Ladies who love Laurell discussion
Makes me so mad!
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by
Lori
(new)
Oct 23, 2008 06:46AM
I know I'm just a tad obsessed with these books but I really hate it when I'm reading a review and the person goes off on a tangent about how it's just porn and no plot. I read one yesterday for Incubus Dreams and it was the first book in the series she had ever read!! Why would you start a series with the 12th book and then trash it in your review. Part of the whole experience of these books is growing with the characters and seeing how they change over the years. I'm so invested in these characters now that I want to know everything about them. It's the relationships that keep me reading. While I also love the crime drama and suspense of the books, that's not what makes these books irresistible for me. If you have not taken the time to invest yourself in the characters then of course you're not going to enjoy them like you should. Sorry...I just had to rant for a minute.
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I am SO with you on every point noted above. How could they even understand ANYTHING jumping head first into any series 12 books in. Anita is just way more complicated than that. I am also so sick of "It's just porn" or "it's all sex". I work at a Borders and I had a guy come in and buy all the Merry books in one swoop. I asked him if he had read Anita and he said yeah, I just read them all straight through so now I need another fix. I asked him what he thought about the negative criticism about all the sex and no plot. He was like it so much more than that and the part that he loved about it was how much she would beat her self up about having to have sex with another person. The internal conflicts are great!!! I was so surprised to see a male who had the same passion for LKH that we chicks do :)
I agree with both of you. I also hate hearing someone bash the fans who still love AB calling us and I quote " mindless followers who don't know great books from the back of their own ass" I believe if you are a true lover of Anita you can apprieciate the growth she has gone through and the struggles she stil have to face with her Harem of men. I personally love reading her growth and no I'm not a mindless follower I just don't like stagnant characters who never show any growth.
Yes!!!!!!! That's why i LOVE LOVE LOVE this group!!!! So yesterday i was reading LKH's blog, and she was talking about her grandmother in one of the posts, and how 10 yrs after she got married she had a baby and i was thinking does LKH have 2 kids?? (does anyone know if Trinity is a younger sib??) But anyway i tried to look online for the answer and founf the LKh wiki, and was SO MAD to see that they spent half the wiki talking about all the negative reviews about the sex!!!! Then they added one sentence that basically said that there were a few fans out there that still enjoyed the books. A FEW???!!!!! No way, look at LKH, bestseller. All of these people who are talking the trash are obviously still reading...which means they like something right????Anita is FLIPPIN AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ok here's what they said:While some readers have expressed their dislike, there are a number of fans who consistently express their approval of the series.[13:] In addition, there are fans who liked the beginning of the series, are not so thrilled about where the series is going, but still read the series because they like the characters.[14
AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
they make me SO MADD!!!!
I love you guys. *g* I so hate that I have to constantly defend this series. Especially when people are passing on the "all porn" reviews and they themselves haven't even read the books, they're just going on "their friend's" opinion.
I will admit there is a change in tone in the later books, and the books become more character-centric and less plot-centric. But I still think the later books are as good, or better than the early ones.
Cat, Laurell just has one daughter. I think she was talking about when her mother had her.
I for one love the sex I remember reading the earlier books and thinking " when is she going to get some,especially from Jean Claude" I'm no prude but some of the stuff that happens in the later books make me blush and I love it.
I love the sex too Jael. I eagerly await the next romp for Anita and the gang and sometimes wish I could read through the other stuff quicker to get to it. *sigh* I guess that speaks volumes to what kind of purvette I really am. Or maybe it speaks volumes to how long I've gone without!
LOL@ Lori trust me I get plenty and still love reading it. I love the emotions that go into it. It's not just sex there are connections there.
Thanks M'lady, that's what i thought, but i got confused when she was telling the story....and yes the sex does make me blush, but thats what she says, that she wants to make the sex real, and the violence real. People who say all the stuff about the later books should compare it to some of the more gruesome descriptions in the early books (Remember Olaf and the mutilated body parts)
Your welcome, Cat.People who say all the stuff about the later books should compare it to some of the more gruesome descriptions in the early books (Remember Olaf and the mutilated body parts)
When they talk about a tv show or movie, the idea of the violence scares me more than the sex. With "The Laughing Corpse" and "Obsidian Butterfly" she had very grotesque creatures that would translate to total gore on screen. *shudders*
Mod
Plus naked Jean Claude is always good.
