Dead Ever After

Dead Ever After: A Sookie Stackhouse Novel (Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood) by Charlaine Harris

It's a slightly better ending than I expected, but I expected 1-1.5 stars. There are apparently a lot of, ahem, issues between Miss Harris and her fans (enemies?). I've avoided seeing it until now (yes, I live in a cave to avoid spoilers). Everything from things she did with characters to just the overall quality to things fans have said to things she has said to threats from said fanemies (hey, if frienemies is a word now...). I must admit, I have been disappointed -- greatly so -- in the last several books, but this is just out of hand. Threatening harm to yourself or others if something doesn't go your way is just OMFG crazy. Have those people not read / watched the news lately? I, personally, had two recent shootings hit too close to home - a family member in a mall minutes before a shooting and another happening minutes from my home, the shooter living seconds from my last apartment. Crazy threats that would make someone afraid to leave their home = not cool. If you're one of those people, the ones that devoted to a book series that you'd go the threat route? Time to put down the book or e-reader and do some yoga or something. Chill. That said, I do think fans should not be afraid to admit when their favorites have fallen.

When Charlaine Harris does what she does well, she does it very well. She makes you want more more more. Likewise when she drops the ball, she does it so well that he ball deflates - pops even. There is no saving it. That is what happened with this series. I cannot even remember exactly when that happened but it did. I spent a fortune on her work. When I started to get disappointed I learned my lesson - stop pre-ordering and wait for reviews. This time around I was already so burnt out that I didn't even bother, I waited for my library to get a copy. I made the right choice, Dead Ever After simply wasn't worth getting all worked up over.

It felt like it was an attempt to squeeze in everyone that hated, loved, lusted after, felt neutral about Sookie for one last hurrah (at least the last one we'll see - I will not spoil the ending but I think it is at least safe to say that the world did not end).

For some people the biggest question, before reading this book, is: Eric, Bill, Sam, other? While not everyone will be happy with the answer, the answer did arrive. Sort of. This is Sookie, nothing is ever permanent in her love life.

Will she become a vampire? If I am not mistaken, Miss Harris did state early on whether or not this would happen, maybe? Either way, this was answered.

What happened to _____? There's a good chance you at least learned something about anyone you were curious about, if they were still alive. As I stated already, basically everyone connected to Sookie showed up in one way or another.

How about the sex and violence and action? It's here, it's just rather forgettable compared to earlier books.

More backstories before we leave everyone? Not so much.

The only other Charlaine Harris books I read were from her Harper Connelly series. I loved those. I also felt that she didn't know how to end that series. Maybe her problem simply comes with saying goodbye to her characters. As the time to end it gets near, she loses her groove, or something. Maybe this one just went on way too long. Whatever the problem is, there is a problem. For people curious about the series, I would actually recommend it - I loved it enough to buy the first five books or so in print, then when I switched to Kindle I had donated those to the library and re-purchased the set that was out at the time (I think through book eight). Then my sister wanted to read it so I also bought another hard copy to send to her. When I did the libration donation, I gave them the Harper Connelly series and decided to re-buy that too. I really do like CH books when done well. If this genre is your thing, you won't be disappointed - at first. I'd just recommend that you stop at about book eight or nine and let your imagination fill in the rest. Or, if like me, you have some sick need to finish up once hooked, at least just finish up with library copies or copies borrowed from friends.