Average customer rating:
- Worth Reading
- Very Good Speculative Fiction
- Great book...lots of potential
- Super Reader
- not for the young or squeemish
|
Guilty Pleasures (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 1)
Laurell K. Hamilton
Manufacturer: Jove
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Hamilton, Laurell K.
| ( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Dark Fantasy
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Vampires
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Mystery
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Mystery & Thrillers
| Subjects
| Books
Hamilton, Laurell K.
| ( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Contemporary
| General
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Dark Fantasy
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
General
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Vampires
| Horror
| Genre Fiction
| Literature & Fiction
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
General
| Mystery & Thrillers
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
General
| Mystery
| Mystery & Thrillers
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
All 4-for-3 Deals
| 4-for-3 Books Store
| Stores
| Books
Similar Items:
-
The Laughing Corpse (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 2)
-
Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 3)
-
The Lunatic Cafe (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 4)
-
Bloody Bones (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 5)
-
The Killing Dance (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 6)
ASIN: 051513449X |
Amazon.com
Anita Blake may be small and young, but vampires call her the Executioner. Anita is a necromancer and vampire hunter in a time when vampires are protected by law--as long as they don't get too nasty. Now someone's killing innocent vampires and Anita agrees--with a bit of vampiric arm-twisting--to help figure out who and why.
Trust is a luxury Anita can't afford when her allies aren't human. The city's most powerful vampire, Nikolaos, is 1,000 years old and looks like a 10-year-old girl. The second most powerful vampire, Jean-Claude, is interested in more than just Anita's professional talents, but the feisty necromancer isn't playing along--yet. This popular series has a wild energy and humor, and some very appealing characters--both dead and alive.
Book Description
Published over ten years ago by Ace, Guilty Pleasures marked the debut of a series that was destined to grow from cult favorite to a major New York Times bestseller. Now, for long-time Anita Blake junkies and newfound fans, Guilty Pleasures makes its trade paperback debut. Readers will learn how Anita Blake started raising the dead-and killing the undead. And how she met Jean Claude, the master vampire destined to become not only her biggest nemesis, but her greatest lover...
Download Description
Published almost ten years ago, Guilty Pleasures marked the debut of a writer who was destined to grow from cult favorite to a major bestselling author. Now, for long-time Anita Blake aficionados and newfound fans, Guilty Pleasures makes its hardcover debut. Readers will learn how Anita Blake started raising the dead--and killing the undead. And how she met Jean Claude, the master vampire destined to become not only her biggest nemesis, but her greatest lover.
Customer Reviews:
Worth Reading.......2007-09-16
I originally picked up this book in order to start to get into the world of Anita Blake, since it seems to be so popular lately. Unfortunately, I think that the writing style is a little too straightforward - there aren't enough plot twists, at least not in this first novel, for me to really maintain absolute interest. That said, it is interesting, and I did enjoy the overall plot. It's worth reading, but definitely not worth all of the hype attributed to the series...hopefully the plots get a little better as the series progresses.
Very Good Speculative Fiction.......2007-08-29
Guilty Pleasures was a very interesting book, a very good example of speculative fiction. It is set in a universe that is similar to ours, but the supernatural aspects are in the open. Vampires, Zombies, and other creatures are an accepted fact.
It is also the first book, at this point both chronologically and in published order, in the Anita Blake series.
Anita is the heroine, an animator (one who raises zombies) who just so happens to be the official vampire executioner of Missouri, and an important part of the Regional Preternatural Investigation Team. Vampires have rights, so she needs a warrant to execute a vampire, and a warrant can only be obtained officially.
Vampires in this world, at least in the United States, have rights, but they are still vampires. They are monsters, but at least they are not one-dimensional monsters, and the book starts with the vampires needing Anita's help.
You see, someone has been killing vampires, and the vampires don't quite trust the police to find out who it is. From there, the action starts. You see the vampires don't quite like Anita either, but since they believe they can coerce her to do so, they set the plans in action. Guilty Pleasures is also a strip club, for vampires, owned by a vampire named Jean Claude, and the site of the true start of the action involving the Master (vampire) of the city.
In the book Anita is bounced between vampires and assassins and voodoo practitioners, and embroiled in the political maneuverings of vampires, all in the effort to protect a friend, protect herself, and solve a mystery that she would rather not have to deal with.
