Dead Ice: Micah
Micah blog:
Micah Callahan came on stage mid-way through the current books, almost literally half-way at book #10 Narcissus in Chains. The book was a game changer in a lot of ways for the Anita Blake series, but one of the biggest for her personal life was the addition of Micah.
Question: Why did the sexual content go up in the series once Micah was introduced?
Answer: It didn’t really go up that much.
Secrets to Share: The Meredith Gentry series was actually created, at least in part, to give me somewhere to put all that literary sexual frustration that wasn’t happening in the Anita Blake novels. I had written and finished the first Merry book, A Kiss of Shadows, and set a much higher sexual content from the very beginning. I think that’s why no one ever complains about it, because it was the dynamic from the start, but with Anita it wasn’t. She started out a very old-fashioned good girl, in that I’m-waiting-for-my-white-dress-and-picket-fence kind of way. So, after nine books where she had managed to have sex twice, three times if you want a more open definition than just intercourse, I’d decided to stop arguing with her. If Anita wanted to keep both Jean-Claude and Richard at bay and continue to cling to her commitment phobia, then so be it, I was done. Not done with the series, but done arguing with her, with Richard, with everyone. Merry didn’t argue about sex, or even commitment, because the whole idea was for her to find a prince/king to her princess/queen. Narcissus in Chains is a solid mystery with a villain that is still one of the most original ideas I’ve ever come up with for a bad guy; but to listen to the haters you’d think there is nothing but sex in the book. In fact, there is only one full-blown sex scene in the entire book. You could make a case for two, maybe three, if intercourse, or oral isn’t your sole criteria for definition of sex. One of those scenes amounts to metaphysical foreplay scene with Richard, Jean-Claude, and Anita, but the other two scenes are with Micah, who was a brand new character introduced in this book. There is actually no more sex in this book than in Blue Moon or The Killing Dance, but what is different is who the sex is with.
I had so many people complain about the sexual content in Narcissus in Chains that I almost accepted that there must be more sex in the book than I remembered writing, but no, no, there isn’t. It has only been recently that I realized the problem was that the first metaphysical foreplay scene was with Jean-Claude and Richard, the two men that Anita had dated for most of the preceding nine books, so fans had become wedded to the idea that this was it – her two guys. They were also convinced she would pick one guy to finally settle down with, and then suddenly Micah comes out of left field and wins the day, the lady, everything, because that’s what some fans seemed to think. They would have to wait for the next novel, Cerulean Sins, to discover that Anita hadn’t dumped both the other men. She’d date and still be lovers with both Richard and Jean-Claude, but she would also continue to date Micah. It would take me almost ten years to realize why some of the anger directed at Micah existed and by then it was too late to change things, even if I’d wanted to, which I didn’t. My series, my books, my characters, and they tend to date/sleep with who they want to with very little input from me, actually. Micah was supposed to be a bit player, in fact he was supposed to be a bad guy henchman for the main villain. He wasn’t supposed to date Anita, let alone have sex with her. Which leads us into the next question.
Question: Did Micah rape Anita the first time they were together?
Answer: No. Not to me, but to my great surprise this was one of the most frequent questions I’ve gotten over the years about that first scene.
Secrets to Share: This question totally caught me off guard at first, and the people who asked it in a hateful way, or were just haters in general, I pretty much ignored. If you want me to pay attention to you, be nice. Some very sincere women, who were very nice, were upset about the scene. It turned out that the scene had seemed like rape to them because Anita had not said a fully spoken, “yes.” I swear that I remembered her saying yes in the scene. I swear that I wrote her saying yes in the scene, but so many women were genuinely upset by the scene that I went back and reread it. One thing was true, Anita doesn’t say an out loud yes. *head desk* Sometimes when you write a book, things are so crystal clear in your head that you think they are on the paper; you actually begin to read them into the words, but that doesn’t mean they’re there. The problem is copyeditors and editors in New York can’t see what’s in my head, only what’s on the page, and if what I “see” in my head never got onto a version of the page, then they can’t help me remember it.
I went so far as to add a “yes” between the hardback and one of the paperback versions of Narcissus in Chains, but honestly I can’t remember which print run the change was in, and when the next print run came out the publisher had reverted to the master print file, and the “yes” was missing once more. *head wall* If I could do this scene again I would rewrite some of Anita’s interior dialogue to make it more acceptable to the women who saw/feel the scene as rape. All I can say is that I did not write the scene with that in mind, but having listened to enough polite fans explain their point of view over the years, I can see their point. My apologies to those that were genuinely upset by the scene as written, and I have endeavored not to fall into ambiguity in any other sex scene with anyone since then.
