Things have been quiet for Sookie Stackhouse. She's bonded to vampire Eric Northman, still waitressing at Merlotte's, living peacefully with her fae relatives, and getting ready for her best friend's baby shower. That is until the night someone firebombs Merlotte's and Sookie's life is one again in danger. An old enemy returns, Eric's new boss is making things difficult for their relationship, and secrets about her fae history come to light to cause even bigger problems. The answers don't come quickly and much blood is shed along the way in this highly emotional, exciting read from Charlaine Harris.
The eleventh installment of Charlaine Harris' supernatural series is more introspective than the previous books. As Sookie finds out more about her fae side she discovers some uncomfortable truths that have her questioning her whole life and what she wants for herself in the future. It's an older and somewhat wiser Sookie that we see in this story, one who wants a more normal life but knows it's not really possible. All these emotional moments doesn't mean the story is completely devoid of action. Sookie's attacked numerous times by someone seeking revenge and Eric leads a group to eliminate Victor, the new boss in town who's made things difficult for Fangtasia and many others in his circle. This final act gets very bloody and causes Sookie even more uncertainty leaving her relationship to Eric in question as well as her entire future and how she pictures herself.
Many favorite characters make an appearance in this story like Pam, Sam, Bill, Claude, Dermot, and even Bubba. Along with a few new names, some of whom don't last long, the story moves along at a good pace perfectly balancing the emotional aspects as well as the action sequences. You can sense the end coming, and with Ms. Harris confirming only two books left, I feel sad to see it go. Many things are left up in the air at the end of this story and I'm intrigued to see the ramifications of some very serious actions. Sookie may be able to clean up her house with all its relics of the past easily, but unfortunately straightening up her life isn't so simple.
My rating for this is a B+
Oh she's confirmed the end is near? Though sad to say goodbye to them, I think it's a wise decision. I enjoyed the 11th book but also think they're becoming too thin.
ReplyDeleteI really need to get around to reading this. I'm trying to hold out for an audio book copy from the library. The waiting list is just so long!
ReplyDeletenoiashui...Yes, I've read numerous interviews where she's confirmed that she's only writing two more. And I too think it's wise. Too many series (Stephanie Plum is a great example) become stale and repetitious after going on too long.
ReplyDeleteLaura, I actually got my copy from the library for my eReader and the wait seemed to go more faster than for a printed copy. I'm so happy our library now offers ebooks!
ReplyDelete