Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter is a series of urban fantasy novels, comics, and short stories written by Laurell K. Hamilton. The series follows the title character Anita Blake and her conflicts with supernatural creatures and powers.
Overview[]
The series is narrated by the character Anita Blake, and told exclusively from her point of view. As Hamilton has stated, "Anita is my eyes on her world, my camera." Throwing Anita deeper into magic, vampire, and lycanthrope experiences lets the reader explore these cultures vicariously.
Anita lives in a fictional Saint Louis much like our own, save that not only are things like vampires and shapeshifters real, but their presence is public knowledge and they are considered legal citizens of the United States, much like normal humans.
The novels follow Anita's ongoing conflicts with the supernatural as she attempts to solve a variety of supernatural mysteries, come to terms with her own abilities, and navigate an increasingly complex series of romantic and political relationships.
In the early books, Anita considers vampires untrustworthy monsters, and fears and pities lycanthropes. Over time she meets and befriends not only vampires and lycanthropes, but all kinds of preternatural beings. In book #1 she quips, "I don't date vampires. I kill them." By book #4 she is dating one. Anita's increasing trust in the "monsters" parallels her learning more about their respective cultures and becoming more involved in their communities and politics. As the series proceeds, Anita also acquires some lycanthrope and vampire abilities, and struggles with the concept of perhaps being one of the monsters herself.
Novels and novellas[]
Short story collections[]
| Book title | Author | First released | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|
| Out of This World | Various | August 2001 | 0-515-13109-1 |
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| Cravings | Various | June 2004 | 978-0515138153 |
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| Bite | Various | December 2004 | 978-0515139709 |
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| Strange Candy | Laurell K. Hamilton | October 2006 | 0-425-21201-7 |
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| Noir Fatale | Various | May 2017 | 978-1-4814-8397-1 |
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| Fantastic Hope | Various | April 2020 | |
Comics[]
A monthly comic-book adaptation of the series began in October 2006. Issues have been written by Laurell K. Hamilton and Stacie M. Ritchie respectively, with illustrations by Brett Booth. The comic is published by Dabel Brothers Productions in a partnership with Marvel Comics.
In October 20, 2006, Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures #1 was released under Marvel’s collaboration with the Dabel Brothers. The issue sold out on the release date. Marvel and Dabel Brothers released a second printing with a limited edition print on November 15, 2006. A third printing with a new variant cover was released on February 21, 2007.
Until October 2007 (Issue #6), the book was published monthly (along with a Sourcebook, which spoiled the story's ending), until Marvel acquired Dabel's licenses and the two partners split amicably. During the hiatus was published a comic-only prequel to the series, The First Death. When the series returned for the final half of the adaptation in March 2008, Ron Lim replaced Booth as of the seventh issue and Jess Ruffner replaced Ritchie.
The adaptations continued with fifteen-part versions of both The Laughing Corpse and Circus of the Damned, which was the last novel converted into comic book format.
In Chronological order the comics are:
- The First Death (2 Issues, 2007)
- Guilty Pleasures (12 issues, 2006-2008)
- The Laughing Corpse (Animator, Necromancer, Executioner each 5 issues long, 2008-2010)
- Circus of the Damned (Charmer, Ingenue, Scoundrel each 5 issues long, 2010-2012)
TV Adaption[]
- Main article: TV Movie Adaptation
IFC and Lionsgate planned a feature-length TV movie adaptation of the book series, with plans for a 2010 airdate. Glen Morgan had been hired to write the script. In october 2009 Hamilton announced that the project had been canceled.