Book Review: Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris

Review: Dead and Gone
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 9
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 312
Release Date: 5 May 2009

Sookie Stackhouse enjoys her job as a cocktail waitress in Bon Temps, Louisiana, even though she sometimes gets tired of the constant chatter – and not just the gossip; Sookie can read minds. It’s taken time, but she’s finally found cute, dateable guys whose minds she can’t read. And okay, so most of them happen to be vampires, but no man is perfect, right?

All of the humans in Bon Temps have had dealings with the vamps – mysterious, seductive creatures who ‘came out’ a few years back. Now the weres and shifters have decided to follow the lead of the undead and reveal their existence to the ordinary world.

Sookie already knows about them, of course – her brother turns into a panther at the full moon, she’s friend to the local Were pack, and Sam, her boss at Merlotte’s bar, is a shifter.

The great Were revelation goes pretty well at first – then the horribly mutilated body of a were-panther is found in the parking lot of Merlotte’s. Though Sookie never cared much for the victim, no one deserves such a horrible death, and she agrees to use her telepathic talent to track down the murderer.

What Sookie doesn’t realise is that there is a far greater danger that this killer threatening Bon Temps: a race of unhuman beings, older, more powerful and far more secretive than the vampires or the werewolves is preparing for war. And Sookie is an all-too human pawn in their ages-old battle…

My Thoughts:

I have always been fond of this series because of its light hearted content, but this book broke that chain.

Wars are brewing left right and centre in Sookie's world. Vampires are taking over other vampires land and werewolves are at each other’s throats as well. Add into the mix Sookie’s fairy heritage and the war that they are waging, and you have the perfect brew for a really depressing novel.

Dead and Gone left me feeling really bad, Harris might not be killing off central characters, but she definitely killed off a few loved ones in this book, and I really don’t think it was necessary. The fairy war came to a head at the end of this book and it took a few characters with it that left me feeling pretty depressed after it.

Sookie was also left scarred after her ordeal with the fairies but she should recover, hopefully.

At the end of this book, I felt depressed, not just a little sad but down in the dumps for a couple of days. There was so much loss, so much death, and for what? A part fairy that screws vampires and attracts trouble.

I still flew through this book, and I still loved it, but I was left with the thought of, where does it end? What makes Sookie so special that all these people are willing to die for her? Vampires regenerate but even so, they can still die and frequently do where Sookie is concerned. Fairies are a dying race and how many were taken out purely because some big wig wanted to finish off Sookie because she was a half breed.

I still love Sookie and I love that she is growing stronger and wiser with every novel, but surely no one could expect such loyalty.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead in the Family
Dead Reckoning

Book Review: From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris

Review: From Dead to Worse
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 8
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 359
Release Date: 6 May 2008

The supernatural community in Bon Temps, Louisiana is reeling from two hard blows: the natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina, and the manmade horror of the explosion at the vampire summit in the up-north city of Rhodes. Sookie Stackhouse is safe but dazed, but too many vampires – some friends, some not – were killed or injured, and her were-tiger boyfriend Quinn is among the missing.

It’s clear that things are changing, whether the weres and vamps like it or not. And Sookie, Friend to the Pack and blood-bonded to the leader of the local vampire community, is caught up in those changes. She’s about to find herself facing danger and death and, not for the first time, betrayal by someone she loves. And when the fur has finished flying and the cold blood has stopped flowing, Sookie’s world will be forever altered…

My Thoughts: 

Although I loved Sookie and I loved Quinn…they never really had a chance.

Sookie is back home and trying to comprehend all the events that have taken place since the vampire summit including the devastation of hurricane Katrina.

I loved the addition of Amelia living in Sookie’s house in From Dead to Worse. She brought to the table someone who is ditzy, intelligent and really likeable. Amelia also lightened the mood in Sookie’s household, which I feel would have been a lot worse with Quinn’s absence and the aftermath of the summit to content with. It was very clever on Harris part to introduce Amelia in the way that she did.

At this point in the story I’m wondering if we’re not seeing a little biasness from team dead in general on Harris’ part. The vampires can get away with doing absolutely everything to Sookie, from lying to cheating to nearly killing her. And yet they’re still at the top of her to do list. The were’s barely have to cough too loudly and they’re out her door with no explanation.

