Review: "Guilty Pleasures" by Laurell K. Hamilton

Title: Guilty Pleasures
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
ISBN 10: 0425197549
ISBN13: 9780425197547


About the book (from Laurell's website)
"My name is Anita Blake. Vampires call me "The Executioner". What I call them isn't repeatable.

Ever since the Supreme Court granted the undead equal rights, most people think vampires are just ordinary folks with fangs. I know better. I've seen their victims. I carry the scars...

But now a serial killer is murdering vampires —and the most powerful bloodsucker in town wants me to find the killer... "

"In a world where vampires, zombies and werewolves have been declared legal citizens of the United States, Anita Blake is an "animator" - a profession that involves raising the dead for mourning relatives. But Anita is also known as a fearsome hunter of criminal vampires, and she's often employed to investigate cases that are far too much for conventional police. But as Anita gains the attention of the vampire masters of her hometown of St Louis, she also risks revealing an intriguing secret about herself - the source of her unusual strength and power."


Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #1
Published: First Published 1993
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Website: Laurell K. Hamilton
Excert: You can download the first two chapters

My Review

Anita Blake is an Animator and vampire executioner in a world where the supernatural creatures “came out of the coffin” a couple of years ago and the whole community is still adjusting to everything.  The world is very much our own with a bit of a twist.  Vampires and other supernaturals seem to keep separate from ordinary people in Anita’s’ world, except for the very popular vampire bars!  

Anita is known as “The executioner” to the vampires which gives a very good insight into the sort of kick ass and strong minded individual she is.   Anita seems to be someone who will not give up and believes in what she is doing.  When 

Anita’s “friend” Edward turns up we get a good contrast, here is someone who will go further than she is prepared to go, he has no boundaries.  I have the feeling we will see Edward again in later books.

Jean Claude is an interesting character, sexy and powerful he seems very much how a vampire in a story “should” be!!  I look forward to more Jean Claude!  

Guilty Pleasures is a great first book in the series, full of action, sexy vampires, some were rats, great characters and the promise of great things to come!  There are plenty of plot twists to keep you interested until the last page.  If you’re looking for a well paced action urban fantasy give it a go. 

I enjoyed Guilty Pleasures and will continue with the series.   I did not realise when I started to read the book it was first published in 1993!  Good to see it stay so popular.  I’ve read very mixed reviews of the later books in the series but I’ll see when I get there!

( Just one thing, please don’t tell me what happens in the later books or to make sure I stop at number x.  I know they sort of change track later on but I avoid reviews like the plague as I want to make up my own mind!) 

How do you like the cover of my edition?  


This is an old copy, 2000 the original published date in the UK I think??  The covers are quite different now!