Harris, Charlaine Books

Sookie Stackhouse Boxed Set (Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A truly superb series of novels 5 out of 5 stars.
182 of 185 people found this review helpful.

This past year I began a reading project of the major vampire novels and stories, from John Polidori's THE VAMPYRE to Bram Stoker's DRACULA to Richard Matheson's I AM LEGEND to Theodore Sturgeon's SOME OF YOUR BLOOD to more recent works. I had previously read various novels, including the Anita Blake series, which started promisingly but not only never lived up to its initial promise but regressed to embarrassingly awful pornography. In August of this year I decided to read Charlaine Harris's vampire series, which was originally known as The Southern Vampire Mysteries but eventually became better known as the Sookie Stackhouse Novels.

Now, this is where the story gets odd. Completely independently of my reading project I had heard about and planned on watching Alan Ball's new series TRUE BLOOD. I was a huge fan of SIX FEET UNDER and was anxious to see how he would handle a series dealing with vampires. A few days after I had ordered the first four Sookie Stackhouse novels I learn to my great shock that Ball's new series was based on the very same novels. It is the most serendipitous coincidence in my life as a reader.

Because so many people have become aware of these books as a result of the TV series, a word about the differences between the two is in order. There are both definite similarities and some sharp differences between the two. The books focus much more on Sookie and less on the lives of the supporting characters, not surprising given that Sookie is the narrator in the novels. Sookie's narrative voice is for me one of the joys of the books and I miss that very personal perspective when I watch the TV series. The books are also far less sexual than the series, though there are several sex scenes (though it never descends to the pure porn found in the Anita Blake books). The series differs sharply from the books when it deals with characters other than Sookie. For instance, Tara in the books is a minor (and white) character. Jason plays a far smaller role. Just about everything touching Tara and Jason cannot be found in the novels. Sam and Tara are not involved. Without giving spoilers, Lafayette cannot be regarded as an important character in the books. On the other hand, Eric is as important as the other three main characters in the books, Sookie, Bill, and Sam. Still, based on all but the last 2 or 3 episodes of Season One of the TV show, Sookie's story there is pretty close to that is the first novel in the sequence.

The one huge advantage of the novels over the series is that there is just so much more that happens. Season One of the series corresponds to the first novel in the sequence. I expect that the TV show will begin to diverge from the novels in the second season. So I see no reason for anyone who enjoys the show not to plunge in and enjoy a whole string of new adventures in the life of Sookie Stackhouse, barmaid and telepath. What has delighted me is how consistently superb the novels are. I felt the second novel in the series, DEAD AND LIVING IN DALLAS, was a bit less entertaining than the second book, but all the rest in the sequence were increasingly excellent. And they all mesh to tell a unified story. One novel ends and the next picks up the story perhaps as little as two or three weeks later.

The novels also introduce new and more interesting supernatural characters. The Anita Blake novels did this as well, but I felt that that series was increasingly less successful. Both series introduce weres (were wolves, were tigers, were panthers, and others), witches, vampires from other locales, and fairies. But throughout it all Sookie remains both an innocent and an explorer.

All in all, this is one of the most enjoyable long series of novels that I know. My only real disappointment is that a date has not yet been announced for the next and ninth novel in the series. Charlaine Harris (who lives in the southern part of my native state of Arkansas) has a couple of other series and 2009 apparently is devoted to those. My hope is that perhaps the success of the TV show will cause Ms. Harris to revise her plans and bring out another Sookie Stackhouse sooner rather than later.

I will add that on some boards many fans of the books don't like Anna Paquin as Sookie. I do. She isn't quite the way the books describe Sookie, being slender and not at all voluptuous, whereas in the books Sookie is constantly described as curvy and very chesty. But I think Anna Paquin gets a lot of the spirit of Sookie. She feels in her performance very much like someone who has been traumatized by hearing the thoughts of others.

If you are a fan of TRUE BLOOD, you should definitely read these. I actually prefer the books to the TV show, though I like the show as well. But if you haven't watched the show, but enjoy well written book on supernatural themes, you should read these anyway. In the recent tradition of revisionist accounts of vampires, this is one of the best.

