any love for this series at any point, do not read this book. If you do, make sure you're a fan of erotica including m/m, m/m/f, f/f, and BDSM.

It’s shocking the abrupt u-turn the series takes with Bullet, deciding that sex (and lots of it) is better than guns, blood and action. The death of a character (not an important one so don’t worry) was anti-climactic, it was a good scene but I expected the death to be of someone a lot closer to Anita, and therefore more painful but she agonises over it anyway, despite knowing all along that they may have to die.

Right off the bat we go into repetitive descriptive overload. Sex politics, self-pity and whining is in abundance. LKH even uses a three-year old boy in the first chapter to give us hope that Anita will rein in her loose ways, and then uses him again (at his expense, which offended me - children should be protected) at the end to stick two fingers up at those that dislike the porn. And I’m sad to say this did read like emotionless porn -the group sex with multiple voyeurs made me think "porn movie set" with everyone taking turns. And they were doing it to save lives or for political reasons rather than because they wanted it or because they loved each other. And since when was Anita OK with her men having sex with other women, or even Anita herself having sex with women? What?! Will the real Anita please stand up?

Which leads me on to the main characters themselves who've have changed in ways I don't feel are realistic and the number of side characters has grown to a point where I don't remember who they are. Although LKH attempts to soothe my newfound dislike of Anita at the end of Flirt by making her remorseful. I can’t say it worked. She has become all-powerful and arrogant, a combination which is off-putting to put it mildly. Plus the reference to her and others possibly doing evil things in order to do good has put me on edge.

All the bits that interested me, like the plot, shocking that there even was one but it was thin throughout. It was alluded to but there was little depth. Many references were made to previous books, characters reappear with Anita's relationships with them being reassessed however, big events happen elsewhere whilst we were stuck watching Anita have sex with everything that moved. I’m not exaggerating. I’m not even sure I have enough fingers to count out how many times she had sex, or even with the number of people. At least she wasn't the only one getting it this time. Although the m/m scene between Asher and Jean Claude was incredibly disappointing. They'd been pining for each other, desperate to re-consummate their love for so long, you'd think LKH could've taken the time to describe the emotional side of it better.

More happened in the concluding chapter than in the entire book, which focused heavily on the tigers. I couldn't care less about them really, the info dump was boring. Given the chance I’d have wanted to witness the events (especially in Atlanta) in that chapter rather than the sex or sex politics. Instead they were glossed over. So sad.

I dragged myself through this book, and employed everything possible to get to that last page. I skimmed, I skipped paragraphs/pages – there’s only so much repetitive description I could take. I can’t read another sex scene for a bit because I’ve had enough. Enough. Yep, that’s how I feel about this series now. Enough. I’m done.

If I sound angry, bitter and wistful it’s because I’m all of those things. I’m angry that old-Anita is nowhere to be found despite her reappearance in the past couple of books. I’m bitter because I wasn’t expecting the abrupt change back to everything revolving around sex. I had hope and LKH had encouraged it, that old-Anita was resurfacing. She crushed it so forcefully that I don’t want anything more to do with her.

This series to me is now a sick and mangy wolf that needs to be put down, it's begging for an end to it's suffering. It needs a Bullet to the brain.(less)

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Sep 06, 2011 The Flooze rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: My worst enemy, perhaps. Might be too cruel.

Shelves: urban-fantasy-paranormal, vanquished_2010, glutton_for_punishment

If my updates weren’t expressive enough, I’ll reiterate: This is the most tedious drivel I’ve read in a long time…or perhaps ever.

Although the idea of a vampire civil war should be a thrilling one, LKH’s writing deprives it of all excitement. The events of this book seem like a rehash of every other attack we’ve seen on the supernatural sect of St. Louis. If you’re a long-time reader of the series, very little will seem new.

I could easily blather on about the lack of innovation present in Bullet...more If my updates weren’t expressive enough, I’ll reiterate: This is the most tedious drivel I’ve read in a long time…or perhaps ever.

Although the idea of a vampire civil war should be a thrilling one, LKH’s writing deprives it of all excitement. The events of this book seem like a rehash of every other attack we’ve seen on the supernatural sect of St. Louis. If you’re a long-time reader of the series, very little will seem new.

I could easily blather on about the lack of innovation present in Bullet, but instead I’ll focus on a few irksome aspects. Although I’ve never envisioned Anita as a startling intellect, the dialogue here paints her as an absolute mental midget. Pages and pages of various men explaining simple concepts to her and Anita continuously parroting: “But why?” “What does that mean?” “What does he mean by that?” “What am I missing?” Apparently, my dear, you are missing a vast amount of brain power. And when she finally grasps the idea presented, her only response is: “I don’t know what to say to that.”

