The Harlequin (Anita Blake - Vampire Hunter

While I agree with other reviewers that the series has gone in a different direction than when it started, I don't see this as a bad thing. Isn't that the point of a series? To see where it can go and how the characters develop?

If it had stayed the same as the first 5-8 books it would become static and then everyone would complain that there is nothing new in her writing, just a rehash of the first books with different characters. That is why I stopped reading Feehan. Three of her series started out very intriguing and then it was all the same scenario with different people in a different place. If I want to read the same storyline I'll reread the first of the books.

I enjoyed this book as much as the others with one exception and that's why it got a 4 rating instead of a 5. There were some editing errors that while small things, really irritated me. Some references were made to some of the previous characters that were inacurate. (Example: They refer to Willy's girlfriend as Candy, her name is Hannah. Sylvie makes a comment about not being into women and she was introduced as a lesbian with a live in girlfriend. Plus a couple of other nit picky things like these.) When you are involved with the characters and know who they are, then there is a drastic change it throws everything off kilter for me. Other than that, the book is full of action, sex, character insight, and an all around good read as far as I am concerned and I will continue to read LKH and see where Anita goes next.

The latest book is better than the last installment but still not quite up to the earlier novels. Anita gets involved in a heavy-duty vampire secret "police" group and takes it on like one of her earlier cases. However, again, nothing seems to get resolved in her relationships and the characters get too distracted with their relationship issues and loose sight of the investigation. But that at least gets resolved in the end if nothing else seems to.

Many reader's of this series have become disappointed in the track/ path that series has taken. I have not. If one looks at Anita Blake's "abilities" and considers those, then the series had no choice but take this path. I for one still enjoy it throughly.

Excellent Read! It is even better if you start the series at the beginning with Guilty Pleasures, which is also excellent. When you put the book down for any reason, you can't wait to pick it up again!

AHHH, good.... very good.
I enjoyed this book as it filled in some of the background of this world Laurell Hamilton is building. I got only three sexy (but wished for more) interaction of Anita. It was nice however to see the cops and the police side of things again too. At least we find out why the cops have not been a big part of things during the last few books.

In this book, Anita takes two new lovers and revisits a very old one. The old fellow may be kicked out of her life after this book but I am looking forward to more interactions with the new fellows in his place. I still want more of ALL of her lovers but know folks would rather Hamilton NOT make this area the center piece of her works (drats!). However at the very least, we have to explore the new guy (not currently a lover/bedmate/food) in town. The growing of him into a good guy will be very interesting and I think the heart of a new book very soon. Ok, seems, I am one of those who like the darn sex part of her books. Looks like I am one of a few .. or at the very least.. part of the quiet fans out there.

Have I told you enough to make you read the book? If you have not yet.. start at the begining of this series and read things in order. There are a few bumps along the road but hey.. even real life has those too. This latest in the series, The Harlequin - is a must read if only for all the holes she fills in with this book.

Ahhh, the world of LOVE and Hate.. and how we interact with each other and then you got the others out there that just want your blood, land, and anything else they can mess with. This is a book in which you can say big fish eat little fish and some fish who think they are the big fish are trying to bite off more than they should. BTW, it is Anita's pretty bottom they are nibbing on in this book.

"The Harlequin" is Book 15 in the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series and the first one to come out since Marvel started publishing its comic book adaptation of Laurell K. Hamilton's first book in the series, "Guilty Pleasures." That graphic reminder of how good those early novels were, when the emphasis was more on horror and a whole lot less on sex, made me a bit wary when I started reading "The Harlequin," especially given how disappointed I and countless legions of fans have been in Hamilton's recent novles (and not just the Anita Blake ones). But while I have to admit that it could be a case that things have been down so long it looks like up to me, bottom line is that I found "The Harlequin" to be the best Anita Blake novel in years. We also have the nice little irony that in this novel she actually lives up to her title of being a Vampire Hunter, which has rarely been the case in the series.

In virtually every novel our heroine manifests a new power, from the ability to raise an entire graveyard of corpses to forming her own triumvirate with Damien as her vampire and Nathaniel as her beast to call, which makes the main triumvirate with Jean-Claude and Richard even more powerful. Now Jean-Claude has his own bloodline and in the world of vampire politics this is a seismic event and back in the old country the Vampire Council is taking notice of what is happening in St. Louis. As "The Harlequin" begins (and this time the title refers to people rather than a place), somebody is apparently doing something about it and the threat is so bad that if Jean-Claude tells Anita about it they are all going to die. Fortunately, Anita trusts Jean-Claude well enough that she is willing to take his word even though it cuts against her grain not to make her own decisions. There might not be any sex during the first fifteen chapters, but they sure talk about it a lot for people who should be at DEFCON 5 (sorry, I still think in Cold War terms: this century I should be saying Code Red using the Homeland Security Advisory System). Once the Harlequin masks start showing up staying alive is the only thing that matters and sundry reasons for getting into Anita's bed should not even be close to being secondary concerns.

