THE SOOKIE STACKHOUSE aka SOUTHERN VAMPIRE SERIES

[ Meg]

THE SOOKIE STACKHOUSE aka SOUTHERN VAMPIRE SERIES
By: Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead To Worse
Dead and Gone

[ Meg]

Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 1)

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time thingytail waitress in small-town Louisiana. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out....

Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea.

A fun, fast, funny, and wonderfully intriguing blend of vampire and mystery that's hard to put down, and should not be missed. (Susan Sizemore)

Living Dead in Dallas (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 2)

The last thing Sookie wanted was to find Lafayette Reynold's body in the back Andy Bellefleur's car. Lafayette was the cook at Merlotte's Bar, where Sookie waited on tables. Andy was a police detective who left his car at the bar because he was too drunk to drive it home. Now Bon Temps, Louisiana is a small rural town, where murders are mercifully rare. However, anything like this is bound to be a major headache for Sookie, who is telepathic, and whose boyfriend is Vampire Bill, the town's major predator. Make that ex-predator; Bill is one of the good people, getting his nourishment from artificial blood these days. As does any vampire who wants to fit into the mainstream world.

But a simple murder case is not enough. Before Sookie and Bill can look into Lafayette's death, Eric, the local vampire leader, summons them to Shreveport. Eric has agreed to send them to Dallas, where Sookie's telepathic talents are needed to solve a disappearing vampire problem. Even before they get to Shreveport, stuff happens. Sookie has a run in with a maenad, who wants tribute from Eric, and decides to write him a note about it on Sookie's back. Bill barely gets Sookie to Eric's lair, where she can be healed. Don't expect Dallas to be any better. There, Sookie finds herself in conflict the local anti-vampire club, 'The Fellowship of the Sun,' and scheduled for sacrifice.

That, in two paragraphs, is just a hint of all the contents of Charlaine Harris's latest thriller about Sookie Stackhouse, northern Louisiana's answer to Anita Blake. And a very good answer she is. It's unfair to make a direct comparison, since the authors have different intentions, but Sookie is a near total contrast with Laurell Hamilton's heroine. Now no one who is a telepath and dates a vampire is 'normal,' but Sookie manages to come across as mostly 'just folks.' As do many of the other characters in the book. There is plenty of serious action, but Sookie's narration includes plenty of humor and wry insights as well.

There's quite a bit of sex as well, in case that's an issue for you. However, it's much less complex than what Anita Blake gets into. Harris has given Sookie's narration a straightforward, no non-sense style that will quickly make you a believer. If you haven't read the first volume in this series, 'Dead Until Dark,' by all means do so. Charlaine Harris has created a new kind of vampire story, part thriller, part detective story, part parody, and part romance. And just plain fun.

Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 3)

Sookie Stackhouse is having man trouble. Her vampire boyfriend, Bill, has been distant and inattentive lately. Then he announces that he is going on a business trip, which clearly is more than it seems. After a werewolf tries to abduct Sookie at work, Bill's boss, Eric, tells her that Bill fell under the sway of his--Bill's, that is--ex, a sexy vamp named Lorena, and has been kidnapped. Eric wants Sookie's help in getting Bill back, and despite her hurt over Bill's betrayal, Sookie agrees to go to Jackson, Mississippi, to find her wayward lover. Eric has persuaded Alcide, a dashing werewolf, to get Sookie access to Josephine's, aka Club Dead, the local hangout of Jackson's supernatural element. In between dodging kidnappers, the advances of amorous Eric, and her growing feelings for Alcide, Sookie has to find out who kidnapped Bill and figure out a way to rescue him. With some droll touches--Elvis, now a vampire, is Sookie's faithful guard --Club Dead is ideal for readers who like their vampire fiction light, humorous, and fast-paced.

Dead to the World (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 4)

Dead to the World is the fourth novel in her Anthony Award-winning Southern Vampire series. It continues the story of psychic waitress Sookie Stackhouse, who has fallen out with her undead lover, Bill. Bill has no sooner departed for Peru, than Sookie finds the head vampire, Eric, running naked and terrified through the rural night. She helps Eric, and discovers his memory has been destroyed by a coven of unscrupulous, astonishingly powerful witches, newly arrived in her small Louisiana town, and offering a huge reward for Eric. Sookie tries to hide Eric, but her brother sees him--and immediately disappears. And Sookie finds herself caught in a war among witches, vampires, and werewolves.

Dead as a Doornail (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 5)

Dead as a Doornail is the fifth installment in Charlaine Harris' dynamic Sookie Stackhouse series. Sookie, the buxom, blond, barmaid from Bon Temps is once again thrust into things that she should not be. Her psychic abilities make her a magnet for the supernatural world.

