Flirt

I found this book quite enjoyable. One of the things that has recently started to bug me about the Anita books is the over saturation of sex. It has been bordering overboard, just filler. That's not quite accurate, though because the love Laurelle puts into her writing, her spirit is poured into these sequences of the story, and many of them are important parts of the story for her character's development, and for plot. It is just that there is more to Anita than her hungers, than the men she sleeps with. When every few paragraphs Anita starts licking someone the rest of who she is gets lost somewhere in the discarded clothing.
I enjoyed this story more because it was more old school Anita, she actually got to go to work in this story...of course she didn't get to accomplish much, but hey I'll take what I can get. This story is very fast paced and kept me interested in that action thriller sort of way. Laurelle introduces a couple new characters that I'm sure we'll be seeing more of, and allows Anita to tap into her continually growing powers to get her out of the sticky situation she got into.
It was a rather short read but, I think that's because it didn't have ten chapters of romance in it. It didn't have room for all that either. This wasn't a romance novel it was a sexy action fantasy thriller just like they used to be.
I just wish they all could be like that, because what I love about Anita isn't how many hot guys she's got in her bed, it's her guns, knives, attitude, power, and honor. I love the Anita that works with the police and wont stop until she solves the case. I love the Anita that out smarts ancient vampires and pisses them off with her cynical sarcasm. I love Anita Blake:Vampire Hunter...and I often miss her, too.

It was great to see Anita at work as an animator, it seemed like the series was forgetting that Anita has a daytime job and that she's not just a human servant, vampire executioner, succubus, etc. I also liked the essay Hamilton included on how the idea for Flirt began, it was interesting to read how a simple situation could turn into a novel.