Hamilton has commented that Arkansas rural horror stories were part of her childhood, as well as the real-life horrors of recalling in detail the crash scene of her mother’s death (which her uncle showed her) and the physical abuse her grandfather inflicted on her grandmother.Īn undiagnosed dyslexic as a child, she learned to read at age seven and began writing stories at age twelve. Hamilton was interested in horror fiction from an early age, citing Robert E. After her mother died in a car accident in 1969, she was raised by her grandparents, Arkansas natives Elbert and Laura Gentry. Her father left shortly after her birth, and her mother moved them to Sims, Indiana. Hamilton was born Laurell Kaye Klein on February 19, 1963, in Heber Springs (Cleburne County) to Suzie Klein. Hamilton’s work contains elements of gothic horror, detective fiction, and erotica. Hamilton has also written numerous short stories, a Star Trek novel titled Nightshade, and a tie-in novel for the Ravenloft setting of the Dungeons and Dragons role-playing series. Hamilton’s “Anita Blake” series has had more than six million copies printed in sixteen languages and has also been converted into a Marvel graphic novel series. Hamilton has written more than thirty novels, including over twenty in her “Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter” series and nine in her “Merry Gentry” series. A pioneer for strong female protagonists crossing multiple genres, New York Times bestselling author Laurell K.

Books by laurell k hamilton