This is a book I would strongly recommend to almost anyone interested in science fiction, fantasy, or mysteries. Fans of horror may find Guilty Pleasures a bit of a light offering. I also think this may be a bit mature for young readers, especially if they tend to follow up on series. Overall I greatly enjoyed the book and think it is one of the better alternate universe settings in fiction today.
Great book...lots of potential.......2007-08-28
So I needed a Vamp fix after Black Dagger Brotherhood (best series I have read so far action, drama, passion, romance ...the works). So I decided to check out Anita Blake, it was not what I expected there has been no romance, or steamy scenes of any kind so far Im on book 3....but I AM NOT disappointed the action and drama is fast paced. I love a cycnical kick @$$ chick. I bought the first 11 and intend to read them all. It's a great series, very gory, gritty, and abit scary I LUV it;)Hard to stop reading once you start!
Super Reader.......2007-08-26
The start of an interesting series. Anita Blake must balance her life between being a vampire hunter, and a legally licensed one at that, a private necromancer, and her own repressed catholic schoolgirl self.
With all this to do she finds it hard to have healthy relationships, but she is good at solving crimes that relate to the supernatural population, and putting an end to their unlives permanently, if necessary.
not for the young or squeemish.......2007-08-24
Imagine a world where vampires,werewolves, and other monsters are real and that they have been given citizenship. That is the world in which Guilty Pleasures thrusts us. Guilty Pleasures is the first book in Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake series, also the name of a vampire strip club.
This first book follows Anita Blake through some very close and sometimes messy encounters with vampires as she tracks down a serial killer that is targeting vampires. She is tricked into helping the master of the city to hunt this serial killer.
First of all, this world is much like ours but some may say it is an alternate universe, one where vampires, werewolves, zombies, and all manner of other supernatural creatures are commonplace. I try to think of it as the real world.
Anita is a petite yet deadly young woman who makes her living as a zombie raiser and licenced vampire killer (hence her nickname; the Vampires call her The Executioner, a name she wears with pride).
While the book is a bit short in some ways, Hamilton's writing is very nice, and descriptive. While there is ALOT graphic violence and sexual innuendo, it is much more of an adventure story than it is of horror.
I especially liked...
The way you were thrown into it. I honestly thought that this was not the first novel. I looked for one before this but ther was none. There was not a lot of explaining like most first novels tend to do.
I didn't like...
How short it was,it is the shortest of the the series, 14 more books have appeared for a total of 15 I think...
When I finished reading this Book I wanted to...
Read the next book and tell all my friends about it.
This Book made me feel...
Thankful that it was only a novel and not the real world. I would hate to meet any of the characters in a dark alley.
The author of this Book...
Is one of my favorites and has been ever since I read this book. although her recent stuff is just vampire soft porn. but this 1st book is one of the best.
I recommend this Book because...
If you like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and things with a bit of humor in it then this is the book for you.
Product Description
New York Times bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton brings Anita Blake to the world of graphic novels. Anita Blake lives in a world where vampires, zombies and werewolves have been declared legal citizens of the United States. Anita Blake is an "animator" - a profession that involves raising the dead for mourning relatives. But Anita is also known as a fearsome hunter of criminal vampires, and she's often employed to investigate cases that are far too much for conventional police. But as Anita gains the attention of the vampire masters of her hometown of St. Louis, she also risks revealing an intriguing secret about herself - the source of her unusual strength and power. This hardcover edition contains an all-new, original, never-before-published short story by Laurell K Hamilton.
Customer Reviews:
Fails to rise.......2007-09-16
I love the current boom of modern vampire novels, but I am not a fan of Laurell K. Hamilton's perky, Nike-clad heroine, Anita Blake. I read the first several novels in Hamilton's long-running series years ago and just couldn't get past her repetitive style of writing, her tiresome placement of Nike endorsements or growing passion for soft-core pornography. At the heart of the Blake series, I believe, is a good collection of stories, but while Hamilton may be a good storyteller, she's not a very good novelist; somewhere between her original ideas and the printed page, the story gets buried in bad writing.
