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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
I'm glad I read the end. But it's hours I won't get back. As horrible as it sounds. I should have just read the wiki synopsis :(
Something tragic has happened. I’ve turned the last page of the final Sookie Stackhouse novel. I knew the day would come, but there’s just no preparing for something like this. It’s the end of an era and I feel empty inside. How to explain this to someone who hasn’t fallen for Sookie?
The Sookie Stackhouse series isn’t crammed with action as many other vampire/YA books out there. It’s actually quite mundane. We follow Sookie in her everyday life; she cleans her house, does some gardening, prepares meals, gets dressed, does her hair and make up, and goes to Merlotte’s where she works as a waitress. And then she reads minds and dates vampires.
Sookie’s one of my favorite female characters. She’s a very untraditional heroine. You know how fictional heroines are often sooo beyond superficial stuff like appearances because they’ve got better things to think about? Well, Sookie’s vain, wears makeup, loves to sunbathe and chooses her outfits carefully. And she’s still cool. I find that refreshing.
Her being a telepath with a weakness for vampires sets the action of the books. I love the vampires in Sookie’s world. They aren’t dark and gloomy as e.g. Anne Rice’s vampires. They’re part of society, and it’s fun seeing the various interactions between humans and vampires. This is a very creative and unique world Charlaine Harris created – made even more creative in HBOs True Blood series, which I adore. BTW: Don’t expect the books to be anything like the TV series!
The Sookie Stackhouse books have been part of my reading agenda for the past three years or so. I’ve read about four Sookie-books a year, and they’ve been the perfect in-between-reads. I could always feel a certain longing for a Sookie-book when it had been a while. I don’t know what I’ll do now that I’ve turned the last Sookie-page. *sigh*
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finished 7/25/13
This is the final book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series. After the events of the previous book, Sookie's relationship with Eric is on the rocks, Sam seems out of sorts, and Sookie's just been framed for murder. Who set her up and why? Sookie and her friends are determined to solve the mystery and clear her name.
I thought the book was a good wrap up to the series although until the actual framing happened, I was mostly listening in order to complete the series. After the third disc, things really picked up and I was happy to keep listening to the end. With the last couple books, even though I got caught up in the action, I had been feeling the series was getting kind of repetitive, so I am happy that Harris decided to bring it to a close.
This is the final book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series. After the events of the previous book, Sookie's relationship with Eric is on the rocks, Sam seems out of sorts, and Sookie's just been framed for murder. Who set her up and why? Sookie and her friends are determined to solve the mystery and clear her name.
I thought the book was a good wrap up to the series although until the actual framing happened, I was mostly listening in order to complete the series. After the third disc, things really picked up and I was happy to keep listening to the end. With the last couple books, even though I got caught up in the action, I had been feeling the series was getting kind of repetitive, so I am happy that Harris decided to bring it to a close.
Another body shows up in the back of Merlotte and Sookie is a prime suspect, as the dead body belongs to Arlene - her former friend who tried to kill her. The big question is who is trying to frame Sookie for Arlene's death.
Since I enjoyed reading the last book, I was hoping this one had a good pace and a fine mystery to wrap things up. I was wrong. I don't understand how an author has at least two books to finish a long series and ends up with this sloppy idea. Whiny Sookie is back and she acts as a sitting duck while her friends try to help her and get shot/harmed in the process. Not to mention the motives behind the crimes and the criminals were poorly chosen. I was happy some older characters were back until they were totally dismissed and disappeared into thin air. I really mean disappear, we don't know anything about them again. I guess most of the wrap up will happen in [b:After Dead: What Came Next in the World of Sookie Stackhouse|17239876|After Dead What Came Next in the World of Sookie Stackhouse (Sookie Stackhouse, #13.5)|Charlaine Harris|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1364533931s/17239876.jpg|23766743], which is appalling since that information belongs in the last book of this the series, and not in a short story.
I understood who Sookie was going to end up with in the first books when Harris said she would not become a vampire. But the author made a bad choice when she didn't steer the story towards that end. It doesn't agree with the other books, and to that end Harris had to hastily erase Eric's personality - he so didn't deserve this ending. Why bring more holes into the story with this unconvincing plot? To think I was relieved the fae were gone and then read this... I know most people don't care about details, but if you say something is impossible you should stick to it. Or at least make characters behave in a coherent way. And most importantly, where did all the fun go? I don't know if the author is sad, but the tone of the books changed a lot and I missed the good laughs and funny situations, which was one of the main reasons I kept reading. I'm not happy about the holes, weird twists and a lot of hasty sentences thrown in to try and explain the holes, but I used to love this series. Even though this is the last, I would recommend everyone to read this series up to book 9. You'll be happier that way.
