Thursday, October 15, 2015

Book Review: Dead Ice by Laurell K. Hamilton

Dead Ice
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Series: Anita Blake (Book 24)
Publication: Berkley (June 9, 2015)

Description: Anita Blake has the highest kill count of any vampire executioner in the country. She’s a U.S. Marshal who can raise zombies with the best of them. But ever since she and master vampire Jean-Claude went public with their engagement, all she is to anyone and everyone is Jean-Claude’s fiancĂ©e.

It’s wreaking havoc with her reputation as a hard ass—to some extent. Luckily, in professional circles, she’s still the go-to expert for zombie issues. And right now, the FBI is having one hell of a zombie issue.

Someone is producing zombie porn. Anita has seen her share of freaky undead fetishes, so this shouldn’t bother her. But the women being victimized aren’t just mindless, rotting corpses. Their souls are trapped behind their eyes, signaling voodoo of the blackest kind.

It’s the sort of case that can leave a mark on a person. And Anita’s own soul may not survive unscathed

My Thoughts: Zombies! This book is filled with zombies. Someone is producing zombie porn but this is an unusual variety. Anita can see souls trapped in the zombies' eyes. Anita is working with the FBI to try to track down the necromancer of voodoo practitioner who has learned this new technique. The only voodoo practitioner that Anita can think of who might be able to puts souls back into zombies is Dominga Salvador. But Anita knows it isn't her; she is very sure that she killed her.

Anita is also having some trouble with a zombie that she raised. This one is way too life-like. Another animator, Anita's friend Manny, can't even pick Anita's zombie out of a crowd. Anita has to find a way to put him back into his grave before he turns into a flesh-eating zombie. It isn't only Anita who is finding her powers increasing, Jean-Claude is also finding his power to roll humans and werecreatures is getting much stronger.

On the relationship front, Anita and Jean-Claude have become engaged in an over-the-top production including a horse drawn carriage and a videographer. She and Jean-Claude are still negotiating their wedding ring designs. But Anita is also planning a commitment ceremony with Micah and Nathaniel.

There are problems with the tigers and their prophecy. There are problems with the werehyenas. And Asher is playing his careless games and disrupting things for Jean-Claude's new position as king of the American vampires.

While this book is filled with talk about sex, it seems to have fewer graphically described sex scenes than the more recent entries in this series. Anita seems to be less conflicted about most of the relationships that she is involved in. She even comes to a realization about her youngest lover Sin.

Fans of the series won't want to miss this episode.

Favorite Quote:
Ah, to be bright and shiny again, when you thought you could actually win the fight against evil.
I bought this book. You can buy your copy here.

1 comment:

  1. I use to read this series religiously until they started to be all about group sex! I am glad to hear that this one may talk about it more than be filled with graphic sex scenes. It sounds like I should pick the series back up! I miss zombie raising Anita.

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