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

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 190 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

All good things must have an end 3 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I'm concerned and enthralled. I'm sadden that her love life keeps falling apart. I want her to be with Bill. How many times in life are we left without closure. I love the books so much that I was happy that i got sick and had to stay home from work. I read all the books in 4 days. It just cannot keep going on with her meeting the next guy. Bill loves her in a way that Eric (who i adore) cannot. Bill should be the one. I feel terrible even writing it, but he won me over when he was standing outside her door declaring "I Love You" which had not been done until then.

Where is that one great love of our life that movies and novels keep giving us? Why do we yearn for it so heavily? Bill should be with Sookie. But that's just my vote. PS this is account is listed under my husband :)

Editorial Review:

New in the “addicting” New York Times bestselling series featuring Sookie Stackhouse.

After the natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina and the manmade explosion at the vampire summit, everyone—human and otherwise—is stressed, including Louisiana cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse, who is trying to cope with the fact that her boyfriend Quinn has gone missing.

It’s clear that things are changing—whether the weres and vamps of her corner of Louisiana like it or not. And Sookie—Friend to the Pack and blood-bonded to Eric Northman, leader of the local vampire community—is caught up in the changes.

In the ensuing battles, Sookie faces danger, death, and once more, betrayal by someone she loves. And when the fur has finished flying and the cold blood finished flowing, her world will be forever altered.

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

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 392 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

AMAZING! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I bought this book figuring I'd just give it a try since I watched the Trueblood series on HBO and liked it alot. The books are sooooooo interesting. I couldn't put it down and I immediatly ordered the rest of the series!

The books and the show go together! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I love the books and the HBO show. I buy two copies of every one, one for myself and one for my husband. We read them so fast we'd never be able to share. We're not vampire fans at all but I like the characters and I don't know why he reads them. He never reads usually. That goes to show that they are pretty exceptional books.

Editorial Review:

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail 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)

Praise for Charlaine Harris:

Harris writes neatly and with assurance. (New York Times Book Review)

An author of rare talents. (Publishers Weekly)

Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 3)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 155 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

My favorite series book....thus far 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I've read the first 5 books, and Club Dead was my favorite. They are all wonderful, but in this book a new character, Alcide, is introduced. The books are very intertwined, but I find them all very entertaining!

Not bad 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

First I would like to say that the books in this series are fluff reading. Fun to read and then forget about. They don't have any depth at all. Nothing to ponder. No insight to the human condition. If you are looking for the Dune of vampires, this is not it.

That being said, I am disapointed that Sookie gets all slutty in this novel. If that trend continues, I will stop reading.

Hmmm.... 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I'm not really sure how to write this review. This was an ok book. Just ok. It was kinda a letdown for me after reading her first two books in the series. Sookie is again on the road in Mississippi this time. She was out of her element which could be good in some ways, but I think in this book it was bad. I just felt that a lot of the book didn't flow and wasn't reality based. Yes, I know that vampires aren't real so you have to suspend some thinking but come on...do you really think that little Sookie is going to go in and beat up on vampires. Anyway, I loved that Eric was a huge part of this book and I'm definitely starting to like him a lot better than Bill at this point. Sookie and Eric's interaction is building up to an explosion and I can't wait for that to happen. I did like the new werewolf that they introduced and hopefully he will continue in the series, maybe as Jason's boss. I really wanted to love this book, but I didn't. However, it wasn't bad. Just not great. I would recommend this book to anyone who has started the series and is looking for the next step in the relationships. It's not really a great mystery.

Editorial Review:

Sookie's boyfriend has been very distant-in another state, distant. Now she's off to Mississippi to mingle with the underworld at Club Dead-a little haunt where the vampire elite go to chill out. But when she finally finds Bill-caught in an act of betrayal-she's not sure whether to save him...or sharpen some stakes.

All Together Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 7)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 184 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Loved it! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Continuing Sookie Stackhouse's adventures with such an array of other-worldly creatures is an interesting idea all by itself, but the author has such an incredible imagination that I was more than deeply engrossed. Each time I move to the next book in her series, I find that I can't wait for the book to get here and then I sit down and read it all the way through as soon as it arrives. I can't wait for Book 8!