My complaint about all the sex is qualitative as well as quantitative in that since it took several books for Anita to finally choose between Jean-Claude and Richard, that first sex scene in Jean-Claude's bath tub was ultra hot and it has all been downhill from there. The sex scenes in "The Harlequin" are relatively few, short, and to the point: there is way more talking about sex than having sex this time around, and while it is a welcome change and the discourse often touches as much on the vampire politics involved as it does on Anita's feelings, it does slow down the action a bit, which matters since they are in the middle of a major crisis. I understand that at this point Anita Blake has to have sex to feed the ardeur the way Jean-Claude has to drink blood and Richard needs to bitch and moan, so any novel that takes place in more than one day is going to have to have a sex scene. But if the Harlequin are coming to get you I think discussions about whether Anita can give Nathaniel what he needs when it comes to being dominated during sex can wait until the crisis is past. Anita was always a talker and part of the problem is that she has so much more to talk about these days (although she actually manages to put off several conversations in this story, believe it or not). Still, on balance, things are a lot better in this latest novel in terms of the sex as far as I am concerned.

After all the sex stuff my biggest complaint about recent novels would be that the climax, so to speak, almost always involves Anita pulling a new power out of a hat, although at this point I have to admit there are so many dimensions to her power that I am having trouble distinguishing between the old ones and the new ones. I know that it all has to do with Anita being a necromancer and that whatever she is going to be when all is said and done, she is not there yet. Consequently, "The Harlequin" is another part of a bigger game in which Belle Morte will figure prominently. It reminds me of when Anita owed Edward a favor and we waited several years for the bounty hunter to collect, and that was a pretty good payoff. Another strength of this novel is that Edward is one of several familiar faces that pop up again, along with Peter, Olaf, and Dolph. More importantly, unlike the previous novel "Danse Macabre," this time we actually get to the payoff and things hit the fan. Because the end game involves what could be a welcome change in the ardeur and a moment that has been a LONG time coming between Anita, Jean-Claude and Richard, I was tempted to rate this novel even higher. However, despite my enthusiasm for these welcome changes in direction, Hamilton would have to prune down the sexual discourse to truly justify a five-star rating like in the glory days. Still, "The Harlequin" proves that when it comes to sex in these books, less is more.

SHE BASES HER BOOKS ON STRENGTH AND POWER COMING FROM SEX. LEAVE THAT ASIDE AND SHE PLOTS WITH THE BEST OF THEM. YOU KNOW ANITA BLAKE HAS GOT TO SURVIVE FOR THE NEXT BOOK, BUT YOU STILL WANT TO KNOW HOW SHE GOING TO GET OUT OF THIS ONE AND HOW MUCH DAMAGE SHE'S GOING TO TAKE. HAMILTON GIVES YOU NOT ONLY A GOOD MAIN CHARACTER, BUT DEVELOPS OTHER CHARACTERS THAT YOU LOOK FORWARD TO FROM ONE BOOK TO THE NEXT. SHE GIVES YOU PARANORMAL AT THE BEST.

There's one thing that stands out about this installment of the Anita Blake Series. Without giving too much away, I was satisfied with what happens with Richard between Anita and Jean Claude. I kind of hope it sticks. Richard has been getting on my nerves for a long time, since Cerulean Sins. What was disappointing, though contradictorily appealing was Edward's change, meaning he CARES about something. He was my favorite character in the whole series BECAUSE he was so cold. It's interesting how Laurell has forced him to struggle with being a little...I guess normal is the word.

After the last couple of Anita Blake books spent so much time exploring the ardeur, it was nice to get a real adventure this time around. It's been interesting, although not always exciting, to follow the development and changes of the many characters in this series, but I have missed the feel of the earlier books...physical, external conflict instead of emotional, internal conflict.

This book takes a decent storyline and applies the evolving characters really well. Putting Edward in the role of father is one of my favorite developments. The characters certainly aren't stuck in the roles they were given at the beginning of the series, and it will be interesting to see where they go next.

