Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris

(Sookie Stackhouse series, book 11)
With her knack for being in trouble’s way, Sookie witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte’s, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is now known to be two-natured, suspicion falls immediately on the anti-shifters in the area. But Sookie suspects other, and she and Sam work together to uncover the culprit – and the twisted motive for the attack.
But her attention is divided. Though she can’t “read” vampires, Sookie knows her lover, Eric Northman, and his “child” Pam well – and she realizes that they are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, she is drawn into the plot – which is much more complicated than she knows.
Caught up once again in the politics of the vampire world, Sookie will learn that she is as much of a pawn as any ordinary human – and that there is a new queen on the board…

Well, here we are eleven books into the series, and Sookie still can’t manage to just settle into a normal life. No matter where she goes, trouble seems to find her. She’s working a shift at Merlotte’s when the bar gets firebombed…and from what Sookie can tell, the bomber wasn’t fully human. It turns out an old enemy just might be out to seek revenge on Sookie.

Sookie also has her faerie cousin Claude and faerie uncle Dermot living with her, and call me crazy, but it seems to me that Claude is up to something. I have said before that I didn’t care for the faerie aspect of this series, but I like this new Claude. There’s just something about him…

Ohhh, and will Eric and Sookie ever just be happy together?? I’m starting to think that might be impossible…even if they are married. Well, the marriage is only legal in the vampire world; if you didn’t already know that, you probably should read the previous books before jumping to this review. Just sayin’! It seems as though Sookie is starting to consider the real costs of having a long-term relationship with him. How would he feel about her when she starts aging and he doesn’t? How much more violence can she really take in her life? I think all these feelings point to the conclusion that Sookie really has no desire to be changed into a vampire to make her life with Eric “easier.” I never really thought she would turn, because she had never said she wanted to, never asked questions about it; she only thought about it once. She’s too independent to change her life like that for a guy…she’s no Bella Swan (THANK. GOD.) As if all that wasn’t enough to complicate their relationship, we find out Eric has been keeping a pretty big secret.

Bill has more of a role in this book than the previous one, and true to form, I found myself rooting for him just a little bit. I’m a bigger flip-flopper than presidential candidates, I tell ya! I am still on Team Eric, but this is the first time in a while that I actually liked Bill and wasn’t just feeling sorry for him. There are also a lot of other characters that make a very welcome appearance in this book: Amelia, Bob, Alcide, Hunter, Bubba, and Mr. Cataliades, just to name my favorites. I don’t know that I’ve ever mentioned Bubba in my previous reviews, but anytime he’s involved I always find myself with a smile on my face. I get all shook up ;)

The end creates more questions than answers. Is Sookie really done with supes? What is Sookie going to do with her grandfather’s gift? What IS Claude really up to? What lies in store for Sookie’s relationship with Eric…and Pam for that matter? SWEET SASSY MOLASSY, I NEED SOME ANSWERS!! I can’t wait to see how Harris wraps up this series with the final two books. 



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