Question: Is Micah going to become king of the wereanimals in America, the way that Jean-Claude is king of the vampires?
Answer: I don’t know.
Secrets to Share: Micah is one of those characters that changed completely between character building notes and stepping on stage. The moment he interacted with Anita for “real” on paper he was someone new, someone I hadn’t planned. He was honorable, determined, as ruthlessly practical as Anita, and in many ways the near perfect helpmate that Anita had been needing. I had no idea he was a leopard king, a Nimir-raj, or that Anita would be his leopard queen, Nimir-ra. I had to come up with vocabulary for that, and so much more, after Micah announced who and what he was in the shapeshifter community. Since I didn’t know any of this when he first stepped into fictional reality I had no idea that he and Anita would create The Coalition for Better Understanding Between Lycanthrope and Human Communities, or that Micah would be called all over the country when there was a conflict between lycanthrope groups, or between humans and the shapeshifter community. Here’s a freebie insight, in Affliction I thought it was clear that Micah only interferes with out of state animal groups when those groups call the Coalition in to solve a dispute, or violence has already broken out, but not gotten to the attention of human authorities, but apparently not. Again, with Micah, people thought he was just traveling the country forcing groups to join our larger group – no. The Coalition goes only where, and if, called, but once you call in help if we pay in blood and pain from our people to solve your problem, then you and yours may end up joining the Coalition whether you like it or not.
Sneak Peek from Dead Ice:
Micah came through the door like he came through every door, as if the room were his room, or at the very least he was thinking of purchasing it. It was a surety and security in himself that he’d had since I’d met him.
74 thoughts on “Dead Ice: Micah”
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I love micah ,especially micah anita and Nathaniel 🙂 ♡ they are my favorite couple . I can’t wait for dead ice
I loved the addition of Micah to the books. It seems he added more to Anita’s story. I never got the feeling that he raped Anita at any time though so that kind of puzzled me when I read that was what some people thought. Oh well I hope his character is with us a good long time.
I so agree with you! When I just read that a lot of women saw it as rape, I was shocked, because I so didn’t see it that way.
This is how i picture micahs eyes https://m.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=886749998048970&id=100001419346264&set=p.886749998048970&source=47
Love the kitty!
I have loved the Anita Blake series and it’s characters. Richard gets whiney once in a while, but he’s paying the price for it. When I read a book and really enjoy it, what I am reading becomes a moving picture in my mind, and I have fully loved the story lines. I read the blog and some of the comments about all of the sex scenes and the commenters’ anger … I realize that everyone is entitled to their opinion, but with the evolving of all of the characters, and the storyline of Jean Claude’s vampire line, sex is going to happen. Please, keep writing Anita’s stories, and continue to listen to your heart and Anita and friends in your mind. They will let you know when it’s the right time to say good bye. And I hope that it will be in the far, far future.
People who aren’t writers fail to understand how little control you have over your characters. You can think you want them to go down a certain path but they refuse to go there. It makes so much sense that they have their own spirit and your ever growing cast never fail to entertain and amaze. As to Micah and his first interaction with Anita there was never, in my mind, a hint of rape. It was pure attraction and a little bit of magic. Just keep doing what you do best and all of us polyamourous folk will follow you anywhere.
THIS, a thousand times. I’ve tried, over and over again, to explain the ‘organic’ nature of my characters, and other authors’ characters where those characters are -clearly- ‘organic’, in that they live and grow and experience and change, to people. That they’re not cardboard cutout people — they have lives. They do things in their alternate universe when I’m not watching. They think their own thoughts, and dream their own dreams and hate things I love, and love things I hate, and sometimes, for the characters I write, they do things between me putting down the keyboard one night and me waking up the next morning that completely bollux my life. Of course, THEN there are the nights they wake me UP with some idiot story-arc-mutilating thing they’re doing. Those nights are always fun.
In terms of the sex–how much, when, where with who, and with how many–, or whether or not there was rape (which I didn’t see, but I guess some could see it that way) — you know, a lot of really intense material can be covered in a book, and sometimes, it’s a little intense, but I can’t let that keep me from writing my characters’ stories — I just have to embrace that some people may not read them, or may stop reading them. The new story arc my co-writer and I are working on is heavily and intensely sexual, and I won’t apologize for it. Like them or hate them, the characters will be who they’re going to be.