The Harlequin is certainly better then DM. The book had a lot more plot and alot less sex, so it is an upgrade from her last couple of books. Though sex was a repetitive conversation topic for feeding and power gain. LKH attempted to transform the adeur from lust to love and I hope she can put an end to the whole food/sex entity all together. Richard's character was a complete disappointment and I hope LKH can figure something out, besides him coming off as a constant failure. Is friendship not an option? I am also slightly disappointed in the Lion Rex situation. AB wants monogamy from her men and has condemned Joseph and his WIFE for the same thing.
I realize that the AB series is LKH's world and I'm just along for the ride but my opinion would be to maybe tone down the sex for food and power a little more.
In retrospect, I think The Harlequin is actually a 3.5. But I thought that since I've been reading the series from GP, what's an extra point?

Harlequin was a great book and very typical of all the Anita Blake books after #6. As always it is Anita against the world and I enjoyed learning more about the dark powers we began to hear about in previous books. It's a must ready for Anita Blake followers!

At only 422 pages, I found myself surprised how fast I read The Harlequin. Great news, Ms Hamilton is in the process of reducing the amount of padding sex and making Anita Blake a stronger character. The first 3/4 of the book is Ms Hamilton at her best, but the ending feels shorted by about a 10 pages, thus only 4 stars. As a reader of her blog, I am aware that Ms Hamilton is writing a new novel to give one of my favorite characters his own novel and this may have lead to the abrupt ending here.

I guess my complaint of the abrupt ending is the book's failure to deal better with the scene stealing character that Edward brings with him. Edward brings his new helper because they both need advice from Anita. Anita is at her stubborn best as she quickly realizes that Edward is passively trying to force her to give that advice & guidance.
Or, the abrupt ending is because of the strange use of the PRIT, the local police special task force. On her blog Ms Hamilton explains her reasons for NOT having PRIT at the ending `shoot out', but why have PRIT in the story at all?

Again, a mostly excellent read and well worth the time. It is still an almost excellent novel even upon multiple re-reading.

Another great chapter in the ABVH series. Once again I think you have to know and love the series to fully enjoy this book. Although I wish this one was longer, it did address some issues and characters that I was hoping for. It was good to see Edward again, and I'm pleased that Anita is growing up emotionally. Am looking forward to Asher/Anita/Nathaniel in the next episode.

I believe Ms. Hamilton is one of the finest writers today. However, despite my complaints that the previous few Anita Blake novels are too full of sex, the lady's newest novel, which did reverse that trend, is boring. At least when she let herself write sex scenes when she wanted she also followed all the other possibilities that her complicated plots allow. That's what I love most about her work: The ability to write ridiculously complicated plots and have them make sense.

She can write better than this, but I think the heart went out of her work in this last effort.

I'll be uncharacteristically brief: this was the best Anita Blake book since "Burnt Offerings" - the return of Edward (and yes, Olaf as well) was worth the wait and I savored every little detail. I especially, surprisingly, enjoyed the scene between Raoul and Anita. I have one tiny little nit to pick: When Sylvie visits Anita in the hospital and says she doesn't do women. I think that line may have been intended for Claudia because I have always cherished Sylvie as the sole preternatural lesbian in Anita's world. Or maybe she should have said she knew Anita didn't do women.

Another masterpiece from Laurell K. Hamilton. The reason so many people are a big fan of her books isn't just because her books have interesting therms, characters or even storyline. Yes that's a big part of why we all love her books, but if it wasn't for her writing style and her ability to make a reader picture the world she created then and feel like we're a part of it, then we may never have read past the first book.

Harlequin didn't just have sex and death it had memorable characters like Edward and Olaf. Both are the kind of sociopaths and psychopaths you can have nightmares about. Yes the Harlequin are scary, but Olaf's the kind of serial killer that you know exists....and that is why her books have a different level of scary. You can differentiate between Vampires being fantasy and a person like Olaf being real.

I loved this book and couldn't put it down. If it wasn't for work, kids and sleep I would have finished it faster. Still reading a book this size in about 3-4 days meant I truly loved it. I hope everyone else does too.

I would not recommend this series because it's not worth reading after book 9, but you'll get trapped because the first few were so difficult to put down. I'm stubborn and just keep slogging through, but I've been skipping entire sections in the last few. Anita used to be a strong proudly independent woman that overcame challenges and I liked the mystical twist the author put on the books. Now the books just revolve around her boy troubles and sex. It's like the author took a bet to prove she could turn her amazing fantasy crime solving series into erotica. It's so overwhelmingly about sex now that I will be listening (audiobook version) to the same scene on my 20 minute trip to work and all the way home!