The basics of this exchange are repeated every few pages, making most conversations feel like pulling teeth and inspiring me to smack my forehead no less than twenty times. If Anita is this thick, I can’t imagine how she’s managed to live this long, never mind build her power center up to unfathomable proportions.

Hand-in-hand with Anita’s stupidity is her inability to be reasonable. Constantly on the defensive, she forces all of her men to tiptoe around her in trepidation. And yet! She feels immeasurable guilt about having taken away Nicky’s free will. Guess what, dumb-dumb. With every one around you in fear of getting dumped--or perhaps shot--absolutely no one in the group can exercise free will. They are all slaves of some sort to the sorcerous snatch.

Speaking of that wondrous body part, I’ve heard time and again that this series is as much about Anita’s “sexual awakening” as it is about vampires and weres, oh my. Though I grant that she’s come a long way from the virginal prude of Guilty Pleasures, Anita has not been awakened. She has been coerced, cajoled, convinced, and given the excuses she needs to allow herself--after much waffling--to fall into bed with various people. Even in this book, she spends more time trying to get out of having sex than she does actively wanting it. It is only when someone badgers her into responding to her “monstrous” side that she willingly goes along with physical intimacy. More often than not, she is embarrassed by her sexual desires. That does not scream “awakening” to me.

I’d already decided when I read Flirt that I would no longer throw money into LKH’s coffers. Having gotten Bullet from the library, I think even that small nod of encouragement was wasted on her. The quality of writing is beneath that of any writer I’m familiar with. Her plots have become secondary to descriptions of wardrobe, hair, and seating plans. Sex scenes are robbed of eroticism. Dialogue brings the action to a screeching, painful halt. I no longer find anything of merit in the Anita Blake series, so I bid these characters a not-so-fond adieu. Don’t let the door smack you on the way out.
(less)

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Jun 05, 2010 Lmb rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-pnr, overrated

I am normally a loyal fan & have a lot of patience for LKH in general. I have hung in there with Anita (& Merry) & when many fans started turning away calling the series "porn" - I still liked it, still defended it, was still very into the stories & the characters (bar a few).

This book crashed & burned the series IMO. It was a pathetic mess. I don't even know what this was. I think LKH's massive amount of hubris made her lose the plot.

This was an extension of LKH's narcissi...more

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Jun 08, 2011 mlady_rebecca rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: abvh__us_hb_v2__horror, author__laurell_k_hamilton, genre_sub__vamps, genre_sub__lycanthropes_and_shifter, genre__urban_fantasy, series__anita_blake, fiction__part_of_a_series, 2010, read_more_than_once, pov__first_person_female, 2011, genre_sub__necromancers_or_reapers, fiction__speculative, troupe__mindlink_mates, genre_sub__incubus_succubus, in_retrospect__remember_it_fondly, format__hardback

"Bullet" was all the good things I like to see in an "Anita Blake" book, and some.

1. It was home in St. Louis, because - aside from "Bloody Bones", "Blue Moon", and "Blood Noir" (all "B" names - weird) - all of the out of town books seem to be lacking something.

2. It included the fullest cast list we've seen since (at least) "The Harlequin". And most of those cast members had more than a walk on role.

3. It was heavy on vampire and furry politics, and light on federal marshal duties.

4. The littl...more

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Jun 01, 2010 Mistress ~ ♠ Mistral's Kiss ♠ ~ (Mist) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: series, paranormal-romance-chick-lit, speculative-fiction, 2010, hate-it-love-it-hate-it, heavens-to-murgatroyd-wtf-is-going, crackalicious, erotica, just-get-over-it-already-jeeze, made-me-vomit-in-my-mouth-a-little, jane-get-me-off-this-crazy-series, erotic-wtf-ery-hide-your-kids-hid

Same ole Anita, which means butt loads of gratuitous metaphysical nookie. Not enough of a cohesive action based plot to be Urban Fantasy. Way too much whining, repetitive dialogue about emotions ( My gawd, I've never read so many gag worthy conversations about FEELINGS as in this series. Everyone just can't freaking shut up about their FEELINGS lmao). And not strongly written enough to classify as "good".