But, while I could no longer force myself to slog through Hamilton's increasingly long and sexually-driven books, I had high hopes for the new graphic adaptation by Marvel Comics. With the text whittled down to its essentials, filtered through the pen of an adaptor and enhanced by colorful visuals, the story might find a better voice.
Unfortunately not. While adaptors Stacie Ritchie and Jess Ruffner have retained the essence of the original text, the resulting tale is cluttered, rushed and often confusing. Brett Booth's art falls just short of being beautiful, too -- but with Anita's lips pumped full of collagen, hair threatening to rival Medusa's for invasive animation and thighs that put a running back's to shame, it's just too damn distracting to help move the story along. All of Booth's women have football-player thighs, actually, and many of his men can be separated from one another only because of their differing hairstyles.
I'm afraid Anita Blake still pales in comparison to many of the vampire-themed heroines storming the literary stage these days. This adaptation is unable to lift her above her creator's limitations.
by Tom Knapp, Rambles.NET editor
Excellent Artwork!.......2007-09-09
I haven't read any of Hamilton's novels, but this graphic novel was exceptionally good. It had a wonderful storyline that keeps you turning pages and the artwork was better than most current comics. As overplayed as the entire vampire genre is, this story had enough unique traits to keep it interesting. The only disappointment is finishing the book and not knowing how the story ends... maybe I should start reading the novels to find out.
I love it!!.......2007-09-05
The comic book is fantastic. I absolutely love all the novels and have all of them and I couldn't wait to get the Vol. 1 comic book. The pages are vey colorful and the artist did a great job. Also in between the "chapters" - divisions between released comics - the posters (page size) that were released are there. The book has comics 1-6 and a mini new comic at the end. If you love Anita Blake books atleast before they got very amorous you have got to buy this book.
Absofanbloodytastic!.......2007-09-01
Anita Blake graphic novel vol 1 is awesome! I am seriously glad that i bought this book, it's quality in graphics is amazing and to have the first six volumes of the comics bound into one volume is great, theres the continuity of reading that you can't get with comics. The bonus story is great for back story on Anita, but i think it needed some more depth to it personally. But it is well worth the money for those die hard Laurell.K fans such as myself.
Guilty Pleasures.......2007-08-27
This is the first Laurell Hamilton book I ever read, it hooked me and I have read everything she has written except for the last one. I must say however that if erotic fiction is not your thing leave this one alone, as the character evolved the books became quite graphic and significant to the character. She also has a fairie line which I have also read, like them all and can't wait for more to arrive.
Customer Reviews:
Fun!.......2007-09-09
I bought this series for my boyfriend and have found myself paging through it. Hamilton's novels are quite fun and full of action, which keeps the reader energized. However, those expecting these works to mirror Anne Rice will not be satisfied, as these novels lack the level of detail present in Anne Rice novels. They do of course concern themselves with vampires, so those fond of Anne Rice will have fun with these. Definitely worth the read!
Bubble Gum.......2007-08-18
Bubble gum is not good for your teeth, but I chew it anyhow. I know it will satisfy a craving consistently. Like bubble gum, I cannot stop chewing up these books. It is primarily the sexual tension on the pages and the fact that I am a Buffy fan and need my vampire fix. The plots are formulaic, and Ms. Hamilton does need a better editor. "Alright," though used, is not really acceptable in formal text. In the third volume, Anita's car gets totaled, and then suddenly, she has a car again to follow someone to the million-year-old vampire's digs. I also cannot stand some of the author's phrases, such as "heap big vampire slayer." Quite possibly I cringe because no young woman would talk like this. As well, I have a hard time buying some of Anita's outfits. I was in my twenties in the late 90's, and I never would have worn the ensembles Anita wears. Thank God that Blake is taking some hints from the Master of the City. Granted the protagonist has bigger things on her mind; however, she dresses like the would-be love child of Richard Simmons and Minnie Pearl. There are some other typos and logical inconsistencies scattered throughout other books. All the things I just mentioned are "nitpicky," but some of them do stop me in my tracks as I am flying through the pages. I do not want to encounter sand when I am chewing my gum.
Amazing books.......2007-06-27
Perfect! I finished this box set in less than a week. The books have excellent plots, detailed characters, and witty humor that have me laughing out loud. I made the mistake of getting one of the later books first and was so glad I started at the beginning. These books are fun and frisky. Definitely a recommended read for those who like action, romance, and refreshing characters.