Rock on, girls!!! You've all said exactly what I've been thinking, in so many words. Anita has grown so much from the beginning of the series. She was basically a loner who didn't get emotionally involved with the people she deals with day to day. Now, not only is Anita a fighter, but she's a fighter for those who need protection. Like when she acknowledges to herself that here's another person who's made it to "the list". That list of people she would kill to keep safe. I simply adore that about her. The conflicting emotions she has around her sexual situation just makes her not only an interesting character, but a vulnerable/fallable one. Who wants to read about a perfect prude who always does the right thing?
AMEN LORI!!! I agree with you wholeheartedly!
What can I add? I think anything's said by you all. Maybe one thing:It doesn't matter what other people think of her because:
WE LOVE ANITA!!!
I'll admit, I was one of those people a few books back that was disappointed in the amount of sex, but not for the reasons that some people would say and I in no way thought it was porn (or even soft porn). This is just my opinion, so no one get mad and I'm not in any way speaking for the nuts out there that just want to complain and complain (although they keep reading them) about the amount of sex in Hamilton's books.
For me, I started to became disappointed a few books back, because I felt like the sex was over shadowing the story itself. I have no problem with sex scenes, but I felt that we had chapters and chapters of sex, but very little storyline itself (it felt like only a couple of chapters) and I missed the grit of the story that the earlier books had. I love the actual storyline and the characters, but worried that it was taking a back seat to the wonderful (and I do mean wonderful) sex scenes. That being said, I was happy that she found a way to balance it out more in the past couple of books and the story is back on track. I guess, it was an evolution of sorts, to which I evolved with it.
Like I said, I love the books (including the sex) and will keep reading them for as long as LKH is writing them.
Please don't be mad. :)
I think, no one will be mad at you! Like you said: "The story is back on track!" And you are, too ;)!
It's cool to finally join a group that understands character growth. My friends all dropped the AB series because Anita has changed so much and all the sex. It seems childish to not finish a book because it's not going how YOU think it should, this is LK's baby and it will develop how she wants it too. I Love the merry sereis, especially Swallowing Darkness, and the AB series is back on track too. good things come to those who wait. :)
I agree. You have to have growth and it's silly for people out there to think that there won't be any. I always had a funny description for how the sex was over shadowing the actual storyline a few books back.
Here it goes.....
"Anita...there's someone busting down the door, we have to hurry and kick their ass" and Anita says "but wait....the arduer is rising and we have to have sex before we go any where".
LOL!!!
I kid....it wasn't that bad, but for a bit there...it felt like it.
Like I said, I was glad to see more of the story coming to the forfront again.
You mentioned the Merry series, which I LOVE too and the sex scenes in there are some of the BEST OUT THERE!!!!
This is why I joined this group! Very well said Lori, and almost everyone else pretty much spot on with how I feel... I am 100% happy with how the series is and how Anita has grown and am also tired of these bitchy prudes who give the books bad reviews.
Only thing I say for them is if they got laid more often perhaps they wouldn't be so grumpy! /giggles
ahah you're too cute Tricia! yeah I can't live without my Anita Fix lol. I'm a newbie to the series but honestly can't stand people who flip out about the books. GROW UP!!! if you don't like it why do you read the next book? oh that's right to continue to complain.
Hey everybody, Im new, and I joined to comment on this thread in particular. I have been reading the Anita Blake series for years, and I am a dude. I love the books, but I do think it is unfair that all of you seem to be trashing the sex haters. Now, dont get me wrong, Sex in books is Fine, it is great, and a book without it would be less of a book.I do however feel that there needs to be a balance and lately the balance has shifted. I'll be honest, I think that its going in a bad direction yet I still read them. Most of them I have read Multiple times.
I think what Im really missing is the growth of Anita's powers, though in recent books she is controlling the arduer better, which I think is good.
Its all about balance, and it seems to be stabilizing.
Id like to see more development on the Richard front, I used to like Richard (though not as much as Jean Claude), but now I really hate any scene he is in. He always hurts Anita and I wish she could just knock him out.
Id also like to see more development on the Damien front, I find his character lacking, he makes me think of a walking stress ball.
The other thing Id like to see worked on is the Lycanthrope business, mainly Im burning to find out if Anita will shapeshift! I really hope she does join the world of the Supernaturaly Beefy (I know she's already strong, she punched a vamp so hard his freakin head spun, but she could still stand to get some more muscles!). Mainly I hope that if she actually shifts she'll be a much better Nimir Ra for her panthers.
Very good points and I agree with you all all accounts.Well except for one.. and that's the sex.. but to each their own in what they like.
