Dead Reckoning

Sandra Pelt is back again, threatening Sookie. Eric and Sookie are Vampire Married. Sam is having financial problems with the bar. Cousin Hunter is going to start school soon. Tara is having twins. Bill is...well... just Bill. Pam is in love but miserable. Regent Vampire, Victor is causing everyone grief. Amelia comes to help Sookie but causes Sookie some trouble. Fae relatives Dermot and Claude move into Sookies house but shes not trusting them. Alcide wakes up in Sookies bed. Thats the basic synopsis of this the eleventh book in the Sookie Stackhouse Series, Dead Reckoning, by Charlaine Harris. I have been a faithful follower of the series and I look forward to each new book. The past few books have just not been as interesting to me as this series was in the beginning but I will continue to the series end, book thirteen. I have always enjoyed Sookies que sera sera attitude and her ability to be one of those heroines who doesnt fold at the sign of trouble. I have been Team Eric since book four or maybe earlier. Dead Reckoning is not my favorite in the series but I do see Sookie heading in a different direction. Harris is indicating that Sookie has had about enough of the paranormals and longs for a life away from them or at least all the violence that accompanies them. The Fangtasia vampires are less romantic than previous portrayals, especially Eric who for all his declarations of love doesnt act like it. For the die-hard romantic in me, the romance in this installment just did not grab me. We get more background about Gran and Sookies Fae Grandfather. Harris is moving the story along. The story hints at changes to come. I really cant recommend this read to those who have not started this series from the beginning. There are many characters brought forth from the previous books. If you are new, then do start with book 1, Dead Until Dark

Welll...This is a solid, liked it but more like my version of 3.5 stars. If it wasnt for the fact that there MIGHT be a huge plot inconsistency in this book, I might have even given it 5 stars but Im trying to figure out if something might actually be a well placed lie by CH or not but Im not so sure yet. However, overall I really enjoyed this installment once the ball got rolling (the 1st 50% was a bit boring for me) & I do believe this was indeed a huge turning point for not just Sookie & Eric but Sookie herself. The end scene with Eric was like..BAM! She has some very big thinking to do about what she wants for herself, what she is willing to accept about her life & the people she surrounds herself with. I dont have many doubts that Eric/Sookie are going wind up together. OK maayaybe a little doubt bc CH likes to play her audience...but... really? It wouldnt make sense to have it be anyone else 11 books in & a few shorts as well. I found this installment to signify their next big bump in the road, the next trial & tribulation for their relationship & watch how they get through it. In this book, for the 1st time Sookie was more upfront. Discussing the future, aging, babies etc.. she has grown & continues to. It does look like there is a setup for a breakup in the next book but with a possible reconciliation in the last book thanks to the magical cluviel dor. Who knows for sure though! **Semi-spoilers** There were a lot of typical SVM hi-jinks & humor in this book. Sookies naked jaunt into Bills house & her rambling inner monologue... Irrelevant! was hilarious. I even liked Bill. A lot. Although, thats not surprising bc CH was turning him into Eric to a degree. Not kidding. CH is definitely recycling her Eric material into the new Bill. His quote as to why he loves Sookie complete with a comment about her chest (so un-Bill like) is practically verbatim Eric to Sookie in DTTW. Thats right...go check it out! And his move...Is it Christmas? Are you my early present? was also classic Eric. Its a little tedious CHs manipulation of the audience but whatever. It