Richard is still being a pain in the ass in this book and I actually groan whenever he says something - Hamilton has done a great job making me hate him but seriously, the time to kill him off was books ago. Now I'm just annoyed. Anita has also managed to isolate herself from her friends in the police with all her lies and law breaking so now she's much more like the bad guys than the good. I'm not really sure why the author didn't just have her stop the executioner work after she wrote in a clean break at the end of Incubus Dreams. I hope the series gets better, but I'm tired of wasting my time on this trash and am preparing to read a few spoilers before continuing.

I love anything that LKH writes. I know that some books are going to be not so good and some great. The only problem with this book is having to hear all about what the men "need" on the emotional front, from Anita. It goes into great detail and it does take away from the whole plot itself. I still have to say that they book is great but just not a five, lets see what happens later....

My fellow fans rejoice! I believe it was at least 100 pages before someone had sex!! Seriously, I just finished reading it and I feel that it was a decent book. I'll read it a couple more times, so I reserve the right to change my mind. It had plot and action and spooky vampire powers. Good stuff. Still a bit short for me though and too many characters with too little spotlight. Therefore 4 stars.

Sometimes, in these 47 chapters, something exciting happens. It gets so lost in the rambling about everyone's clothing, sex lives, and how powerful everyone is.

Okay, there are spoilers ahead. No huge ones, but still. Tread carefully.

Ms. Hamilton does what she does best here: introduces a terrifying villain, and then cops out and manages to make the threat so minimal that it can be defeated without any losses of anyone important, or any real consequences.

There used to be fights in these books, but now there are metaphysical dances that go on forever, and leave plenty of room for more rambling about everyone's feelings. It's gotten ridiculous. I am so sick of hearing about everyones' wardrobes and their scents and how sexy they are.

Anita's constant whining and hypocritical judgments have gotten worse over time, and they are so old. Hearing about how important and sexy and amazing and generally perfect Anita is, is also getting old, but that makes up an insane amount of this book.

A lot of people complain about too much sex in these books. Well, I love sex if it's written well. My complaint about sex is how boring it is, and how much time that gets spent on talking about the boring sex. The sex is almost as repetitive and stupid as the dialogue, and that is impressive.

I had hoped that Olaf and Edward, and especially Peter, would make this book interesting. All Edward does is stand around - occasionally shoot something, saving Anita - and agree with Anita. Olaf makes a few creepy comments, stands around, and gets forgotten until he gets one chance to do something gruesome. Peter whines, has a few impressive moments, and idolizes Anita. It's ridiculous.

Oh, and don't worry if you've never read any other Anita Blake book ever. All of the old plots and characters are explained, over and over again, so that the readers gets constantly beaten over the head with back story.

PB/Urban Fantasy: Arguing is not character development and does not add to the plot. It took me over two months to read this 400 page book. I really loved the first Anita books. There was vampire politics that kinda made sense, potential romance, and I anticipated the next book. Since Narcissist, there is too much metaphysical crap that keeps added to Anita whether it's a new form of lycanthrophe or lover to feed her stupid ardeur. The ardeur should be hot and sexy, but I dread reading it. Sex scenes go on for pages, and yes, she argues with people during sex.
Let me give you the gist of this book, and no, it won't ruin it for you. The novel starts out with a plot. Big Bad in town, let's avoid, but if they get in our way, we kill them. The problem is, the bad guy doesn't show up until the end; the very end. Until then, Anita has a date and a misunderstanding with Nathaniel. She goes to see Jean-Claude, but has to wait in his office, with a bunch of vamps who have the hots for her. An argument ensues. JC finally shows up. An argument ensues. Her and her men go to bed and Richard shows up. An argument ensues. The ardeur needs to be fed and Richard and Anita go to the hot tub. The start to have sex and an argument ensues, during sex. Anita is attacked metaphysically and some of her suitors profess love for her. She takes a new lover, and an argument ensues, before, during, and after sex. She is attacked metaphysically and physically and is hospitalized. One by one, more suitors show up. She gets a new form of lycanthrophe (it must be Tuesday).
This book is not as bad as Dance, but it is bad. I think part of the problem is that it happens in around 24 hours and it is too much. the first books happen over several days. Richard and Nathaniel need to go. Micah should just leave her. She is so hateful to everyone. She claims to love most of her boyfriends, but she respects none of them. She uses them. Her Id and Ego are huge. She gets mad when people don't want to fed the ardeur and she pretty much rapes weres and vamps attached to her men when she feeds. She, of course, doesn't see it that way. She feels that they should be honored to feed her and reap the pleasure of the ardeur. She may want to deny it, but she is a walking vampire that sucks the lifeforce out of her lovers.