Laurell K. Hamilton Explained

Laurell Kaye Hamilton
Birth Name:Laurell Kaye Klein
Birth Date:February 19, 1963
Birth Place:Heber Springs, Arkansas, U.S.
Alma Mater:Indiana Wesleyan University
Occupation:Writer, Novelist
Period:1993–present
Genre:Fantasy, Erotica, Romance, Horror, Science fiction
Notableworks:
Merry Gentry series
Spouse:Gary Hamilton
Jonathon Green
Children:1

Laurell Kaye Hamilton (born February 19, 1963) is an American fantasy and romance writer.[1] She is best known as the author of two series of stories.

Her New York Times-bestselling series centers on Anita Blake, a professional zombie raiser, vampire executioner and supernatural consultant for the police, which includes novels, short story collections, and comic books. Six million copies of Anita Blake novels are in print.[2] Her Merry Gentry series centers on Meredith Gentry, Princess of the Unseelie court of Faerie, a private detective facing repeated assassination attempts. Both of these fantasy series follow their protagonists as they gain in power and deal with the dangers of worlds in which creatures of legend live.

Several media outlets, including USA Today, Entertainment Weekly, and Time have identified her works as significant contributions to the development of the urban-fantasy genre.

Personal life

Laurell Kaye Hamilton was born Laurell Kaye Klein in Heber Springs, Arkansas but grew up in Sims, Indiana with her grandmother Laura Gentry. Her education includes degrees in English and biology from Marion College (now called Indiana Wesleyan University), a private Evangelical Christian liberal arts college in Marion, Indiana that is affiliated with the Wesleyan Church denomination. She met Gary Hamilton, whom she married, there. They have one daughter together, Trinity.[3]

Hamilton is involved with a number of animal charities, particularly supporting dog rescue efforts and wolf preservation.[4]

Hamilton lives in St. Louis County, Missouri,[5] with her daughter Trinity, and husband Jonathon Green whom she married in 2001.[6]

Works

Laurell K. Hamilton is the author of two major book series, spin-off comic books, various anthologies, and other stand-alone titles:

Reception

Entertainment Weekly and USA Today have identified Hamilton as having a significant impact on urban fantasy.[8] [9] In 2008, Time declared that the popularity of the genre "owes everything to Laurell K. Hamilton".[10] Authors Courtney Allison Moulton and Kelly Gay have noted Hamilton as an inspiration.[11] [12]

Anita Blake

Reader reaction to the series's shift in tone from crime noir thriller to focus more predominantly on the sexual themes in the series has been mixed, starting with Narcissus in Chains when the main character of Anita Blake becomes infected with the ardeur. The ardeur is a supernatural power inadvertently given to Anita by her vampire Master Jean-Claude that gives her massive amounts of power but also demands that she have sexual intercourse with several different people through the course of a day, sometimes in large groups. Reception to these dynamics and to the usage of sexual abuse in later books has been mixed,[13] with some reviewers commenting that the character of Anita spent too much time "obsessing about whether or not she’s a slut" while others remarked that the erotic themes enhanced the series.[14] In response to these comments, Hamilton issued a blog entitled "Dear Negative Reader" where she addressed a growing number of readers on the Internet that were expressing disappointment in the series's changes.[15] In the blog Hamilton told the readers that "life is too short to read books you don’t like" and that if they found that the current subject matter pushed "you past that comfortable envelope of the mundane" then "stop reading" and speculated that some of the readers were either "closet readers" or comment based on others' opinions. The blog entry was negatively received by some readers.

Critical reviewers have also commented on the amount of sex in later books, as in a 2006 review in The Boston Globe of Micah. The review was largely negative, stating "we were not impressed. Hamilton no doubt appeals to romance and erotica lovers, but it does not take long for the clichés and the constant droning about sex to become tiresome."[16] Other reviewers for The Kansas City Star and Publishers Weekly also commented on the rise in sexual themes in the series.[17] The reviewer for the Kansas City Star stated that "After 13 erotically charged books, boredom has reared its ugly head for the 14th novel in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series, as eroticism becomes mere description..." and Publishers Weekly commented that Blood Noir had a "growing air of ennui, which longtime readers can't help sharing as sex increasingly takes the place of plot and character development".[18]

In contrast, a Denver Post review of Danse Macabre took a more positive view of the eroticism in Hamilton's work. Although it noted that "[t]hose looking for mystery and mayhem on this Anita adventure are out of luck" it also stated that "the main attraction of the Anita Blake novels in the past five years has been their erotic novelty", and "[f]ew, if any, mainstream novels delve so deeply into pure, unadulterated erotica".[19]

Bibliography

  1. Guilty Pleasures (1993)
  2. The Laughing Corpse (1994)
  3. Circus of the Damned (1995)
  4. The Lunatic Cafe (1996)
  5. Bloody Bones (1996)
  6. The Killing Dance (1997)
  7. Burnt Offerings (1998)
  8. Blue Moon (1998)
  9. Obsidian Butterfly (2000)
  10. Narcissus in Chains (2001)
  11. Cerulean Sins (2003)
  12. Incubus Dreams (2004)
  13. Micah (2006)
  14. Danse Macabre (2006)
  15. The Harlequin (2007)
  16. Blood Noir (2008)
  17. Skin Trade (2009)
  18. Flirt (2010)
  19. Bullet (2010)
  20. Hit List (2011)
  21. Kiss the Dead (2012)
  22. Affliction (2013)
  23. Jason (2014)
  24. Dead Ice (2015)
  25. Crimson Death (2016)
  26. Serpentine (August 7, 2018)
  27. Sucker Punch (August 4, 2020)
  28. Rafael (February 9, 2021)
  29. Smolder (March 21, 2023)
  30. Slay (November 7, 2023)