But the anita-verse is as thrilling, sexy, and addictive as crack as ever. And much like cra...more

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May 31, 2010 Wicked Lil Pixie (Natasha) rated it 4 of 5 stars

The main storyline surrounds Anita, the triumvirate, her animals to call & an unexpected reunion with the Mother of All Darkness who everyone thought was dead. Because of the return of the Mother of All Darkness, Anita must come to terms with all the men surrounding her & try to complete the cats she calls. On top of it, Richard comes back & Anita doesn’t know if she can trust him again. Then we have an appearance by Haven & he is demanding Anita’s love, it’s all or nothing for H...more The main storyline surrounds Anita, the triumvirate, her animals to call & an unexpected reunion with the Mother of All Darkness who everyone thought was dead. Because of the return of the Mother of All Darkness, Anita must come to terms with all the men surrounding her & try to complete the cats she calls. On top of it, Richard comes back & Anita doesn’t know if she can trust him again. Then we have an appearance by Haven & he is demanding Anita’s love, it’s all or nothing for Haven.

For you Anita fans, there is lots of Jean-Claude, Asher, Nathaniel & Richard time! Let me tell you, Richard really grows up in this book & Asher is still my absolute favorite. Micah is around but not as prominent as in other books in the series. There are new females introduced, which we haven’t really seen before in an Anita book, so we get to see how Anita interacts with new females. It also has a really dark & disturbing moment with child vampire Valentina, which totally creeped me out. She has to be the scariest vampire in any book I’ve read, children always scare me worse than anything but Valentina is just horrid.

Of course it wouldn’t be an Anita book without some hot romance scenes, I kid you not LKH is the only author that makes me squirm when I read her sex scenes. It got all sorts of hot at some points! *grabs a cold cloth*

What I found with Bullet was that it ties up a lot of loose information, from Asher & Jean-Claude to Richard and his issues. It’s closure for the old drama & setting up for a huge battle(s) in book 20 of the series. It also is a book of growth for Anita, she goes through some very bad experiences & has to either move on with her life or just breakdown. There’s completion & new openings, so you know book 20 is going to be something huge!

Thankfully Laurell K. Hamilton is currently writing book 20 in the series, so the wait isn’t going to be too long! Long time fans of the series will like Bullet, but book 20 is the one we’ll all be waiting for.(less)

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Nov 11, 2012 Jennifer Wardrip rated it 1 of 5 stars

I've been thinking for several days as to how I should review this book. I'm not an LKH-basher, even though I've been pretty tough on several of the last published novels. But in the end, I just have to go with how I feel.

Truth: I gagged my way through the first three chapters of BULLET, skimmed through a few more, and finally gave up. Some may say that reading only a few chapters of a book makes me incapable of writing a review, but I beg to differ. Let's begin....

The first chapter starts with...more I've been thinking for several days as to how I should review this book. I'm not an LKH-basher, even though I've been pretty tough on several of the last published novels. But in the end, I just have to go with how I feel.

Truth: I gagged my way through the first three chapters of BULLET, skimmed through a few more, and finally gave up. Some may say that reading only a few chapters of a book makes me incapable of writing a review, but I beg to differ. Let's begin....

The first chapter starts with Anita doing a favor for someone we've never heard of before. Said someone doesn't like Anita, Anita doesn't like her, and the only thing bringing them together is the need for a little boy's costume hat. Could have worked, except said five-year-old little boy wants to kiss Anita on the lips, like "all of the big boys do." The point? Even a little kid knows Anita is a whore. I apologize for the rough language, but please, let's call a spade a spade. It's gotten to the point where even CHILDREN in this series recognize that Anita Blake is nothing but a sex machine.

When the entire "ardeur" thing began, I went with it. I even understood the concept and reasoning behind it. But face it people - we've moved beyond Anita needing sex for power. She's now nothing more than a walking vagina. Anita Blake has sex because there's absolutely nothing else for her to do with ANY of the characters in this series! I've never met a character with such sex appeal. However Anita's doing it - making every single male and female (living or undead), want to have sex with her - she needs to bottle that up and sell it for a profit. She could not only have a "puppy pile," she could BUY a damn kennel!

And the sex? Puhleeease. Richard getting it on with Asher? Hello? Is this the same Richard who two books ago couldn't even stand to see Anita look at another guy, never mind know that she would no doubt end up having sex with them? I'm all for the male-male sex scene when the story calls for it, but there is no way in h-e-double-hockey-sticks that the REAL Richard would ever bring his naked body anywhere NEAR that of the scarred but deeply emotional Asher.