Since I enjoyed reading the last book, I was hoping this one had a good pace and a fine mystery to wrap things up. I was wrong. I don't understand how an author has at least two books to finish a long series and ends up with this sloppy idea. Whiny Sookie is back and she acts as a sitting duck while her friends try to help her and get shot/harmed in the process. Not to mention the motives behind the crimes and the criminals were poorly chosen. I was happy some older characters were back until they were totally dismissed and disappeared into thin air. I really mean disappear, we don't know anything about them again. I guess most of the wrap up will happen in [b:After Dead: What Came Next in the World of Sookie Stackhouse|17239876|After Dead What Came Next in the World of Sookie Stackhouse (Sookie Stackhouse, #13.5)|Charlaine Harris|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1364533931s/17239876.jpg|23766743], which is appalling since that information belongs in the last book of this the series, and not in a short story.
I understood who Sookie was going to end up with in the first books when Harris said she would not become a vampire. But the author made a bad choice when she didn't steer the story towards that end. It doesn't agree with the other books, and to that end Harris had to hastily erase Eric's personality - he so didn't deserve this ending. Why bring more holes into the story with this unconvincing plot? To think I was relieved the fae were gone and then read this... I know most people don't care about details, but if you say something is impossible you should stick to it. Or at least make characters behave in a coherent way. And most importantly, where did all the fun go? I don't know if the author is sad, but the tone of the books changed a lot and I missed the good laughs and funny situations, which was one of the main reasons I kept reading. I'm not happy about the holes, weird twists and a lot of hasty sentences thrown in to try and explain the holes, but I used to love this series. Even though this is the last, I would recommend everyone to read this series up to book 9. You'll be happier that way.
Well, it was not the most compelling read of the Sookie books, but it surely did tie everything into a neat little bow. My one complaint? For this to be the big romantic climax of her life, there was not NEARLY enough payoff. Realizing "oh hey, I might kind of like you finally" isn't exactly a sigh-inducing finish. Ah well. If I want stomach butterflies, I can reread the series. ;)
I went back and checked, and I at least mentioned the fact that the ending with Sam was obvious as far back as book 9, so this was not much of a surprise for me. That said, a predictable ending is not a deal-killer in an of itself. There are only so many ways, in a rational world, that stories typically go. What matters is how you get there. Sadly, I thought Harris mishandled the march towards the inevitable. There was surprisingly little interaction between Sam and Sookie over the course of this book. You've known Sam was carrying a torch for her since book 1, but Sookie apparently only realized how much she cared for him at the end of book 12. (Let's face it, Sookie is really not that good at picking up on clues that are obvious to literally everyone else in the world. This series would have been half as long if she was really any good at detecting anything.) Harris could have made the readers feel as much for Sam as many apparently did for Eric, but the effort just isn't there. Harris' job was to make her readers really FEEL like this was the happy ending Sookie wanted and deserved, and she didn't really come through on that.
Harris also continues to over-rely on the deus ex machina model of plotting, where something that either never existed before or was supposed to never happen again makes an appearance to provide the plot. It's clear Harris had run out of steam on this series a while ago, so I'm more relieved than anything to see it over.
Harris also continues to over-rely on the deus ex machina model of plotting, where something that either never existed before or was supposed to never happen again makes an appearance to provide the plot. It's clear Harris had run out of steam on this series a while ago, so I'm more relieved than anything to see it over.
'I had a fleeting second of incredulity that there'd ever been a time I hadn't known the extent of the supernatural world. And here I sat in Lucky Bar-B-Q with two witches, two part-demons, a telepath, and a weretiger.'
Plot
Sookie Stackhouse started out as an ordinary waitress with an extraordinary talent. Now she's part-owner in Merlotte's bar, wife to the Vampire Sheriff Eric Northman, and has survived several attempts on her life.
After using her cluviel dor to bring Sam Merlotte back from the dead, Sookie starts to feel isolated and cut off from the world. Eric is keeping his distance and Sookie has no idea where things stand with him. As she's getting on with her life, Sookie has no idea that there are people out there intent on taking it away from her. But there are also people ready and willing to help her in her time of need.
My Thoughts
Since I bought the first Sookie Stackhouse book on a whim, I've been hooked on the series. I read the first few within a few months, and got really impatient waiting for the next one's to be delivered. I've always loved Sookie's character and was always worried for her when more and more danger was thrown her way throughout the series. I've followed Sookie through several relationships and attempts on her life and have always find myself wanting more.
It's my understanding that thirteen books were always planned for this series. I have to say, as much as I love the series as a whole, the last few books started to lose the magic for me. There's only so much that can happen during a series, so at times the last few books felt more like a story was being dragged out and I didn't enjoy them as much.
The way this book is written is different to the other books in the series. The story is told from different points of view; mostly from Sookie's point of view, but also from that of the people out to get Sookie. At the start, you have no idea who the people are, since all that you're given is a vague description. As the story progresses a few familiar names emerge, and this was a nice twist since I thought Sookie had seen the last of them. Some of the names are kept a secret until the end, and I really enjoyed the twist of who was behind it all. I liked how this was done, it kept me guessing who the people were, as they were people that I'd met in previous books. All is revealed towards the end, and the different narratives tie together nicely.