Let’s look at this pattern over the course of the series:

Sam never got a look in because he was Sookie’s boss and then he moved too quickly for her when he kissed her. (Dead Until Dark)

Alcide was perfection in a male and yet Sookie never wanted him, even though she did because she was too wrapped up in Bill who had disappeared on her and cheated on her. Then after Sookie shot his ex in the head she decided that it was too awkward to be around him anymore even though she still uses him when she needs to and runs to his beck and call, every time. Yep, that level of ambiguity is extremely healthy.

Quinn’s only mistake? Loving his mother and being captured by a pack of nasty vampires who held him hostage. Hmmm, when Bill was held hostage and didn’t contact Sookie what did Sookie do? She went looking for him of course, but as soon as a were does it he’s out the door with nary a bat of the eyelid.

Now Sookie and Quinn’s relationship may have been a little awkward in the beginning and he was a little annoying with his “babe” and baldness – I’m sorry but I like my men with hair – but in All Together Dead their relationship was starting to blossom really beautifully and it was looking like it could work even though Quinn was really busy with his business.

I love Sookie, and I love how strong she has become and how confident she has become over the course of this series, but I really wish everyone got a fair go with her because she could have possibly had some happiness by now instead of so much sadness.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
Dead and GoneDead in the Family
Dead Reckoning

Book Review: All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris

Review: All Together Dead
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 7
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 323
Release Date: 1 May 2007

Sookie Stackhouse would really like time to get over being betrayed by Bill, her long-time vampire lover, and get used to her new relationship with sexy shapeshifter Quinn – but instead, she finds herself attending a vampire summit, the destination of choice for every undead power player around. She’s being used as a sort-of human Geiger counter for Sophie-Anne Leclerq, vampire queen of Louisiana.

But Sophie-Anne’s power base has been severely weakened by Hurricane Katrina, and she’s to be put on trial for murdering her king. Sookie knows the queen is innocent, but others have their doubts. And there are some vamps who would like to finish what nature started. With secret alliances and backroom deals the order of the day – and night – Sookie must decide which side she’ll stand with, and quickly, for her choice may mean the difference between survival and all-out catastrophe…

My Thoughts:

This series continues to get more and more engrossing.

Sookie is attending the vampire summit after being employed by the queen to accompany her as her portable lie detector. Sookie discovers a plot to start a war between the vampires and the Fellowship of the Sun.

Sookie is still Sookie and she is completely loveable, yet in this book I started to really see her growth since the first in the series. One can really see how far Sookie has come since her bartending vampire free days of the first novel and yet it’s still the same Sookie. She hasn’t become obnoxious or arrogant because according to the vampires she is special, she is still Sookie, but with nicer clothes and a nicer house as the old one gradually gets destroyed by fire and Amelia.

I think what I am loving most about this series at the moment is that Sookie is the heroine, but she doesn't act like one. She just gets on with it and performs feats that are human, like going to an archery range to try and suss out whether or not someone else had been there previously. There are no amazing feats of power or intellect, she is just normal and it makes me relate so much more to her than I do to other heroines who are magical and ninja like and completely kick-ass.

Sookie isn’t a wimp, but she isn’t a hero either and that is what makes me love her.

All Together Dead took a deeper look into vampire politics and workings and it was really interesting. I was a little disappointed that Eric wasn’t in this book as much as I was used to him being there, but it really didn’t detract from the story because there wasn’t really a need for him, bar his priestly duties.

Despite the fact that Sookie was attending a vampire summit surrounded by werewolves, aliens and of course, vampires, who were all staying in a pyramid whilst the proceeding took, place I still found the entire story very this world. Some novels carry you off into for example a New York that has something extra, but these novels are all out in the open, and I think it’s because the vampires are out in the open that keeps this series grounded rather than fantastical.

I love this series so much, and I am starting From Dead to Worse as soon as possible.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family
Dead Reckoning

Book Review: Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris

Review: Definitely Dead
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 6
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 324
Release Date: 28 April 2006

Sookie Stackhouse doesn’t have that many relations, so she really hated to lose one – but of all people to go, she didn’t expect it to be her cousin Hadley, a consort of New Orleans’ vampire queen – after all, Hadley was technically already dead.

