Laurell Kaye Hamilton (born February 19, 1963) is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is best known as the author of two series of stories. Her ''New York Times''-bestselling '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' series centers on

Anita Blake Anita Blake is the title and viewpoint character of the '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' series by Laurell K. Hamilton. The series takes place in a parallel world in which supernatural characters like vampires and werewolves exist alongside reg ...

, 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. Her

Merry Gentry Meredith "Merry" Gentry is the protagonist of an eponymous fantasy series by US writer Laurell K. Hamilton, best known for her other fantasy series '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter''. Since 2000, she has been alternating between the two series, pu ...

series centers on Meredith Gentry, Princess of the Unseelie court of

Faerie Fairyland (''Faerie'', Scottish ''Elfame'', c.f. Old Norse ''Álfheimr'') in English and Scottish folklore is the fabulous land or abode of fairies or ''fays''. Old French (Early Modern English ) referred to an illusion or enchantment, the land ...

, 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 ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

'', ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'', and ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' 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 Heber Springs is a city in and the county seat of Cleburne County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 7,165 at the 2010 census. Geography Heber Springs is located near the center of Cleburne County at (35.494329, −92.039168). Arkansa ...

but grew up in

Sims, Indiana Sims is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Sims Township, Grant County, Indiana. In 2010 it had a population of 156. History The community took its name from Sims Township. A post office was established at Sims in 18 ...

with her grandmother Laura Gentry. Her education includes degrees in English and biology from Marion College (now called

Indiana Wesleyan University Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) is a private evangelical Christian university headquartered in Marion, Indiana, and affiliated with the Wesleyan Church. It is the largest private university in Indiana. The university system includes IWU—Ma ...

), a private

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on undergraduate study in liberal arts and sciences. Such colleges aim to impart a broad general knowledge and develop general intellectual capac ...

Marion, Indiana Marion is a city in Grant County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,948 as of the 2010 United States Census. The city is the county seat of Grant County. It is named for Francis Marion, a brigadier general from South Carolina in the ...

that is affiliated with the

Wesleyan Church The Wesleyan Church, also known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Wesleyan Holiness Church depending on the region, is a Methodist Christian denomination in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Namibia, Sierra Leone, L ...

denomination. She met Gary Hamilton, whom she married, there. They have one daughter together, Trinity. Hamilton is involved with a number of animal charities, particularly supporting dog rescue efforts and wolf preservation. Hamilton currently lives in

St. Louis County, Missouri St. Louis County is located in the eastern-central portion of Missouri. It is bounded by the City of St. Louis and the Mississippi River to the east, the Missouri River to the north, and the Meramec River to the south. At the 2020 census, th ...

, with her daughter Trinity, and husband Jonathon Green whom she married in 2001.

Works

Laurell K. Hamilton is the author of two major book series, spin-off comic books, various anthologies, and other stand-alone titles: * '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' is an animator and necromancer who raises the dead for a living. She is also a vampire executioner and in later books a U.S. Marshal. Blake lives in a fictional St. Louis where vampires and were-animals exist and recently gained some rights as citizens. As of November 2013, Hamilton has published 22 novels and 5 novellas in the Anita Blake series. As of 2009 more than 6 million copies of Anita Blake novels have been printed and several have become ''New York Times'' bestsellers. * ''Anita Blake'' comics are the comic-book renditions of the Anita Blake series. As of May 2012, the comic-book series has included her first three books, ''Guilty Pleasures, Laughing Corpse'' and ''Circus of the Damned''. There was also a special prologue comic issued named, "The First Death". * ''

'' is a Princess of Faerie and a private investigator. She is constantly dodging assassination attempts while juggling life in the "real world" where everyone knows faeries exist. As of 2014, there have been a total of nine novels in the

series.

Reception

'' and ''

'' have identified Hamilton as having a significant impact on urban fantasy. In 2008, ''

'' declared that the popularity of the genre "owes everything to Laurell K. Hamilton". Authors Courtney Allison Moulton and

Kelly Gay Kelly Gay is an American author, known for her work in the science fiction/fantasy genre, particularly urban fantasy. Gay has written books in both the adult and young adult genres, penning the latter under the name of Kelly Keaton. She is partic ...

have noted Hamilton as an inspiration.

Anita Blake

Reader reaction to the series's shift in tone from

crime noir Hardboiled (or hard-boiled) fiction is a literary genre that shares some of its characters and settings with crime fiction (especially detective fiction and noir fiction). The genre's typical protagonist is a detective who battles the violence o ...

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

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 Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

in later books has been mixed, 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. 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. 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 ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' of ''

Micah Micah (; ) is a given name. Micah is the name of several people in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), and means "Who is like God?" The name is sometimes found with Theophoric name, theophoric extensions. Suffix theophory in ''Jah, Yah'' and in ''Y ...

