Aliverse

For Sookie Stackhouse, the day to day activities of the vampire and were communities in and around Bon Temps, Louisiana, are of vital interest, She’s blood-bound to the leader of the vamps, a friend to the local were pack, works for a man who is shifter, and has a brother who is a were-panther…

But for most of the humans in Bon Temps, the vamps are mysterious seductive creatures-and they don’t even know about the weres.

Until now. The weres and shifters have finally decided to follow the lead of the undead and reveal their existence to the ordinary world.

At first it seems to go well. Then the mutilated body of a were-panther is found in the parking lot of the bar where Sookie works. The victim is someone she knows, so she feels compelled to discover who-human or otherwise-did the deed.

But what she doesn’t realize is that there is a far greater danger than the killer threatening Bon Temps. A race of unhuman beings–older, more powerful and far more secretive than vampires or werewolves– is preparing for war. And Sookie will find herself an all-too human pawn in their battle…

- Synopsis via Barnes and Noble

Let me just jump right into it. After several days of trying to find the right words, I’m just going to have at it.

I was disappointed in the ninth book in the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlain Harris. I settled down to read the book I had waited over a year to read. I sped through “Dead and Gone”, hoping against hope that it would get to the point already. It never got there.

To me, this book was without purpose. It seemed thrown together with some vague story ideas and old characters with their usual behavior and issues. As far as I was concerned, there was no character development at all in this book. While I could have excused this if the story had been phenomenal, it was not.

The quick-witted charm I have come to love in Charlaine Harris’s characters came to a halt in this book. The plot and storyline were almost non-existent. I’d be concerned about giving away spoilers, but honestly there is no way to spoil this book. Nothing surprising happens, really. By this point in the series I’ve learned that even favorite characters can die. (Sort of reminds me of a Joss Whedon series in that respect.) So when a few characters I liked got killed, my only reaction was ‘meh’.

The weres finally come out, which we knew was going to happen from the previous book. People are trying to attack Sookie, no surprise there. Bill still loves Sookie but does nothing about it except hang around in a creepy manner. Eric loves Sookie and wants her to belong to him. Again, no news there.

There is never any closure in regards to Eric and Sookie and their previous love affair. Even though you are led to believe there will be a serious discussion between the two about their time together, the conversation never happens. Are we supposed to believe that this long-anticipated conversation is what Eric and Sookie experience in bed one night? If so, I’m even more disappointed than I initially thought.

I was also left wondering why certain characters even made appearances in this book. I feel that ‘Bubba’ has worn out his welcome in the series, unless he is going to actually DO something. Bill was hardly necessary until the very end, and even then he seemed superfluous. Sam seems to act out of character, and even a little hypocritical, as he pouts about her relationship with Eric.

Why the consistent, yet unnecessary, inclusion of Sookie’s state of Christianity? Since when has that been a big deal in these books? The inclusion of it seemed a carelessly thrown-in ‘extra’.

At the heart of it all, the book was just compelling enough to make me want to read the next book. The real pull for me, though, is to find out if the relationship between Sookie and Eric ever actually goes somewhere.

I hope when the tenth book, “Dead in the Family” comes out in paperback, the series will get back on track and return with some of the fun and excitement we have all come to love. Or, barring that, at least give us some more excitement with Eric and Sookie.

Wait for the paperback, and enjoy the book for the light-hearted distraction it is.

3 out of 5