Just got finished reading all 16 Anita Blake novels. All I have to say is OMG. I ended up asking my friend to at least read book one and now she is on book twelve. I ended up asking my dentist to read book one and she is now on book five. My other friend is on book four and her hubby is on book two.
My husband read up to book 7 and said the books were great. He had a hard time continuing because /cough /cough umm...after book 7 things start getting a little bit more Romance orientated and he couldn't stomach it.
It was funny because I asked him why he couldn't continue reading (laughing because I already knew) and he said "I can't keep watching this if it is going to get more Romancy." Keyword watching....the books seem to build up around you...it's awsome.
Anyways...yeah, so I highly reccomend this.
The character development is beyond good and well thought out.
The world/political/government system is well balanced and thought out.
Everything seems well researched....etc. etc.
It is like buffy the vampire slayer but soooooooo much more. There is a little bit of everything supernatural in it...but not overly done.