is what it is. I suppose if you are going to finish this ride be prepared for the tactics that come with it. Sookie was back to herself but in better form than ever in many ways. Aside from her own homicidal tendencies, she is growing, more mature & in control. Or trying to be at least. She is taking a much larger stand for herself in what she will tolerate from the people in her life whereas in the past, she almost assumed their feelings & was able to be manipulated more. I like her relationship with Eric a lot. Warts & all. I found her insecurities & misgivings well founded as well as his own anger, resentment & fear. I really enjoy seeing them having to go through a ton of crap to work it out. Like a real relationship. I also loved the scene with Eric & Sookie after the bond broke. Not the sex scene mind you bc that was whatever - it was one page of throwing it in but it did, to me show their huge relief that Sookie does in fact love Eric tremendously as he does her. More than that, I love their bit of dialog afterward. However, the scene that blew me away was at the end when she freaked out amongst the assassination ruin in which she had the majority hand in rallying & plotting. When Eric took her blood after rightly calling her a hypocrite & didnt take the pain out of it. HOLY COW. I know this will be a much debated scene & very controversial but I thought it was just SPOT ON. So good. So dark. So very deep. It was awesome. Well for me anyway. I mean here Sooks has been complaining the last 2 books how she wants Victor to die (by her own hands even). Shes the one that rallies Eric & co. Its her plan they go with & then at the end....bc she hates what she sees in herself & not only that but, was a part of & had the largest hand in plotting, she projects onto Eric & co. bc its easiest to do that. Him letting her feel the pain was his way (to me anyway) of saying deal with it! Face it. This is life with me/a vamp Sookie & Im not going to sugarcoat it for you. Accept it & accept me. You partake in this life, these are the realities that come with it. Were alive. Isnt that what you wanted most? I dont know what CH is going to have her do but I find this turning point really compelling. She scares herself. The lengths shes willing to go to for those she loves & to survive & the macabre situations she finds herself in as a result. I thought it was a very clever, deep scene. The CD fairy love token is a bit of a cop out but I will wait to see how CH wields it. Oh wait.. we have a potion which will amazingly come in SO handy! Er...well see. The potential Fairy plot is quite devious. It seems as if CH is foreshadowing someone playing dress up in Eric or someone elses skin to potentially get Sooks up the duff? IDK but all the material is there & man...those Fairies are sneaky. Funnily enough, I felt the worst for Sookie in regard to Amelia. Not that Amelias meddlesome betrayal was a surprise to me, I figured it was only a matter of time but she really went all out. Sookie is a character with a rare handful of people she can trust & not even that. She is quite often, alone. And that theme featured a lot in this installment. With Erics new day man being a lone wolf, Eric asking her to move in with him bc the thought of her being alone & feeling her fear made him crazy. Her really feeling the isolation in this installment esp. when she kicks everyone out of her home. Poor Sookie Sookie. Overall, this place which Sookie is in, yet another crossroads deciding who she can trust, turn to, what will happen to her relationship & what will that mean for her future? This is all great meaty stuff. And now for my biggest issue..the potential plot inconsistency.Its the conversation between Sookie, Claude & Dermont about Eric & Niall being in cahoots. It sooo doesnt stack. I am investigating that one & wont bog down the review with it but in fairness I will change my rating if it turns out that its not a plot inconsistency.