Narcissus in Chains is still my favorite book in the series, I believe it was a game changer in so many way and most of the rest of the series stems from events and actions in that book, including Nathaniel and Micah, the overall nature of Anita’s relationships changed when confronted with the true evil at the heart of the story. The nature of sex in the books is clearly driven by metaphysical and emotional needs, both Anita and Micah came together out of their needs and it grew into something more that happens in real life, so why the confusion for some? I think people want their fantasy reading life to reflect the answer they want out of life and because it can’t or won’t they can accept it, again this happens to real life. IT is a circle does art imitate life or does life imitate art? Your books rocked my world keep up the good work.
I have loved Micah from the moment he woke up on the page, he and Nathaniel added so much (the softer side) to Anita. He was needed. I’m so very glad you wrote him in and he evolved the way he has.
To be honest, out of all the characters Micah is my favorite character. It just clicks with those two. They don’t argue that often and when they do they step back and come back later to talk about it. It flows and I have to say Micah is the only guy that I can think of that hasn’t pushed Anita to do something she doesn’t want to. With every guy they have pushed her to make decisions, either to be with them or leave them. Micah he is like when you figure it out come tell me, until then I will still be around, but I won’t push you for it. Yep Micah is my favorite and it also helps that he is a black leopard, which happens to be one of my all time favorite animals.
By the way can’t wait for Dead Ice to come out.
Well i for one was not offended at all, though i can understand how some could be, i guess once u explained it…..i loved n.i.c. i have read my paperback version so many times now it has split into two pieces lol i also am very fond of micah, pretty much most all of the time, except when he tries to be too “nicey nice” Nathaniel, Jean-Claude and Micah are my top three lovers!
One tidbit input, i truelly do appreciate the time u take to blog to your fans and connect, makes u so much more “real” thank you
i love your genius b.t.w
I had purchased the copy that didn’t have Anita saying yes but if you read what is written closely and pay attention to every detail you can plainly see that Anita did indeed say yes, so I don’t know how they could think that she was raped. But hey that’s just my opinion
I never thought of it as rape, I don’t remember the word yes, I just remember the feeling she wanted it really bad. Love your books and cannot wait for more of both Merry and Anita.
May I say thank you for allowing me into the worlds that you have created, it is a pleasure to read your books and want to wish you a healthy long life so I can keep reading your creations.
Anita’s doubts about whether Micah was attracted to her because she’s HER and because she’s his Nimir-Ra or because he was bedazzled by the ardeur are, to me, extremely justified and extremely important. I can totally see her point about wanting him to want to be with her because he WANTS to instead of because he was metaphysically enchanted to do so. This is something that I would also worry about because I would want someone to be with me because they like ME, not because they’ve given up some part of their free will after being bespelled. This actually comes up as a theme again and again – Nicky is a good example of this – and I’d be very interested to see if it’s every played out to the full. It’s further complicated by the fact that Micah seems to be HAPPY with the situation, but, again, is that because he is actually happy or because of the mysterious workings of the ardeur… Hmmm, that’s quite a conundrum you’ve created there, Ms Hamilton! 😀
Rape? Blown away buy that crap I never saw it that way I’ve reread books still don’t get that impression I like series more after each book my favorite characters are nicky Jean-Claude Nathaniel Micah and Jason could do without Richard to much upkeep. I love meri series as well just ignore the haters
Micah and Nathaniel are so good for Anita. Nathaniel cracks me up though every time he mentions a baby Anita shoots him a dirty look. I can picture Nathaniel with a baby in his arms.
Sorry but I never thought Micah even came close to rape. I did wonder a bit about the reverse i.e. the ardeur messin’ about but you covered that later on. Seems thatthis was just a case of mutual recognition of a good thing that wound up in bed.
When I first started reading the scene with Micha and Anita it bugged me a bit that she said no and he didn’t stop. But I didn’t see it as a rape scene because by the time they did get busy it was obvious to me that she was into it. She said no at first more because she felt she had to then she really wanted to. It’s not like she kept saying no or begged him to stop. By the end of the scene I knew that if she had he would have stopped. I love Micha, I think he’s great for Anita. Personally I’m always afraid your going to do him in. Please don’t if you can help it.:-)
I have never understood why fans of this series (or any other books for that matter) complain when a story doesn’t go the way they wanted/expected it to. If we all knew what was going to happen why would we continue to read the series? I fell in love with Ms. Hamilton’s writing almost 20 years ago and while some of the plots didn’t totally thrill me, I would never have the hubris to question her world. It is a world I thou roughly enjoy, a world that I return to over and over again. I can’t wait to see what she brings next!!
“If we all knew what was going to happen why would we continue to read the series?”