But Hadley is gone, beyond recall, and she’s left Sookie an inheritance, one that comes with a bit of a risk – not least because someone doesn’t want Sookie digging too deep into Hadley’s possessions…or her past. Sookie’s life is once again on the line, and this time the suspects range from rogue weres to her first love, the vampire Bill. Sookie’s got a lot to do if she’s going to keep herself alive…

My Thoughts:

Definitely Dead probably had the worst start of this series so far, but it turned out okay in the end.

Sookie has been called to New Orleans to clean out her dead cousin Hadley’s apartment. After arriving there, meeting a witch who is a bit of a ditz and finding a werewolf/vampire obomination in Hadley’s old apartment, she finds out the real reason the queen is so interested in some of Hadley’s possessions.

Sookie is a consistent character, which is why I like her. She hasn’t turned into some superwoman, she is still a barmaid who can read minds and knows her place when it comes to the paranormal. I do feel though that she is starting to judge others a little harshly, considering she lives in the proverbial glass house.

I felt that her treatment of Quinn, especially after he had saved her life – twice in one day – after he couldn’t shift fully back and was left with his tiger tail was a bit mean. If I had someone as sexy, powerful, warm, and gentlemanly as Quinn, I wouldn’t discriminate because of a measly tail, Sookie can’t really talk with her weirdness. I would probably prefer Quinn to just sleep as a tiger myself – but that might be because I am a tiger person.

Quinn for all his attributes – I mainly like him because he is a tiger – doesn’t really seem to fit in with Sookie’s life, and I can’t yet decide if that is a good thing or a bad thing. As much as I would want to be with Quinn – tiger thing – I couldn’t feel much chemistry between him and Sookie during the course of this book. The physical was there definitely, but take for example Eric in his amnesia days, there was so much more gentleness and love. With Quinn its more like a possession, Sookie is his woman and probably the excessive use of the word “babe” just grated on my nerves when it came to him.

The start of Definitely Dead was absolutely horrible. I don’t read .5’s in any of my series, not even Cat and Bones of whom I am in love. So when a significant event like Hadley’s cousin dying, Sookie meeting a whole bunch of new characters and Bill somehow being involved in that process happening in a novella and including significant details pertaining to the premise of the story I was extremely confused for the first couple of chapters.

One thing I am starting to find with this series though, is that the stories are starting to run together which is ok from a reading perspective, but horrible from a reviewing perspective. About two days after putting this book down, I could remember what happened, I could remember key elements and funny parts, but then they started to get confused with things that had happened in previous books. The events run chronologically for the most part, but its hard to pick out certain occurances and pinpoint exactly when they happened in the story.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family
Dead Reckoning

Book Review: Dead as a Doornail by Charlaine Harris

Review: Dead as a Doornail
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 5
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 295
Release Date: 25 April 2006

Sookie Stackhouse enjoys her life, mostly. She’s a great cocktail waitress in a fun bar; she has a love life, albeit a bit complicated, and most people have come to terms with her telepathy. The problem is, Sookie wants a quiet life – but things just seem to happen to her and her friends. Now her brother Jason is about to turn into a were-panther for the first time. She can deal with that, but her normal sisterly concern turns to cold fear when a sniper sets his deadly sights on the local shifter population.

She’s afraid not just because Jason is at risk, but because his new were-brethren suspect Jason himself may be the shooter. Sookie has until the next full moon to find out who’s behind the attacks – unless the killer decides to find her first.

My Thoughts:

This series just keeps getting better.

Sookie has more than one mystery to solve this time around with not only someone murdering shifters and seemingly blaming Sookie’s brother Jason for doing it, but an appeal from Alcide the werewolf also arises to help his father in his bid for pack master.

Sookie just keeps getting better and better, and she is so real as well. I was a little disappointed in her when she considered being with Bill again – I mean come on, he cheated on her! – But in a way, it was her first love; there is a bond there that for her at least, will never be broken. Her jealousy over Bill’s new girlfriend was hilarious, and I am sure that many have felt the exact same way when we were confronted with ex’s and their new partners as well.

