Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris

Book: Dead Reckoning (Sookie Stackhouse #11) by Charlaine Harris

Published by: Ace, May 3rd 2011

Genre: Fantasy

Format/pages: Hardcover 336 pages

Format read/Source: Audiobook

Date read: May 6 2011

Rating: 3 / 5 Stars

Synopsis from Amazon:

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. Sookie suspects otherwise, but her attention is divided when she realizes that her lover Eric Northman and his “child” Pam are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, Sookie is drawn into the plot-which is much more complicated than she knows…

My Thoughts:

Dead Reckoning is the 11th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series.  In this installment, Sookie finds herself facing her enemies as she puzzles over her love life.  On the cover Sookie is pictured alone, which is appropriate for Sookie’s story this time around. She spends a lot of time on her own reflecting on her life.  She is at a turning point and life’s challenges are bringing her down.

In general, I still enjoy this series, but not nearly as much as the first few books. There seemed to be a shift in my interest in the books when the True Blood HBO series began. At this point in the series, it feels like it is time for the series to wind down. And it seems per Ms. Harris that in fact the series will come to an end after two more books.

Reading this series is comforting like visiting an old friend. It is nice to revisit Bon Temps and all of the quirky characters. Pretty much all of the characters make an appearance in this book. On the one hand it’s great to have cameos from so many favorites, on the other hand the story felt a bit disjointed as it jumped around quite a bit.

One of the storylines that interested me the most is about the faeries. We learn more about the faeries and the relationship to Sookie’s grandmother.  I am really curious to see what will happen with Sookie, Claude and Dermot in the last two books.

The story was good, but the pace was sluggish in parts, especially the first half. The mood of this book is dark and sad, without the more humorous parts I wanted to lighten up the story. Some of the scenes that I think were supposed to be funny (Bill/Sookie for example) did not come across that way to me. I would have liked to see more of Pam as well. Hope there is more action and humor in book 12.

I listened to the audiobook version this time around. The reader Johanna Parker does an incredible job bringing the characters of the book to life. She sounds just how I’d imagine Sookie to sound.

I’m curious to see how this series ends, and who Sookie will end up with. It feels like Sookie is getting tired of being in the middle of the supernatural politics and getting blood on her hands. Will she decide to spend her life with Eric, Bill, or Sam? Or someone we haven’t met yet?

Dead Reckoning should please the die-hard fans of the series. It is obvious that we are getting to the end of the series, and the pieces of the puzzle are coming into place. Look for book 12 to be released around May 2012.

Want to learn more about the series or buy the book?

Amazon | Goodreads | Charlaine Harris

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7 thoughts on “Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris

  1. sterlingsop says:

    I agree with you and your analysis of this book. I absolutely loved the books in the beginning of the series, but as the HBO interest took off the books began to take on a bit of “written for TV” feel about them and began to wane a bit in quality.

    I do love reading them though because no matter how dull or slow the pace is, it’s like being being the company of old friends and I love that. I just hope that the book series ends properly and the TV series continues in its own way without compromising the quality of them.

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  3. I agree – I hope the ending is satisfying to all who have kept up with this series. The recent books haven’t given me the same excited feeling I had at the beginning. I’ll finish the series for the same reason as you and hope for the best!
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the books!

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  5. Pete says:

    I agree with the review and the comments so far. As I’ve kept up with all the books (and let me add was satisfied with their endings) I was wondering what everyone’s take on the closing of the book would be. I particularly didn’t like it ending in my opinion so abruptly. I thought it could possibly have more dialogue between the main characters/combatants and issues with the others instead of asking so many questions and cliffhangers at the end. But that’s just my opinion and opinions are like… We’ve all got them.

    1. I agree about the ending. We did get some answers in this book but I was left feeling that there is still so many unanswered questions. I guess it’s the nature of the books to leave you wanting more.
      Thanks for sharing your opinion on the book!

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