Publisher's Blurb:

"The novels of New York Times bestselling author Laurell K. Hamilton take readers into the dangerous life of Anita Blake, animator and vampire hunter—a woman as good at raising the dead as slaying the undead.

Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter for Animators, Inc., is offered a cool mil to raise a 283-year-old corpse. But she knows that "the older the zombie, the bigger the death needed to raise it". Only a human sacrifice is "big" enough to raise this old soul--and Anita's no murderer.

Now, a creature from beyond the grave is tearing a swath of murder through St. Louis. And Anita will learn that there are some secrets better left buried—and some people better off dead..."

"After a few centuries, the only death 'big enough' is a human sacrifice. I know, because I'm an animator. My name is Anita Blake.
Working for Animators, Inc. is just a job - like selling insurance. But all the money in the world wasn't enough for me to take on the particular job Harold Gaynor was offering. Somebody else did, though - a rogue animator. Now he's not just raising the dead ... he's raising Hell. And it's up to me to stop it ... "

Original Publication Date:

Paperback - September, 1994/Ace edition, September 2002/Jove edition
Hardcover - November 2003
Trade - August 2005

ISBN:

0-441-00091-6 (Ace PB edition), 0-515-13444-9 Jove PB, 0-425-19200-8 Jove HC, 0-425-20466-9 Trd

Covers and Cover Art:

The above cover was from the 2002 paperback republication of the book. The artist is: Craig White. Additional cover designs for North America and the UK can be seen here.

Synopsis:

In The Laughing Corpse Anita, with her boss, meets local millionaire Harold Gaynor who asks her to raise his relative. It is a very old corpse, requiring a human sacrifice; Anita refuses. Throughout the book Anita and Dolph investigate a series of brutal murders in which bodies are torn apart and eaten by a flesh-eating zombie. Anita meets Dominga Salvador, a very evil and powerful vaudun priestess, and asks her help in solving the murders. Jean-Claude continues to try to convince Anita to become his human servant and she continues to refuse. Anita and the police find the flesh-eating zombie and discover it was an animator in life; the police destroy it. Gaynor kidnaps Anita and Salvador holds her under her power trying to force her to raise Gaynor's relative, using Wheelchair Wanda as the human sacrifice. Under Salvador's power, Anita kills the two bodyguards instead, then with the resultant power, raises the entire cemetery. She orders the zombies to kill both Salvador and Gaynor, then lays the zombies to rest.


For a more detailed Summary, see here

Primary Characters

Anita Blake
Jean-Claude
Dominga Salvador (new)
Harold Gaynor (new)

Recurring Characters:

Willie McCoy
Irving Griswold
Dead Dave
Luther
Bert Vaughn
Ronnie (Veronica) Sims
Jamison Clarke
Dolph Storr
Zerbrowski
Manny Rodrigues (mentioned in GP)

New Characters:

Wheelchair Wanda
Antonio
RPIT Officer Merlioni
John Burke
Cecily
Bruno
Tommy
Enzo
Charles

Character Deaths:

Peter Burke, died off-camera at the beginning of the book
Dominga Salvador
Gaynor
Cecily
Bruno
Tommy
Enzo

Important Revelations:

• Anita gradually increases her comfort with Jean-Claude, the supernatural, and her own abilities. Although she is still uncomfortable with all three, the events of The Laughing Corpse lead her to use Jean-Claude for protection and to rely on her own supernatural abilities to a degree that would have been unthinkable for her even as recently as the last novel.
• Anita's continuing struggle for her own independence is also a major theme of this book. Several people, including Bert, Dolph, Jean-Claude, Salvador, and Gaynor, wish to use Anita's skills and powers for their own purposes. Anita works with Bert and Dolph, albeit only on her own terms, keeps Jean-Claude at a distance, and kills her remaining two suitors.

Explanation of the Title:

Within the novel, "The Laughing Corpse" is the name of a vampire comedy club operated by Jean-Claude, one of the main characters.

Information on this Page has been Gathered from the Following Sources:

1. The Laurell K. Hamilton section on the Penguin Putnum Publishing website. See Links section for a web link
2. The Laughing Corpse on Wikipedia
3. The novel, The Laughing Corpse

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