Wow, with each novel we get new monsters, what an imagination Laurell K. Hamilton has. Obsidian Butterfly is the 9th novel in the Anita Blake series and its still going strong. This is my favorite vampire/supernatural series for good reason. The characters are always developing, I feel as if I really know them, and the plot is always terrific.

Background:
In this novel, Vampires are citizens. They own businesses and have rights. You must have an order of execution to kill one. Lycanthropy (werewolf or were-whatever) is a disease and you must not discriminate against someone for having it. Necromancy, having power over the dead, can be a job skill. You can raise the dead for a living. There is also a preternatural squad of the St. Louis police force and the FBI.

Anita Blake, the center to the series, is a necromancer. She executes vampires, and hunts anything else nasty and supernatural. She is petite 5'3, dark headed, and carries an attitude. She has over 50 sanction kills and more that are not. She is a consultant for the St. Louis police force and the head of a were-leopard pard. She is always armed with at least 2 guns (loaded with silver ammo) and silver knives (silver will kill a Lycanthrope and slow down a vampire). She is magically tied to a Master Vampire (powerful vampire) and the head of a werewolf pack. Oh yes, she was dating both of them too.

In this novel, we get away from St. Louis (the town where most of the other novels take place). It takes place out west in Santa Fe. Edward, a bounty hunter, nicknamed death calls in a favor that Anita owed him. Edward used to kill humans, but they are not a challenge anymore so he targets things harder to kill. Anita is the closet thing to a friend he has got. He needs her expertise on a case in Santa Fe. Something is killing people, and skinning others alive--leaving them alive sort of. Whatever it is also is strong in magic. Anita and Edward also have to deal with a vampire that believes she is a goddess and a police force that does not want Anita involved. Also Anita finds out that Edward has inherited a family. Can Anita and Edward save them all, from what goes bump in the dark?

This book tells us alot about Edward--he also brings in some backup characters that are interesting Olaf--a torturer who has a black file in the US government, and Bernardo, a sexy bounty hunter. Plus a boyish, detective who has the hots for Anita. We also meet a vampire called the Obsidian Butterfly who thinks she is an Aztec goddess. We have a very interesting cast of characters this time, but they don't quite make up for the absence of the boys. Jean-Claude is my fav character and I mourned his absence in this novel.

Otherwise this novel was as good as the rest. It had excellent characters, and a good plot. Hamilton has a good writing style that will keep you interested. Her novels are always a page turner. I would recommend this novel to anyone who likes vampire novels. You should however read the other eight first (see my reviews for the other eight--you can link to them from my info page).

Recommended: Yes