Although I loved Alcide in Club Dead and really wanted him and Sookie to get together, in this I was really disappointed with him. He was manipulative, pushy and just plain rude at times. There was no courtesy regarding what Sookie might be feeling or if she really consented to being involved with the pack like she was, he only cared about his father. Which is far enough in a way, but it shouldn’t be at the expense of those you supposedly care about. He came on way too strong in Dead as a Doornail, sure Sookie was in need, but wanting her to live with him and barely knowing her is a bit much, even for a supernatural creature. I am proud of Sookie when she kept her head straight with regards to Alcide and his advances, people may think Sookie to be dumb, but she is actually incredibly intelligent when she has her moments, which only adds to her character.

Eric was as lovably scary as always, doing favours for Sookie in exchange for information about their time together when he had amnesia. He may be a conniving, manipulative fiend but as he plainly stated to Sookie, unlike others at least he’s honest about it. It’s what makes his character that much more likable, sure he’s a bad guy in some ways, but he’s upfront about the fact and he’s not afraid or ashamed of getting what he wants by using any means necessary.

This series is consistently good. Going in you know what to expect, you know there will be vampires, werewolves, death and a lot of blood, but Harris writes this series with a light heart. You don’t go into Sookie’s world and come out feeling like crap because of all the bad that’s happening. You come out with Sookie’s attitude of keeping a smile on your face and continuing on, but this series isn’t heavy anyway.

For the massive amount of death and destruction you don’t get depressed, you just keep reading and know somehow it will be better. It’s comforting and safe and that’s why I love this series so much.

I cannot wait to get into Definitely Dead, the next book in this series.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family
Dead Reckoning

Book Review: Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris

Review: Dead to the World
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 4
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 321
Release Date: 3 May 2005

Sookie Stackhouse is a cocktail waitress in Bon Temps, Louisiana. She’s pretty. She does her job well. But she has only a few close friends, because not everyone appreciates Sookie’s gift: she can read minds. That’s not exactly every man's idea of date bait - unless they’re undead; vampires and the like can be tough to read. And that’s just the kind of guy Sookie’s been looking for. Maybe that’s why, when she comes across a naked vampire on the way home from work, she doesn’t just drive on by. He hasn’t got a clue who he is, but Sookie has: Eric looks just as scary and sexy – and dead – as the day she met him. But now he has amnesia, he’s sweet, vulnerable, and in need of Sookie’s help – because whoever took his memory now wants his life.

Sookie’s investigation into what’s going on leads her into a battle between witches vampires and werewolves. But there could be even greater danger – to Sookie’s heart – because the kinder, gentler Eric is very hard to resist.

My Thoughts:

Another dive into the world of Sookie Stackhouse, and now that Bill is out of the way, it’s getting interesting.

Sookie once again is just getting better, taking Eric in after he suffers amnesia to help keep him safe to me is just so good for her and her growth in this society. Sookie still remembers her place in the supernatural society, but she also is starting to come into her own. Things aren’t quite as scary anymore and when Sookie finds out about witches actually existing she doesn’t freak out like she would have in earlier books.

Eric is just getting hotter as far as I’m concerned. Suffering from amnesia at the hands of the witches Eric has forgotten that he is a 1,000 year old Viking vampire that people bow to and cower in fear from as soon as he enters a room. Eric’s tender side in Dead to the World made me fall even more in love with him than before, because it proves that he’s not just an evil overlord, but that he may have a sliver of humanity left.

Eric is a little bit of an odd character for me, I don’t want him to be gentle; I want him to be hard hitting, evil and funny. But in Dead to the World, his tender side was just so perfect; it didn’t even seem like Eric. So although I missed witty Eric, I absolutely loved gentle Eric and although it fits him I can’t see the two sides of him ever reconciling into one being and if I had to choose it would definitely be evil Eric.

Alcide and his wolves also play a major part again in this book and with the addition of Alcide it once again adds more of a plot mover to the story.

I was so glad that Bill barely made an appearance in Dead to the World, as in Club Dead because I really don’t like him. Sookie doesn’t need the distraction that Bill causes and I am hoping that the series continues on this broader path of the extended set of characters.