Got me Started.......2007-03-17
This 4-book set was the first I had read of the Anita Blake series. I have since ordered another 5 books from that series and will order the rest after I read those. These are really well written and move right along with interesting characters and plots.
Anita Blake foursome...........2007-03-15
Anyone who loves Laurell K Hamilton will love this foursome. These are the first books in the Anita Blake series and well worth your time for a great price.
Book Description
One of Daphne Wade's guilty pleasures is to watch the Duke of Tremore as he works, shirtless, on the excavation site of his ducal estate. Anthony Courtland is by far the most exciting and handsome man she has ever known, and she dreams of one day being able to speak with him without getting tongue tied.
Anthony, meanwhile, only sees Daphne as a hard worker on his excavation team. He considers her a plain young lady and says so in a careless remark to a friend, unaware that Daphne is outside the library door, her heart shattering to pieces. So Daphne decides she will not be so silly any longer. She begins to be tutored in the social graces, forcing Anthony to see the beauty who has been right in front of his eyes.
Customer Reviews:
My Favorite Historical Novel EVER!.......2007-08-01
I read this a few years ago for the first time and wasn't a fan. However, I gave it another chance a year ago, and I fell in love.
This romance is the most poignant and exciting I've ever read. My favorite books are always the ones where the guy doesn't notice the plain girl at first. I love how Anthony falls in love with her for who she is, and soon she's not plain to him anymore- not because she has had a makeover like in so many novels, but because he is drawn to her personality, her wit, her intellect (and her body, of course! hehe). While some couples in romance novels are attracted to each other right away, or share a kiss immediately in the book, I love watching Anthony slowly fall for her. And the fact that the romance- the kisses, and finally the "consummation"- is drawn out and not rushed makes it all the more powerful for me. I love sexual tension, and this book has it!
I've read the book over and over now, and I continue to be enthralled by the chemistry the two characters share. Now I want to read it again!
A great romance!.......2007-05-20
This was the first book I had read by Ms. Guhrke, and I loved it! She has a wonderful way of writing; in fact, she's the one who got me hooked on Regency romances! I recommend it for anyone who likes a good, sexy romance novel.
Guilty Pleasures.......2007-04-17
Delicous. Has wonderful plot. Would love to have more passion earlier in the book.
Not an "ugly duckling" story........2007-04-12
I read all the reviews posted here on Amazon before beginning to write this review and I was struck by how many referred to Daphne as an "ugly duckling" who turned into a "swan". I did not see her in this way. I thought the author did a wonderful job of describing her as a woman who was normal, like most women in the world. She was not a raving beauty but she was normal. Obviously a heroine must fall into two general catagories. She must be breathtakingly beautiful or she is plain. We as readers don't seem to give authors much leeway in describing their characters. Most people are neither beautiful nor plain, they are just average. That is were that term comes from. Daphne was normal, average. She wore glasses, but only if she wanted to see well (that is a bit of sarcasm for those of you who don't need glasses!). I absolutely loved the fact that Ms Guhrke did not make Daphne undergo dramatic changes in her appearance in order to become the object of the Duke's affection. Instead, he learned to love HER, not her outward appearance.
The Duke of Tremore was not a hard character for me to understand. It was important for me to remember the historical setting of this novel. This man held a title which gave him incredible standing. He ranked above all his peers and beneath only royalty. How could he not have an exalted idea of his place in society? This particular man had assumed the duties of Duke of Tremore while his father was still living because his father was rendered totally incapable of discharging his duties because of his grief for his wife. It is very important to remember that this young man assumed the active role of being in charge of his family at the age of 12. That had to impact his character development in a tremendous way and this author showed that to us over and over in order to make us understand his handling of Daphne resigning her position.
It was fascinating to watch Anthony court Daphne using the language of flowers. That is a subject which has interested me for a long time but this is the first work of fiction where I have been privileged to watch it work. It was very unusual, a very gentle method for allowing him to show his regard and ultimately his love for the woman he wanted to be his duchess. I just loved it. Anyone who doubts his profession of his love for Daphne missed the significance of the single, thornless red rose. This book contains sensual moments but it also contains quiet, gentle moments and I really like and appreciate that combination. I find it to be much more realistic. A relationship between two people can not always consist of physical passion. They need to connect on many levels and I feel this book did that. We were allowed to see the strengths and weaknesses of both the hero and heroine.