Best of the Southern Vampire Series 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

If you're going to read only one of the Sookie Stackhouse novels, I recommend All Together Dead. Charlaine Harris has really outdone herself. A tightly focused and compelling thriller plotline, well drawn supporting characters and a wealth of incredibly imaginative and entertaining detail make this a great read. Sookie is a true heroine: brave, witty, caring and sharp as a tack, totally in her element as a now-professional telepath serving the vampire Queen of Louisiana. Although her relationship with Bill is in the "off again" stage, it's still barely-simmering poignantly on the back burner. I particularly enjoyed how Eric's character has developed, how indeed Sookie (or maybe it's her blood) has the ability to bring out the "human" in her vampires. A satisfying read.

Editorial Review:

Betrayed by her longtime vampire love, Louisiana cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse must now not only deal with a possible new man in her life-the oh-so-handsome shapeshifter Quinn-but also contend with a long-planned vampire summit. With her power base weakened by hurricane damage to New Orleans, the local vampire queen is vulnerable to those hungry for a takeover. Soon, Sookie must decide what side she'll stand with. And her choice may mean the difference between survival and all-out catastrophe.

Definitely Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 6)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 150 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Definitely Dull 2 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This was such a bizarre entry in what has become one of my favorite mystery series. First of all, starting this book will be totally confusing for anyone who hasn't read "One Word Answer," a short Sookie Stackhouse story that Harris wrote for an anthology. How do I know? Because I hadn't read it by the time I began "Definitely Dead," and I was definitely confused. Sookie's cousin was murdered in New Orleans, and the Vampire Queen of Louisiana sent an emissary to visit Sookie in Bon Temps? When? Not in any of the previous books I'd read. I knew I couldn't be crazy, so I did some online research, found the short story, and was able to download it for free. Then the beginning of the book made sense to me. But how unfair is that to readers who either don't know about the story or have access to the internet? At least publish the short story in the paperback edition of "Definately Dead" so that readers aren't completely lost. Or include a note at the beginning of the book that directs readers to the anthology. Something, anything.

Second of all, the story involving Sookie's dead vampire cousin, the core of the book, doesn't really get rolling again until around page 130. Before then, the book is strictly filler, with unimportant subplots, one involving Jason and his werepanther girlfriend, the other about a missing child, who Sookie helps find. Those aren't spoilers, folks, because these side stories have NOTHING to do with the book's actual plot. So why are they even there? Who knows? Maybe Harris is setting things up for future entries, but that doesn't make for an involving reading experience this time around.

Thirdly, I wish Sookie would settle on a boyfriend. Bill, Eric, Sam, Quinn...On the one hand, I've always enjoyed Harris's ability to keep readers on their toes and defy expectations, but Sookie is starting to look like a right little pop tart. And was it really necessary for Harris to give us a plot twist that makes us detest and reevaluate a favorite character? Again, Harris likes to pull the rug out from under Sookie (and us, vicariously), but it seemed excessive and very mean-spirited. Harris hasn't seemed to know what to do with this character for a few books now, and it shows. Fourthly, when Sookie does make it to New Orleans and the book's real story actually begins, it turns out to be an uninteresting, overcomplicated one, with a plot element that was corny when Dumas used it in "The Three Musketeers."

Lastly, Harris throws us all a curve and gives us a hint about Sookie's family background that's completely inconsistent with the rest of the series, and made for a lot of backtracking. What, is Harris making this stuff up as she goes along? Sure sounds like it. Every writer should take a page out of JK Rowling's playbook and plan a series in advance. It goes a LONG way towards avoiding this kind of sloppy plotting. And if Sookie is a -- well, I don't want to give it away -- then it means she's not a normal woman in abnormal circumstances. Which means she's not us, the reader, and that's a shame.

And did it bother anyone else that Quinn took Sookie to see "The Producers?" Why couldn't Harris just say "the theater?" There have never been other references to present day movies or TV shows -- not that I remember -- and I found it very bizarre. Maybe I just don't see Sookie liking or getting that particular show. "Rent," yes -- "The Producers," no. Maybe it's just me.

All in all, if you're following Sookie's story, you're going to want to read this one as well, but prepare to put the book down, as I did, every few days. It's that dull.

Editorial Review:

Sixth in the Anthony Award-winning Southern Vampire series.

Spiked with a frothy fusion of romance, mystery, and fantasy, this bestselling series sends the supernaturally gifted cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse to New Orleans, where she has to deal with the legacy of one of her own family and a host of potentially dangerous characters.

