SOOKIE’S BACK!! Yaaaaay!!! I say that not just because there’s a new book, but because she’s back in business…as in, good book business. After Dead in the Family, I had begun to worry that the series was sliding downhill, but alas, we are saved. (For now, at least.) My hubs – who has read the entire series – asked me to rate it “one to ten, how many stars? Wait…only compare it to the other Sookie books and don’t factor in all those depressing, sad books you read…” Hmmm, how long until he understands that not all sad books are bad books??? Anyhoo, I gave it a seven.
So someone attempts to firebomb Merlotte’s and Sookie and Sam are caught in the crossfire. Was the attack meant for Sam or Sookie? (Sookie, of course.) Victor has recently been made regent to the new King Felipe and he’s invaded Bon Temps and Shreveport, setting up two new bars that have put a kink in both Sam and Eric’s businesses. Claude and Dermot are living with Sookie and there is something suspicious happening with the fairy refugees that were left behind when the world of fae was sealed off. Eric is keeping a major secret and one of Sookie’s (many) enemies is back for vengeance.
It starts out a little slow, but the pace does pick up and there’s quite a lot of action in the second half. There are a few storylines that don’t go anywhere, but I assume they will be central to the next book. And I do tire a bit of the fairies, since I haven’t really made a connection to those characters yet.
However, the best part for me is that it gets back to the heart of the series: Sookie, Eric and Bill. Yep, you read that right, Bill’s back in business too!! (Hush, all you Bill-haters out there…) Sookie and Eric on the porch swing and Sookie and Bill – naked – underneath Bill’s house (the set-up for the latter was a bit hokey, but I can let that slide). Not exactly book 4 material, but still good. (At this point in the game, I should face reality and admit my weakness for a good love triangle.) And the ending is open-ended, frustrating, and annoying, much like Dead and Gone, but successfully makes you want more, more, more.
I’m really happy with this book and my interest has officially been re-piqued. All the books in this series are TOO SHORT and I’d like to see them at least 100 pages longer, but a fun and quick read is just what the doctor ordered sometimes. My interest in “True Blood” as been rekindled as well…just when we were planning to drop the cable altogether…damn you, Eric Northman!!
Should I admit to owning this poster? No, probably not...
Blue Moon Magnolia 