Dead to the World also introduces witches, which for me wasn’t that big a deal. They seemed more like the hippy Wiccans rather than full blown cackling witches for most of the story. They made for an interesting dilemma for Sookie to deal with though.

Dead to the World was yet another excellent instalment in this fabulous series.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family

Book Review: Club Dead by Charlaine Harris

Review: Club Dead
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 3
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 274
Release Date: 1 May 2003

Sookie Stackhouse always found it a little difficult to date – she’s cute, but not many guys are comfortable with her mind-reading abilities. But vampires have no problems with Sookie’s talent – she can’t pick up much of anything with the undead.

But there’s only one vampire Sookie Stackhouse is with – at least voluntarily – right now, and that’s Bill. But recently he’s been a little distant – in another state distant. His sinister and sexy boss Eric has an idea where to find him, and next thing Sookie knows, she’s off to Jackson, Mississippi, to mingle with the underworld at Club Dead. It’s a dangerous little haunt where the elusive vampire society go to chill out and suck down some Type O – but when Sookie finally finds Bill, he’s not only in trouble, but caught in the act of serious betrayal. Should she save him, or sharpen some stakes?

My Thoughts:

Thrown back into the world of Sookie Stackhouse the story gets even better with the addition of werewolves.

Bill is missing and Sookie has taken it upon herself to find him. Eric enlists the aid of a werewolf who knows the area called Alcide, as he owes Eric a debt.

Sookie just keeps getting stronger and funnier as far as I’m concerned. She still knows her limits and the fact that she is a human among supernatural beings. But she doesn’t seem as naive as she once was back in Dead Until Dark.

Eric is still as irresistible as ever showing up once again as Leif the faithful friend of Sookie Stackhouse. It’s because of Bill that Sookie gets into most of the messes she’s in and it’s always Eric that is there to back her up.

And then we come to Alcide. The big bad wolf who is as gentle as a puppy dog. Taking Sookie under his wing as she tries to navigate the seemingly huge city of Jackson he is the perfect gentleman and the most promising introduction to this series yet.

I loved that Sookie could feel at home with Alcide whether it was just over dinner or while at a club or even while burying a mysterious dead body they found in a closet. They were at an ease with each other that was refreshing in a series where Sookie is usually seen as an outsider looking in, even with the vampires.

My favourite love-to-hate character so far would now have to be Debbie, Alcide's ex. Her big crime? Dumping Alcide the were-wolf for a were-owl but still not wanting anyone else to have Alcide which she makes blaringly obvious to Sookie by not just burning her clothes with cigarettes, but also occasionally trying to kill her.

Sookie Stackhouse is only getting better as it goes along not only do we get the comedy of watching a human in the mix of some dangerous people, we also get the well written mystery of “Where’s Bill?” which if anything kept me more involved with the story than the rollercoaster ride of Sookie’s love life.

Club Dead was an excellent third instalment to this increasingly fantastic series. I cannot wait to sink my teeth into Dead to the World.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family

Book Review: Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

Review: Living Dead in Dallas
Series: Sookie Stackhouse – Book 2
Author: Charlaine Harris
No of Pages: 279
Release Date: 1 April 2004

Cocktail Waitress Sookie Stackhouse is having a streak of bad luck. First her co-worker is killed, and no-one seems to care. Then she comes face-to-face with a beastly creature which gives her a painful and poisonous lashing. Enter the vampires, who graciously suck the poison from her veins (like they didn’t enjoy it).

The point is: they saved her life. So when one of the blood-suckers asks for a favour, she obliges – and soon Sookie’s in Dallas, using her telepathic skills to search for a missing vampire. She’s supposed to interview certain humans involved, but she makes one condition: the vampires must promise to behave, and let the humans go unharmed. But that’s easier said than done, and all it takes is one delicious blonde and one small mistake for things to turn deadly...

My Thoughts:

Back into the world of Sookie Stackhouse, and it’s only just heating up.

Sookie Stackhouse is called to Dallas for her newest assignment as Area 5 Telepath. She must help to find a missing vampire who disappeared from a bar a week earlier. With the threat of the Fellowship of the Sun looming, Sookie must work quickly to find out the information she needs.

