Monday 29 June 2015

Review - Dead Ice by Laurell K. Hamilton


Title: Dead Ice
Series: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #24
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Release Date: June 9, 2015



Anita Blake has the highest kill count of any vampire executioner in the country. She’s a U.S. Marshal who can raise zombies with the best of them. But ever since she and master vampire Jean-Claude went public with their engagement, all she is to anyone and everyone is Jean-Claude’s fiancĂ©e.

It’s wreaking havoc with her reputation as a hard ass—to some extent. Luckily, in professional circles, she’s still the go-to expert for zombie issues. And right now, the FBI is having one hell of a zombie issue.

Someone is producing zombie porn. Anita has seen her share of freaky undead fetishes, so this shouldn’t bother her. But the women being victimized aren’t just mindless, rotting corpses. Their souls are trapped behind their eyes, signaling voodoo of the blackest kind.

It’s the sort of case that can leave a mark on a person. And Anita’s own soul may not survive unscathed…







I have followed this series for a long time. I read on through good and all the bad. There's just something about it I can't resist, can't turn away from. Something about this series that keeps me reading, that means I can't put it down, usually long after my bedtime. Even the bad ones, I just can't stop. So, while reading this newest, I was pleased to see that it changed things up quite a bit! 

For one, I didn't have to hear Anita talk nonstop about her guns. They are a part of her, and there, but not the focus of pages and pages. Her life isn't any simpler, perhaps it's more complicated since Anita and those closest to her are planning a wedding and commitment ceremony. However, so much of the angst that has been overdrawn was gone. Instead, we witnessed character interactions that were much more believable and honest, and much more fun to be around. 

Anita gets over so many of her hang ups; hang ups about being with women and about her men seeing others. Watching her learn to feed more on anger was awesome! It's such a perfect power for her. Also, instead of her powers jumping out and surprising her and everyone else, she accepts them, and rocks them like the badass she is. She works with the police on a particularly disturbing case, and there is enough focus on it in this book that it remained relevant throughout the book. 

Despite a few annoying moments, I'm really pleased with this new addition to the series, and I desperately hope the next ones continue with the changes that bring it back around to the series I fell in love with in the first place!
~ Review by George




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 (now a hugely successful graphic novel from Marvel - the first sexy paranormal comic ever!) and continues with the SKIN TRADE, number seventeen in the series, in which Anita's complex personal and professional relationships with a master vampire and an alpha werewolf continue to evolve. There are now more than 6 million copies of Anita in print worldwide, in 16 languages. Hamilton's Ballantine series features Fey princess and private investigator, Merry Gentry and there are now six novels exceeding one million copies in print. She lives in St. Louis County Missouri with her husband Jonathon Green, daughter, one pug dog and one boxer/pug dog.



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