I wont write a synopsis. Others have done that. It would be a matter of dead-horse-beating. I did enjoy this book. I like the world of Bon Temps, and I like visiting once a year. I also freely admit that I fell heavily for Eric Northman the first time I read about him. So, Dead Reckoning. Is it Great Literature? No. Is it intended to be? Also no. Is it a fun read? Yes. Does it tie up some loose ends and then wave others around like banners so we have a reason to read the next book? Of course. Yes, there are some continuity problems. Other people have already beaten this drum, too. Theres no reason to beat it some more. I also didnt like the way Sookie told Bill a piece of Big Plot Point Information at one time and then, at the end of the book, she told him again just as if shed never told him before and he acted as if hed never heard The Big Plot Point Information before. It was jarring.

Great follow-up to previous books in the series - well worth the read. Just finished up the whole series and found that I wish the story would continue! Great quick reads and each book in series kept my interest and made me want for the next book.

Quite frankly, this is one of the saddest installments of the Southern Vampire Mysteries. I dont mean the emotional impact of the plot upon my personal psyche so much as I mean the whole book just makes me sad. There was a time when each of these stories held me excitement over what was going to happen next. It seemed like although the stories were certainly a dirty little pleasure, they were so engrossing I couldnt put them down. These days (whereas these days seem to coincide with books written after the HBO series started), the books are much more like pale shadows of what had come before. Originally, the Southern Vampire Mysteries were just that; mysteries in the south with vampires. The author would dab a touch of romance and sexual tension for flavor, but ultimately whether the characters were vampires or simply Scooby-do, it was still a mystery. The more recent books however have taken on a new tone altogether. The books that have been released since Ms. Harris creation reached the little screen, have been more like a collection of random Sookie thoughts punctuated by mostly mundane happenings. While this book seemed to have a little more (very subtle) structure under the story than the last, there were still far too many pages dedicated to the trifles of getting ready to go somewhere after a shower. I think that many Sookie fans would agree that Ms. Harris has veered too far from the original format of the book. In fact, the biggest mystery in this book seemed to be, `will people enjoy the baby shower for Tara,... puke. As if to add insult to injury poor Tara didnt even have so much as a line during the entire affair. Dead Before Dark, was an excellent example of a mystery ex: girls were dying and nobody seemed to know who the murderer was - only to be revealed at the end as a trusted friend (ominous music). Here, there is the spark of mystery: some unknown assailant firebombs Merlots and nobody knows who it is - until about fifty pages later when the person is arrested and the ending of the book is telegraphed worse than acting by a professional wrestler in a b grade movie. Sookie as a character has also begun to stagnate a bit and that is really unfortunate. She started out as a sheltered and socially damaged young woman. Through the first few books she learns to control her telepathy and through this new control see her disability in a new light, even drawing strength from it. She also comes into her own as a woman and begins the difficulty of navigating her first relationship. Throughout all this, she not only has to learn how to deal with the violence of the vampire world around her, but also what it means to become a murderer herself. Unfortunately, after that the character starts to become somewhat stagnant and the author tries (albeit successfully for awhile) to hide that fact with love triangles. By the point in the storyline weve reached, Sookie should be past trying to simply deal with violence. Shes seen more blood and death than most cops do in a thirty year career and should be a bit more calloused than she is (especially after the fairy war). On a positive note, it was interesting to find the genesis of Sookies telepathy and to have the social structure of the fae fleshed out a bit more. I also like that Sookie seemed to be so much stronger now that she had been living with other fairies. Perhaps its time that she transmute into some sort of vampire (due to blood consumption) fairy hybrid and have Eric looking to her for protection for once. Whatever happens, for Gods sake, at least make the plot mysterious otherwise change the name to Southern Vampire Aftershower Decsionmaking.

WARNING potential spoilers. I enjoyed this book - when I had to put it down I wondered how Sookie was going to manage the situation and that is a very good sign. On the other hand I agree with other reviewers that Ms Harris appears to have made a mistake in changing her time lines. If you are an in depth fan you may not be able to overcome this. Normally when a new book in the series comes out I reread the series first but I couldnt do that this time so the continuity issues didnt bother me as much as they might have. Ill be interested to see how and if Ms Harris manages to reconcile the two versions in the future. One reviewer says that this book is sad and dreary and to some degree I would agree with that however there is one telling time where Sookie is happy and consciously feeling at home in her life and that is when she is spending time with her friends doing girly stuff in her community - which is very Sookie. In this book her normal life is fading into the background (perhaps a response to repeated truama). She is both pleased and saddened by reminders of her grandmother and fairly stunned by some revelations. Sookie struggles with the level of violence in her life and her own changing attitudes and behaviours in regard to violence ... as she should do. It is not possible for real humans to go blithely on their way as firecrackers unaffected by living in the equivalent of a war zone. Still she remains active in her own life not merely knocked about by the actions of others. Lily and Jack turned up in this book. Lily is another woman whose life has been defined by her responses to extreme violence in the past and to violent issues that are in her life now. Jack is a man who gets the import of that and absolutely loves Lily as she is now. The Shakespeare books were always much darker than Sookies books but the nexus of the two is interesting and a sign that Sookie needs to think about her past and future. There are numerous lines calling her to do just that. Two examples would be that she recognises the fire of Lilys love for Jack in Lilys brain and the way the idea of future children permeates the book. I think that Ms Harris would have done better to have relied more heavily on Sookies reflections on how the effects of ongoing violence, and the revelations about her grandmother, change the way Sookie responds to relationships. Sookie is growing up which is hardly surprising for someone who lived her life as a spectator until she was in her mid 20s. Still I enjoyed the book immensely and will happily recommend it to others and will look forward to the next book in the series and any future series. I hope that Ms Harries reanimates the Shakespeare series but would be thrilled to welcome any new heroines as well.