An eminently satisfactory read from my standpoint. It will be given a place of honor among the small number of romantic fiction books I choose to keep.
What a romance novel should be.......2007-03-27
I flat out loved this book. The interaction between Daphne and Anthony was great. It was nice to have a heroine show some backbone for a change and Daphne didn't let Anthony get away with anything. Which, of course, just intrigued Anthony all the more.
This was a beautiful love story and it was a pleasure to read.
Product Description
Guilty Pleasures explores the passionate willingness of women throughout the ages to offer themselves up to the forces of love. Historical facts are seamlessly woven into intensely graphic sexual encounters beginning with ancient Egypt and journeying down through the centuries to the present and beyond. Beneath the covers of Guilty Pleasures youll find over twenty erotic love stories with a profound feel for the times and places where they occur. An ancient Egyptian priestess
a courtesan rising to fame in Athens Golden Age
the lovely sacrifice of a Druid rite
a Romanian Counts wicked mistress
and many more are all one eternal woman in Guilty Pleasures.
Customer Reviews:
Bravo!.......2007-01-09
Though some of the works here are better than others, such as "Milagro", and "The Integral", Ms. Pita offers enough of a variety with a master's stroke that most tastes will be satisfied.
all consuming, passionate exploration of love and sexual desire.......2006-02-06
Pita's characters take us on an all consuming, passionate exploration of love and sexual desire from around the world, utilising cultures and centuries we can only imagine.
Maria Isabel Pita takes us through a collection of 18 erotic stories which capture the enthusiasm and passion of different women throughout the ages, with astounding precision. The author displays an unusual, albeit ingenious, imagination that opens the book with Out of Control, a short story set in futuristic Canada 2015. It's difficult to suggest favourite as I enjoyed them all, however, the stories which stand out the most include my literary trip to 1636 Transylvania, in Song of Blood, reading of the Secret Societies in Italy, 1500's, through to the year 3000 B.C, Crete in The Double Axe. Oh yes, then another solar system, Star Crossed and then a final pit stop in a parallel universe, Light After Breath. Should you wish to read from the last tale to first you can, as they are standalone stories, and can be read in any order.
What I liked about Guilty Pleasures is that with each tale comes a new premise, amalgamated with historical facts and wonderful, descriptive exposition. Every character is written with a fresh, unique outlook on love and life appropriate to the chosen historical era. This fact alone, hooked me from the first sentence, or at least the opening paragraph of each story. Ms Pita varies the pace of her writing, in a well-planned effort to intrigue and arouse the reader. All in all, Maria's ability to mix the erotic pursuits of her characters with entertaining, sometimes shocking twists and turns, ensures a believable, dynamic ending to each self-contained story. Out of the whole collection, there was only one story where the denouement wasn't quite as surprising (or perhaps interesting) as the rest, but that's not a problem, just a different style.
It is clear from Maria's writing, she a talented erotic writer who holds a passionate interest in history and their correlating cultures. Some of her stories are slightly peppered with an S&M flavour, but more often than not, the true sadistic behaviour of her characters are indeed the main source of nourishment and sexual satisfaction. These stories capture a mixture of cruel, sensual overriding power, and exotic scenes; intensifying the creative suspense of an exhilarating read and all consuming passions, not to be missed.
Marilyn Jaye Lewis, Erotic Authors Association Review.......2005-09-14
Maria Isabel Pita is already one of the brightest stars in the erotic romance genre. If you're unfamiliar with her work, she specializes in transporting her readers effortlessly between the past and present, while indestructible true love weaves its eternal spell on her characters' minds and souls.
Guilty Pleasures is a misleading title for her newest book, a collection of erotic romance short stories that transcend time. I'm not sure what a better title would be, but I doubt that any title could prepare you for the ingenious creativity you will discover between these otherwise ordinary covers.
