[A Kiss of Shadows]

A Kiss of Shadows by Laurell K. Hamilton
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

After reading all of the Anita Blake books, I was looking forward to Laurell K. Hamilton's Merry Gentry novels. I think I set my expectations too high, because I was hoping to read a book that would rival the first half of the Anita series, but instead I was left feeling disappointed. I hate to compare the two series, but I found so many similarities that it's hard not to. Even though Meredith's Fey world is very different than the vampire world of Anita's, the same themes remain throughout the novel: A petite female character that has more power than she's aware of and ends up being forced into sexual situations with multiple men makes it so much like the last 10 Anita books. Though, I dont really mind the amount of sex that takes place in the Fey world, it's to be expected. There was also a line about being one of the monsters that felt very Anita-like and the dialogue was even similar in style.

What truly disappointed me was the repetitive writing and the need to describe every single detail about what each character is wearing in every new setting. At least that's how it felt. My mind completely checked out of the story a few times, which is why it took me so long to finish the book. It just wouldnt hold my attention for more than a few minutes at a time. That might not have been a problem if I was already connected to the characters, but there was so much going on in the 480 pages, that it felt more like a follow up novel than an introduction to a series. Too many characters were introduced that I found it hard to keep them all straight. The Seelie/Unseelie courts also have a very diverse group of characters/creatures and for several different types of sidhe to be introduced in one book was a bit of an overkill.

Even though the storyline of "Kiss of Shadows" was all over the place and kept going all different directions, I like to think the series has potential. The sidhe world has a lot of interesting characters and Merry's personality makes me want to follow up on what happens to her next. I know LKH is capable of writing a truly great story and parts of her brilliant imagination came through in "Kiss of Shadows." I'm just hoping the next in the series has a more consistent storyline that makes Merry's world less confusing to dive into.

Read at your own risk if you enjoy stories that mix sex and violence with magic.

[Hit List]

Hit List by Laurell K. Hamilton
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Anita Blake is one of my all time favorite characters and it pains me to give the book only two stars, but compared to past books, this one is very anticlimactic. Then again, the last several books have been disappointing, especially when I know the series has so much great potential. The first half of the series is so 5 star awesome, but ever since Anita became "one of the monsters" the books have been almost painful to read due to so much sex and metaphysical connections she has with her "sweeties." A lot of the books I could forgive due to the really good story-lines in between, but the storyline with "Hit List" was a bit boring.

The Harlequin are back and this time they are murdering weretigers and trying to help The Mother of All Darkness take over Anita's body: Like we havent read that before. I'm so tired of The Harlequin and Marmee Noire and if there is one pro to this book is that it seemed to wrap up the story-lines involving them - in the most anticlimactic way I've ever read in my life. The dialogue in between the storyline has also become repetitive. It felt like I've read the same dialogue in past books. How many times do we need to meet a cop that worries about Anita's sex life? It's getting pointless. Another con about the book, none of her main men were in the storyline and only mentioned briefly by Anita.

However, there was a few things I like about the book: Edward was back, along with Bernardo and Olaf. There was only one chapter that involved actual sex, and after reading some books that had sex scenes that would span over several chapters, that was a relief! After all, I like to read Anita for the fantasy world of vampire slaying, not for the physical and/or metaphysical sex orgies she needs to feed her ardeur. That's one power I wish she would lose.

I am happy about certain story-lines being wrapped up, which makes way for something new and hopefully great. I also look forward to seeing what happens with Olaf, his exit has many possibilities for great story-lines to follow. I will keep with the series only because I love the characters so much, but I would like to see Anita return to her roots and maybe raise a few zombies and slay a few regular vampires, execution style, instead of tying them to her metaphysically and making them her Bride that she's just going to screw in the next book. I recommend "Hit List" to only the most loyal Anita Blake fan, but I'm keeping myself optimistic that the next book in the series will be vastly better than the last few.