I could go on, but is there really a point? You're probably asking yourself why, if I'm so disgusted with the series, I continue to read it. And you would have a wonderful point, one that I've finally taken to heart. I WON'T be reading this series any longer. I've spent too much time waiting for it to get better - to be as good as the first four or five books - and realize now that my wait is pointless. It's not going to get better, ladies and gents. The downhill slide started a long time ago, and there is no hope for redemption as long as LKH continues to live out her Mary Sue fantasies through Anita Blake.

So, au revoir, Anita. It's been one heck of a ride, but this reader has finally come to her senses. After all, there are too many other decent books out there just waiting for me to read them. And just about anything else has got to be better than this.
(less)

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Jun 07, 2010 Julia rated it 1 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Gosh I wish there was a plot to this book...
Since there was so little going on I will use this review to note the issues that just seem to keep coming up:
1. Anita angsting over all the men - Can I just say that when she could avoid having to feed the ardeur as much by having a fucking cheeseburger she SHOULD feel like a whore.
2. As someone who loved the first few books when there was less sex and more story I have to say that I am mad at how little there is of Jean-Claude as the books go on. I k...more

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Nov 20, 2011 Beth rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: No one

Recommended to Beth by: Library

Shelves: brain-candy

LKH you've done it again. Another AB book with no plot, no resolution but oooh gobs of pointless sex of all varieties this time. Hey, but at least you're branching out. I keep picking up these books hoping the Anita of Obsidian Butterfly will come back. LKH never fails to disappoint.

Bullet actually starts out fairly well. There is the requisite vanilla opening in which all the main chars are in play. Anita is annoyed with someone and we get to "see" Nathaniel and Jason dance (do NOT get me star...more

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Mar 19, 2012 Stine rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: shifters, vampires, magic, paranormal, werewolves

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

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Jun 22, 2010 Linda rated it 1 of 5 stars

I am on chapter 22 and it is so ----- I cannot find the words to describe how boring this book
is. First of all Anita Blake - formally known as the Slayer of Vampires has turned into the Slut who has to sleep with pretty much any thing that breath's or undead and furry. What happened to the lady who kicks butt and takes names ? Please bring back the real Vampire Slayer !

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Jan 03, 2013 Elaine rated it 2 of 5 stars

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

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Feb 25, 2012 Vicky rated it 1 of 5 stars

I'm afraid this might be more of a series review then review specific to Bullet.
I first discovered this series around book 16. I was addicted from the first time I read a book. I loved it. The characters were interesting, the plots fascinating. A female vampire hunter and necromancer who also works closely with the police. Not often that you hear of a character with her fingers in so many pies. There was so much happening, so much suspense and thrill and mystery. Add in a certain vampire who wo...more

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Jul 16, 2010 Lesli rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: anita-blake, fantasy, contemporary, fiction, laurell-k-hamilton, 2010

First, LKH has lost me with the Anita Blake series. Like others, I read the books because it's like a train wreck. I just cannot look away. Second, I see flashes of brilliance mixed with the badly written soft porn. Third, I see flashes of the original Anita mixed with the new Anita. Fourth, I skipped most of the sex scenes because if you've read one Anita sex scene, you've read them all. Lastly, I actually liked this book. Bad sex, over-sharing of the back story, weird Anita...I still started t...more

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Apr 10, 2011 Crystal rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2011

What a complete waste of what used to be an interesting character and series. I was rolling my eyes by page 3, and just tossed the book down halfway through. This is a complete mess of sex and violence and hand-wringing, emo writing. It reads like the worst kind of fanfiction. I had hopes after the last book that we'd be getting back to the Anita Blake of old, but with this book, I am finally, completely done.

SPOILER ALERT!!!!

The worst part? The neutering of Richard. He has four months of thera...more

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Oct 15, 2011 Jenn rated it 2 of 5 stars

I miss the good ol' Anita days where she'd kill the monsters instead of screw their brains out.

Don't get me wrong, I love me a fantastically written sex scene but when a menage with Jean-Claude, Asher, Richard & Anita makes me yawn and go "Yeah...so?" it's a bit of a downer.

I miss when the series had plot.

So many scenes in this book felt superfluous. What was the point of the whole "Run Anita Run!" scene in the basement of Circus of the Damned other than to show that she's got the biggest b...more

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Jan 09, 2011 Bec rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampire, raunchy, witch-magic, were-shifter, ménage

This is a review of the whole series, because I can't remember all the books individually, especially the last, say 12, as they became a mass of twisted sweaty and occasionally furry limbs.