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

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 157 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Dead As A Doornail 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I love Charlaine Harris's books about Sookie Stackhouse. Once I start one, I can't bear to put it down. Charlaine keeps you wanting to know what's going to happen next.

Sookie carries on with her "charmed existance" 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

If you are up to book 5, you've been bitten by the Sookie Stackhouse book and I don't have to tell you how riveting her life is. Charlaine Harris does it again -- and superbly: keeps you enthralled with an unlikely heroine, vampires, werewolves, and all sorts of creatures that you should know better than believe in.

In book 5, brother Jason is now a shifter himself (and still as dumb as dirt and more handsome than he deserves), a sniper is out hunting his shifter kind, and Sookie is (of course) caught in the middle -- with one romantic challenge after another.

Go ahead and read this one too: Work, kids, the grass, and tax day can just wait!

Editorial Review:

When Sookie's brother Jason's eyes start to change, she knows he's about to turn into a were-panther for the first time. But her concern becomes cold fear when a sniper sets his deadly sights on the local changeling population-and Jason's new panther brethren suspect he may be the shooter. Now, Sookie has until the next full moon to find out who's behind the attacks, unless the killer decides to find her first.

Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9)

Charlaine Harris

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An Ice Cold Grave (Harper Connelly Mysteries, No. 3)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 60 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

An Ice Cold Grave 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I have recently become acquainted with Charlene Harris' works. I have enjoyed each and every one and hope she writes many more. The seller provided it as promised and well within the shipment window promised.

Great Series 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I really enjoyed the Harper Connelly series and would like to see more of these characters.

Good, but one poorly timed incident 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Like anyone who has read Charlaine Harris, and continues to read her books, I enjoy them a lot. One of her series that I LOVE is Sookie Stackhouse!
But about this 3rd installment in the Harper Connelly Series, which was just slightly disappointing because of what happened in the middle of the book. I won't say what that was, because it would be a huge spoiler and I won't do that to those who haven't read An Ice Cold Grave. But those who have, will probably know what I'm referring to. What happened should never have happened when it did! I felt that it was just thrown in and not thought out by the author. It really threw me off balance. If it happened towards the end of the book, that would have made more sense, because it would have flowed better with what happened at the end of the book, but NOT in the middle! If it hadn't been for that not-so-wise choice on Charlaine Harris' part, I would have given the book 5 stars.
On a lighter note: It was a good read, sans the untimely incident. As with the other books in the series there was a nice balance of annoying characters, great characters, tension, out loud laughs, etc... And the killer was a surprise, which was a surprise in itself.

Editorial Review:

Harper Connelly heads to Doraville, North Carolina, to find a missing boy—one of several teenage boys who have disappeared over the last five years. And all of them are calling for Harper. She finds them, buried in the frozen ground. Soon Harper will learn more than she cared to about the dark mysteries and long-hidden secrets of Doraville—knowledge of the dead that makes her next in line to end up in an ice-cold grave.

Grave Sight (Harper Connelly Mysteries, Book 1)

Charlaine Harris

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 119 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

A Great New Mystery Series - She Finds Dead People 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

A Grave Sight is a well-written mystery that surrounds a young woman, Harper Connelly, who has special powers in discerning the location of dead bodies as well as the cause of death. Harper gained these powers after being struck by lightening. She is aided in her pursuits by her stepbrother, Tolliver Lang, who extends empathy and support as needed.

The story of individuals who live through being struck by lightening is such an interesting topic; I had been unaware of the impact such an event can have on an individual. I found the mystery of the murders in this story to be well concealed in that I was not sure who the perpetrator(s) were until very close to the end. There are no red herrings; more like a large list of equally culpable suspects. It is much fun to read. Only one small complaint - the story could have used just a little bit of comic relief, macabre though it might have been, to lighten the grim load that Harper and Tolliver carry and the storyline in general.

I am looking forward to Book 2 in the series, A Grave Surprise.

Editorial Review:

Harper Connelly has what you might call a strange job: she finds dead people. The way Harper sees it, she's providing a service to the dead while bringing some closure to the living-but she's used to most people treating her like a blood-sucking leech. Traveling with her stepbrother Tolliver as her manager and sometime-bodyguard, she's become an expert at getting in, getting paid, and getting out fast. Because for the living it's always urgent-even if the dead can wait forever.