I really, really like Sookie. She is human, and understands that but she still has the guts to stand up to anyone who tries to mess with her, including very old vampires. Sookie is getting used to her new role as Telepath even though she misses her day job of waitressing and can’t wait to get back home. After hiding her powers for so long, she still isn’t used to using them but Sookie is learning quickly and with constant practise is becoming quite powerful.

I am over Bill. Sookie freely admits that she’s not in love with him, or even sure she loves him. It’s easy to see why. Bill is never there, insults her relentlessly, and is just plain arrogant at times. He blames it on not being human anymore but that is starting to just sound like a cop out for I-can’t-be-bothered-treating-you-right.

Eric is still Eric. Witty, handsome, and there for Sookie when she needs help. Eric will continue to grow on me as he plans to on Sookie, only I shall welcome the “fungus” as she calls it.

One thing about re-reading these books after watching True Blood is that in True Blood, with the vast changes in characters and the diminished focus on Sookie I loved the other characters going into Living Dead in Dallas. So when Lafayette dies on the first page, I got sad, even though he is a nobody in the books. I still got sad.

I can’t wait to get back into Club Dead and back into Sookie's world. Team Eric all the way.

Others in this series:
Dead Until Dark
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and GoneDead in the Family

Book Review: Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Review: Dead Until Dark
Series: Sookie Stackhouse - Book 1
Author: Chralaine Harris
No of Pages: 326
Release Date: 1 May 2001

Sookie Stackhouse is a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She's quiet, keeps to herself, and doesn't get out much. Not because she's not pretty. She is. It's just that, well, Sookie has this sort of ‘disability’. She can read minds. And that doesn't make her too dateable. And then along comes Bill. He's tall, dark, handsome - and Sookie can't 'hear' a word he's thinking. He's exactly the kind of guy she's been waiting for all her life.

But Bill has a disability of his own: He's a vampire. Worse than that, hangs with a seriously creepy crowd, with a reputation for trouble - of the murderous kind.

And when one of Sookie's colleagues is killed, she begins to fear she'll be next.

My Thoughts:

Sookie Stackhouse is definitely odd, but I like her.

Sookie has grown up being thought of as either crazy or slow. Not because she is though, it is because she is constantly trying to stop the stream of chatter from people’s minds. Occasionally Harris gives us a peek into what Sookie is ‘hearing’.

Sookie is a down to earth lovable character. She is a little bit annoying and very helpless, but it only concretes the fact that she is realistic. A human among vampires who accepts that fact and uses it, somewhat, to her advantage.

Bill is definitely tall, dark and handsome (nothing like the character on True Blood). After getting into a spot of trouble at the beginning of Dead Until Dark he goes on to introduce Sookie to the vampire world, dangerous as it may be.

I love that Sookie isn’t some swooning woman infatuated with Bill, if he cheeses her off she leaves and will not talk to him until he apologises. She doesn’t put up with anything that’s not warranted and isn’t always the first to call.

For being so physically fragile, mentally she is one tough chick. Dealing with death threats, a whole new world with a different set of rules and the constant stream of chatter Sookie also holds up against all the death suddenly surrounding her and not just in the form of vampires.

Sookie's workmates are being picked off one by one and her brother Jason is a prime suspect, so it’s up to Sookie to help clear his name.

I love Harris’ vampires. They are very traditional in that they don’t like the sun and can be staked. They are also pretty evil with their loss of humanity and therefore don’t see death or horrifying wounds as anything worth worrying about anymore, unless of course they are the ones in danger.

Harris’ writing style was odd at the beginning, almost simple in a way with far too many words and then she fell into a good rhythm about half way through which helped the story flow much easier. I loved her use of southern language even though it wasn’t always consistent and her world building was clear and painted a beautiful picture.

Dead Until Dark threw me back into the world of mystery and suspense with a beautiful touch of old fashioned vampires to spice things up. Once it had me in the grips of having to know what happened it wouldn’t let go until the final page, and even then I can’t wait to get into Living Dead in Dallas.

Others in this series:
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and Gone
Dead in the Family
Dead Reckoning