![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Skin Trade, by Laurell K. Hamilton
Aug. 10th, 2009 11:31 pmSkin Trade
by Laurell K. Hamilton
486 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Miracle of miracles, I think Hamilton is becoming increasingly more readable. Her most recent Anita books have had noticeably less sex and more plot. I approve and will be going back to read some of her earliest Anita Blake books if/when I have the time/inclination. I find that it's best to approach Hamilton like an episodic TV show; Anita reminds me of what I imagine Buffy would be like. (Note that I have no actual experience with Buffy.) If you think too hard, it's unrealistic that Anita keeps getting into this much trouble, every single book--but these books are not meant for heavy thinking. I do appreciate Hamilton's overarching plot and the small movements in it.
Not much of Jean-Claude or Nathaniel in this one, though, which is sad to me.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
486 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Miracle of miracles, I think Hamilton is becoming increasingly more readable. Her most recent Anita books have had noticeably less sex and more plot. I approve and will be going back to read some of her earliest Anita Blake books if/when I have the time/inclination. I find that it's best to approach Hamilton like an episodic TV show; Anita reminds me of what I imagine Buffy would be like. (Note that I have no actual experience with Buffy.) If you think too hard, it's unrealistic that Anita keeps getting into this much trouble, every single book--but these books are not meant for heavy thinking. I do appreciate Hamilton's overarching plot and the small movements in it.
Not much of Jean-Claude or Nathaniel in this one, though, which is sad to me.
Swallowing Darkness
by Laurell K. Hamilton
365 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Fantasy
I'll keep this short. Does Hamilton know how to plot without the mortal-danger trope? There are seriously too many instances of Merry's loved ones on the brink of death but miraculously saved, and no one important (to the reader) dies. Too many miracles, not enough consequences, especially concerning Frost and the other guards. (Although Merry/Doyle/Frost is still a cute threesome.) And is this possibly the end of the series? It ends at a good place and echoes the very first book; but Merry is still pregnant.
Also, only 1.5 sex scenes! That must be some sort of record for Hamilton. But the plot is exceptionally implausible in this book, so it evens out.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
365 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Fantasy
I'll keep this short. Does Hamilton know how to plot without the mortal-danger trope? There are seriously too many instances of Merry's loved ones on the brink of death but miraculously saved, and no one important (to the reader) dies. Too many miracles, not enough consequences, especially concerning Frost and the other guards. (Although Merry/Doyle/Frost is still a cute threesome.) And is this possibly the end of the series? It ends at a good place and echoes the very first book; but Merry is still pregnant.
Also, only 1.5 sex scenes! That must be some sort of record for Hamilton. But the plot is exceptionally implausible in this book, so it evens out.
Blood Noir, by Laurell K. Hamilton
Jun. 18th, 2008 04:19 pmBlood Noir
by Laurell K. Hamilton
340 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Fantasy
Anita goes to Asheville, North Carolina, with Jason to see his dying father. Complications (i.e. political manuveurings) ensue, both mortal and supernatural. The Mother of All Darkness a.k.a. Mommie Dearest is mightily interested in Anita. Hamilton's books have come to pretty much pure erotica--there is less unnecessary sex here, but it definitely makes itself known. And thankfully, there's also substantive plot development. SPOILERS--Richard gains a version of the ardeur, Anita manages to reclaim her anger from Richard (but not having read the earlier books, I have a hard time believing that she really is this raging), Jason nearly dies...oh yes, Jason's father is magically cured of cancer (Authorial Device, anyone?) and Anita gains another hanger-on, Crispin the young white weretiger.
Essentially, typical LKH. I still prefer her faerie series, but this one's not bad. A quick read, at least.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
340 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Romance/Fantasy
Anita goes to Asheville, North Carolina, with Jason to see his dying father. Complications (i.e. political manuveurings) ensue, both mortal and supernatural. The Mother of All Darkness a.k.a. Mommie Dearest is mightily interested in Anita. Hamilton's books have come to pretty much pure erotica--there is less unnecessary sex here, but it definitely makes itself known. And thankfully, there's also substantive plot development. SPOILERS--Richard gains a version of the ardeur, Anita manages to reclaim her anger from Richard (but not having read the earlier books, I have a hard time believing that she really is this raging), Jason nearly dies...oh yes, Jason's father is magically cured of cancer (Authorial Device, anyone?) and Anita gains another hanger-on, Crispin the young white weretiger.
