Customer Reviews

Burnt Offerings (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter)

5 star:		(112)
4 star:		(40)
3 star:		(25)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

"Burnt Offerings" the latest in the Anita Blake series, was so worth the wait. (dramatic sigh) I just wish that Jean Claude was real! The growing romance between Anita and Jean Claude is the hook that lures me back every time. Although I feel sorry for Richard, Anita's jilted ex, I think that she truly belongs with Jean Claude.
The plot of the novel is lost a bit behind the menace of the Vampire Council's visit, but this is neatly tied up at the end of the novel. I find that Anita becomes more human the more she considers herself one of the monsters....self-doubt and all is very human. I got quite a laugh out of a master vampire's animal being a butterfly, and the humor that was a bit lacking in "The Killing Dance" is back in full force. I was a little disappointed not to see as much of Anita using her own Necromancy powers and more of her 'pack' powers instead, but this just shows the growth of the character.
All in all this was a fantastic book that I will recommend and read again.

Burnt Offerings (1998) is the seventh Fantasy novel in the Anita Blake series, following The Killing Dance. In the previous volume, Anita killed Gabriel and Raina. With help from Edward and Harley, she also freed Jean-Claude and Richard from their captors.

In this novel, Anita is hired by Captain Pete McKinnon of the Fire Department to investigate a series of unusual fires. He had been referred to Anita by Sergeant Rudolph Storr, leader of RPIT (Regional Preternatural Investigation Team). McKinnon thinks these fires have all the signs of a firebug, a pyrokinetic arsonist. He had previously encountered such a psychic talent and does not want to repeat those experiences.

After McKinnon left, Anita receives a call from a co-worker asking for a ride. Larry -- a vampire executioner trainee -- had gone to the morgue to stake the bodies of two vampire victims who did not want to rise from the dead. After completing that job, a hospital attendant had wheeled in another body to be staked.

Since the third body did not have the proper paperwork, Larry refused to stake it. While they are waiting for the paperwork to be recovered, Larry went to talk to the medical examiner. When he returned to the morgue, he found the attendant trying to stake the body with his own equipment. He removed her from the body, but then she tried to stake him.

Anita takes Larry home and puts him to bed. Then she returns a call and learns that Nathaniel -- a wereleopard stripper at Guilty Pleasures -- has been hurt by a violent customer. Steven -- a lycanthrope from Richard's pack -- was on Nathaniel's contact list and had called Anita from the hospital.

Unfortunately, Zane -- another wereleopard who is trying to protect the shapeshifters after the death of Gabriel -- is trying to take Nathaniel home. Anita has to shoot Zane twice -- with regular bullets -- to get his attention. She arranges for other werewolves to guard Nathaniel and Steven while they are in the hospital.

In this story, Anita finally gets to her date with Jean-Claude at Demiche's, only to find out that the Vampire Council has sent representatives to Saint Louis. They would like to know why Jean-Claude has not taken the Council seat formerly held by Oliver. Anita meets two of the Council reps at the restaurant and is not impressed, but she does make an impression on Balthasar.

Anita also meets Asher in the parking lot of the restaurant. Although he is now hostile to Jean-Claude, they had been friends before the death of Julianna. Asher had blamed Jean-Clause for her death and now wants revenge.

The Council has also sent the Traveler, a vampire who is capable of possessing other vampires. He moves from body to body, taking over the minds of his victims. But the possessed ones recover when he moves on to another body.

Another representative is the Master of Beasts, who can dominate any unmarked shapeshifter. Padma is arrogant enough, but his son Fernando is a full-blown sadist. Moreover, he believes that his father can protect him from anything. Then he meets Anita.

Later, Sergeant Storr calls Anita about the burning of a vampire at Burnt Offerings, a vampire bar far outside the Zone. The police are holding a woman who set the vampire on fire, supposedly after he had bitten her without permission. Storr wants Anita to talk to her about the incident.

This story tells of the ploys of the Council representatives within Jean-Claude's territory. Their very presence is enough to upset the delicate balance of power in the area. The whole preternatural community is conflicted and confused.