''. 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." Other reviewers for ''

The Kansas City Star ''The Kansas City Star'' is a newspaper based in Kansas City, Missouri. Published since 1880, the paper is the recipient of eight Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Star'' is most notable for its influence on the career of President Harry S. Truman and as ...

'' and ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' also commented on the rise in sexual themes in the series. 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". In contrast, a ''

Denver Post ''The Denver Post'' is a daily newspaper and website published in Denver, Colorado. As of June 2022, it has an average print circulation of 57,265. In 2016, its website received roughly six million monthly unique visitors generating more than 13 ...

'' review of ''Danse Macabre'' took a more positive view of the eroticism in Hamilton's work. Although it noted that " ose 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 " w, if any, mainstream novels delve so deeply into pure, unadulterated erotica".

Bibliography

'' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter''

# '' Guilty Pleasures'' (1993) # '' The Laughing Corpse'' (1994) # '' Circus of the Damned'' (1995) # ''The Lunatic Cafe'' (1996) # ''

Bloody Bones Bloody Bones is a bogeyman figure in English and North American folklore whose first written appearance is approximately 1548. As with all bogeymen the figure has been used to frighten children into good behaviour. The character is sometimes call ...

'' (1996) # ''

The Killing Dance ''The Killing Dance'' is a horror/mystery novel by American writer Laurell K. Hamilton, the sixth book in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series. Plot introduction ''The Killing Dance'' continues the adventures of Anita Blake. In the novel, A ...

'' (1997) # '' Burnt Offerings'' (1998) # ''

Blue Moon A blue moon is an additional full moon that appears in a subdivision of a year: the third of four full moons in a season. The phrase in modern usage has nothing to do with the actual color of the Moon, although a visually blue Moon (the Moon a ...

'' (1998) # ''

Obsidian Butterfly Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...

'' (2000) # '' Narcissus in Chains'' (2001) # '' Cerulean Sins'' (2003) # '' Incubus Dreams'' (2004) # ''

'' (2006) # ''

Danse Macabre The ''Danse Macabre'' (; ) (from the French language), also called the Dance of Death, is an artistic genre of allegory of the Late Middle Ages on the universality of death. The ''Danse Macabre'' consists of the dead, or a personification of ...

'' (2006) # '' The Harlequin'' (2007) # '' Blood Noir'' (2008) # '' Skin Trade'' (2009) # ''

Flirt Flirting or coquetry is a social and sexual behavior involving spoken or written communication, as well as body language. It is either to suggest interest in a deeper relationship with the other person or, if done playfully, for amusement. It ...

'' (2010) # ''

Bullet A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. Bullets are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax. Bullets are made in various shapes and co ...

'' (2010) # '' Hit List'' (2011) # '' Kiss the Dead'' (2012) # ''

Affliction Affliction or Afflicted may refer to: Books * ''Affliction'' (novel), a 2013 Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter novel by Laurell K. Hamilton * ''Affliction'', a novel by Russell Banks, basis of the 1998 film Film and TV * ''Affliction'' (1997 film), ...

'' (2013) # ''Jason'' (2014) # ''Dead Ice'' (2015) # ''Crimson Death'' (2016) # ''Serpentine'' (August 7, 2018) # ''Sucker Punch'' (August 4, 2020) # ''Rafael'' (February 9, 2021)

Anita Blake novellas and short stories

* ''Those Who Seek Forgiveness'' (2006) ** published as part of Strange Candy, number 00.5 * ''The Girl Who Was Infatuated with Death'' (2006) ** published as part of Strange Candy, number 08.5 * ''

Beauty Beauty is commonly described as a feature of objects that makes these objects pleasurable to perceive. Such objects include landscapes, sunsets, humans and works of art. Beauty, together with art and taste, is the main subject of aesthetics, o ...

'' (2012) ** novella, number 20.5 * ''

Dancing Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...

'' (2013) ** novella, number 21.5 * ''

Shutdown Shutdown or shut down may refer to: * Government shutdowns in the United States * Shutdown (computing) * Shutdown (economics) * Shutdown (nuclear reactor) Arts and entertainment Music * "Shut Down" (The Beach Boys song), 1963 * ''Shut Down Volu ...