This series starts out strong, Anita Blake is a tough talking ass-kicking necromancer. She raises zombies for a living, mostly to settle wills, and give evidence in trails etc. Cool idea, really. She's magic, she's talented, so talented and magic, of course she's the best but hasn't realised it yet, as is typi...more

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Aug 07, 2011 The Holy Terror rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: vampires, werewolves, shifters, borrowed, paranormal-erotica, wtf-is-wrong-with-me, hated-this-book, hate-this-series, you-are-dead-to-me, terrible-writing, forgot-to-drink-the-kool-aid, 2010

I never wrote a review for this one, even though I meant to. I moved across the country right after I finished this, and even though I kept notes, I've just never gotten around to writing a proper review. Please read my status updates if you're curious why I gave this 1 star. I sometimes find it hard to properly convey my absolute RAGE with this series, but my knee-jerk reactions to various passages are pretty accurate portrayals of my overall feelings. I can't help but think I'm doing my friend...more

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Jun 05, 2010 Ruby rated it 1 of 5 stars

Please, LKH, for the love of God, give us an Anita Blake installment where the sex to plot ratio isn't 1000:1. Less fucking, more plot, and PLEASE STOP TALKING ABOUT EVERYONE'S FEELINGS.

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Nov 09, 2010 ♥ ♥Lynn ♥ ♥ rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: laurell-k-hamilton, vampires, shifters, paranormal-romance, necromancer, urban-fantasy, read-in-2010, july-2010

I really use to love the Anita Blake series. The last couple of books have just not been that great for me. There is just not enough plot to go along with Anita sleeping with everyone. It is annoying. Batman never looked at Robin and said, "Come Robin, we can save the world if we have sex with everyone within reach," It didn't make sense then or now. Come on LKH!!! Give Anita back her cool job, though I have to say, I am not sure if Anita's can use her nercomancer powers to bring this series bac...more

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Dec 21, 2012 Nic Echo rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: anita-blake, laurell-k-hamilton, urban-fantasy, vampire

About the Book:
In the 19th Anita Blake novel, our heroine is struggling with several dilemmas. First off, it turns out that Marmee Noir is not dead and is now possessing members of the Council. To add to that, there are also issues going on inside of the Circus. Haven, one of Anita's lovers and werelion, is throwing jealousy fits to the extreme so much that he is even hurting some of the lesser lions. Then, Anita is also having to help with a police case while assassins after after Jean-Claude,...more About the Book:
In the 19th Anita Blake novel, our heroine is struggling with several dilemmas. First off, it turns out that Marmee Noir is not dead and is now possessing members of the Council. To add to that, there are also issues going on inside of the Circus. Haven, one of Anita's lovers and werelion, is throwing jealousy fits to the extreme so much that he is even hurting some of the lesser lions. Then, Anita is also having to help with a police case while assassins after after Jean-Claude, Richard, and herself.

Review:
Wow, I honestly don't know where to start with this. There is just so much that I think I'll actually go through the book instead of my overall view that I tend to do. After that, I will probably do some more overviews. This book was just a mess. First off, I'd like to say it had almost nothing to do with the official blurb that is on the back of the book.

Anita Blake is back in St. Louis and trying to live a normal life-as normal as possible for someone who is a legal vampire executioner and a U. S. Marshal. There are lovers, friends and their children, school programs to attend. In the midst of all the ordinary happiness a vampire from Anita's past reaches out. She was supposed to be dead, killed in an explosion, but the Mother of All Darkness is the first vampire, their dark creator. It's hard to kill a god. This dark goddess has reached out to her here-in St. Louis, home of everyone Anita loves most. The Mother of All Darkness has decided she has to act now or never, to control Anita, and all the vampires in America.

The Mother of All Darkness believes that the triumvirate created by master vampire Jean-Claude with Anita and the werewolf Richard Zeeman has enough power for her to regain a body and to immigrate to the New World. But the body she wants to possess is already taken. Anita is about to learn a whole new meaning to sharing her body, one that has nothing to do with the bedroom. And if the Mother of All Darkness can't succeed in taking over Anita's body for herself, she means to see that no one else has the use of it, ever again. Even Belle Morte, not always a friend to Anita, has sent word: "Run if you can..."

I am not even going to touch the atrocious grammar for that blurb (which was just as horrible in the actual book). However, reading this blurb you would think most of the book would revolve around Marmee Noir trying to take over Anita. It doesn't. Seriously, I think maybe an eighth of the book related to Mommy Dearest, and even then, it was never her directly. Mommy Dearest worked through three people: Belle Morte, Padma, and Morte d'Amor. You would also think that Mommy Dearest ends up possessing Anita from the blurb. Nothing even close.

