I've been reading heaps recently, so figured I'd gather some reviews.
Last two books I read were
Atmospheric Disturbances by Rivka Galchen (there's a good review of it
here by the New York Times) and
Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton, which I've rambled about below...
Guilty Pleasures is the first book in the Anita Blake, vampire hunter, series that my sister has become completely hooked on recently. Yesterday I went out and bought the first couple of books as a Christmas gift for her and figured I might as well read them first – it’ll give us something to talk about when I’m next in Christchurch, and I’m always interested to see what she’s reading.
And my first impression? This is Buffy for adults (a compliment!). The main character is 20-something Anita Blake, a professional ‘animator’ who raises zombies for a living (because it’s easier – for example – to ask the dead directly about some contentious section of their will rather than spending years trying to resolve the issue in court, right?) while hunting vampires for the police on the side. She’s competent, trigger-happy, and just a little bit snarky. It’s an entertaining combination.
The book itself is simply written, penned in short, punchy sentences. I’ve never read anything else by Laurell Hamilton so I’m not quite sure if this was meant to be reflective of Anita’s personality or is just the author’s writing style. Either way, it works. The plot also contains the standard dark sexual undercurrents found in most vampire novels – definitely a relief after Twilight! Overall, a very decent read.