Ahira's Hangar

Well, against my own better judgement, I decided to try Narcissus in Chains. It's just that I was getting so close to the end of the current series (only three short novels and one novella left...). Well, there is a plot, though it is really sort of messy and weak...and the main reason behind the plot again seems to get Anita into as many sexual encounters as possible. And the guy who is too large for any normal human female to physically accomodate did indeed show up, just as I had joked about a couple of posts up above.

This one is named after a werehyena S&M bar in East St. Louis. Watch out for those Illinois boys - they're more than a bit on the kinky side. ******************************************************

Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
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Two points, since I've met Laurell at a book signing. Ms. Hamilton is a very petite 30ish woman with very dark, nearly jet black hair. BTW, she seems to love meeting fans. A second point, during the signing event I went to, she mentioned that when she was 10 - 13 yrs. old she watched one of my favorite vampire movies, Vampire circus, and that movie influenced her a bit. It was made during the end of the Hammer studios horror series, and it did not have Christopher Lee in it. taraswizard
Allan Rosewarne N9SQT/WDX6HQV
Chicago area
W/T forever, always
Plan C - http://planc.bravepages.com/main.html
Buff_fans_Chicago http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/buffy_fans_chicago/<i></i>

Just out of curiosity - is that particular vampire movie one where the vampires are very sensual? I am asking because some of the vampires in these books feed on sexual energy as much as they do blood, and many of their mind powers involve sex or sensuality. ******************************************************

Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
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OK, finished up the series. The last full novel Incubus Dreams did not have a plot, only sex scenes (many of them ooky ones involving pain and blood and screaming) strung together with bits of crime scene investigation, and it all never really gelled together. But the novella, Micah, did have a plot; it had sex (and yeah, it was sort of icky), but emotional intimacy was more of the focus. So maybe things might be getting better in the series? ******************************************************

Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
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Well, since the novella Micah had a plot, I decided to read the latest full length novel, Danse Macabre. Very bad decision. Another plotless porno book. I like sex scenes as much as the next girl, but these are not well written, and icky (I am not into violence or blood, and all too many of these end up with people either screaming or bleeding or both) and after awhile they are repetative and boring.

I'm pretty sure I am now done with this series. I do not see how the author can ever get these back to tightly plotted, fun mystery stories, and that is what I enjoyed about the earlier books. And I do not really enjoy much of anything about the later ones. They are just ...a mess. ******************************************************

Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
<i>Edited by: Duchess of Malfi at: 7/20/06 8:53 am
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Considering Anita Blake series. Many fans, and I know a few, really dislike Micah and his emotional neediness to Anita. These fans would just prefer a giant asteroid to fall Micah and want obliterate him from their awarness.

Next point, concerning writers and reserch, consider Jim Butcher and the Harry Dresden series, in the series Harry Dresden in a warlock and P.I. working in Chicago. But, Jim puts Hyde Park (a neighborhood in Chicago near U of C) as neighboring on Oak Park (a collar suburb to the city of Chicago) and not really close to U of C. Additionally, Harry shops at a Wal-Mart in the city of Chicago, except no Wal-Marts in the city. So it goes. taraswizard
Allan Rosewarne N9SQT/WDX6HQV
Chicago area
W/T forever, always
Plan C - http://planc.bravepages.com/main.html
Buff_fans_Chicago http://tv.groups.yahoo.com/group/buffy_fans_chicago/
live journal http://taras-wizard.livejournal.com<i>Edited by: taraswizard at: 7/20/06 7:05 pm
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I do not really like any of the men she is involved with, which is probably part of my problem with the current storylines.

I have not read those books you just mentioned set in Chicago; is the author from Chicago? I'm just wondering, as it sounds like much larger errors than the minor quibble or two I had with the description of Albuquerque in Obsidian Butterfly. Most of the action in the Anita books is set in the St. Louis area, and as far as I can tell from trips there, most of the descriptions are pretty acurate (other than the clearly fictional elements such as the vampire entertainment district, of course).

From your description of the book signing, it sounds like Hamilton is a friendly and nice person. That's cool.
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Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
<i>Edited by: Duchess of Malfi at: 7/22/06 10:10 pm
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Seeing all of the happy fans at Amazon, and all of the great comments on this short story collection, I decided to give it a try.

I am so glad that I did.

These short stories show what a fantastic writer Laurell Hamilton can be. They reminded me of why I liked the early Anita Blake books so much.

They are tightly plotted. The characterization really works. The worlds are interesting. And sex is integrated into the plots rather than replacing the plots.

There was this great very funny story about wild cupids tracking down determined singles to make them fall in love.

There was a very creepy and very well written story about a merman who is a serial rapist/killer and the woman who defeats him.

There were several stories set on an epic fantasy world.

There was even a science fiction story that reminded me of Roger Zelazny's Dream Master, but much darker and with a huge twist.

My only complaint is about the horribel cover. Ugliest cover I have ever seen - I would never touch this book in public simply because of the cover.

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Our lives are the songs that sing the universe into existence.~David Zindell
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As a public service I am going to say that there is a new Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book out, called The Harlequin. At this point I am not planning on reading it, as I disliked the last books in this series so much (pretty much everything since Obsidian Butterfly has been nearly unreadable IMHO).

However, in the name of fairness, I will say that the reader reviews at Amazon are generally positive, are saying that this book does have a plot, and a lot of them are saying that the author is trying hard to get back on track.

And so it goes. For those who might be curious as to why I have stopped reading the series, try this first chapter of the upcoming Blood Noir: