Third Book in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter Series: Circus of the Damned
Anita is a tough, sexy, caring person who raises people from the dead for a living and slays vampires as required.We see a new side of Anita in this book, her relationship with her girl friends. It really shows a different side of her personality that I found it to be interesting. Anita is asked to betray Jean-Claude to the Humans First group. She must decide if she should do this and what the consequences would be both for and against such an action.
This is the second book in the series and to date there are a total of 20 books. This book falls into the contemporary, urban fantasy genre with Anita Blake as a necromancer by trade and a sometimes vampire slayer known as The Executioner. There are vampires and other supernatural beings living together with humans in her world. The book also falls into the romance genre. The story is told using the character narrative with Anita’s voice and thoughts as we follow her around
Anita is once again dragged into solving a supernatural murder by Dolph the leading police detective on the case. While trying to solve this case Anita once again meets up with Jean-Claude to seek his help in solving the murders. During this book Anita comes to realize that vampires are not all bad and she is starting to care for Jean-Claude. One reason could be because Jean-Claude keeps seducing her in her dreams. Richard the werewolf is first introduced in this book and Anita has a date with him. We also meet Edward, he too is a vampire slayer known as Death and he is scary and intriguing.
I liked this book and I enjoyed reading the interactions between the characters. I really like Anita’s character and how she solves the supernatural problems plaguing the city. Once again, I am really looking forward to reading the next book in the series. This is a stand alone book, where all issued are resolved by the end of the book.
I recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading contemporary, urban fantasy that deals with vampires and werewolves and includes a strong female lead. This book is clearly part of a series where the story builds from book to book so it is best to read the books in order.