Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #3)

by Laurell K. Hamilton

I'm Anita Blake, expert on creatures of the night. I've dined with shapeshifters, danced with werewolves, and been wooed - but not won - by Jean-Claude, the Master Vampire of the City. And now a darkly dangerous vampire named Alejandro has hit town. He too wants me for his human servant. A war of the undead has begun. Over me. I would be flattered. If my life weren't at stake. Look out for more information on this book and others on the Orbit website at www.orbitbooks.co.uk.

• ISBN10: 0425194272
• ISBN13: 9780425194270
• Publish Date: 6 April 2004 (first published 1 May 1995)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 19 July 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Berkley Publishing Group
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 307
• Language: English

Reviews

[FranJessca @ A Book Lovin' Mama's Blog]

I first read Circus of the Damned by Laurell K. Hamilton back in 2009. Now it’s 2020, and I’m glad I got a chance to reread it because I couldn’t remember this book. It was like reading the book for the first time. It was great to read this book, feeling like it’s brand new. Anita is dealing with Jean-Claude still on giving her the last two marks to be his human servant. Anita is again saying no. Unfortunately, she’s got to deal with other Master Vampires in her city now that want her as their human servant. They don’t believe that Jean-Claude is strong enough to be the Master Vampire of the City. Anita is going to deal with some vampire politics in this book. She’s also going to be introduced to some furry shifters that she has no idea that is close to Jean-Claude. In comes Stephen, a werewolf and Richard Zeeman, a Junior High School teacher who teaches Science. He has a secret, though, that he is keeping from Anita in the book. She’s bound to find out about this secret, though. 

I enjoyed this book just like I did the first time. It was strange reading it again and feeling lost at first. It had been such a long time reading this book. There was a lot of trouble in this book for Anita. I felt terrible for her. She had no idea what she was in the middle of until it was too late. Let’s not forget about Jean-Claude. I love his character, even though he keeps secrets from Anita. He is trying to save her in this book, and also though she is stubborn. Although I do see why Anita fights him, if you read the first book, you would find out that Jean-Claude marked her twice, so she was halfway to being his human servant. She didn’t consent to it, which is why she’s mad at him. This book she’ll deal with some stronger Master Vampires that can force her to do things she doesn’t want to do. 

I’m glad I got reintroduced to Richard from the beginning. He’s never been a favorite character of mine in the series. He was okay in the beginning, but later on, he’s going to drive me crazy. He’s already got the point against him from keeping a secret from Anita in this book. 

Be prepared for an epic battle at the end of the book. Anita gets caught up in it all, and her life hangs in the balance. I give this book 4.5-stars and recommend it to fans of Urban Fantasy and PNR. This book has no sex in it. You will read some tension in the book, though. 

[Berls]

I'm seriously loving this series. I enjoyed the development of Anita's conflict with Jean-Claude - master vampire of the city - in this book. It was not as intense as the last book for me, nor as mysterious, but I still really enjoyed it. Unlike in previous books where I felt like there were multiple threads to pull, all the threads in this book all really intertwined much more closely and it felt like just one thread. A couple surprises in just how far Anita is willing to go with some things - don't want to spoil - and a new relationship budding which I'm excited to see. I feel like it's doomed because clearly at some point Anita is going to get over her aversion to Jean-Claude being a vampire, but still, I enjoy seeing her try other relationships in the meantime. On to the next book!

[Chelsea]

I actually kind of liked the creepy circus theme near the end of this book. Plus I really loved that we got to see some new monsters in this book! I'm a little disappointed with the relationship between Anita and the master vampire. There feels like there should be a romance there but there's not and it's just turning out to be frustrating.

[inlibrisveritas]

I'm still so-so about this series...mainly because I find Anita annoying and all I want to do is punch her in the throat. So why do I keep reading? I like the other characters, and the story is interesting despite the main character's shortcomings (ha joke on her height). So I'll probably give the 4th a shot but I'm in no hurry

[Melanie]

I'm going back through and re-listening to the entire series, start to finish. I'm hoping to be done before the next book comes out. It'll be tight, but I think I can make it.

Circus is a great book. Which I love all the books with Edward in them. Death always brings fun to a party. We meet Richard in this book. Wow, I forgot he was a pain in the ass from the first moment. I think Anita should've walked away from him at the beginning. We also meet Larry for the first time. Talk about someone who is wet behind the ears. I've always liked Larry, but I think his morals are going to get him killed one day.

I love this series. This narrator is okay. I really didn't like her at first. The series started on audio with Narcissus in Chains (abridged, booooo) with Cynthia Holloway. Then with a different audio publisher, they've gone back and put all the old books on audio. The new girl has done all of those and the most recent books. I've gotten to where I'm okay with Kimberly Alexis, but I don't think she is as good as Cynthia Holloway.

[ibeforem]

These books fall in my “quick and entertaining to read” category. I like a good vampire story once in a while...