I have heard so much about this series. About how wonderful the first few books were and how lurid and sleazy they became later on. Anita Blake is a total legend in the paranormal vampire realm so I have to say I was really surprised by this book. Instead of anything resembling the romance which I expected, the story was much more of an urban fantasy bordering on horror. Even more startling to me was the fact that I actually liked the main character. I was totally expecting one of the know-it-all, bitchy types but that’s not really what she’s like. Anita did border a bit on the preachy side of things and went on a little much about her stature (or lack thereof) but it was certainly quite tolerable and didn’t make me want to rip my hair out.

In this story Anita Blake is an animator, one who can raise the dead as zombies. A rather odd occupation. On the side she was apparently a vampire hunter, earning herself the name of “The Executioner”. When we join this particular tale Anita seems to be partially retired from the active vampire hunting scene and even though she still has no love for them, she tolerates them. Jean-Claude is the vampire owner/proprietor of the bar, Guilty Pleasures. When vampires start getting murdered Jean-Claude arranges it so that Anita is brought in as an investigator. Unfortunately for all concerned he loses control of the situation causing Anita’s friend to become threatened and Jean-Claude to undergo a horrid punishment at the behest of his master. This story has Anita playing an investigator of vampire deaths while all the while trying to keep the master vampire’s fangs away from herself and those she cares about.

This was a much slower story than I thought it would be. In depth description, an abundance of characters to try and keep straight and convoluted loyalties and agendas made it all a bit confusing. I also figured out early on what was happening with Jean-Claude and kind of had an inkling of how thing would work out with Phillip and the majority of the other characters. I had to work a little bit at staying interested but I still enjoyed the story. At this point I’m kind of curious what will happen to Anita in her future adventures and may pick up the next in the series in the future. Personally I wouldn’t mind something a little bit steamier than what this was. I am happy to say that I’ve finally read what seems to be one of the main starters of the current vampire/urban fantasy genre and that it was a bit more unique than I had anticipated it would be. ( )

Okay, was I the only person who was completely confused reading this book? I felt that there were far too many characters that I didn't really distinguish (maybe all vampires look the same to me), and far too many different types of undead (and I never really worked out what the ghouls were on about), and I despaired that the author was ever going to be able to bring them all together in the end in a coherent fashion.

And, blimey, she did. I am impressed by that.

I did enjoy the sassiness of Anita Blake, and it was an intriguing crime story, and it certainly never let up (and nice short chapters, so I stayed up far too late several nights running, thinking "oh, go on, just one more chapter, it is but waaaafer-thin"), and the hints of Anita's world where the undead are up and walking and part of the local economy and society were fascinating.

On the negative side, I was confused for most of the book, sometimes the endless sassiness got on my nerves, vampires are not sexy (ew, undead! undead!), and I think the author bit off more than she could chew at times. It would have been a lot better if she'd discarded some of the plot and had a bit more exposition about her world. (Okay, I would have liked it better, others may disagree.) ( )

The world is ours today, except vampires, werewolves & such all exist & are legally recognized. Anita Blake is a tough gal who has a talent for raising zombies. She gets sucked in to paranormal politics & murder mysteries. Great fun to read. I love her character.This started me & my daughter reading 'Paranormal Romance' books & this was one of her best. There are 15 or so books in the series & I like the first 5 or so the best. After that, Hamilton puts in too much weird sex - BDSM & such. Not my cup of tea & there's enough of it that it detracts from the story - a common failing in the genre, I've found. I don't mind some sex & in some cases, it is needed, but it gets somewhat excessive. ( )

Just a great series. The beginning (this is the first book in the series) is not as racy as the series ends up. I am not sure whether than is a selling point or will turn you off. Either way, worth reading from the beginning to understand the character development. Love this series! Vampires, ghouls, weres, zombies and everything else that goes bump in the night. ( )

Note: The next book in this series had me freaked out enough not to finish it. Definitely not for the faint of heart.