Club Dead. - Charlaine Harris

Synopsis: There's only one vampire Sookie Stackhouse is involved with - at least voluntarily - and that's Bill. But recently he's been a little distant - in another state distant. His sinister and sexy boss Eric has an idea where to find him, and next thing Sookie knows she's off to Jackson, Mississippi, to mingle with the underworld at Club Dead. It's a dangerous little haunt where the elusive vampire society can go to chill out and suck down some Type O - but when Sookie finally finds Bill caught in an act of serious betrayal she's not sure whether to save him, or to sharpen some stakes. The Sookie Stackhouse books are delightful Southern Gothic supernatural mysteries, starring Sookie, the telepathic cocktail waitress, and a cast of increasingly colourful characters, including vampires, werewolves and things that really do go bump in the night.

Review

Well, I'm certainly flying through this series, as the third book in the Sookie Stackhouse comes to an end, and I think this has been my favourite so far. I'm unsure why, but the action was even higher, the danger even greater, and the tension throughout was so strong it just poured through the pages.

This time Sookie faces a different dilemma to her previous excursions, as this time she doesn't have Bill. In the past weeks he's been cold and distant, and he finally leaves without really telling her why; a betrayal that hits hard when she is told by Eric. Next minute Sookie is travelling again, this time to Mississippi and to the kingdom of vampire Russel Edgington. The danger is high, and vampire bar Club Dead holds more dangers than she's ever faced before. Despite the moral dilemma, Sookie knows she needs to talk to Bill no matter what; she must save him, even if he has betrayed her.

Tortured and alone, Bill suffers with regret and pain; the betrayer betrayed. Sookie is on her way though, however, and although it costs her greatly she finds information that leads the vampires to Bill. Penetrating the compound, Sookie must use every talent she's used so far, and a little more, to try save the first person she's truly loved; no matter what. She's had the help of werewolf Alicide throughout, but this time she's alone; but she's dangerous, and always down for the fight.

Throughout this novel, I felt the character development from the previous two novels. We found out more about Bill's past, and I feel Sookie had finally learned to deal a little with her telepathy, exploring it more than ever to help her investigations. The book was just as engaging as the last two in the series, perhaps even more so, and the action didn't let up for even a moment, despite the underlying questions of morality that played such an important part in the book.

Overall, a strong addition to the series and I'll certainly be attacking the rest with gusto; these novels really are great, fast-paced reads which pass away the hours quickly without complaint. Enjoyable to both young adults and adults alike, if you haven't snapped them up (no vampire puns intended) yet, do so; you're missing out.

5/5.

Living Dead In Dallas. - Charlaine Harris

Synopsis: Sookie Stackhouse is living in Bon Temps, Louisiana, and she likes working as a cocktail waitress at Merlotte's. But she's having a streak of bad luck. First her co-worker is killed, and no one seems to care. Then she comes face-to-face with a beastly creature which gives her a painful and poisonous lashing. Enter the vampires, who graciously suck the poison from her veins (like they didn't enjoy it).

The point is the vampires saved her life. So when one of the bloodsuckers asks for a favour, she obliges - and soon Sookie's in Dallas, using her telepathic skills to search for a missing vampire. She's supposed to interview certain humans involved, but she makes one condition: the vampires must promise to behave, and let the humans go unharmed. But that's easier said than done, and all it takes is one delicious blonde and one small mistake for things to turn deadly.

Review

The second book in the Sookie Stackhouse series, then, and certainly just as enjoyable as the first. Sookie owes the vampires a debt, and she isn't one to let down a promise, as she travels to Dallas to help out in their investigations. Things don't run quite as smoothly as she wishes, however, and she soon finds herself way out of her depth.

The Fellowship lurk around every corner, and wait resolutely to harm vampires, or those that have associated with them; believing that they deserve to atone for their sins. They are at the centre of Sookie's discoveries and she travels to their headquarters in order to help her investigations, and save the person the vampires want returned. Soon though, she finds herself captured, betrayed, and ultimately alone; with only her skills to help her.

Danger fast approaching, Sookie faces her toughest and most stern test yet; she must escape, and she must help those she can. It's easier said than done, however, as the reader turns the pages in anticipation, and feels the anxiety of the characters. The novel is engaging, gripping, whilst at the same time a fast-paced read; a tribute to how easy it is to lose yourself in the pages.

I recommend this series so far to anyone that enjoys a novel that has a bit of everything; plenty of action, littered with humour and wit that had me laughing out loud at some points. It mixes tension and odd moments of romance nicely; a fantastic read.

4/5.

Dead Until Dark. - Charlaine Harris

Synopsis: Sookie Stackhouse is a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She's quiet, keeps to herself, and doesn't get out much. Not because she's not pretty. She is. It's just that, well, Sookie has this sort of 'disability.' She can read minds. And that doesn't make her too dateable. And then comes along Bill: he's tall, dark and handsome - and Sookie can't 'hear' a word he's thinking. He's exactly the type of guy she's been waiting for all her life. But Bill has a disability of his own: he's a vampire. Worse than that, he hands around with a seriously creepy crowd, with a reputation for trouble - of the murderous kind. And when one of Sookie's colleagues is killed, she begins to fear she'll be next.

Review

Now the Sookie Stackhouse series is one I've been meaning to get around too for years now, especially after hearing from friends how good it is, and after seeing it made into television hit show True Blood. In any case, Dead Until Dark is the first in the series, and I enjoyed it immensely.

Dead Until Dark is one of those fast-paced, easy reads, that you can sit back with, enjoying a brew; passing the hours by without really knowing where they have gone. The action is plentiful, the writing engaging, and the characters believable enough to feel involved with what they are going through.

The novel centres around young Sookie Stackhouse, the cocktail waitress from Bon Temps, Louisiana, who has the often horrible talent of being able to read people's minds. Not a moment of peace is granted to her; it's an affliction she has to put up with all day long. That all changes when she meets Bill the vampire; handsome, mysterious, and a breath of fresh air, since she all she meets is wonderful silence when she tries to reach his mind.

Despite this though, falling for a vampire looks like it has its consequences. Nobody approves, everyone's weary of him, and it helps not that all around the town woman are being brutally murdered; those who have an association with vampires. It's frightening; Sookie fears she is next, and doesn't know who to trust. The darkness and the murder close in, the danger piles up; someone or something stalks the night, with the attention of causing her harm.

4/5.