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A review by jkpenny
Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton
1.0
Where to begin with this book? I suppose that, like the author, I could just jump right into the middle of things and make no effort to establish the story, world-building, or mythology in a clear manner. Because while it's one thing to say that you're writing a paranormal story with vampires and all sorts of other weird beasties, establishing the rules of the world you're writing about is pretty much a given. Not so in Guilty Pleasures!
I could also exhibit a form of mental disorder and jump around the story or focus on insignificant details which under some obscure definition might qualify as "characterization" or "plot development". But instead I'll try to be clear and concise when describing my issues with this book.
First, while this is ostensibly the first book in a series, there were times when I felt like I was dropped into a 3rd or 4th book. Characters were introduced in such a blase way that seemed to presume a level of recognition on the part of the reader.
Second, there was no obvious development of the relationships between the characters, and yet the reader was left to make the connection that somehow brief and insignificant interactions between characters had somehow led to deep and lasting connections between them. I felt like I was reading an abridged version of the novel, which would be fine except...
Third, the inconsequential details went on forever. The heroine could seemingly talk ad nauseum about the most trivial details. And instead of saying "No!" or "Nay!" or "Not so!" she insisted on saying something stupid or making an idiotic analogy and then saying "Naw."
Fourth, the villains (and yes I say "villains" plural, because why have one underdeveloped evil-doer when you can have more than one?!) were never terribly terrifying mainly because they just made no sense. Their motivations were unclear, something probably owed to a lack of adequate world-building, and their insistence on involving Anita Blake (the heroine, oh sorry, did I not mention her? Because she's apparently the biggest badass vampire hunter ever except that she seems to have no clue about vampires or their behavior... again, world-building!) in their misadventures.
I get that this book is the first in a series so presumably the world presented here is expanded and elaborated on in the later books. Presumably many of these characters will pop up again and will have their personalities and motivations elucidated. I presume all of this, because this book was it for me and Anita.
I could also exhibit a form of mental disorder and jump around the story or focus on insignificant details which under some obscure definition might qualify as "characterization" or "plot development". But instead I'll try to be clear and concise when describing my issues with this book.
First, while this is ostensibly the first book in a series, there were times when I felt like I was dropped into a 3rd or 4th book. Characters were introduced in such a blase way that seemed to presume a level of recognition on the part of the reader.
Second, there was no obvious development of the relationships between the characters, and yet the reader was left to make the connection that somehow brief and insignificant interactions between characters had somehow led to deep and lasting connections between them. I felt like I was reading an abridged version of the novel, which would be fine except...
Third, the inconsequential details went on forever. The heroine could seemingly talk ad nauseum about the most trivial details. And instead of saying "No!" or "Nay!" or "Not so!" she insisted on saying something stupid or making an idiotic analogy and then saying "Naw."
Fourth, the villains (and yes I say "villains" plural, because why have one underdeveloped evil-doer when you can have more than one?!) were never terribly terrifying mainly because they just made no sense. Their motivations were unclear, something probably owed to a lack of adequate world-building, and their insistence on involving Anita Blake (the heroine, oh sorry, did I not mention her? Because she's apparently the biggest badass vampire hunter ever except that she seems to have no clue about vampires or their behavior... again, world-building!) in their misadventures.
I get that this book is the first in a series so presumably the world presented here is expanded and elaborated on in the later books. Presumably many of these characters will pop up again and will have their personalities and motivations elucidated. I presume all of this, because this book was it for me and Anita.