In fact, ignore the official blurb, because only a smidgen of it actually occurs in the books. Actually, the entire Bullet novel seemed like nothing more than a whole bunch of short stories put together. Few of them had little to do with the overall plot. For example, we open up to Anita and company at a dance recital that ranges from tiny tots to high school seniors. So why is she there? One: she is dropping off Matthew's hat because his mother, Monica, who hasn't even been mentioned since book six (and I had to look that up so you can tell how important she has been), forgot it. The other reason she is there is to watch Jason and Nathaniel dance with some of the senior girls. Yes, apparently, there are no older men in this dance school so they had to get the local strippers, and, of course, they are the best there easily. Now, maybe this dance recital wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't three chapters. Yes, Hamilton drags us through three entire chapters of nothing but useless crap that has nothing to do with the plot.

Use of language in review so I'm not sure if it's GoodReads acceptable. Please, read the rest at my blog.(less)

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Nov 19, 2012 Matt Schiariti rated it 1 of 5 stars

time for me to face the facts. There is no hope for this series to get back to the interesting, plot driven stories from which it stemmed. I've been holding on to hope since what I like to call the Post Obsydian Butterfly Ardeur Tailspin, but it's gotten progressively worse (with the exception of Harlequin which was as close to the original form the series had gotten to since the overemphasis on sex and drawn out soul searching conversation) and Bullet is BY FAR the WORST Anita Blake 'Vampire Hu...more time for me to face the facts. There is no hope for this series to get back to the interesting, plot driven stories from which it stemmed. I've been holding on to hope since what I like to call the Post Obsydian Butterfly Ardeur Tailspin, but it's gotten progressively worse (with the exception of Harlequin which was as close to the original form the series had gotten to since the overemphasis on sex and drawn out soul searching conversation) and Bullet is BY FAR the WORST Anita Blake 'Vampire Hunter' novel there has been to date.

To read the Amazon synopsis you'd think that the plot involved primarily the Mother of All Darkness coming back from the grave (well, vamp grave I guess?) to throw a beat down on AB and those (the multitudes, that is) closest to her.

But it's NOT. It's more of the same ole same ole as it were. If you're looking for a coherent plot, look elsewhere. If you're looking for scene after scene of thoughtless sex then this could be a book for you. However, not only is the sex uninteresting but it's starting to try to be edgy for the sake of BEING edgy. There are alot of alternative lifestyle passages in this book. Which is fine. I'm not that uptight where I mind gay and bisexual characters or themes in my books unless a) there is no point and b) there are characters who are acting so far OUT of character that it just reduces plausibility to zero.

Here are some other things you can expect from Bullet (a title I still can't understand given the conent)

F bombs aplenty! Anita sure starts to talk like a sailor on leave these days
Pretty men with long flowing hair.
Said pretty men who adore Anita for some unknown reason. Perhaps because she's a sexual savant?
Anita bending more people to her will and not seeing that as a bad thing.
Anita making everything over complex.
Anita still trying to play the 'moral and good person clause'. Sorry, she stopped being both a long time ago.
Repetitious language and dialogue.
About 30 pages of plot interspersed amongst the multi partnered sex scenes.
Once powerful main characters being emasculated and always deferring to Anita.
So many characters (how many colors of tiger ARE there?!?!) that you can't tell if they're new or recently introduced or showed up several novels back.
Old favorite characters still MIA.

LKH is really trying to walk a fine line between erotica and out and out filth but she can't stick with the former and just won't own the latter.

That being said, Anita Blake is no longer likable. She used to be tough as nails, had lines she wouldn't cross. She may not have been sweet and lovable but at least you could respect her. When the character crosses all those lines and still swears they're good..when the character's ONLY hobby is having multi partnered sex..when the main character throws the word 'love' around so much so that it totally loses meaning...well, how can any one relate, or even enjoy for that matter, reading that? (less)

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Oct 05, 2012 Raul rated it 3 of 5 stars

So, after taking a break from the Anita Blake series a few years back, I returned to it last week. First, let me say that I absolutely loved this series, from the first book I read when I was sixteen, to the moment I finished Hit List last week. However... this book. I'm at odds with this book. It simultaneously holds two aspects of the series; one which I absolutely loved, and another that I absolutely loathe.