Anita Blake novellas and short stories

Marvel Comics series

(in Anita's chronological order)

  1. Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: The First Death 1–2 (7 & 12/2007)
  2. Guilty Pleasures Handbook (2007)
  3. Anita Blake Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures 1–12 (12/2006 – 8/2008)
  4. Anita Blake: The Laughing Corpse – Animator 1–5 (10/2008 – 2/2009)
  5. Anita Blake: The Laughing Corpse – Necromancer 1–5 (4/2009 – 9/2009)
  6. Anita Blake: The Laughing Corpse – Executioner 1–5 (9/2009 – 3/2010)
  7. Anita Blake: Circus of The Damned – The Charmer 1–5 (5/2010 – 10/2010)
  8. Anita Blake: Circus of The Damned – The Ingenue 1–5 (1/2011–ongoing)
  9. Anita Blake: Circus of the Damned – The Scoundrel 1–5 (Ongoing)

Science Fiction Book Club Omnibus Editions

Merry Gentry series

  1. A Kiss of Shadows (2000)
  2. A Caress of Twilight (2002)
  3. Seduced by Moonlight (2004)
  4. A Stroke of Midnight (2005)
  5. Mistral's Kiss (2006)
  6. A Lick of Frost (2007)
  7. Swallowing Darkness (2008)
  8. Divine Misdemeanors (2009)
  9. A Shiver of Light (2014)

Others

Awards

1996: International Horror Guild Award (Novel) - Bloody Bones - Nominated[22]

2001: Locus Award (Fantasy) - A Kiss of Shadows - Nominated

2011: Goodreads Choice Awards (Paranormal Fantasy) - Hit List - Nominated

2012: Goodreads Choice Awards (Paranormal Fantasy) - Kiss the Dead - Nominated

2013: Goodreads Choice Awards (Paranormal Fantasy) - Affliction - Nominated

Critical studies, reviews and biography

References

Sources

Literature
Interviews

Notes and References

  1. Web site: McCune. Alisa. A Conversation With Laurell K. Hamilton. SF Site. 17 August 2012.
  2. Web site: Works by Laurell K Hamilton . https://web.archive.org/web/20110610122103/http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/works/ . dead . 10 June 2011 . 6 October 2010 .
  3. Web site: Locus Online: Laurell K. Hamilton interview (excerpts). September 2000 . Locus.
  4. Web site: Laurell K. Hamilton Interview, Horror Author. Flames Rising. 30 October 2012.
  5. Web site: Laurell K. Hamilton. https://web.archive.org/web/20090224004728/http://ww2.wizards.com/Books/Wizards/Bios/default.aspx?doc=LaurellKHamilton. February 24, 2009.
  6. Web site: Laurell K. Hamilton (1963–) - Encyclopedia of Arkansas. 2016-09-21.
  7. Web site: KISS THE DEAD. RT Book Reviews. 30 October 2012. 1 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201082906/https://www.rtbookreviews.com/book-review/kiss-dead. dead.
  8. News: Catherine . Garcia . Q&A: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter author Laurell K. Hamilton . ew.com . June 1, 2010 . March 6, 2011 .
  9. News: Carol . Memmott . Vampire stories are in this writer's blood . . June 28, 2006 . March 6, 2011 .
  10. Gilbert . Cruz . Q&A:Vampire Novelist Laurell K. Hamilton . Time . October 30, 2008 . February 3, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081103095546/http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1854991,00.html. dead. November 3, 2008.
  11. News: Sara . M . Author Interview and Giveaway: Kelly Gay . urbanfantasyreader.blogspot.com . December 9, 2009 . February 28, 2011 .
  12. News: Interview with Courtney Allison Moulton, Debut Author of Angelfire . mundiemoms.blogspot.com . February 12, 2011 . March 6, 2011 .
  13. Book: Benefiel, Candace. Reading Laurell K. Hamilton. 2006. Libraries Unlimited. 978-0-313-37835-5. 110.
  14. Web site: Amazeen . Sandy . Book Review: Danse Macabre by Laurell K. Hamilton . Monsters and Critics . 30 October 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20140222215335/http://www.monstersandcritics.com/books/science_fiction_fantasy/reviews/article_1171739.php/Book_Review_Danse_Macabre_by_Laurell_K._Hamilton . 22 February 2014 .
  15. Web site: Dear Negative Reader. Laurell K Hamilton. 30 October 2012. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121016021507/http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/2006/12/dear-negative-reader/. 16 October 2012.
  16. News: Rochelle . O'Gorman . Beware the Ringing Cell . . 0743-1791 . C7 . 2006-03-26.
  17. News: Robert . Folsom . 'Danse Macabre' by Laurell K. Hamilton; 'The Lies of Locke Lamora' by Scott Lynch . . 2006-07-17.
  18. http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6552500.html "Publishers Weekly Fiction Reviews: Week of 2008-04-21"
  19. News: Dorman T. Shindler. 7th Anita Blake novel builds on erotic aura. The Denver Post. 1930-2193. F13. 2006-08-20.
  20. Web site: Hamilton . Laurell K. . A present from me to you, because our government is behaving badly . October 8, 2013 . laurellkhamilton.org . November 14, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131127122553/http://www.laurellkhamilton.org/2013/10/a-present-from-me-to-you-because-our-government-is-behaving-badly/ . November 27, 2013 .
  21. Book: Larry . Correia . Larry Correia . Ezell . Kacey . 2019 . Noir Fatale . Sweet Seduction . https://books.google.com/books?id=j3eUDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT197 . Riverdale, NY . Baen Books . 127–153 . 978-1-4814-8397-1 . 1056742830.
  22. https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ay.cgi?26+1996

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