This cracked me up! I don’t read a book thinking I know what’s going to happen. I go into a book to LEARN what’s going to happen. Same thing happens with movies.
Reading the series over and over again, I still feel that excitement, that wanting to find something I didn’t see or understand before. I’m never disappointed when I pick up the series again, even with the mystery solved, behavior explained.
I can’t believe there wasn’t a yes. I have to go back and re-read that part. I clearly remember a yes. Wow. Guess I just felt the yes. I get so engrossed in your books. They’re wonderful.
I never felt it was rape. If you really pay attention, you can see that. However, I didn’t particularly like Micah at first. I felt like he used Anita to get rid of Chimera and I also felt like she forgave him too easily. Of course, he has redeemed himself in my eyes since then and he is one of my favorite characters now. Anita needs him and Nathaniel because they manage her moods and bring out her softer side more than the others. They both seem to allow her to be weak where with every one else she has to be strong.
I love your books! I did read a rape from Anita and Micahs interactions, it seemed to me that it was just a natural,passionate meeting of souls. At first I did think there was a lot of sexual interactions as the books progressed.They halted move the plot forward and help characters over issues and develop. I’m so happy with the way everything turned out, from poly, bdsm, and a group marriage. Thank you for your amazing story telling and acurracy.
I think that I have reread Narcissus in Chains more than any other Anita Blake novels. It had everything I”ve come to like about the series and more. In this Anita finally gains the beginnings of a real family. Most of the men (her lovers) have tried to push their own sexual agendas with her but I never got a rape vibe from her first time with Micah. After all she was the one wielding the audeur. Let’s not forget that Jean Claud played a hand in that final push because she was feeding for them both. If Anita believed that she had been raped, Micah would have died soon after. Good or bad, they are well matched.
Micah was such a relief. Anita needed someone strong to balance her undead powers. Micah connects her to the living and has the power and self-esteem to treat her as equal (and occasionally superior) in strength, character, brains, and abilities. I still fear Richard is a lump of C-4, fused and ready to blow everything to hell. But if anyone can keep Anita alive if Richard goes off the deep end its Micah. He has experience keeping those he loves alive.
I love your writing. You are one of my very favorites. Please keep as much sex as you always had in your stories. I love Anita and Merry’s stories. More please.
Micah, has been and always will be, my favorite male character. Richard was at first, like I think many readers were, but with his personality change my favoritism for him lessened. In come Micah, the full accepting, understanding, yet headstrong, determined, and by the Gods best personality aside from Jean-Claude’s own.
Ironic as it may seem, I never felt that their first sexual encounter being on the rape side. It was more of a, it just happened.
I’ve enjoyed the full scope of Micah and his personality, determination, and lay out of him. To many close to me not to be surprised, I wanted the book’s personality of him to be instilled in my own son, thus I named him Micah. I want my own son to be much like Micah’s, accepting of much, understanding of all, kind hearted, yet willing to back up, defend, and protect what is right. So far so good, my son is showing many of those characteristics.
Not many can have me stray from my admiration and love of the Micah character.
I may have gotten the version where the yes was in the book or I just implied it myself. But I never took their first time as rape, hesitant yes but not rape. I love both series and think of people don’t like it they should not be shaky and mean they should just not read them. There are plenty of us your there who love them and understand the depth of the characters and their issues.
I agree about the depth of the characters. I re read these books because they can be read on so many levels. There is a lot of insight into life in general and human nature as well as how we are changed and we grow. There is always an ethical soul seeking dilemma for someone. Anita most of all. I think a lot of it is about right and wrong being not just a set of instructions and rigid rules where you obediently put tab A into slot B to be right with God. We were given free will, a brain, judgement and IMHO, salvation is won through thinking and angsting through the million little decisions we face every day about what is the right way. I think rather than going to a middleman for answers, I talk to the One who really has them. It is how our souls grow and stretch when we figure this stuff out. It is much harder than just following instructions blindly. Juggling factors like people, their needs, your own needs, our rights ? or desire to make someone else live the way we think is right. There is a great security blanket in just doing what one is told. It takes courage to consciously ethically live our lives. Anita is on this journey. The illusion of false security is gone. Now She gets to take her God given gifts and discover their and Her best potential.
Micah has definitely become one of my favorite characters in the whole series.