Essentially, typical LKH. I still prefer her faerie series, but this one's not bad. A quick read, at least.
Cerulean Sins
by Laurell K. Hamilton
405 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Incubus Dreams
by Laurell K. Hamilton
658 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
I had originally planned to discuss these two books separately, but I realized that what I have to say--which isn't much--basically applies to both books. I read them very quickly in succession, enjoyed it on a pure fluff level, but can't remember anything about the actual plot content. That should tell you something.
In both novels, I found several careless copyediting errors and choppy prose that could easily have been fixed. The flaws are more visible if you read a lot in one "sitting" (in my case, large chunks of 1000+ hardcover pages over about a day and a half). Notes on character: Anita is so controlling, as well as being an idiot when it comes to Nathaniel. I still <3 Nathaniel, still annoyed at Micah's perfection, still hate Richard's guts. Nothing new. From Wiki-research, apparently Anita is actually--gasp!--celibate in the first four books. Now I'm very curious, because I have yet to read a Hamilton book without gratituous sex. Are her earlier Anita Blake volumes actually urban/paranormal fantasy, rather than very solidly on the romance side?
While my estimation of Hamilton isn't exactly high, I do respect her for her ability to command reader sympathy for her characters. (I just hate Richard because angsty werewolf = BURNING HATRED in my quirky book.) And as fluff romance reading, Hamilton is almost too good--I couldn't put it down while I was in the middle of a book.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
405 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Incubus Dreams
by Laurell K. Hamilton
658 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
I had originally planned to discuss these two books separately, but I realized that what I have to say--which isn't much--basically applies to both books. I read them very quickly in succession, enjoyed it on a pure fluff level, but can't remember anything about the actual plot content. That should tell you something.
In both novels, I found several careless copyediting errors and choppy prose that could easily have been fixed. The flaws are more visible if you read a lot in one "sitting" (in my case, large chunks of 1000+ hardcover pages over about a day and a half). Notes on character: Anita is so controlling, as well as being an idiot when it comes to Nathaniel. I still <3 Nathaniel, still annoyed at Micah's perfection, still hate Richard's guts. Nothing new. From Wiki-research, apparently Anita is actually--gasp!--celibate in the first four books. Now I'm very curious, because I have yet to read a Hamilton book without gratituous sex. Are her earlier Anita Blake volumes actually urban/paranormal fantasy, rather than very solidly on the romance side?
While my estimation of Hamilton isn't exactly high, I do respect her for her ability to command reader sympathy for her characters. (I just hate Richard because angsty werewolf = BURNING HATRED in my quirky book.) And as fluff romance reading, Hamilton is almost too good--I couldn't put it down while I was in the middle of a book.
A Lick of Frost, by Laurell K. Hamilton
Nov. 24th, 2007 09:29 pmA Lick of Frost
by Laurell K. Hamilton
274 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Question: why does the library catalog label this as MYSTERY on the spine? This isn't even Anita Blake, which is pseudo-mystery. Speaking of which, I'm seeing a curious parallel between Merry Gentry et. al. and Anita Blake et. al.--Doyle = John-Claude, Kitto = Nathaniel, Frost = Micah... The cover of Merry's latest story is (appreciably) less risque. This implies less sex and more plot, which is (thankfully) a promise followed up on. There is an important revelation that patient fans won't want to miss--finally, some progress!
Character comments: I heart Veducci. He was awesome and amazing in a non-Mary-Sue way, a rarity in these books. And, as I discovered while reading, I love Doyle more than Frost.
The Wiki entry on LKH is interesting; for one, she's straight-out described as "an American supernatural erotica writer." But then again, later the article praises her style; frankly, I hate it and always will. I read her purely for escapism and characters.
Elements of deus ex machina are still present--slight SPOILER alert--Doyle's healing was rather abrupt, almost a cop-out. I do hope Frost's change is permanent, because I love the bittersweetness, but I don't think Hamilton has the guts for it.