I got interested in this series because the premises the author set up in Sookies world seemed to be an interesting way of demonstrating the nature of relationships, marriage, and family. The main character is privy to other characters private thoughts, though she often misinterprets them, and the vampires bring a different perspective on these matters. In earlier books the author seemed to have some meaningful things to say even though on the surface the plots sometimes seemed a little silly. At least in books 1-9 each installment had a discernible plot with a satisfyingly complete ending, though after book seven or eight (certainly by book nine) I felt that as a reader I was being strung along (shamelessly manipulated) a bit over the question of who it is that Sookie really loves. This book and the previous one could easily have been condensed into one without leaving out anything significant. Perhaps if the author had done this the unified book could have been written to be more satisfying. Dead Reckoning seemed to breathlessly jump from one catastrophe to the next with interludes of mind numbingly meaningless attention to the main characters grooming and housekeeping habits. Sadly, I have to say that after reading this book I really do not care about the main character anymore and am indifferent as to the outcome of her love life. My reaction to what the author has written is that men in Sookies life show incredibly poor judgement by their continued interest in her. I actually found myself hoping Sandra Pelt would finish her off so that the worst of her suitors could proceed with their miserable lives and the others, like Calvin, could find happiness with someone else. Perhaps the main character will redeem herself in the last two books, but I am not holding my breath and will very likely save my money. Dead Reckoning probably should not be read as a stand alone. There is too much background information from previous books which is necessary to make any sense of it at all. It seems to me that the problem with the series is that the author is trying to accomplish too many things. She has created an intriguing world into which her main character (and narrative voice) was cast and must grow from an innocent and somewhat emotionally isolated girl into a woman who survives unimaginable trauma. She begins the series with a hope and a dream of sharing a conventional life with someone she truly loves, but as she meets and becomes involved with several different men she has to face the reality that none of them is perfect and that she would have to make compromises share her life with any of them. In this book she is still coping with having been tortured while she is trying to decide if she is willing to live with the compromises she will have to make in order to completely emotionally commit herself to Eric. It appears that she is using Sam as a measure of a more acceptable ideal. This could all work, but the author includes too many other elements associated with her world, often jumbled and not consistent with crumbs provided in previous books. She tries to tie up loose ends while introducing new complications and characters. She also throws in a partial suitor review which, while funny, seems a bit extraneous. As the book progresses the character who is the narrative voice becomes tiresome and unsympathetic. I give it one star because the overall effect is a failure. Her narrative voice has become unsympathetic, the romantic tension she has built up in the series is stale and tiresome at this point, the world she has built is not working as well because of the sloppy inconsistencies, and the message the author seems to be trying to tell her readers is getting lost.

Once again, Sookie Stackhouse, our favorite telepathic barmaid at Merlottes in Bon Temps, Louisiana has managed to land herself right in the middle of a dangerous situation. When someone attempts to firebomb Merlottes, Sookie isnt so sure the target is Sam. Business has been slumping, possibly due to the less than successful coming out of the two-natured, but even Sam doesnt have nearly as many enemies as Sookie does. And while things have been quiet with the fairies after most of them returned to their world, those that remain are definitely up to something. And that includes her cousin Claude. She just hasnt figured out exactly what theyre planning. With Victor looking for any excuse to take Eric out of the picture, things between the two of them have been strained. Still not one hundred percent sure of her feelings for Eric due to the blood bond they share, Sookie is trying to figure out if what they have is real. And when Eric refuses to reveal a secret hes been keeping, something even Pam thinks she should know about, shes ready to take drastic action. As if all this wasnt bad enough, when she finds out something shocking about her grandmother Adele, she doesnt know how much more she can take. From having her job at risk due to the slowdown at Merlottes, to knowing her enemies are just looking for another shot at her, to living with Victors threat around every corner, to questioning her relationship with Eric, to sharing her home, and sometimes her bed, with two faeries, Sookie realizes she is going to have to make a few changes. *** Dead Reckoning is the fast-paced, wickedly entertaining and truly tormenting eleventh installment in the Southern Vampire series. This story grabs right from the start with the attack on Merlottes. And it just keeps going. Right up to the second to last page. As with every book in the series, trouble manages to find Sookie no matter what she does. This time she suspects it comes in the form of an old enemy that has returned. A few of the loose ends from Dead in the Family are tied up and the story comes to a close without a cliffhanger. Although this doesnt make the ending any less torturous. Many questions still remain about the fate of Sookie and Erics relationship and the true motivations of Claude and Dermot. And a whole slew of new questions are added to the list. In Dead Reckoning the cast of characters is smaller, with the focus placed back on Sookie, though some of our favorite and not-so-favorite characters do make an appearance. And although it continues down a bloody path, its a much less dark one than some of its predecessors. Author Charlaine Harris continues to captivate readers with her addictive series that is always humorous, often violent, positively steamy at times, and unbelievably tormenting for readers as they await each books release. Whats not to like in a series filled with sexy but lethal vampires, swoon-worthy and fiery tempered weres, drop-dead gorgeous but devious and plotting faeires and a damsel that is always in distress, whether she wants to be or not?