Loved narcissis in chains my favorite because Micah was added I love he and Anita together and also with nathaniel
I NEVER felt that Micah had “raped” Anita!! I guess, being more poly than most, I understand the mentality behind the stories and understood Anita’s yes clearly. I’ve related to Anita all through her changes, simply because she’s experiencing many of the same things I’ve experienced in my life. Thank you for staying true to yourself as a person as well as true to your characters!! You are my inspiration to help create a better, more accepting world for all of us!!! 🙂
Love Micah and how he makes so much go right in the “Anitaverse” and I can hardly wait to see the plans progress for Micah, Nathaniel, and Jean Claude as they make a formal commitment to one another.
I never saw the scene as rape either, it was very consensual. I have sometimes wondered when Anita ever goes to work, it seems she doesn’t do a lot of animating anymore. The first few books were so much about her work and now because of the ardeur it seems like she has to feed it so much she never has time for anything else. I am so looking forward to the next book and all the ones after. I love this series so much!!
“Micah” was the first Laurell K. Hamilton book I read. This is the book the hooked me. After I finished and realized it was a series I looked them up and started buying the others. But not in order LOL Once I had read them all I went back and reread them in order and I have waited patiently for the rest.
I am sorry. It just boggles my mind that anyone would think that Anita Blake would actually let anyone rape her. She would kill them first. She has very strong opinions on that subject. That being said, Anita is Anita and never comes to anything easily. So, yes, there may have been hints of dubious consent, but by no means rape. There is a huge difference. To me, just the fact she didn’t kill him, indicates a yes. Besides, from the beginning, before we knew if he was a good guy or a bad guy, I liked Micah. Even when there was doubt, there was a certain honor about him. Yes, he is “practical” in all things, but he is also honorable. As for Micah being “king of the animals,” I though Anita was already “Queen” to Jean-Claude’s “King”. Have I missed something?
My thoughts, exactly. There is no Way, No How, that anyone could have the fortitude to rape Anita. Yes, in that moment, it made me feel a little squeechy, just because it seemed the “Yes” was an implied one, and that can sometimes be a very gray area. But as the scene unfolded, some of the discomfort wore off. I believe part of the discomfort was just that Micah was so new, a wild card. Up until that point, Anita had been so good for so long. Her having sex with a complete stranger just threw me. But that’s just my own little foibles working there.
But, with that said, trust and believe, after the foul misdeed had occurred, Micah would have paid for it with his life. I just don’t see how anyone who has read Anita, could have believed that she would not have rained all over Micah’s furry parade if she had, in fact, been raped.
This book series is littered with the bodies of those who have hurt people that Anita has cared about. Does one think that she would do any less to protect her own life, her honor? Vengeance, it is one of her best things. She may not get there in time to save everyone, but she will, by God, avenge them. So I believe she would do no less when it comes to protecting herself.
I’ve been reading the Anita saga since the first book. I love the books, but Anita & Richard could tap dance on my last nerve some times with there morals, lol. But their getting better. Micah & Nathaniel are dream men. Keep them coming Mrs. Hamilton, I’m a loyal fan
I love the path the Anita Blake series has taken over the years. Apart from the Merry Gentry series I haven’t found another that even comes close to everything the Anita Blake series has. These are the only books I collect. Thank you LKH for being so awesome.
I agree with LKH I don’t think it was rape and Anita did give a yes verbal/implied in fact I agree with her Micah blog. Impatiently waiting for Dead Ice!!
Personally, I love all the characters that are involved. As to say, how you write, or interpret in another way than originally written, I say those are your “people” you are giving life to. For the haters and such, I am glad you ignore, since especially you are the writer and not THEM. I love your writings and keep supporting!! <3 hugs
Looking back, I can see how some people would view Anita and Micah’s first sex scene as rape. I did not see it that way personally, and I am a rape survivor. My take on the whole rape issue with that scene is to ask, “How can your FOOD rape you?” Anita fed the ardeur, so technically, it could be argued that she raped him.
However, I do not feel there was a rape committed. The scene was organic and seemed to be something that was meant to be.
I have never been offended by any of the content in the Anita or Merry books. Ms. Hamilton writes what the character’s will fall in place as a story takes place. I love Ms. Hamilton’s style of writing. I read the books and put myself in Anita’s place, asking myself how would I handle that situation, I would think on it and….I would think again that Ms. Hamiltons characters are doing just what they should be, just as she has written them. I know that one day the books will end. And, that day will be a sad one for me. But, until then, I am going to read and re-read them as many times as I can. I see some complain that there is to much sex in them and that they are “porn”. People if you like the Anita books, the sex has to be in there. Jean Claude wouldn’t sound right if he were an innocent person. He has lived a long life, he has learned what he likes and he goes after it. I can’t see the story written any other way. With the sex in the books, come on people that complain, the incubus and succubus belong together….But, of course you can’t please everyone. If someone doesn’t like the books then they dont have to read them. But for all of us out in this big world that love the books, let us read them..And, I do hope for a long time to come that the books will keep coming. Ms Hamilton has a way with words, she is so creative in her writing. All I can say to her is, ‘LOVE THE WORKS OF YOURS!!”
