Danse Macabre (novel)

Danse Macabre

Author	Laurell K. Hamilton
Language	English
Series	Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter
Genre	Horror, mystery, erotic
Publisher	Berkley Books (Berkley edition)
Publication date	June 27, 2006 (Berkley edition)
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print
Pages	496 (Berkley edition)
ISBN	0-425-20797-8 (Berkley edition)
OCLC	66526961
Dewey Decimal	813/.54 22
LC Class	PS3558.A443357 D36 2006
Preceded by	Micah
Followed by	The Harlequin

Danse Macabre is a horror/mystery/erotica novel by American writer Laurell K. Hamilton, the fourteenth book in the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series.

Plot

In the bustling underbelly of contemporary St. Louis, a delicate balance of supernatural forces is tested when a powerful new artifact the Danse Macabre, a legendary relic that grants dominion over the dead, resurfaces after centuries of obscurity. Anita Blake, the city's preeminent necromancer and vampire hunter, senses the impending chaos as dark whispers circulate through the vampire covens.

After an intense corruption with the revenant Marmee Noir, the matriarch of the vampire world, Anita finds herself drawn back into a web of old alliances, hostilities, and desire. In the midst of rising tensions, Jean-Claude, the charismatic vampire master of the city and Anita's lover, is determined to retrieve the Danse Macabre before it falls into the hands of their enemies, namely the alluring Belle Morte, who wishes to harness its power to manipulate the undead for her vengeful schemes.

Richard Zeeman, the werewolf pack leader and Anita's former love, finds himself at odds with both Anita and Jean-Claude as he struggles to maintain his position in the ever-shifting power dynamics. Further complicating matters is Asher, Jean-Claude's former lover and a vampire conflicted by loyalty and longing, who is torn between his desire for peace and the fires of an ancient rivalry.

The tension escalates when Anita’s friend Jason Schuyler, a werewolf with his own dark past, is kidnapped by a faction of rogue necromancers seeking to control the artifact. As Anita, Jean-Claude, and Richard unite with a diverse cast of their allies—including the seductive Nathaniel Graison, the enigmatic Damian, and the fierce Micah Callahan—they embark on a dangerous quest that leads them through the haunted streets of London.

In London, they discover that the artifact is intertwined with the city's hidden supernatural histories, leading them to confront the malevolent spirit of Wicked Truth, an ancient witch seeking revenge against both the living and the dead. Their pursuit leads them to Augustine, an enigmatic seer who holds the key to unlocking the relic’s potential, but at the cost of revealing profound truths about themselves.

As their journey unfolds, tension simmers between the characters. Conflicts erupt: Anita struggles with her feelings for Jean-Claude and Richard, tested in their loyalty; Asher's longing for Jean-Claude reignites past wounds; and Nathaniel's emerging power as a shape-shifter becomes pivotal in deciphering the secrets of the Danse Macabre.

Claudia, the fierce and cunning vampire rogue, lures them into unwitting betrayals alongside her followers, intent on claiming the artifact for her ambitious designs. Skirmishes break out in darkened realms and lavish vampire balls, where trust falters and treachery runs rife. The group must confront their insecurities, desires, and fears as they wrestle with the mystical force that threatens to consume them.

More than deep within the accursed crypts of London, truths are revealed, alliances forged and dismantled, and sacrifices made. Anita must undergo a transcendental trial that blurs the lines between life and death, and face a dark reflection of herself in the process, learning that power comes with a cost.

Ultimately, in a battle against time, betrayal, and overwhelming odds, the bond of friends and enemies alike is tested, leading to an unexpected resolution. The decision to either seal away the Danse Macabre to protect the realms or use it to reshape the future of vampires and necromancers becomes a pivotal moment in their tumultuous histories.

The most scandalous game is called, Anita, having conquered her inner demons and embraced her place among the undead, finds a fragile peace restored, signaling a new era for St. Louis. As for love, it remains an evolving dance, with each character enriched and scarred by their choices, hinting at both the perils and the beauty of embracing their true natures.

