Dancing (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #22.5)
Dancing (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #22.5) by Laurell K. Hamilton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Nice sweet little short in the Anita Blake universe. Anita, Nathaniel, & Micah attend a late summer picnic/BBQ at Zerbrowski's house. They bring Monica's son Matthew along, as Monica is out of town on business.
What I liked most about this short was that I didn't feel like I was drowning in characters. Always loved the big cast of the Anita Blake series, but lately I've been wanting to kill off a few characters, just to thin the herd out. (And, yes, I have a particular list in mind. Luckily none of them were even mentioned in this short.)
While it was a cop BBQ, Zerbrowski and his wife Katie were the only familiar faces on that front. And, besides the mention of Monica, Jean-Claude and Jason are the only characters mentioned, but not present. (Well, Robert was mentioned in passing, but as he's deceased that doesn't count.)
Timeline wise, aside from Matthew's age and the fact that Micah and Nathaniel kiss openly, this could have been set shortly after "Bullet", as Matthew's dance recital is the only semi-recent event that is mentioned.
No mystery component. No guns pulled. No guns even mentioned. Gasp! Only some minor relationship drama, some awkward small talk, and a sweet little ending I won't spoil beyond pointing at the title.
The part of Anita Blake's St. Louis I miss -- certain key characters -- without any of the recent muddiness I don't particularly favor.
P.S. No mention of the ardeur either. And no sex scenes.