A review by zetarose
Burnt Offerings by Laurell K. Hamilton

2.0

I'm writing this review before I have even finished the book. I'm about 30 pages from the end. Yes, that's right I set the book down last night with only 30 pages left to go because I was so bored I was falling asleep. I have had the hardest time getting into this one. The story is mediocre at best and it seems that Hamilton is relying on the strength of the characters to carry this book. The problem is with the boring plot line the characters' idiosyncrasies stand out all the more. I find myself disliking the characters more and more with each book especially the main character and that is not good. Anita has shown almost no real growth in 7 books. Yeah she is a little more open to the monsters but her reactions to stressful situations are so formulaic that even a three year old could guess how Anita is going to react. It's a little disappointing because her character has so much room for growth. Don't even get me started on how Anita goes back and forth between her feelings for Jean Claude and Richard. Speaking of which, where is the relationship development? Why does she choose who she chooses? Why does she stay with him if she's so unsure of her feelings. There needs to be more here. It just seems there is no real reason for the relationship, it just is. I also find myself getting annoyed with Hamilton's repetitive writing style. If I read the phrase, "(fill in the blank), who me?" one more time I think I'll scream. Then there is Jean Claude's moniker for Anita, Ma Petite. I actually like this. It's sweet, endearing and it humanizes Jean Claude a bit but he says it almost every time he addresses Anita and sometimes more than once. It's total overkill. I really want to like these books, because I am such a sucker (pun intended) for vampire novels but it seems I'm always a little disappointed.