As the back cover copy warns us: "Guilty Pleasures explores the passionate willingness of women throughout the ages to offer themselves up to the forces of love. Historical facts are seamlessly woven into graphic sexual encounters." Pita does indeed take us through the ages, from the near-future time of 2015 A.D., back through the 20th century, then the 19th, 18th, 17th, 16th, 15th, 12th centuries, back to 1000 B.C., 3000 B.C., through to another solar system, and on to a parallel universe. What will amaze you, if not even alarm you, is Pita's eye for detail and her uncanny feel for the everyday lives of her distant characters. When you read her stories of ancient lovers, for example, you will believe that Pita herself has visited those times and is merely recounting to you first-hand what she observed, endured, and felt while she was there.
The storytelling is seamless and flowing. The erotic encounters between her characters are sexually explicit and arousing, sometimes emotionally raw, and often thought-provoking for the reader. With each story I read, I kept thinking, "Oh, this one's my favorite," but then another story would unfold and take its place at the top of my list. In these pages, Pita's unique imagination is unleashed and she spares no punches. Some of her characters are living in harsh times (even in the future), but love is the ingredient that makes all of living - and, in turn, the loss of love makes dying - worthwhile.
I guarantee that you will marvel at the complexity of the places she takes you to and what her characters learn there. Guilty Pleasures is an absolute must for any fan of literary erotica.
Cupid's Library Review.......2005-08-23
GUILTY PLEASURES is a compilation of 18 short stories that run the gamut of genres, topics, characters and time periods. I could never give a synopsis for this book that would give it the depth and breadth of what is told by Ms. Pita in her short stories. Nevertheless, to give highlights of some of the more memorable stories I will say that in this book you will find yourself reading about a slave sold into a harem and finding love with a fellow slave, a woman and her rock star idol finding each other over time, space, and even death, and in a time unknown, in a parallel universe a human will find love with an entity that is not only alien but nearly untouchable. The variety of stories in this book hint at BSDM, vampirism, homoeroticism, ménage-a-trois (+), and much more within many time periods (past, present, future) and with such diverse characters where none are even remotely similar.
GUILTY PLEASURES is a book wholly unto itself. There is no category I could easily put it into because it has most of everything in it. I read this book from the first page to the last, roughly from the near future (2015) to the distant past and ending in a time unknown... I was increasingly more interested in each and every story. I noticed that Ms. Pita used a lot of religious imagery in her stories and also many of the relationships she depicts had a submissive/dominance quality to them. Her writing is quite complex and she used a lot of metaphors and imagery to set the feel and emotion of her stories... as the book progressed, the more pleasurable it became. In every story I found myself enjoying how she provided many twists and turns while weaving historical aspects (true or imagined) into each story giving them more depth and realism. None of her stories were predictable or took the more likely route found in erotic novels. Throughout this book I was never bored, I may have questioned a few things, but overall I was thoroughly impressed with Ms. Pita's level of writing and imagination. This book provides a nice respite from many of the 'cookie cuter' erotic romances out there. Yes, there are tender and sweet moments (e.g. Shiva and Parvati, Theron and Rhodopis), but there are also many moments which were surprising (Covenant Transport) and alarming (Song of the Blood).
Overall, this is a wonderful compilation of short stories that will take you everywhere and beyond during many significant time periods and leave you impressed and applauding Ms. Pita's literary talents and incredible imagination.
Review from ROMANCE DIVAS.......2005-08-22
`Guilty Pleasures' is a collection of eighteen erotic short stories. These stories take you on an erotic journey through time, each one taking you further back in time than the story before it,until there is no time at all.
Maria Isabel Pita is an imaginative writer with a skill for writing beautiful prose. She has taken her love for history to create a collection of stories that makes you want to keep reading. Her heroines are strong and the tales told from their point of view pull you in and make you want to know more about their individual stories. The author's attention to detail and historical accuracy makes it easier for the reader to fall into the stories as they read.
These stories are sizzling in nature with their sexual content, but it doesn't appear to be sex for sex's sake. The sex becomes an integral part of the story. There were times, such as in the story "Theron and Rhodopis," which was set in 5th Century B.C, Greece, where the relationship begins as purely sexual but ends up in a love match. The stories contain both male/female and female/female interactions.
Maria Isabel Pita as an author doesn't hold back, just as she didn't hold back in her non-fiction. She shows it all. Thoughts and actions are put on display, and she uses graphic descriptions that might turn the reader off, but in this work, they fit.