And that's all. I've decided to keep this public, like all of my bookposts since I started logging them in one linkpost (i.e. the Guestbook, for layoug coding convenience). It'll take this journal's "rating" up to a solid PG-13, but I can live with that.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
274 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Question: why does the library catalog label this as MYSTERY on the spine? This isn't even Anita Blake, which is pseudo-mystery. Speaking of which, I'm seeing a curious parallel between Merry Gentry et. al. and Anita Blake et. al.--Doyle = John-Claude, Kitto = Nathaniel, Frost = Micah... The cover of Merry's latest story is (appreciably) less risque. This implies less sex and more plot, which is (thankfully) a promise followed up on. There is an important revelation that patient fans won't want to miss--finally, some progress!
Character comments: I heart Veducci. He was awesome and amazing in a non-Mary-Sue way, a rarity in these books. And, as I discovered while reading, I love Doyle more than Frost.
The Wiki entry on LKH is interesting; for one, she's straight-out described as "an American supernatural erotica writer." But then again, later the article praises her style; frankly, I hate it and always will. I read her purely for escapism and characters.
Elements of deus ex machina are still present--slight SPOILER alert--Doyle's healing was rather abrupt, almost a cop-out. I do hope Frost's change is permanent, because I love the bittersweetness, but I don't think Hamilton has the guts for it.
And that's all. I've decided to keep this public, like all of my bookposts since I started logging them in one linkpost (i.e. the Guestbook, for layoug coding convenience). It'll take this journal's "rating" up to a solid PG-13, but I can live with that.
Narcissus in Chains
by Laurell K. Hamilton
424 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Didn't live up to my expectations; I wanted more Nathaniel, less Micah. I'm still yearning to read The Vampire Queen's Servant. Chronologically, time in this volume moves too slowly--a perpetual LKH issue. It's rather strange reading the Anita Blake series backwards and out-of-order.
Other than that, I haven't much else to say. Pure fluff reading.
by Laurell K. Hamilton
424 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Didn't live up to my expectations; I wanted more Nathaniel, less Micah. I'm still yearning to read The Vampire Queen's Servant. Chronologically, time in this volume moves too slowly--a perpetual LKH issue. It's rather strange reading the Anita Blake series backwards and out-of-order.
Other than that, I haven't much else to say. Pure fluff reading.
The Harlequin, by Laurell K. Hamilton
Sep. 11th, 2007 05:38 pmThe Harlequin
by Laurell K. Hamilton
422 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Although I've read all of Hamilton's Meredith Gentry series, I've only tried the latest two of Anita Blake. I haven't read the debut novel yet, but The Harlequin is certainly a far cry better than Danse Macabre. About ten times more plot, for one. And her characterization, which is always satisfying, hooked me well. I love Nathaniel, Micah, Jean-Claude, Claudia, almost all the characters (though not Richard, who annoys me). The cast is quite large, but Hamilton makes everyone rounded and vivid.
I still dislike her signature summary chapter at the end, though.
ETA: I liked The Harlequin enough to stay up two hours past my usual bedtime to finish it. I really hope that Nathaniel gets his fair share of the next book, after all the Richard-and-his-issues in this one. Can anyone point me to the volume where Nathaniel makes his debut?
by Laurell K. Hamilton
422 pages (hardcover)
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Romance
Although I've read all of Hamilton's Meredith Gentry series, I've only tried the latest two of Anita Blake. I haven't read the debut novel yet, but The Harlequin is certainly a far cry better than Danse Macabre. About ten times more plot, for one. And her characterization, which is always satisfying, hooked me well. I love Nathaniel, Micah, Jean-Claude, Claudia, almost all the characters (though not Richard, who annoys me). The cast is quite large, but Hamilton makes everyone rounded and vivid.
I still dislike her signature summary chapter at the end, though.
ETA: I liked The Harlequin enough to stay up two hours past my usual bedtime to finish it. I really hope that Nathaniel gets his fair share of the next book, after all the Richard-and-his-issues in this one. Can anyone point me to the volume where Nathaniel makes his debut?