I love Anita, Micah, and Nathaniel relationship. I never thought Micah raped Anita, but it did take a second read through to realize this was the first appearance of the Ardeur and Anita wasn’t completely in control of the situation. I never thought it was rape, more of a misunderstanding because she may have never said yes, but she didn’t say no either.
I love Micha!! He and Nathaniel are two of my favorites!! I never felt like he raped her, I could feel by the tone it was nothing like that. I love all of her sweeties and I love the special connection and relationship they all have with Anita. I think its absolutely beautiful and you are an amazing creative genius!! ❤
I must be weird, because I read between the lines and saw what was meant to be seen. I will always remember defending Narcissus in Chains during College lit. My teacher asked ” Why are you reading that smut?”. To which i replied ” It’s not smut. It’s Anita’s life, and it’s amazing!” he smiled and walked away.
I never for a second thought that Micah raped Anita & don’t understand those who do think so. How would it even be possible with all of Anita’s skills & the fact that she’s always armed, even in the shower? Those others apparently don’t know Anita, at all.
Narcissus in Chains is one of my favorite books. I have re-read that book more times than I can count! Micah is one of my favorite characters. I alway though that Anita enjoyed sex with Micah, so I was really surprised when I read the question about Micah having raped Anita. Not in my book! 🙂 Thank you for writing all the Anita books!
I have been reading these books for the last 10-12 years, since I was hushed at in the library for laughing too loud. I love them all and personally think the sexual content could use a boost, but only because I am not a prude or anyone under whatever age is deemed inappropriate these days which is saying a lot considering…
Anyways, I love both series but kind of want more Merry, because there are more Anita’s of you know what I mean. Either way I will read to my heart’s content. Thanks
I am always shocked at what you say people hate about you books. I think my mind runs along the same line as yours. I thought it was blatantly obvious that Anita was going the directions she has gone . I always feel like im in a waiting game to see if my theories are correct of the future for Anita and all her merry men.
I love the books!
I never thought that Micah had raped Anita. Anita and Micah having sex was of their own free will. I think of it more like a husband and wife getting ready to go somewhere, one of them says we can be a little late, and the other says no… then after a few kisses and a little loving, the second person says “oh, to heck with it, lets be late.” This is not rape, this is a choice. It was a good story line.
While there were sex sense in Narcissus in Chains, I have always thought of this book as a pivotal point in the series. It takes Anita back to her roots, with her using her abilities to help others. When I listened to the audio book the first time it felt very disjointed, but when I actually read the book, the book gave a clearer vision of what was going on in Anita’s world and in her head.
Good job Ms. Hamilton, on your world building and your ability to move the story forward. I love your stories and the characters who live in them. Thank you.
Laurell, I love your Anita Blake books (I love all your books, actually). Yes, the Anita series changed in Narcissus in Chains but…
But, you gave us readers clear reasons for that change (Anita inheriting Jean-Claude’s ardeur). I can understand why some fans of the earlier books don’t like it, but that’s on them. And I really wish people would stop complaining! If they don’t like it, why are they reading the books? :'(
Regarding the two complaints you’ve heard…
It NEVER occurred to me that Micah’s first sex with Anita was in any way rape. I saw consent, even if it wasn’t vocalized. Micah wouldn’t rape anyone. How can people think that if they’ve read the books??? I mean, even when we first meet Micah, he’s very gentle and it’s so clear that he just wants to help
And the same goes for the second complaint about the Coalition. It’s not in Micah’s nature to force anyone to do anything, so why would people think he was traveling around to force other were-groups to join the Coalition? Again, it NEVER occurred to me to think this. I knew Micah only went on Coalition business when Coalition help was requested.
Laurell, keep on writing how you want (and how Anita and Micah and Jean-Claude and all the rest want) and if some fans are unhappy, please don’t let that get you down. I love your books, and I know that I’m not alone in my feelings for them. So long as you’re satisfied, that should be all that matters. I’m just happy you’re still writing the stories! 🙂
Thank you for all you do. Anita Blake was my introduction to vampire/were fiction, and I’ve been in a love affair with it ever since I first read Guilty Pleasures way back when it was still relatively new. 🙂
To be honest the only problem I had with the shower sex with Micah was the soap lubrication. With having a sensitivity to soap, I couldn’t help thinking of the itch factor if Anita also had it. =)
Micah was a surprise but a welcome one. I understand how a character can change after just introducing him and I love what you’ve done with him. He’s perfect for Anita and Nathanial, hell he even works well with Jean-Claude. Thanks for the secrets, you answered some questions I hadn’t really thought through yet. We may question why you write the things you do but we’re still honest to goodness fans and just ask that you keep writing!
