Laurell K. Hamilton


Books


I guess this is more for the ladies, but her books are really great. She is a very descriptive writer, if you like that kind of thing. It's worth getting your hands on a few of these if you'd like a more modern take on vampires, werewolves and the like.


Julia Slucas wrote:
I guess this is more for the ladies, but her books are really great. She is a very descriptive writer, if you like that kind of thing. It's worth getting your hands on a few of these if you'd like a more modern take on vampires, werewolves and the like.

Actually you may want to know that they are a little on the kinky side as well... quite the tour thru the BDSM universe BUT they are really excellent. And NOT just for the ladies...

Scarab Sages

Screamer wrote:
Actually you may want to know that they are a little on the kinky side as well... quite the tour thru the BDSM universe BUT they are really excellent. And NOT just for the ladies...

Yeah, I like Laurel's books, too. And yes, they are definitely adult oriented. The two most recent, "Narcissus in Chains" and "Cerulian Sins" have some very explicit sex scenes...which is fine for me, 'cause I'm a consenting adult, but I wouldn't recommend them to some of the younger readers. I think my favorite has been "Obsidian Butterfly", partly because I love Edward, partly because I use to live in New Mexico, partly because I really dug the monster. She can definitely spin a fun and exciting tale.

BTW, she also did one of the Ravenloft novels. I think it was the one with Harkan Lucas, but I'm not positive.


I started reading the series with my then girlfreind a few years ago. I do enjoy the early books i even enjoyed Narcissus in chains but i think it is getting to be more about sex than plot It certainly makes me not want to buy the hardcover versions or any at all at times maybe i just feel this way but what does anyone else think is it just sex now or what


Bob the fighter wrote:
I started reading the series with my then girlfreind a few years ago. I do enjoy the early books i even enjoyed Narcissus in chains but i think it is getting to be more about sex than plot It certainly makes me not want to buy the hardcover versions or any at all at times maybe i just feel this way but what does anyone else think is it just sex now or what

I had high hopes after Obsidian Butterfly, where the sex was more in the background, that she was returning to storytelling, but that fell apart, sadly.

The last two books have been relatively feeble attempts to hold the sex scenes together. *sigh* it started as such a good series too!

- Ashavan

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

Wizards of the Coast is about to reprint Laurell K. Hamilton's Ravenloft novel... though I hear thare's a good reason it was out-of-print for so long.

-Vic.
.


It is a shame she has moved away from the whole plot thing and just spiraled into sex. There are some other authors who do a nice job though such are Charlaine Harris (fun Southern Vampire series), Kim Harrison (fun supernatural series), or Carries Vaugn (interesting modern were- series). Try some of those and let the plot back into your life. :)


Also, check out the Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher.
No sex scenes though...


Julia Slucas wrote:
It is a shame she has moved away from the whole plot thing and just spiraled into sex. There are some other authors who do a nice job though such are Charlaine Harris (fun Southern Vampire series), Kim Harrison (fun supernatural series), or Carries Vaugn (interesting modern were- series). Try some of those and let the plot back into your life. :)

Thanks for the recommendation. It seems that most of the books of this genre that are being written today are all sex, no plot. I guess that's what sells, but it gets boring pretty fast. So while I enjoy the genre, I tend to avoid it these days. I used to really enjoy Laurel Hamilton's Anita Blake novels, but the last few have been several hundred pages of Anita having sex and the story seems to have been abandoned altogether. Pity.

Maybe I'll check out the books you recommended though.


Micah was awful and I'd actualy like my time and money back. I never say that after a book. She doesn't even bother with a plot in that. And I loved her earlier Anita Blake novels.

Her other series (with the fairy princess, I forget the name) goes straight to sex, but at least jsutifies it in hte plot. Even still, it got so excessive I stopped reading her work. Which is a shame becuase she has a great talent.

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The books in my opinion suffered from a munckin complex, every new book the power curve got upped a notch, from standard necromancer to wicca queen of undead, especially the whole triumvirate thing. And the sex....always the sex.....Because Anita needs to be fed ;>

I wonder if Laurel likes her research a little too much ;>


I've liked all of her books up until the last two (I didn't even read the last one, I just made my wife tell me what happened).

I agree with what others have said about the series. When she began, the plot revolved around some mystery Anita Blake (the main character) was involved with. Behind that was the continuing "soap opera" storyline between her and the other characters and the sex very much tertiary. Anymore, it is sex is the primary, followed by soap opera, and then she is scrambling to rush the "mystery" out in the last 50 pages of the book. The last book I actually read, Anita Blake didn't leave her house or bed for 3/4 of the book.

Read them until the ratio between sex and story passes your threshold is my suggestion.


What disappointed me was that the tension between the vampire/werewolf/others cabals in the city dwindled into various sexual combinations. That initial tension and her own confusion over who she felt she sided with, as well as the tension between regular law enforcement and herself was interesting. The sexy stuff just added spice and motivation at first, and I liked it. Then it seemed to take over the series altogether. I wouldn't have minded if it hadn't seemed to just brush the earlier tensions and intrigues aside.


I agree. Hamilton needs to drop the sex and have a lot more of the mystery/vampire/lycanthrope/voodoo undead/Edward-produced death and destruction thing.

Spoiler:
One of my favorites parts in the series was Edward dressed as Death wielding a flame-thrower. Hilarious!


Edward saved Obsidian Butterfly for me. I always thought David Hyde Pierce should play him in a movie.


I used to read the Anita Blake books too, but as so many others have said, they are now more about her sex life than anything else. Which is a pity as they were entertaining.

Paizo Employee Chief Technical Officer

(Corrected spelling of "Laurell" in title. It's bugged me every time I've seen it over the past year and a half.)


Vic Wertz wrote:
(Corrected spelling of "Laurell" in title. It's bugged me every time I've seen it over the past year and a half.)

It's taken you 18 months to correct!!!! When something bugs me I have to fix it asap.


Makes me wonder when she decided to go the "sex sells" route. I first began reading her work with Nightseer, which was a great debut (wish she'd go and work on that world a lot more), then began the Anita Blake novels. Went past my sex threshold pretty quick, too. Ah well.


Pathfinder Rulebook Subscriber

I have never enjoyed any of her books. Her writing style just irks me to no end. Her analogies especially annoy, as they are (IMHO) inept and excessively florid. Her characters too are one dimensional and stupid for no reason.

As always YMMV, but for me, I read two books and was out for good.

But then again I like the terse but dense structure of George RR Martin.


Lilith wrote:
Edward saved Obsidian Butterfly for me. I always thought David Hyde Pierce should play him in a movie.

It would be scary....but it might work....


Obsidian Butterfly was the last Anita Blake that I actually liked. Since then it's been downhill so far as I'm concerned. I haven't even bothered with the most recent two or three books.

I have become a fan of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files, though. There's not a lot of sex (although there is some from time to time) and I think that the interactions are just better in general.

That and POLKA WILL NEVER DIE!

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There was this interesting series that I stumbled across called the "Women of Otherworld", or something like that. Really interesting spin on the underground supernatural genre, especially with the sorcerors. It's pretty sexual, but at a good level, just above the Dresden files.

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