Having read her nonfiction biography, I was excited to read this collection of stories. There were few of the stories I didn't enjoy. This collection has something for everyone. We go back to the beginning of the past, and we even venture into outer space. I would highly recommend this collection of short stories. There is nothing guilty about the pleasure received from reading it.
Regina Avalos for Romance Divas
Product Description
fantastic art work by hamilton,ritchie&booth!all the characters,action,vampires&zombies with jean claude master vampire are here in this vivid and rare comic book format of the bestselling blockbuster anita blake series!
Product Description
sexy and dramatic characters,vivid and colorful art work,true to the storyline of the novel,this is a beautiful work of art by hamilton,ritchie,booth!brings hamiltons vamps&zombies to wonderful life!
Book Description
What do Neil Diamond, Touched by an Angel, Pamela Anderson, The Boy in the Plastic Bubble, White Castle hamburgers, Benny Hill, Thomas Kinkade, and the song "You Light Up My Life" have in common? They're all guilty pleasures -- and they're all celebrated in this massive A-to-Z encyclopedia.
Authors Sam Stall, Lou Harry, and Julia Spalding have unearthed fascinating trivia about literature (Valley of the Dolls, The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue), television (The Real World, Land of the Lost), fashion (Members Only jackets, the WonderBra), and more. Every page features a sophisticated two-column design and handy guide words for quick at-a-glance reference. Best of all, we've illustrated 100 of the guiltiest pleasures with the same portrait style used by the Wall Street Journal.
Complete with 1,001 entries, it's the ultimate guide to everything you hate to love!
Customer Reviews:
Actually VERY Good.......2007-01-27
Well-written, well-selected, and often very funny. The entries do a good job pinpointing the appeal of their respective cultural oddities, and the array is pretty dazzling. Heavily weighted toward the generation that came of age in the eighties, but hey, where else can you go for so much guilt in one place? Our colleges should consider giving it to foreign graduate students on their way through customs--it's a guide to all that's 'essentially useless', the hidden flotsam and jetsam of our culture.
I got this as an 'extra' gift from a friend, and expected to find it moderately amusing, something to thumb through. Surprise: My partner and I were so impressed with the book that we both wound-up reading through the entire thing.
Afterthought ends up being great purchase!.......2006-06-30
I bought this book simply to bring my purchase up to the free shipping total, but it ended up being a great purchase! It's a hilarious look at all those guilty pleasures we all harbor. Don't pass up this little gem of a book. You'll be laughing for hours! It's illustrated, too.
This book is itself a guilty pleasure.......2006-04-10
What's not to like? Three hundred pages of your favorite trash, elevated to nostalgia, handily packaged, and punchily, pithily, wittily written. Makes a great gift! (see "Infomercials")
From ABBA and Abbott & Costello to Ziggy and Zima.......2006-01-29
Please! _Doctor Who_, a "guilty pleasure"?! Or anime, which is a genuine art form? And I'm very good at "Trivial Pursuit" -- most reference librarians are. It's also obviously a generational thing; my mother was a Liberace fan in the `50s, and I loved Jiffy Pop in the pre-microwave days myself. (I was already too old when MTV debuted in 1981, or for paintball, which appeared that same year.) And is there anyone who *doesn't* have a few souvenir T-shirts in the closet? On the other hand, who's gonna admit to deliberately watching Hanna-Barbera cartoons? Or _Leave It to Beaver_ reruns, or _The Gong Show_? Or to drinking Big Red? This is the perfect book for a long road trip, for reading aloud to each other and starting arguments. There are some odd omissions, though: How can you talk about "End-of-the-World Movies" without mentioning _On the Beach_? Or "Elvis Impersonators" without noting Andy Kaufman's eerily accurate version early in his career? Or, for the ultimate in self-reference, why isn't there a listing under "Trivia Books"?
meandering through silly memories.......2005-06-14
I loved this book, particularly the illustrations which I have found out were actually done by the creator of the wall street journal portait hedcut, Kevin Sprouls. I have admired his work for years and was delighted to find him working in a less serious venue. The book's descriptions were bright, sharp and quick. It was an ironic pairing with Sprouls' serious style and made for a more humorous mix.
buy it.
