I made it! I cut it close for the end of the Sookie Stackhouse reading challenge (ending 6/30/2010), but here I am. Over the last year, I’ve read and posted reviews of the first 8 Sookie Stackhouse books. This is my review of the 9th book. The collection of short stories and the tenth book (published a month or so ago), were not included in the challenge. I’ll get to them at some time, but probably not immediately.
So, on to my review of Dead and Gone.
My rating: 4 out of 5 stars
From Goodreads:
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…
This will be a quick jotting down of my thoughts.
I liked Sookie in Dead and Gone. She’s growing up a bit, she’s trying to think proactively, and is actively working to figure out what her place in the world is.
Of course, the world isn’t cooperating.
As always, vampire leader Eric has his own view of the situation. The blood bond they share makes for a compelling argument, and he’s got some good logic and a really hot body on his side.
Her family relationships are getting more complicated by the day. Her brother set her up into a very unpleasant situation, and doesn’t understand why she won’t forgive and forget. She’s not willing to go that far, but she will work to prove his innocence when he may be implicated in a murder. Her newly discovered great-grandfather has inadvertently put her in the middle of a faery war.
And so on.
There’s a lot of big action here, and less of it involves the weres than I would have though, given that they’ve now revealed themselves to the human world. In the end, I enjoyed Dead & Gone for the smaller moments between the characters.
Audio Notes
I’ve listened to all but one of these books. 7 were available as downloads through my library. I bought one of the missing books in paperback, and I bought this one from Audible.com.
Narrator: Johanna Parker. I really like her voice, and I think it brings the southern feel of the book home for me.
Audio vs. print? I liked these on audio because they have a comfortable feel that keeps me company as I go through my day. I’m not sure that the audio version added to my appreciation of the series , but it did fit better in my day. Pick whatever way fits better in yours.