I dont think the sex is bad! I just think there is a teensy bit too much of it recently, like I said, the its all about balance, and that seems to be stabilizing somewhat (I think of it like a graph, in the beginning there was none, then a steady climb, and Im hoping that it will "peak" and then go to a somewhat more reasonable level, say cut it down by 1/3rd).The way I look at it is, the sex means more when there is less of it, emotionally speaking (my opinions on this are different in real life, :P, IRL, more is definitely bettah!). If you put too much of it in a book, it looses some of the weight that it has.
But thats just me. I was really happy with the last book.
No I get what you are saying, I just see how there is a need for it in the way the storyline is progressing.Though like I said I agree with your other points.. I want to see everything you mentioned, especially on the Damien front.
Mod
Whats funny is I really like reading books and also trying to get a copy of the audiobook. If there is a good reader for the audiobook its like you can close your eyes and have the best version of the book turned into a mental movie.Now imagine all the sex on the audiobooks! Definitely turn your volume down or invest in comfy headphones!
Are her books out on audio?! That would be interesting to hear lol
Yeah allot of them are, I dont have the whole AB series in Audiobook. Laurell actually mentioned it on her site recently (http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/) under the picture of "Swallowing Darkness".The link she gives is just to an audiobook vendor but here is a link to the Search I did (I searched for Laurell K. Hamilton).
http://www.audiobookstand.com/quickse...
It appears that some of the older books where only released on cassette tape so you're going to have to browse around ebay or get them through less scrupulous means.
Mod
Michael I see your point. I think the sex is important to the story line and i understand she has to do it but we don't need to have 4 pages of graphic discriptions EACH time, It would move the story faster and offened less of the prude audience if she breezed over the less important scenes, Like normal daily feedings.
Thats my biggest point that you are proving Jiaka though.If you are prude please don't pick up books with sex and then complain about them and bash the author. Period.
It's not just the prude that complain though, my best friends a total slut but won't read the books anymore. Sher says that the plot doesnt move anymore etc etc.. I however read erotica in my spare time so these books don't bother me as much as others i know who read them. I'm just saying that i can see why people are turned off by it. But i don't agre with the book bashing either.
Well, I see your point Tricia, but you have to remember that the AB series was not always so sex-centric. If it where a story of book 1 - end book with tons of sex then you would be right.Again, I was one of those people reading the first books in the series thinking "Man, I wonder when Anita is going to get some, srsly now girl needs to unwind a bit!"
I think it would go along way if some of the feedings where less described and the actualy important sex scenes where lavished with attention.
Im all for LKH finding a balance, :), and that means I dont want her to suddenly go ivory white on us either!
Oh I didnt make that comment directed *at* you Jiaka.Bu I know people who bash the author and her books because they dont like reading sex... and that bothers me quite a bit.
Balance would be nice :)
I guess to some fans it seems like a bait and switch. They hook you with an action mystery bad ass, and it turns into a dark erotica romance novel. (playing devils advocate, don't attack me, I love LKH)
I can see that. And thats unfortunate too. But I really like the story line how it is.. and even when the sex was excessive I knew it was because there was a need for it due to the story :)
I see how it relates to the story too, which is why i still read them. I started on the Merry series which is ALL about sex.
I think most fans who are really upset about the sex in the series have the feeling that LKH has become lazy. They feel that sex sells and so that whats getting injected into the series.I understand that the sexploits in the series is used to engender vulnerability in Anita while also fostering trusting relationships with the other characters in the books. She has this crazy whacked out power thats messing with her life and she cant control it, it makes her vulnerable and needy, things she never was before. It's allowed her to take leaps forward with her ability to trust and overall shes much happier because of it.
I knew there was going to be a period where she has to do what she has to do. Im happy to see that she's got it more under control and I think that the plot will be able to move forward at a quicker pace than it had since the arduer rose up.
Michael wrote: I understand that the sexploits in the series is used to engender vulnerability in Anita while also fostering trusting relationships with the other characters in the books.I think that's why I preferred the sex scenes in "Narcissus in Chains" through "Incubus Dreams" over those in the more recent books. At first all of Anita's new lovers (beyond Jean-Claude and Richard) were men she already knew and cared for: Asher, Damian, Nathaniel, and Jason. The exception being Micah.
But from "Incubus Dreams" on, she's been sleeping with people she barely knows. Those are the people I'd like to see weeded out as she gets the ardeur under control.
