Circus of the Damned: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, Book 3

Doing more then a couple hours of driving a day in rush hour traffic, this is my cure to Road Rage! lol Well... I don't get Road Rage but I had never been a fan of stop and go traffic. These Audio Books make it so I don't mind at all, in fact I sometimes feel I get home too quickly and have to sit in the car for another 5 minutes until I get to a part I can feel good about pausing. hehe Group Hugz

This book was fun. Since I have read all of the older books first and then came back to the first books I enjoyed this book for a few reasons. I love how Anita is confused by the monsters and the more confused and scared she gets the more aggressive and violent she gets. How Jean-Claude is clumsy and really pushes her but it seems to always back fire on him. I like how he is not sure how to handle her. I like that she is learning that Jean-Claude is not nearly as bad as most of the other Vamps. I also like to see that Richard was even blind to her back in the beginning of this series. He couldn’t swallow her out there fighting the bad guys and risking her life. He still is trying to find a way to wrap her in cotton and take away who and what she is. She is one tuff cookie our little necromancer is !!!!! :)

This is the first book (and last) I've read by this author. I honestly do not understand the appeal of this series.

Main gripe: the author uses way too many plot devices and suspended belief becomes impossible.

I didn't care for the ignorant prejudice from the protagonist. What's the deal with her distaste for vampires? Says she won't "date" the undead and would rather die than become one of the undead. The author doesn't explain why vampires are worth Anita defending (in some cases) but not good enough for her to "date" them. Maybe that was just a clumsy device to manufacture tension between the two...but it gets very annoying after about the 8th time.

Story drags from the middle on as the main character is all wrapped up in what she thinks, and what she feels. One moment she's self-righteous and then the next questions herself about really silly things -- childish.

It really irritates when an author will gladly have other supposedly strong characters be killed (in this case by Anita's supposedly assume fighting skills -- ummm yeah, didn't see any) but nothing can touch the protagonist. I call it the "Rambo" Dues ex machina, which was was old even in the 80's.

The sound effects are TERRIBLE! For me, music in previous audiobooks, was used to signal the end, or beginning, of a chapter. It took me a while to catch on that for this book it is used only for the action scenes. I'd been trained to get ready to transition and found myself confused when I realized they were fighting. And the sound effects are -- literally -- used as sound effects. Yikes! That production decision needs to be re-thought. I don't want to hear a gunshot ricochet while the narrative is going on, not to mention the "sucking" sounds when a knife is used.

This book was published in 1995...pagers are the most advanced technology. I know it was current for it's time, but I mistakenly thought it was only a decade old because that's when it was produced in audio version. My bad.

The book reads like a teenage angst rant. It's all Anita, Anita, Anita....blah, blah, blah...boring! Who cares what Anita thinks? She's not that great. And I don't get the appeal...

The whole series ranks within my top 5

I enjoy the progression of all of the characters, and how their interactions really effect one another.

Her vocal variety is outstanding

The different action points, suck you in as if you are there in the moment.

Yes L.K. Hamilton is one of my fav writers. I just wish she would go back to writing more pot and les sex in her newer books

It can't be compaired to anything but other books in the series.

They where all fine

I would hope that day never comes. I love the books to much to see them butchered in to movies. The comics are enough.

I haven't read the print version but I would say yes. The music adds lots of drama

When Anita is tossed between two lovers, Jean-Claude and Richard

Jean-Claude

Yes but the same thing with all the others.

can do with out the music....... book as the story of Anita goes on, you grow to love her, and want to know more.... get them all...

I like the stories but not as much as Sookie. I think I would like it better if they dropped some of the theratrics. Such as the echo of the gun shots and lay off some of the music. The characters are interesting so I ordered the next in the series.

Yes. I'm a big time fan of LKH and the Anita Blake series. I love her work and enjoy learning about how Anita and Jean Claude first began but I think the very end of the book could have had more meat to it. I would have like to know what happened to JC right after...well you know, the heart thing and before the hospital. She could have elaborated a little more instead of jumping to the next scene.

Kimberly Alexis is an amazing narrator! I wish she would have done them all instead of switching to some other narrators. They just didn't have the feel of Anita and she rocks at JC's accent!

Started on this book and just couldn't quit listening. Keeps you on the edge of your seat, to where you can't wait for what's happening next. I started listening to these books in order, and the characters just keep getting more interesting. Highly recommend this series if you really like a paranormal thriller, with undertones of sexual tension between the characters.