I am very surprised that readers saw that first sex scene with Micah as rape! I saw it as the most beautiful sharing of souls. Given Anita’s history with Jean Claude and Richard, I could understand her hesitance, fear and suspicion of something so perfect as what she has with Micah. I absolutely love Micah! And I think he is Anita’s white picket fence, as much as Anita could ever have one.
I love all the books, and greatly admire miss Hamilton’s strength of writing and character . I love Micah! I never saw the first scene as rape and think Micah has been a stroke of brilliance in the books .i do not feel the same about nathanial , however.sorry but he irritates me.happy with the house husband but his demands p….me off.obviously hits something in me that needs looking at.
Have to admit Richard is getting his just deserts at the moment and he really stretches my patience.lol. For me there can be too much sex in the books, don’t mind some and enjoy it on the whole, but sometimes feels a bit much. When will we find out what has been happening with valantina?
I absolutely love this series. I personally never saw that scene as rape because Anita never saw it that way. We see that world through her eyes. If she felt threatened, the scene would have been completely different. True fans, true readers of the series, know that. Multiple times in the series Anita has been faced with that possibility and every time she finds a way to protect herself and those she loves. I look forward to seeing how the story unfolds in the future.
I have always loved Micah since he came into anita’s life. I often find myself waiting for him to be a little more pushy and not so understanding but I realize that is the reason he and anita work. I have read all of the series books numerous times. Can’t wait for dead ice! And can’t help to hope this series will never end! Oh and I love the Merry Gentry novels as well and love them just as much!!!!
I came into the series with Narcissus. I had NO idea it was a series and that I was jumping in so far in the series. I was completely knocked on my butt by this world. Never had I been able to simultaneously feel aroused, horrified, touched, enraged, excited, vindicated…the whole gamut. Anita is a true heroine you can root for, she saves herself and everyone around her as best she can. The fact that you let your people do what they do and go where they go is exactly why I was hooked from the get-go. It is wholly inspiring to witness your best literary friends (they feel more literal, actually) grow and change and shift and morph with each book. And to such a satisfying degree. I know the muse takes you by the hand and you both frolic and play and the results are just spellbinding. I wrote a blog a while back please read for further commiseration over Laurell’s genius :
http://locutionl.blogspot.com/2010/02/tipping-scales.html
I can’t thank you enough for bringing this world to me/us so consistently and abundantly. Cheers to Dead Ice…and the countdown continues….
wow I had no idea how you created your characters. Or that you never intended Micah to turn out the way he has. I first started the series with the Harlequin. When I found out there as more in the series I went back to the beginning and have read all the books. I absolutely love the Anita Blake series and Micah is one of my favorite characters. (But then I am a cat person) I enjoy the crime aspect of the books as well. Ms. Hamilton please continue your writing. I have read everything you have wrote. I was surprised that night seer never made it past the first book. I was interested to see where it was going to go. As for the Merry books since you were able to bring frost back I was hoping some how you could bring back sholto. All the men had their place in her life and in the books. they just fit together nicely. I can’t wait till Dead Ice comes out and I can find out who all she marries.
My thoughts on your books mrs. Hamilton is that you should not have to apologize for anything you wish to put into your books. I love them the way they come out. I love the wide variety of characters and ideas. They only bad things I can say is I wish there was much more to them. And sometimes I wish when you say you should ask or say something to obe of the guts you actually do. Cause to me it is like your missing part of the book. Quickly ending them. But I think I also feel this way cause I miss being able to dive in more often and some of your books are so much shorter than so of the others. Love your books so so so much keep them coming.. please… merry gentry also.
I often hear the argument “too much sex after blue moon,” I honestly just laugh. In my personal view the level of intimacy and number of intimate relationships did increase and a few books in the level of sexual energy is certainly up, the only book I felt I had to push through was incubus dreams and I think that was just due to sheer page volume and being a highschool student with no care with how well I slept. I would say I miss some of the other bit players I expected to be more important. Primo, I think was his name, the Dragon line vampire, I wish we would see more of my personal favorite blood line. My joy is the shift back to more focus on the world around Anita and the gang, it seemed like Harlequin, Dance Macabre, andbooks with marmie noir were more about the group’s relationships, because the bad guys in those books seemed more in the habit of fucking with their minds and emotions more than some of the more physical threats from books prior, which required more physical action. But then again politics between vampires and lycanthropes had always been one of my favorite things to read in the books.