The story ends on a tantalizing note, leaving the door open for future adventures as darker forces loom on the horizon, promising further entanglements in the intricate tapestry of life, death, and the desire that binds them all.

Characters

Major characters

Danse Macabre features the following major characters.

• Anita Blake: Anita continues her acceptance of her supernatural powers and unusual lifestyle. In particular, Anita accepts that the ardeur may have shaped Micah's, Nathaniel's, and her personalities to make them more compatible partners for one another. Anita also seems only momentarily concerned by the discoveries that she may be a shape-shifter or that her roles as a succubus and as Regina of the local were-lion pride may require her to take on several new lovers. In her personal life, while she continues to resist the idea of permitting her lovers (other than Richard) to take female lovers in addition to her, Anita begins to accept the idea of her lovers taking other male lovers, particularly in the case of Jean-Claude and Asher.
• Jean-Claude: After several books in which he struggled to maintain his hold as Master of St. Louis, Jean-Claude appears to have reached a position of relative comfort. He has now assembled a formidable group of master vampires, and, through Anita and Richard, enjoys good relations with most of the city's lycanthropes. Personally, his relationship with Asher is at its best in centuries, while Anita appears to have largely accepted her role as his human servant and embraced the ardeur. He and Anita block two challenges Augustine relatively easily and may have bent Augustine to their will by addicting him to their combined ardeur. Jean-Claude's major remaining problems appear to be his relationship with Richard, who struggles against the idea of a closer political or personal relationship with Jean-Claude, and the possibility of a challenge by the Vampire Council, the Mother of Darkness, or an alliance of other City Masters threatened by Jean-Claude and Anita's rapidly growing power.
• Richard: Hamilton continues to develop Richard's relationships with Anita and Jean-Claude and his acceptance of his own supernatural nature, although the development in each area continues to lag far behind Anita's parallel journey. As usual, Richard alternates violently between deep resentment of Anita and Jean-Claude and acceptance of his relationship with each of them, but he appears to be accepting his relationships and his supernatural nature, albeit more slowly than Anita. Although he continues to resent both of them, and to search for a permanent girlfriend to replace Anita, Richard largely accepts that he is part of the triumvirate. While he continues to hope that Anita will "settle down" with him alone, he appears willing to accept his and Anita's sexual relationship until something better comes along.
• Jason: Jason has only a minor role in this novel, largely continuing to support his friends Anita and Nathaniel. In addition, he has apparently developed into one of Anita's occasional sex partners, and reports that he has "checked out" one of the visitors.
• Micah: Michah's role in this novel is also fairly minimal. Although Micah accompanies Anita for many of the events of the novel, his major plot contributions are as one of Anita's sex partners and as a focus for Richard's jealousy. Like Nathaniel, Micah is very supportive of whatever choice Anita makes when she believes she might be pregnant, and, like Nathaniel, Micah appears unconcerned by the possibility that the ardeur has shaped his personality to meet Anita's needs.
• Nathaniel: Danse Macabre shows Nathaniel's ongoing maturation. Either as a result of his growing older, his triumvirate with Anita and Damian, or both, Nathaniel has developed into a more mature and less needy person than in earlier novels. According to Anita, Nathaniel has grown taller, and we see him challenge Ronnie, Richard, and Anita's various suitors, an action that would be unthinkable when the character was first introduced.
• Asher: Danse Macabre heightens Asher's apparent role as representative of the darker sides of Anita's sexual awakening. Anita accepts that she has become addicted to the limitless pleasure that Asher can bring, and both Anita and Asher accept, for the first time, that Anita's love for Asher is real and not simply an artifact of her connection with Jean-Claude. However, loving Asher comes with a price for Anita, both emotional, as she surrenders her self-control more completely than she has with any of her other lovers, and physical, as Anita and Asher lose control under the force of their combined powers, nearly killing Anita. In addition, Asher continues to come into his own power as a master vampire, gaining the power to call hyenas and werehyenas.
• Damian: Damian continues to be one of the more passive of Anita's primary harem. His major roles in Danse Macabre seem to be appearing when Anita needs to share his self-control and occasionally threatening to die unless Anita has sex to generate more power to sustain him.

