Friday, May 20, 2011

Review: Dead Reckoning by Charlainne Harris

Happy Friday, everyone! I apologize for this being later than expected. Either way, I hope you enjoy the review, I know I enjoyed the book.


Synopsis: "It's spring in Bon Temps, and for telepathic bar-maid Sookie Stackhouse, the season will turn out to be one full of secrets revealed--secrets that will bring major changes in her life.


With her knack for being in trouble's way, Sookie witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte's, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is now known to be two-natured, suspicion falls immediately on the anti-shifters in the area. But Sookie suspects otherwise, and she and Sam work together to uncover the culprit--and the twisted motive for the attack.


But her attention is divided. Though she can't 'read' vampires, Sookie knows her lower, Eric Northman, and his 'child' Pam well--and she realizes they are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, she is drawn into the plot--which is much more complicated than she knows.


Caught up once again in the politics of the vampire world, Sookie will learn that she is as much of a pawn as any ordinary human--and that there is a new queen on the board..." 

Genre: Urban fantasy--adult

First Sentence: "The attic had been kept locked until the day after my grandma died." A solid opening. We've got tension from the mention of her grandmother's death, impending conflict over the attic being opened again, and the mystery of what's in the attic.

Brownie Points: I absolutely love Charlainne Harris' writing. The strength in her stories lies in her unique and quirky character voice, something she's never short on when writing from Sookie's point of view. As usual, her portrayal of southern life is realistic to a tee and her characters are always strong. Also, I enjoyed seeing both Sam and Pam being brought into the plot line a bit more. And of course, who doesn't love copious amounts of Eric Northman? Sexy <3 <3 <3

Beefs: The story started off a little slow for me. I was compelled to keep reading the whole time, because I love Harris' voice, but despite that the firebombing of Merlotte's, as described in the blurb, happens within the first forty pages, I just wasn't feeling the tension driving the story forward. The novel picked up though around page 80 and by the end I was enjoying the read just as much as I usually do.

Ending: For the sake of not giving anything away, I will simply say that I enjoyed it and I didn't feel disappointed.

Recommendation and General Comments: Charlainne Harris is one of my favorite authors. I think her writing is absolutely fabulous. I've never read anything by her that I didn't thoroughly enjoy. For that reason, I give Dead Reckoning, the 11th novel in the Sookie Stackhouse books, a rating of full moon!


This is the mother of all ratings! I highly recommend this book! If you're a fan of the series, then you should go pick this up as soon as you can drag your behind to the store. Though this wasn't my favorite book in the whole series, it met my standards.

Would I aspire to write like this author? 
ABSOLUTELY! I wish my narrative voice was half as good as Harris'. Eric and Sookie are two of my all time favorite characters out of all the books I've ever read, which demonstrates how great of a writer she is (that's saying something because I've read a lot books). I recommend all of Harris' novels to anyone who hasn't read them and enjoys a good fantasy or mystery novel, and for those of you who are fans, go out and buy this one!


Don't forget to check back in on Monday. We'll have an interview with author Laura Kaye and we'll be talking about her contemporary romance novella, Hearts in Darkness, (you can view my review by clicking the link) as well as her newly released paranormal romance novel, Forever Freed! Til Monday ;-)

2 comments:

  1. I love Charlaine Harris and I love the Sookie books. This one fell a bit short for me, though. I don't like the way CH is breaking down Sookie's relationship with Eric. I understand the "why" of it, but I don't like the "how." Plus, there is also a lot of revisionist history here. Hopefully, I'll enjoy the next book more.

    Jen at Red Hot Books

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  2. Jen--I can definitely see your point and I agree about the Eric and Sookie thing. Like I said, this one definitely wasn't my favorite, but I still enjoyed it enough to warrant a good review. I just can't bring myself to rate the Sookie books any lower than the best lol.

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