This novel is full of action and violence. It does not have as much sex as other books in the series, but it does have plenty of sexual innuendo. It does not disappoint the reader. Enjoy!

Highly recommended for Hamilton fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of preternatural creatures, violent activities, and a touch of lust.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Anita Blake's life never gets any simpler. Now that she's decided to date only Jean-Claude, the Master of the City, her ex-boyfriend, alpha werewolf Richard, becomes impossible to deal with. This is understandable, but when Anita interferes in lycanthrope politics to help protect several were-leopards, Richard comes into town in a serious bad mood. Having slain Raina, the werewolf queen in the previous volume, Anita seems to have acquired a supernatural connection with the pack, and is not about to back down. But Richard's absence has hurt the pack and there is much to be undone.

While Anita's relationship with Jean-Claude is going well, dating a vampire is never a simple proposition. When a romantic dinner is interrupted by several vampires from Jean-Claude's past, Anita suspects that things are about to get complicated. One of the vampires is Asher, once a close companion of Jean-Claude and now one of his direst enemies. Asher was horribly scarred at the hands of the church and blames Jean-Claude for both his deformities and the death of his human servant.

But Asher is not the worst threat. Several members of the European vampire council have come to St. Louis to demand an explanation for the death of another member of the council at Anita's hands (Mr. Oliver from "Circus of the Damned"). These two are your worst nightmares come true. The Traveler, who occupies the bodies of other vampires as his way of getting around, and Padma, the Master of Beasts, who can control any lycanthrope. Both of these two are far more powerful than Jean-Claude. And far, far nastier. The master of St. Louis is facing the challenge of his unlife, with only Anita and a very reluctant Richard to aid him.

"Burnt Offerings" is vintage Hamilton. With Anita's relationships with Jean-Claude and Richard settled for the present, Hamilton is free to concentrate on her typically complex plot. Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of action there. But there's plenty of time for all of the regulars, from Jean-Claude to Irving the werewolf reporter to become more defined as characters. In addition, we are treated to a group of monsters horrific and perverse enough to satisfy the most spoiled of tastes. Prepare yourself for a classic sexy/scary vampire tale. You won't be disappointed.

The story centers around the Vampire Council and the legalities of vampires as citizens, and uses a lot more of vamp and lycantrope politics. As much as I like seeing more of lycantropes *other* than werewolves, the fact that Anita is the shining hero for them too just annoyed me to no end. 5 stars of 5 for all characters except Anita, 3 stars of 5 for having to put up with the Superwoman Lead Character.

As much as I like the series, Anita Blake is the most annoying, superwoman, I can outdo everyone around me, hypocritical, hyper-feminist character I've ever had the displeasure to read. I was starting to root for the bad guys to take her out. However, I kept reading because I really like Jean-Claude, Edward, Larry, Dolph, Jason, Stephen, and other supporting characters, and wonder about what happens to them, even if they don't have enough sense to tip Anita in the nearest tar pit and move on with their lives. If the series gets any more Anita-Worshipping, I may have to periodically gag in between chapters. The friend who got me started warns me that it does, and that after the next two novels, I should give up rather than continue to read the author's worship of Anita.

As you can tell, there are NO strong female characters allowed in these books, other than Anita herself. Any female who seems to be a dominant character soon meets an unfortunate demise or fate worse than death, usually at Anita's hands because of course, she's the Ultimate Evil of the novel. The only recurring female supporting character is Ronni, Anita's best friend. Despite initial promise in the early books, Ronnie is little more than a puppet for her so-called best friend to dangle about when she needs to have girl-talks. And the men all seem to be joining Anita's harem, which is annoying, since she's a rather hypocritical wench when it comes to the bedroom.

