booksiloved.com - Book reviews of books the reviewer really liked

A review of The Killing Dance

by Laurell K. Hamilton

The sixth novel in the monstrous world of Anita Blake, vampire hunter.

Reviewed by: April Dawn Duncan
About April Dawn Duncan

The Killing Dance A lot of people have wanted Anita Blake dead, but always with reason and forewarning. She knows exactly how to deal with that. But never before has she faced an invisible and unknown threat. In a grim and twisted way, Anita is very lucky that her associate Edward was offered the contract on her life first. Of course that might have something to do with the fact that he is the most dangerous human she has ever met. Fortunately for her, he respects her enough to reject it and warn her of the immediate danger. Ah, how touching. She is not sure which surprises her more, someone hiring a hit man to kill her, or Edward deciding to become her personal bodyguard.

As always, there can never be just one problem for her to deal with at a time. Anita's blossoming powers have been attracting monsters. Monsters who are afraid of her and want to destroy her or monsters who seek to harness her power. She never thought one of the monsters would cleverly go through her boss to do so. Her boss Bert never ceased to amaze her. And now she's stuck trying to figure out a way to save a dying vampire. What part of "vampire hunter" didn't they get? Quite frankly, those two problems pale in comparison to her third. The time has come for her to experience everything that Richard is. She is engaged to him after all, but neither of them is willing to tie the knot until they know for sure that she can handle the whole kit and caboodle. The full moon is approaching, and it is time for Anita to take her place in the killing dance.

Now I may be wrong, but I believe it is no mere coincidence that this novel is the sixth book in a series of eleven (there is a good chance that Anita Blake fans will demand more books). That makes it smack dab in the middle of the series. Therefore it is, at least symbolically if not practically, the pivotal point or turning point of the whole series. After having read "The Killing Dance", by Laurell K. Hamilton, I am sure that it is. I believe Hamilton carefully orchestrated it to be this way and am impressed that she had the insight and forethought to plan such a structure. It is this kind of thoughtful and deliberate construction that sets Hamilton apart from just any other mystery/horror/romance writer. That and the fact that the focus of her novels is on the characters and their development.

This book tears Anita apart. It is raw, painful, and brutally honest. The line that separates the monsters from the humans is fast fading. Can Anita handle it? The title itself is ironic. One wonders what this dance will be killing.

Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: The Killing Dance

Copyright © by April Dawn Duncan, 2003

Reviewed by April Dawn Duncan:
--Threshold: A Novel of Deep Time - by Caitlin R. Kiernan
--Yarrow: An Autumn Tale - by Charles de Lint
--The Morgaine Saga - by C. J. Cherryh
--Tigana - by Guy Gavriel Kay
--Ender's Game - by Orson Scott Card
--Foreigner: A Novel of First Contact - by C.J. Cherryh
--Guilty Pleasures - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--The Laughing Corpse - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Circus of the Damned - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--The Lunatic Cafe - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Bloody Bones - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--The Killing Dance - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Burnt Offerings - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Blue Moon - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Obsidian Butterfly - by Laurell K. Hamilton
--Narcissus in Chains - by Laurell K. Hamilton









Home ------- All the Reviews