Book Review: Dead Ever After (Sookie Stackhouse, #13) by Charlaine Harris

Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm always surprised by the vehemence of some of the reviews I see about the Sookie Stackhouse series. To those who complain about Harris's writing style or how simple Sookie acts, read some of Harris' other series. Her other characters can be sophisticated and complicated. Sookie is an average person. She reminds us that we don't have to be the most educated, the most wealthy, the most polished to be a worthy human being. And she reminds us that we can all make mistakes in the name of love.

Some reviews of this last book in the series are angry for another reason: They're not happy who Sookie ends up with in the end. Harris is an experienced, skilled, writer, with experienced skilled editors. If she felt that was the best ending for her story, for her book, we can be sad, we can wish it were different, but we should stand by her decision to end the series the way she did.

Would I have ended the series the same way? No. But I'm still glad I read it, and I think it was concluded reasonably well. I'll miss Sookie, but I look forward to reading Harris's other works.

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Book Review: Deadlocked, by Charlaine Harris

Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the second-to-last book in the Sookie Stackhouse series and many of the Goodreads, Amazon, and Audible reviews are not very glowing.

A common complaint is that there's not enough action and sex, and too much uninteresting detail. (One person complained that Sookie spent so much time cooking that she now knows how to make sweet potato pie.)

Another complaint is that Harris spends too much time on minor characters. Admist chaos, we're learning that characters from the previous books are getting married or having children or working through tough couple times. Some reviewers thought that detracted from the mystery and thriller aspects.

In Harris's defense, one reviewer pointed out that this *is* the penultimate book, and that Harris has a lot of tying up of loose ends.

And that, I think, is the key to reading this book: Harris is tying up loose ends. She's also, as other readers complained, moving certain things in a different direction. To do that, she has to spend a lot of time on things that may seem trivial.

If you're a fan of the series, and you keep in mind that Harris is doing clean-up and setting the stage for the grand finale, you'll appreciate it more than if you're hoping for a sex romp or some of the humor of earlier books.

Johanna Parker's voice work on the Recorded Books audiobook version adeptly conveys the atmosphere of the anticipated end. I've loved listening to her narrate the series and hope she reads the final book.

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Available in Kindle format

Did I mention that both of my books, Darksome Thirst and The Old Power Returns are available from Amazon in Kindle format? They're pretty inexpensive now, too. Apparently Darksome Thirst has been available for a while, but the publisher had some technical problems with The Old Power Returns.

Personally I'd love a Kindle, but I have to drive to my day job, which makes reading during the commute impossible. Lately I've been listening to audiobooks. I just finished listening to Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris, part of the Sookie Stackhouse series. The reader, Johanna Parker, is really, really good. Though her voice and characterization are slightly different from Anna Paquin's portrayal on True Blood, it's still not enough to jar you. I watch True Blood faithfully and still enjoy listening to the audiobooks on the drive into work.