'' ** short story; unofficially and temporarily released October 2013 ** not yet formally published, book number 21.75 * '' Wounded'' (December 2016) ** novella, number 24.5 * "Sweet Seduction" ** short story/novelette; collected in ''Noir Fatale'', May 2019 * '' Zombie Dearest'' (2020) ** novella, number 26.5 ** short story/novelette; collected in "Fantastic Hope", April 2020

Marvel Comics series

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

Science Fiction Book Club Bookspan LLC is a New York–based online Bookselling, bookseller, founded in 2000. Bookspan began as a joint endeavor by Bertelsmann and WarnerMedia, Time Warner. Bertelsmann took over control in 2007, and a year later, sold its interest to N ...
Omnibus Editions

* Club Vampyre ** ''Guilty Pleasures'' ** ''The Laughing Corpse'' ** ''Circus of the Damned'' * Midnight Cafe **''The Lunatic Cafe'' ** ''Bloody Bones'' **''The Killing Dance'' * Black Moon Inn **''Burnt Offerings'' ** ''Blue Moon'' * Nightshade Tavern ** ''Obsidian Butterfly'' ** ''Narcissus in Chains'' * Out of This World ** first 100 pages of ''Narcissus in Chains''

''
Merry Gentry Meredith "Merry" Gentry is the protagonist of an eponymous fantasy series by US writer Laurell K. Hamilton, best known for her other fantasy series '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter''. Since 2000, she has been alternating between the two series, pu ...
'' series

# ''

A Kiss of Shadows ''A Kiss of Shadows'' is an erotic horror novel by American writer Laurell K. Hamilton, the first book in the Merry Gentry series. Plot introduction A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to ...

'' (2000) # ''

A Caress of Twilight ''A Caress of Twilight'' is the second novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton. Plot introduction A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also fas ...

'' (2002) # ''

Seduced by Moonlight ''Seduced by Moonlight'' is the third novel in the Merry Gentry series by American writer Laurell K. Hamilton. Plot introduction A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, bu ...

'' (2004) # ''

A Stroke of Midnight ''A Stroke of Midnight'' is the fourth novel in the ''Merry Gentry'' series by Laurell K. Hamilton. Plot introduction A faerie princess turned private investigator in a world where faeries are not only known to the general public, but are also ...

'' (2005) # ''

Mistral's Kiss ''Mistral's Kiss'' is the fifth novel in the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton, and was released December 12, 2006. Plot introduction The series has revolved around a conflict between title character, faerie princess Meredith NicEssus, ...

'' (2006) # '' A Lick of Frost'' (2007) # ''

Swallowing Darkness ''Swallowing Darkness'' (2008) is the seventh novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton. Plot ''Swallowing Darkness'' follows the further adventures of Princess Meredith "Merry Gentry" NicEssus. Merry has finally succeeded ...

'' (2008) # ''

Divine Misdemeanors ''Divine Misdemeanors'' (December 8, 2009) is the eighth novel in the Merry Gentry series written by Laurell K. Hamilton. The book was one of the top selling novels of 2009. Plot ''Divine Misdemeanors'' follows the character of Meredith NicEssus, ...

'' (2009) # ''

A Shiver of Light The Merry Gentry series is a series of urban fantasy novels by ''New York Times'' bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton. The series is narrated in first person format through the eyes of the series' title character Meredith "Merry" Gentry, a ...

'' (2014)

Others

* ''Nightseer'' (1992) * ''Nightshade'' (1992) ** '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' authorized novel #24) * ''Death of a Darklord'' (1995) ** TSR's ''

Ravenloft Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a ''Demiplane, pocket dimension'' or demiplane, called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of la ...

'' series * Superheroes (anthology, 1995) ** ''A Clean Sweep'' * Cravings, (anthology, 2004) ** ''Blood upon my lips'' * Bite (anthology, 2004) ** ''The Girl Infatuated with Death'' * Strange Candy, (2006) ** 14 published and unpublished short stories * Never After (anthology, 2009) ** ''Can He Bake a Cherry Pie'' * Ardeur: 14 Writers on the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter Series (2010) * Dead Ice (2016) ** Extra chapter in paperback edition ** ''Wounded''

Critical studies, reviews and biography

References

Sources

;Literature * * * ;Interviews
Riverfront Times
(Nov 2008)

(Sept 2000)

a
SFFWorld.com
Nov 2000)

(Sept 2004)
Interview with Bankrate.com
(Nov 2004)
Interview on Flames Rising
(June 2006)
Interview on wotmania.com
(June 2006)
The WD Interview: Laurell K. Hamilton
(March 2008)

(June 2014)

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamilton, Laurell K. 1963 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers American erotica writers American fantasy writers American horror writers American women novelists BDSM writers Erotic horror writers Indiana Wesleyan University alumni Living people People from Heber Springs, Arkansas People from St. Louis County, Missouri Urban fantasy writers Writers from Arkansas Novelists from Indiana Novelists from Missouri Women science fiction and fantasy writers Women horror writers Women erotica writers Dark fantasy writers