There is too much sex.We understand she’s a succubus now,but she’s supposed to have it under control by now.But it seems like she doesn’t.When it detracts from her work to such an extent it becomes a problem.Should be Marshall/Animator 90%,Sex/love 10%.
speaking of “N in Chains” why is this the only book that is not available in an audio format. This is the one book that is missing and really leaves a hole when I listen to the series from “Guilty Pleasures” all the way to “Dead Ice” which I have on preorder and including the short stories. Any hope for an audio in the future?
I read the first print of Narcissus in Chains and I just assumed the yes was a given (a read between the lines kinda thing). I can understand the other women’s thoughts about Anita and Micah’s first time together as rape. I never did consider it that way. I always took their first time together as love at first sight but more a kind of life-mates thing/soul mates. I love reading many types of paranormal romance. I see a lot of characters in these books to have life-mates for the animal side and the soulmate for the human side. I feel with all the different animals Anita holds within her soul she is finding that she needs just as many life-mates to balance her own soul. I hope this is close to the vision you see as you write Anita’s life.
I can see where people are coming from when they say the first sex scene between Anita and Micah seemed like rape. However, I do not agree. With how it is written, the attraction was so strong there was no denying what was happening between them. Her sensibilities tried to step in. But as with real world sex that sometimes just happens, there was no “No” stated anywhere that would have made it rape. I think it was written very well to show the strong physical and metaphysical pull they had to each other from the start that neither of them could deny. Without it, I don’t think Micah and Anita would be where they are now.
Any news on a new merry book? Is shiver the last?
I love Micah, he is a grown ass man and acts like it. Sometimes Richard is immature and so not confident. He and Jean-Claude have the same goal, safety at all costs, I think that’s why they get along so well. The fact that he is heteroflexible with Nathanial just add to my love of the guy. I love Anita’s description of his green cat eyes looking deeply into hers as they make love.
I don’t mind the sex in the later books. Anita always does her best to care about the men in her life. It’s a balance of relationships, not just a string of one night meaningless stands. Better than most people.
As a rape survivor I can tell you the scene in the shower with Anita and Micha, did not feel like rape to me.
I love the relationship between the two of them.
Micah is my second favourite, Jean Claude will always be my first love. Without Micah Anita and Jean Claude would not be where they are today. Thank Laurell please keep writing. I go through withdrawals in between Anita books.
I cannot say i ever saw the first scene with Micha as rape, but i am male and you did say it was more female readers who saw that.
I will say i saw the addition of the “Ardeur” in Narcissus in Chains that made the sex scenes seemed forced and that changed the feel of them. In previous books i felt that there was more emotion to the sex scenes but with the addition of the Ardeur the emotion seemed to be lacking. Also a number of the books after the Narcissus had a similar feel to the sex scenes that they were forced. The later books i have found the emotion back in the sex scenes as the ardeur is controlled and not controlling Anita.
I love the relationship between Micah, Nathaniel and Anita. I’m surprised that folks saw that particular sex scene as rape in Narcissus in Chains.
I’m glad that Micah turned out not to be a henchman. The very first time I read Narcissus in Chains I was leery. Here’s this new guy who seemed to be doing all the right things, but, and I don’t even know if it was on purpose, I didn’t trust him. Even the shower sex couldn’t make me trust him. Anita and Micah were both manipulated into sex the first time. Anita needed to feed the ardeur and Micah (we later learned) wanted to use her for his own purposes. I didn’t feel the “rape” vibe others have indicated from the scene. Anita’s life needed the inclusion of more than just Jean-Claude and Richard. The ardeur was a useful tool to let Anita get out of her own way. Micah BECAME what Anita needed because of the ardeur. As a literary tool it worked a heck of a lot better than the real-world equivalent of a bottle of tequila, with much more permanent and positive results.
I never really thought about the coalition and how groups joined until Affliction. Forcing an idea or ideal on anyone has never been part of Anita’s world so it just didn’t occur as a possibility. If a call for help or intervention came in, then it makes sense that Micah would be just as determined as Anita to provide it, up to and including violent negotiation. Stones and glass houses come to mind.
I’m glad Micah turned out to be a good man who was in a crappy situation and Anita was able to fix it for him. That left him room to grow. A character who is dead doesn’t grow.