The sex. Originally, I absolutely loved the idea of the ardeur and feeding off sex. I...more So, after taking a break from the Anita Blake series a few years back, I returned to it last week. First, let me say that I absolutely loved this series, from the first book I read when I was sixteen, to the moment I finished Hit List last week. However... this book. I'm at odds with this book. It simultaneously holds two aspects of the series; one which I absolutely loved, and another that I absolutely loathe.

The sex. Originally, I absolutely loved the idea of the ardeur and feeding off sex. It came a little out of nowhere, but regardless I loved it. I loved Belle Morte, her introduction, and Anita's new powers. But this book just took it too far. The ardeur now feels like a way for the author to have Anita have sex with everyone. The BDSM scene felt so contrived and forced and what the hell happened to Richard? I can't even deal with that. The first part of this book had me just facepalm-ing and putting my kindle down because really? I don't read for two years and this is what I come back to? And don't even get me started on Belle Morte's and Padma's random interjection. In all seriousness, I am SO glad that the gigantic orgy was skipped over, because if she had described it, I would've thrown my e-reader out the window, and I'd be kindle-less and really pissed off. Also, at this point, I hated Haven and was glad he died. I honestly just skip the sex scenes now, 'cause they're so dumb. Like, I don't CARE about Asher's and Jean-Claude's relationship, and I REALLY don't care about Richard's new narcissistic personality. I did like the girl-on-girl touch, though; it showed some evolution on Anita's part, so that was cool.

However, one of the things I REALLY liked about the series was its metaphysics, magical and psychic powers. The second half of the book, when the whole were-tiger thing came in and Marmee Noir resurfaced was great! I loved the whole idea of the golden tigers and the Harlequin returning! I loved everything about it, and it honestly made me glad I continued reading the book! At some points, I saw the return of the Anita that I loved, and a version of the character that I liked come back. The plot could've used some work, but it was ultimately entertaining, and that is the only reason I am giving the book those three stars.

As for the writing, LKH needs to like stop describing the unimportant so damn much. Like, I don't exactly care how everyone is seated, and it's nice that you mentioned it, but I don't a need a whole ode to how they're sitting and what they look like. Also, the fashion: omg, stop. One thing that REALLY bugged me was the whole "negra gatita" thing. Lisandro, the latino character, talks about this nickname they gave her, calling her their black kitten, which is cute. I liked it. However, the nickname was in spanish: you can TELL that LKH didn't even try with this, because the name is in the wrong order. Seriously? It should be "gatita negra" not "negra gatita" and it really bugs me! Because it even comes up on Google Translate in the correct way, and the fact that should couldn't check this one thing (that was obviousl important or else it wouldn't even be there), just makes me wonder what she is doing with the rest of this series. (less)

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Sep 02, 2012 Brandi rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: no one

Shelves: train-wreck, 2012

"How to Write Like LKH," by Me

1) I gave him _______.

a) the look the comment deserved
b) blank cop face
c) a look that wasn't friendly
d) a smile that I knew didn't reach my eyes
e) all of the above, many times throughout the book

2) What _____?

a) does that mean
b) the **** does that mean
c) is that supposed to mean
d) all of the above, on every page

3) He had the ______.

a) palest blue eyes I've ever seen
b) bluest eyes I've ever seen
c) longest hair I've ever seen
d) greenest eyes I've ever seen
e) darkest b...more

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Aug 11, 2012 Judy rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: adult, hilariously-bad, read-in-2012

Some random thoughts about this book. There may be spoilers, if anyone cares.

Boring beginning.

Anita whines and complains about stuff she does, feels guilty. "Who me?" when people tell her she is beautiful. Blah blah.

Not as much sex in this one, thankfully.

Richard had a brain transplant. Anita actually had to kill someone, but nobody cared because he wasn't that important. Jean-Claude just says "ma petite" a lot and doesn't do much vampire stuff. Asher has a temper tantrum.

The vampire civil w...more

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Jul 12, 2012 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ok, so this isn't the best of the series, but it's certainly not the worst. There's no cop storyline in this one, but there's a ton of vampire politics. The Mother of All Vampires isn't dead (of course), the vampire council is in chaos, the Harlequin makes another appearance...it's all very interesting, actually. Watching the vampire society come apart at the seams was fun.