At the conclusion of the Dead to the World, Eric has regained his self, but remembers nothing of his time with Sookie. Jason, Sookie's brother has been found, but is now a werepanther. Dead as a Doornail opens with Jason experiencing his first full moon as a werepanther. Amazingly enough, Jason embraces his new life and enjoys shifting. As much of a relief as this is for Sookie, trouble is looming. Someone is killing shifters and Jason is the prime suspect. To add to Sookie's turmoil, Eric does not remember his time with Sookie, but knows something important happened. In another twist, Debbie's family is desperately searching for her. This search finds its way to Sookie's doorstep once again.

In Dead as a Doornail we get a much clearer picture of the shifter communities - the werewolves and werepanthers. Sookie is drawn into the political struggles within the werewolf pack structure. The outcome is not a happy ending for Sookie or werewolves. Calvin Norris, the head of the werepanthers in Hot Shot continues to attempt to woo Sookie. Another love interest is most certainly not something Sookie needs in her already complicated love life.

I enjoyed reading Dead as a Doornail immensely. Sookie and her adventures are always a treat. The only drawback to this book is that Sookie and the reader become very disappointed when knowledge of certain character defects becomes evident within those close to Sookie. All of the characters, old and new, add flavor to the series and make Sookie's madcap adventures even more entertaining. On the whole, Dead as a Doornail is a fun read.

Definitely Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 6)

In bestseller Harris's perky sixth Southern Vampire novel to star Sookie Stackhouse (after 2005's Dead as a Doornail), the telepathic waitress of Bon Temps, La., is off to (pre-hurricane) New Orleans to close out her dead cousin Hadley's apartment. Hadley's death six weeks earlier had been unexpected, since, as a vampire, she was already dead. Still, she'd led a lively existence as the main squeeze of the Queen of Louisiana, an omnisexual vampire, whose political marriage to the King of Arkansas occurred the night before Hadley's demise. Sookie and Amelia Broadway, Hadley's landlady and a pretty cool witch, immediately discover a mess of trouble left behind in Hadley's closet, and Sookie's soon neck-deep in even more. Though most of the intrigue doesn't come till halfway through, Harris keeps the action going nonstop in this bubbly brew of supernatural spice and whimsical whodunit that's more fun than a barrel of beignets.

All Together Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 7)

Bestseller Harris mixes humorous Southern-fried fantasy with biting satirical commentary in her seventh novel to feature Sookie Stackhouse, the bubbly telepathic barmaid from Bon Temps, La. (after 2006's Definitely Dead). Sookie attends an all-important central U.S. vamp summit on the shores of Lake Michigan as a "human geiger counter" for Sophie-Anne Leclerq, vampire queen of a Louisiana weakened by Katrina and who will be tried during the event for murdering her king. Sookie knows the queen is innocent, but she's hardly prepared for other shocking murders, not to mention protests by the Fellowship of the Sun, a right-wing antivampire movement. Her sleuthing skills, along with those of her new telepath friend, Barry the Bellboy, are put to the extreme test. Harris juggles a large cast, including several romantic contenders for Sookie's heart, with effortless exuberance.

From Dead to Worse (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 8)

Starred Review. Harris outdoes herself in this pivotal eighth Sookie Stackhouse novel (after 2007's All Together Dead), packing the story full of romantic tension and supernatural action. Having barely survived a catastrophic vampire hotel explosion, Sookie's back at work in Bon Temps, La., serving vintage blood and waiting tables at Merlotte's, a vampire bar. Participating in a friend's wedding and fending off the advances of her vampire ex-lover, Bill, and her blood-bonded pal, Eric, leaves Sookie chafing over the recent lack of communication from Quinn, her weretiger boyfriend. When a violent Were power struggle erupts as Vegas vampires attempt to take over Louisiana from disgraced queen Sophie-Anne, Sookie dives into the middle of it, determined to help her shape-changing, blood-drinking friends. Harris provides many fun twists, most significantly Sookie's meeting with her fae great-grandfather, Niall Brigant, which paves the way for a shock ending that will delight longtime fans.

Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9)

This title will be released on May 5, 2009.

[~ ♥ Mariska ♥ ~]

This sounds great!!

[ Meg]

Oh, they are good! I have read book one and two already. Will be staring three soon. It's so good!!! It's so different than Twilight...but just as good. Some people compare them...but I can't. I love both series just as much, but they are so different I can't compare them.

[~ ♥ Mariska ♥ ~]

That's great! I will check them out!!