*bah* If my friend hadn't promised me that the book after the next is an Edward centered novel, I'd give up on this series while I was ahead. Edward, for those who haven't read it, is a sociopathic assassin. Scary that he's more truly heroic as a character than Anita Blake, isn't it? ;-)

This is a great book for people who enjoy reading about strong heroines and undead people with raging sex drives. Frankly I wasn't particularly impressed with the first book in this series (Guilty Pleasures) but the books are getting better and better. It should be noted that Ms. Hamilton is not particularly adept at developing an original plot - her books generally follow a predictable course. 1) Anita Blake is called in to help with a case involving gruesome murders and mutilations. 2) Anita Blake meets unbelievably powerful supernatural beings (with or without master vampire sidekick). [Note - the order of these events may be reversed] 3) Anita Blake impresses the hell out of everyone she meets and/ or pisses them off. 4) Anita Blake kills time by searching for clues and/ or schmoozing with master vampire/ alpha werewolf. 5) Anita Blake confronts/ is attacked by Evil People. 6) Anita Blake and (at least) one sidekick get hurt. 7) Anita Blake gets Angry. 8) Anita Blake kills all Evil People. [Note: Bouts of angst appear at strategic moments in novel.]

Was that a bit harsh? Sorry! I don't pull my punches. Now let's get to the good bit. The main reason I liked this novel was that the relationships between Ms. Blake and her friends/ lovers are explored well. I really enjoyed the playful dialogue between Jean-Claude and Anita and the way her relationship with the shapeshifters is developing. I liked the humour and the new characters who were introduced. I really liked the sexual tension in many of the scenes. I'm not sure I like the way Anita is becoming all-powerful but that is just a small annoyance. What is interesting is that it becomes clear in this novel that Jean-Claude (unlike most male characters in this genre) is weaker than Anita and that his current elevated standing is due more to his foresight in picking Anita and Richard as his partners than to raw power. Lastly, Ms. Hamilton is leaving open the possibility that Anita will eventually be involved in a cozy threesome with Richard and Jean-Claude, which I would really like to see happen. That outcome is more than hinted at in this novel with the appearance of Asher (who shows that Jean-Claude has had prior experience with a three-way relationship), Jean-Claude's own statement that it is in his best interest to keep Richard happy and a suggestive bit of dialogue between Padma and Richard near the end of the novel. All in all, a very good installment of the series. I urge you all to read it and am eagerly waiting for more.

"Burnt Offerings" is the seventh book in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series, and it is just too much fun to miss! Hamilton takes her readers on a non-stop, action-packed thrill ride that will captivate readers from the very first page. This book is immensely entertaining - filled with heart-pounding action and suspense and highly erotic romance. Not for the faint of heart, readers will find this book to be a truly satisfying read.

The book begins as Anita, tough-as-nails necromancer and animator, agrees to help the police find a psychic firestarter. She is also policing the local werewolf pack, acting as their lupa, despite her split with Richard, the pack's alpha. In addition to this, Anita suddenly finds herself as the protector/leader of the local wereleopard pack (Anita killed their alpha, Gabriel, in an earlier novel).

Then Anita's boyfriend Jean-Claude, the city of St. Louis' super-sexy Master Vampire, has his home invaded by the immensely powerful and frightening Vampire Council, the ruling body for all vampires. Anita and Jean-Claude confront them together, and must defend themselves against wild accusations claiming that Jean-Claude is a threat to the hierarchy, planning to set-up his own rival council. They also must explain how they were powerful enough to destroy a Council member some months ago.

The Council members present, the Traveler, who inhabits the bodies of those around him, and Padma, Master of Beasts, and their many violent and twisted associates have been torturing and raping Jean-Claude's people. Tensions run high as Jean-Claude and Anita barter for the safe return of all their people and from that point on, the action and violence escalates.

Anita and Jean-Claude aren't exactly sure what the Council wants from them, but they aren't too sure they'll get out of this alive. Richard arrives to assist them, though he is hurt and angry with Anita and the world in general. But these three must find a way to get along, because the only way that they are going to keep from getting killed is if they work together!

Anita's relationship with Jean-Claude is highly passionate and actually very touching. Jean-Claude accepts all of Anita, the light side of her nature as well as the dark, and his devotion to her is really lovely. Anita and Jean-Claude's scenes together are full of passion and sensual delights for the readers.

Hamilton does an amazing job of portraying all of the characters, monster or human, as rich and real individuals. Half the time, the monsters show more compassion than the humans, and Anita begins to wonder who the REAL monsters are. The character development is a strength in this book, as we learn more about not just Anita, Jean-Claude and Richard, but also the new and interesting secondary characters.