Other characters

Recurring characters include:

• Ronnie: Ronnie continues her fight with Anita, which has been resolving, then flaring up, for the last few novels. Under questioning from Anita and Nathaniel, Ronnie ultimately admits that she is scared of commitment with Louis, and jealous of Anita's harem.
• Requiem: Requiem ends up hooked on the ardeur, a problem which is continually addressed throughout the book.
• Meng Die: In this novel, Hamilton develops Meng Die's character, revealing that (1) Meng Die does not possess any form of the ardeur; (2) she is powerful and ambitious enough that her last master was glad to see her go, rather than risk the chance that Meng Die would depose him; and (3) that Meng Die is deeply resentful of Anita because most or all of Meng Die's lovers prefer Anita to her. Although Meng Die ends the novel promising not to kill anyone that evening, Hamilton seems to be setting her up for later conflict with Jean-Claude or Anita.
• Graham: A werewolf of Richard's pack who wants to be one of the people Anita feeds off of.
• Claudia: In this novel, Claudia shows herself to be Anita's most reliable bodyguard, as well as one of the few women with whom Anita can discuss her various problems.
• Fredo:
• Joseph: Rex of the St. Louis Pride (Were-lion Leader)
• Valentina:
• Wicked: A master vampire.
• Truth: Wicked's brother and also a vampire. He's almost killed to capture a fleeing vampire from The Church of Eternal on Anita's command.
• London: A master vampire of Bella Morte's line that recently moved to St. Louis often called "The Dark Knight". He can feed the ardeur every two hours, making him a potential potent Pomme de Sang, but as drawback he becomes addicted to the ardeur. London made a deal with Jean-Claude to protect him from his addiction, and Belle Morte who had used it against him.

Non-recurring characters include:

• Elinore:
• Samuel: Master of Cape Cod; Animal to call is mermaids.
• Leucothea: "Thea" is a siren, and is Samuel's wife.
• Sampson: Samuel and Thea's oldest son.
• Thomas: One of Samuel and Thea's twin sons.
• Cristof: One of Samuel and Thea's twin sons.
• Augustine: Master of the City of Chicago; Craves the ardeur; animal to calls are lions.
• Haven: A potential Rex to Anita's Regina; under command of Augustine.
• Pierce: A werelion under command of Augustine.
• Merlin: Unofficially the Merlin of urban legend. A very powerful master vampire created by Marmee Noir who runs a ballet tour of other vampires. Animal to call: birds
• Adonis: Part of Merlin's travelling dance troupe.

Critical reception

The critical reception of Danse Macabre has been mixed.

Robert Folsom of the Kansas City Star wrote a critical review, stating:

after 13 erotically charged books, boredom has reared its ugly head for the 14th novel in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake series, "Danse Macabre" (Berkley; $25.95), as eroticism becomes mere description... So the stage is set for intrigue. Yet the words and actions Hamilton has her characters say and do seem more of a writing exercise than elements of true portrayal.

In contrast, a Denver Post review took a more positive view of the eroticism in Hamilton's work. Although the Post review noted that "[t]hose looking for mystery and mayhem on this Anita adventure are out of luck" and "it will be interesting to see how long Hamilton can sustain a large audience while avoiding the sort of solid plots that were characteristic of her earlier novels," the review was largely positive, writing that "the main attraction of the Anita Blake novels in the past five years has been their erotic novelty," and "[f]ew, if any, mainstream novels delve so deeply into pure, unadulterated erotica."

External links

• Danse Macabre title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database