Product Description
this third installment conyains beautiful artwork by the team of hamilton,ritchie,booth!all characters are brought vividly to life in the new comic book storyline!wonderful!
Book Description
Jake and Eva Kelly are masters at what they do. From the sex games they play with each other to the cons they pull on their unsuspecting marks, they are unstoppable. To the outside world, Jake and Eva are just another young buppie couple living their dream under the bright lights of New York City. Life is good, money is flowing, and living is large. They couldn't ask for more---until Jake gets greedy. Only this time they pick the wrong mark. The tables have turned and their addiction to the game could cost them everything---even their lives.
Now Jake and Eva are forced to pull off the sting of their careers. With the help of Jake’s brother Jinx and Eva’s look-alike cousin Rita they board a cruise ship from Brazil to take down Xavier Suarez, one of the most notorious figures in the underworld. From the streets of New York City to the steamy tropics of Brazil, from the coast of Miami to the paradise of Hawaii, they hatch a plan with no room for errors.
With the FBI hot on their trail and under the threat of Suarez’s unspeakable wrath, every trick they’ve ever learned comes into play. But it is their own dark past that threatens their future, and the secret that Eva harbors that could ruin everything.
Customer Reviews:
Bonnie and Clyde-Urban style.......2007-07-20
This book was a great read. Adventurous and fun. Good book for those moments you want to "get away" from the everyday. A page turner for sure.
When the Tables Turn.......2007-03-25
Guilty Pleasures by Donna Hill, introduces us to Jake and Eva Kelly. Jake works for a car dealership and Eva works for a fashion designer. However, secretly they run a con game that has been very successful.
After ten years of playing the game, Jake and Eva have never gotten caught. However, Eva is tired of the game and wants to get out. She is ready to settle down and have a nice `normal' life with Jake and have a child. Jake does not want out but because he loves Eva, decides that they will quit...after one more con.
Reluctantly Eva agrees and sets out to find the mark. Unfortunately for them she picked the wrong mark this time. Stan Ingram is married to Lenora, an FBI agent, who will not be blackmailed. What happens after all parties are exposed is a train wreck waiting to happen as Jake and Eva set out to pull off the biggest con of their lives.
I really enjoyed this book. It is definitely a page turner. I found it very suspenseful and I could not wait to know what happened next.
Reviewed by Shaquitta Leday
APOOO BookClub
Very Good Read.......2007-03-23
I must say that this was the first Donna Hill book that I have read and I was very pleased.The action was gripping and the story line was very exciting.I look forward to reading more works by this author.
s/b titled hot pleasures.......2007-02-24
reading this book was the pleasure, i couldn't put it down !!!! CAN'T WAIT for sequel HURRY,HURRY...lots of hot sexual scenes, loved the husband, wife relationship awesome...
okay.......2007-02-10
it was not what I thought it was going to be and not as good as the review said it was
Books:
- Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths And Total Nonsense: Profiting From Evidence-Based Management
- Haunted Castle on Hallow's Eve (Magic Tree House, 30)
- High Fidelity
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
- Hope Rising: Stories from the Ranch of Rescued Dreams
- How To Be A Happy Lesbian: A Coming Out Guide
- How to Write a Children's Picture Book: Learning from The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Corduroy, Where the Wild Things Are, The Carrot Seed, Good Night, Gorilla, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, and Other Favorite Stories
- I Love You Like Crazy Cakes
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- The Address Directory of Celebrities in Entertainment, Sports, Business & Politics, Second Editi
- History of Japanese Art
- Doctor Who : Regeneration
- F.D.R.: An Intimate History
- Macroeconomics
- Nora Roberts Key Trilogy CD Collection: Key of Light, Key of Knowledge, Key of Valor
- Living With Wolves
- Step-By-Step Coding Text and Workbook, 2004 ICD-9-CM, Volumes 1,2 & 3 and HCPCS, Levell II, Curr
- Globalization, Poverty and Inequality: Between a Rock and a Hard Place
- The Texan's Reward
![Guilty Pleasures[marvel Comic/1st,1st] (anita blake vampire hunter, 1st)](http://www.germanelectronics88.com/noimage.gif)