Reading these Anita Blake books is pure pleasure for me! For a few hours I get to join a wild and wonderful world of shape-shifters and vampires, and pretend for a little while that I am a part of it. Hamilton so skilfully portrays her deep and vivid characters, that it is easy to forget that they aren't actually real people. So buy this book today, I guarantee you won't regret it!

After Anita Blake finally made a choice between Jean-Claude the Master Vampire and Richard the Werewolf in the previous volume, I was expecting there to be a let down of some sort in Laurell K. Hamilton's next book in the Vampire Hunter series. Certainly, "Burnt Offerings" tries to top what has gone before, as several members of the Vampire Council arrive in St. Louis intending to deal harshly with Jean-Claude. Remember back when Anita killed Oliver, the ancient vampire who wanted the U.S. to strip away the rights given to vampires? Well, it seems Oliver was a member of the Council and Jean-Claude has refused to take his place as custom dictates. Plus, the triumvirate established between our heroine and her two paramours is also potentially threatening to the Council. Then there are a couple of vampires with mondo grudges against our little group. Meanwhile, there appears to be a pyrokinetic arsonist running around and the anti-Vampire groups are escalating their attacks.

This seventh volume in the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series continues the recent trend of providing graphic sexual violence as Hamilton continues to up the horror ante. But her novels continue to end the same way, with Anita discovering she is more powerful than she or anybody else thought and turning the tables on the bad monsters at the last minute. Each time this trick gets turned it becomes less and less impressive, and if Jean-Claude or Richard or someone else were to save the day once it would not be a bad thing since it would break what is becoming the standard formula of these novels. The political intrigues of the Vampire Council are quite interesting, and the powers of the Traveler and the Master of Beasts suggests bigger and badder vamps yet to be met. Or maybe, horror or horrors, Anita's dad will show up (he is not at all happy about Jean-Claude). In the end, "Burnt Offerings" is an average book in this series, which remains the premier horror series of our time. Of course, you have to be sure you read these in order.

I have the entire series and i think of all of them this is the most disappointing. It was still a great book and I couldnt put it down unitl I was done reading it but it just was missing something the other books had. Or maybe it had too much. To begin with it seems like all the werecreatures are wimps and they all get raped or tortured. Personally i dont like the rape thing. Ok, i can deal with one or two creatures getting raped but it seems like all the characters in the book either get raped or have been raped in thier past. Also its like the only person who ever does anything in the book(or any of the books) is Anita. Cant anyone do anything without her there to hold thier hand? Shes also seems to get a kick out of discribing her every article of clothing and exactly where all her weapons are located. Hamilton takes more time describing Anitas wardrobe then she does anything else. It gets old after a while. Other then this the book was great and i hope there will be more from this series.

I loved this latest Anita Blake book. After I finished reading The Killing Dance, I wondered what would happen next. I love the contnued development of Anita, Jean Claude, and Richard. I also really liked Asher. I had wondered if Asher might make an appearance. Throughout the series Anita has developed more and more powers. I wonder if she has become too powerful, but then again her victories are all situational. The only problem is that there are a few too many plots. Ms. Hamilton deals well with tieing up the ends, but it feels as if the connection is kind of sudden. Ms. Hamilton really makes her characters live. I too wish Jean Claude were real. He is a marvelous, manipulative, sexy, and caring vampire. Ah Well. My advice is read the whole series from beginning to this latest book. You will probably find yourself reading them through a second time.

Poor Anita, she is becoming what she used to fear most, one of the monsters. This book seems like a rehash of the last one. Burnt Offerings was very predictable... a somewhat confused Anita, a tortured Richard, a cool Jean Claude. Change the names of the bad guys, and you pretty much have the same book as The Killing Dance.

The "mine is bigger than yours" confrontations are getting tiresome. These episodes seem to be required every second or third chapter, and in most cases are anti-climatic, or just plain juvenile.

I've always looked forward to the next new book, not anymore. I think Anita needs a rest, a long one. Where's Edward when you need him?