There's still Anita's magical collecting of men, but it doesn't seem so blatant in this one, for whatever reason. There's s...more

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Jul 09, 2012 Raine rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: paranormal-romance

I used to be an avid Laurell K. Hamilton fan. I read every new Anita Blake book the moment of release, sometimes reading the whole book in half a day. That is until “Narcissus in Chains” and the ardeur. After that I had a growing sense of ennui with the inferior plots and the extreme magnitude of over the top sexual encounters. Do not get me wrong, I am a girl who likes her books a bit on the smutty side but not to the point where it sabotages the plot. Sometime around “The Harlequin” I started...more I used to be an avid Laurell K. Hamilton fan. I read every new Anita Blake book the moment of release, sometimes reading the whole book in half a day. That is until “Narcissus in Chains” and the ardeur. After that I had a growing sense of ennui with the inferior plots and the extreme magnitude of over the top sexual encounters. Do not get me wrong, I am a girl who likes her books a bit on the smutty side but not to the point where it sabotages the plot. Sometime around “The Harlequin” I started looking around the internet to see if I was just becoming excessively modest or if other fans were doing the same eye roll over her books. What I found was that I was not alone in wondering what was happening to our beloved Anita. However instead of Ms. Hamilton addressing this issue to her fans with any type of empathy or apology she simply dismissed her longtime fans with responses to the tune of arrogance because her books are still selling. Between the afore mentioned ennui and a growing irritation at Ms. Hamilton herself I stopped reading Anita Blake books after Skin Trade.

During a recent visit to the library I picked up “Bullet” (I am so far out of the loop on the Anita Blake series I did not even realize this was not the next one after “Skin Trade”) and decided to give the series another go after my three year hiatus. I will have to say that I am pleasantly surprised that it was not all erotica like some of her past books have been. One chapter could have quickly gotten out of hand with a massive orgy but instead it was just implied, and the reader only found out about the after effect. Her stories do have a little more depth to them now, but it still feels like she has so many ideas that the plot is very thin. The main story line involving the Mother of All Darkness was diluted with so many other plots that it was hard to focus on where the story was going. There were several subplots that did not have a purpose for being there and many that were resolved as an afterthought in the final chapter. Ms. Hamilton still has the problem of digressing from the task that the characters are on with a lot of mindless chatter. I am happy to see that she is not writing Anita as naïve and angry as she once did.

While still not as well written or as entertaining as the earlier books in this series it did restore some faith in one of my favorite modern literary characters. I will be checking out the others, and I am hoping that the newest one does not take forever to hit my library!
(less)

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Dec 30, 2011 Alexandra Middleton rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-that-suck

Uh... I really am lost for words. Let me just qualify that I haven't finished, nor do intend to finish this book. It was seriously one of THE worst books I've ever picked up off a shelf. I don't know why LKH is still in print - even her editor must've had the sense to leave after around book 9 (I mean, c'mon, people. Typos!).
I skipped the whole dance recital part since most reviews said it was pointless, and then I flicked to the part where Asher is going off on one. She has RUINED my favourite...more

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Nov 12, 2011 Amy rated it 1 of 5 stars

This was horrible. While I am slightly invested in the storyline after 15+ books, it seems the author has run out of fresh ideas. Paragraphs feel like they were lifted word-for-word from previous books -- repeatedly and often!

The sex scenes are way too long, and quite frankly boring. They're simultaneously too descriptive and totally unclear as to what exactly is going on. Four pages to describe the orgasm and a vague sentence alluding to what caused it is just plain annoying. I have no problem...more

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Nov 05, 2011 1000 + rated it 3 of 5 stars

So I've been anxiously awaiting the release of Bullet and was really excited due to some of the authors comments on the characters that would be in the book.

Rough summary is: the Mother of All Darkness was NOT killed and has pieces of her self in each member of the Vampire council. She is after Anita and Jean Claude. The Lover of Death starts killing in Atlanta. Lots of metaphysical shit happen (Anitra tries to strengthen their power base by become the Master of Tigers and ties more Tigers to he...more

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About Laurell K. Hamilton

Laurell K. Hamilton is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of two series that mix mystery, fantasy, magic, horror and romance. Her Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novels from Berkley Books began with GUILTY PLEASURES and continues to thrive with over sixteen volumes to the series and an comic adaptation. There are now more than 6 million copies of Anita in print worldwide, in 16 languages. Hamilt...more

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Books by Laurell K. Hamilton

Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #1)

Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #3)

The Laughing Corpse (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #2)

The Lunatic Cafe (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #4)

Bloody Bones (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #5)

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Quotes from Bullet

“Some moments are perfect, and then someone comes along and f*cks it up. Ain't it always the way.” — 106 people liked it

“Regrets are about decisions that you know you should have done different.” — 98 people liked it

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Bullet (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #19)

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