A big part of the Sookie Stackhouse series is the Romance. Sookie has had a few different boyfriends during the series, and I'm sure everybody enjoyed this aspect of the story, especially Sookie's relationship with Eric. I'm sad to say that there wasn't really a lot of Romance going on in this book. There is a lot going on in Sookie's life, so I suppose she's too busy for a relationship, but this could be what was missing from this book for me.
I did enjoy the story, but compared to the previous books in the series, particularly the first few, this book was disappointing. It's never taken me more than a few days to read a Sookie Stackhouse book, and this one was no different. The only difference is that I read this quickly because it was an easy read and uncomplicated page turner, and the previous books really gripped me and left me wanting more. I've seen a lot of reviews for this, and most of them are similar to my rating. I've also seen a lot of people that weren't happy with the way the series ended, and I have to agree to some extent. The ending seemed quite abrupt to me, stopping in a strange place. I was happy with Sookie's choice of men at the end of the book though, since she ended up with who I always wanted her to be with, but I'll leave it at that.
The Author
Charlaine Harris has been writing Mystery novels for thirty years, and is best known for her Sookie Stackhouse series, also known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries. She has written other series' too, including the 'Harper Connelly' series, and the 'Lily Bard Mysteries.' The Sookie Stackhouse series has also been adapted for HBO as 'True Blood.'
Sookie Stackhouse started out as an ordinary waitress with an extraordinary talent. Now she's part-owner in Merlotte's bar, wife to the Vampire Sheriff Eric Northman, and has survived several attempts on her life.
After using her cluviel dor to bring Sam Merlotte back from the dead, Sookie starts to feel isolated and cut off from the world. Eric is keeping his distance and Sookie has no idea where things stand with him. As she's getting on with her life, Sookie has no idea that there are people out there intent on taking it away from her. But there are also people ready and willing to help her in her time of need.
My Thoughts
Since I bought the first Sookie Stackhouse book on a whim, I've been hooked on the series. I read the first few within a few months, and got really impatient waiting for the next one's to be delivered. I've always loved Sookie's character and was always worried for her when more and more danger was thrown her way throughout the series. I've followed Sookie through several relationships and attempts on her life and have always find myself wanting more.
It's my understanding that thirteen books were always planned for this series. I have to say, as much as I love the series as a whole, the last few books started to lose the magic for me. There's only so much that can happen during a series, so at times the last few books felt more like a story was being dragged out and I didn't enjoy them as much.
The way this book is written is different to the other books in the series. The story is told from different points of view; mostly from Sookie's point of view, but also from that of the people out to get Sookie. At the start, you have no idea who the people are, since all that you're given is a vague description. As the story progresses a few familiar names emerge, and this was a nice twist since I thought Sookie had seen the last of them. Some of the names are kept a secret until the end, and I really enjoyed the twist of who was behind it all. I liked how this was done, it kept me guessing who the people were, as they were people that I'd met in previous books. All is revealed towards the end, and the different narratives tie together nicely.
A big part of the Sookie Stackhouse series is the Romance. Sookie has had a few different boyfriends during the series, and I'm sure everybody enjoyed this aspect of the story, especially Sookie's relationship with Eric. I'm sad to say that there wasn't really a lot of Romance going on in this book. There is a lot going on in Sookie's life, so I suppose she's too busy for a relationship, but this could be what was missing from this book for me.
I did enjoy the story, but compared to the previous books in the series, particularly the first few, this book was disappointing. It's never taken me more than a few days to read a Sookie Stackhouse book, and this one was no different. The only difference is that I read this quickly because it was an easy read and uncomplicated page turner, and the previous books really gripped me and left me wanting more. I've seen a lot of reviews for this, and most of them are similar to my rating. I've also seen a lot of people that weren't happy with the way the series ended, and I have to agree to some extent. The ending seemed quite abrupt to me, stopping in a strange place. I was happy with Sookie's choice of men at the end of the book though, since she ended up with who I always wanted her to be with, but I'll leave it at that.
The Author
Charlaine Harris has been writing Mystery novels for thirty years, and is best known for her Sookie Stackhouse series, also known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries. She has written other series' too, including the 'Harper Connelly' series, and the 'Lily Bard Mysteries.' The Sookie Stackhouse series has also been adapted for HBO as 'True Blood.'
Unlike some other reviews I wasn't disappointed in the ending and thought it wrapped up well. I'm sad to see the series end as I think the actual books in the series were funny, engaging and enjoyable reads (not too crazy about the short story compilations so I am not including them).
I have been reading these books for years and have always enjoyed them. I am sad to see this series come to an end but think it was probably time. i like the show and love the books even more. There is just something really fun about the books. Great job Mrs. Harris! Thank you for all the Sookie stories.