Wednesday 18 May 2011

All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris

The Sookie Stackhouse novels are becoming my books of choice for when I am poorly.  I don't talk about my health much on here, but I have indeterminate bowel problems that have been causing me constant trouble for over a year.  I'm off work today, which I hate, as I have already had a lot of time off, and I feel guilty, so I've cheered myself up with All Together Dead.

In this, the seventh book of the series, Sookie attends a vampire conference and becomes once again involved in all kinds of sinister plots.  There are also, as always, many men fighting over her.

I was glad this book returned to vampires as the main supernatural creatures, as I don't think that werewolves or shape-shifters or fairies are half as interesting.  Having said that, there was a lot of characters for the casual reader to keep up with and I did find myself thinking 'who?' every now and again.  Harris does a good job of introducing everyone, it's just because I haven't read the series very quickly and have left long gaps between books.  I also missed some of the regular Bon Temps characters.

As always, the book was lively, engagingly written, and really easy to read.  One thing that Harris does deserve a lot of credit for is how Sookie has changed and developed as the books have gone along.  Character development isn't always the easiest thing to convey, and I liked how events had changed her.

My major complaint is actually with the cover.  I have a UK box set that came out as a tie-in to the True Blood series, and it seems like the person who designed the covers hasn't read the books at all.  Jason isn't even in this book!  It's same for all the others too - Tara even gets a cover of her own, despite not being given more than a few lines in the whole series.

Source: Owned
Verdict: Great light read
Score: 3.5 out of 5

8 comments:

  1. I have a box set with all the original cover art on it, but I have seen the True Blood tie-in covers and totally agree with you. Tara from the books is so minor compared to Tara from the show. Even Jason has less of a role in the books and he should definitely not be on the cover of All Together Dead.

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  2. I have to agree - I really don't like the True Blood covers for Sookie - I much prefer the American 'cartoon' covers which I have for the first few books.

    Out of interest - who do you prefer as a love interest for Sookie? I know I've had my favourites through the series! :)

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  3. I love this series too, great escapist stuff. I think I have at least one book from every kind of print run in my collection - it's so messy but I always just get the cheapest one I can find so that's how it goes! Sorry to hear about your tummy troubles, I've had lots of problems too so I know how debilitating and annoying it can be. I just recently had a hemicolectomy - best thing I ever did! Hope you are feeling better and can find out what's happening for you.

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  4. @Loni - Yeah, the TV series fleshed out a lot of the minor characters, which is nice, but it doesn't reflect the books. The original cover art is so much better!

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  5. I really like the original cover art. I think it's symbolic of whatever is happening in the book without giving anything away. Plus, I like the artsy, cartoony quality of it.

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  6. I'm a huge fan of the original artwork too...I'm pretty picky about that if I'm going to buy a book that's been made into a movie or television show...
    These are definitely easy reads and perfect for when you are down or if your brain just needs a rest. I hope you feel better soon.

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  7. I agree, I like the original cover styles better than the TV show tie ins. I hope you feel better soon and that the wedding plans are coming along smoothly!

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  8. I haven't read any of these yet! I'm in the queue to get the ebook of the first one from my local library. It's going to be a couple months probably before I get them. :(

    Anyway, I'm a new follower, I really like your reviews!

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