Oh I totally agree, there was that scene in Cerulean Sins where she has sex with Requiem and that other vamp (I think it was London? Hes the one who calls Anita Duckie right?) and then a few scenes later she has to get down with Requiem in the backseat of the car with that were watching. Then later that night she gets it on with Jean Claude. Which is GREAT BUT, by that point I was miffed about the Requiem/London/RandomWereICantRemeber bit.
All the London vamps showed up in "Incubus Dreams". The scene with Nathaniel looking on was with Requiem and Byron.But then that was also the first book where she was intimate with Nathaniel.
Yeah I guess Incubus Dreams was when it change from sex with her close friends to strangers. The portions with her main squeezes where good but the Byron/Requiem thing wasn't needed in my opinion.
I agree. Requiem and the other London vamps always felt like they were being forced on her. I also thought the Graham storyline in "Danse Macabre" was pretty creepy. Graham didn't even want Anita, he wanted the ardeur.
Wow, this thread sure came alive again. Here's something I posted on my Myspace blog. I cleaned up the language a little :)It's no secret that I'm a huge Anita Blake fan and get rather passionate in my defense of all the sex in the later books. I hear the same complaints all the time. They started out really good and then about half way into the series they become nothing but porn...blah, blah, blah. The sex is what makes Anita become a human being instead of just a zombie raising killing machine. It's the relationships between all of the characters that drives the story and leaves you breathless for the next book. The other thing that really pisses me off is the person who picks up, oh let's say Cerulean Sins, the 11th book in the series and then gives it a scathing review. How can you start any series in the middle and expect to really understand it and enjoy it? You can't. And you've done a huge disservice to the author, the fans, and yourself when you do that. This series is all about the slow build. It's a layering of characters, emotions and power that builds one on top of the other as the series progresses. Anita is undergoing her own metamorphosis. She's transformed from a rigid bitch into a sexual siren. Her harem of sexy bed partners is every woman's fantasy...well, as long as you're into vamps, wereswolves, werecats and being the creamy fiilling between a Jean Claude & Asher sandwich. I, for one, appreciate being able to live vicariously through her sexual adventures. You go girl.
I will concede that I don't really like it when she's forced to have sex with strangers. I much prefer her interactions with the inner circle. I do feel though that the sex is important for the growth of Anita and I think we will find a better balance going forward.
Lori wrote: I will concede that I don't really like it when she's forced to have sex with strangers. I much prefer her interactions with the inner circle. I do feel though that the sex is important for the growth of Anita and I think we will find a better balance going forward.Of course. That's not to say some of the interactions with new men weren't there to push the story forward or make Anita realize something.
Like the scene with Requiem and Byron. That was more about the fact that Anita and Nathaniel couldn't touch, and that Nathaniel liked watching Anita being held down.
Or the scene with Auggie, which was the first push to Anita letting Jean-Claude and Asher truly be together.
I just prefer the scenes where she's with loved ones. I'm not the "sleep with the guy on the first date" type and Anita isn't that way naturally.
Mod
Aside from my earlier comments i just wanted to say that i do agree that there was a lot of sex in some of the books (c'mon we CAN agree on that) but i think that it was all in context with the metaphysical problems that Anita was having. As soon as she started having a better handle on the ardeur, the sex started decreasing. And now that she's given some of the ardeur to Richard, we'll see less casual sex with her (but probably some with him) I think that while some feel that the books where there were a lot of sex scenes could have some of those scenes "grazed over" rather than written in such detail, they need to understand that Laurell needed for us to understand how serious a problem it really was. Also when i read the books for the second time, i realized that each of those scenes helped Anita come to some realizations about her powers and their capabilities as well as making progress within herself metaphysically.
it's pathetic, isn't it! I mean, we know better to listen to reviewers, but many people out there are going to take this person's word for it. I really hate when a book or author is built up and up and up, and then the book itself is so frigging bad you end up lining the cat box with it. You know, I guess I never really saw the ardeur as a problem, but it is, isn't it? Being intimate with someone meant so much to Anita at one time, and this need and hunger drove her to do things she wouldn't have dreamed of. And, she has to learn to live with herself. The hard part for her is the people around her; Dolf, Ronnie, even Edward and his cronies. I am rereading all, in prep for ST. Forgot how much Jean-Claude really distressed her in the beginning.
Thank God for the library! so I don't have to waste (too much) money on those books. I really love the whole pre-order thing on Amazon and B&N.
Lori wrote: "I know I'm just a tad obsessed with these books but I really hate it when I'm reading a review and the person goes off on a tangent about how it's just porn and no plot. I read one yesterday for I..."