I felt much the same way, but to a lesser extent, after reading the last book in the series. I loved the earlier books in the series, and in each of the early books, there was a clear, cohesive conflict that dominated that particular book, and was resolved by the end. In Dead to the World (one of my favorites of the series), we saw the whole conflict with the witches play out. By the end of that book, the witches had been defeated in a thrilling battle, and I was left feeling satisfied. There were of course minor plot lines left up in the air (Sookies romantic future, given the nature of her relationship with Eric during the course of the book, for example) which made me excited to read the next book, but there was nothing so huge left unresolved that I felt slighted. This book (as well as the last one), I cant really pick out any major conflict that the books deals with, and nothing is resolved by the end. I honestly cant even tell you what this one is about. Sookie cleans out her attic. She and Dermot grow closer. She and Eric are no longer vampire-married. Thats about it. Theres no story that unifies this book. Theres just a bunch of minor, disconnected events, which makes it a rather boring yet frustrating read. Also, how dense does Harris think we all are? Like others said, Im a little insulted. Nobody picks up the 11th book in a series and just reads it cold, with no background or previous knowledge (and if they did, they shouldnt), so theres no need to write like your readers are hearing about these characters for the first time in the 11th book of the series. I am so sick of reading the same things over and over in each book. By this point, we all know about fairies allergies to iron and lemons. We all know Dermot looks a heck of a lot like Jason, and we all remember the troubles this previously caused. And for petes sake, we certainly all know the whole store behind Elvis becoming a vampire... yet in every single book, Harris recounts all of this to us in vivid detail, as though this is certainly the first time we are hearing about any of it. Im not exaggerating when I say that half of the material that makes up this book is stuff Ive already read before. Enough is enough. Also, as others have mentioned, there are some pretty fierce continuity problems that make this book really difficult to enjoy, but that has been thoroughly discussed I believe. The only reason I keep reading these books is because I feel like Im in too deep now, and I cant just stop. Ive heard from others that Harris is contracted for 13 books in this series, and Ive also heard that she herself is ready to finish the series, so hopefully the next one will be the last one. Ive thoroughly enjoyed this series, but if Harris hasnt got her heart in this project any longer (and I think its obvious that she does not, based upon the declining quality of her work in recent years), then I wish she would quit writing these and just leave us with our fond memories.

I love Charlaine Harris and Sookie :) Im sad to sad to say I was not impressed with her latest addition to the series. After reading several reviews about the book and its mediocrity, I have to say I agree. To me the first half of the book was spent updating us as readers on the characters backgrounds and it was redundant. We have read 11 books in the series now, Charlaine. We dont need an update at the beginning of every book. And to make matters worse, the backstory ended up being spotty and inconsistent. On a positive note, Sookies Fae background and her relationship with her family seems like it will be an interesting part of the next book. It would be nice if Sookie could make up her mind about a mate and stick with it. Maybe shell find some Romeo from the Fae world and marry him. I was so excited to read the new Sookie book I pre-ordered it. Now I wish I would have waited for the paperback. I almost felt like Dead Reckoning was thrown together just to get a book out and I ended the story feeling unfulfilled. It seemed like she spent so much time elaborating on what happened during the last few books that she forgot to go in-depth with her plot line for her current book. I certainly hope the next Sookie book will be better!