Dead Ever After (Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood) Hardcover – May 7, 2013

I'm shocked at people trashing this book, because THEY didn't get the ending THEY wanted. IN fact, because this book ISNT twilight, because Sookie isn't a vampire, or married to a vampire, people hate it. Honestly, people should be at least fair. DEAD EVER AFTER was not substansively worse, or better, than any other of the books from this series. If I have a complaint, its that after all those books written in the first person omniscient (ie narrated by Sookie, who also can read minds), this book changes that style, to include sections which are third person omniscient. I'm quite sure Mrs. Harris did this, in order to be able to convey the twisty plot, and multiple antagonists, which is central to the denouement and finale of the series. I've said it before: The Sookie Stackhouse series isn't Shakespeare, nor is it Proust. However, when you're wrapping up 12 books which created as many main characters as this series has, you DO need to include "Happy Endings" for as many of those characters as possible. Without slathering on excessive praise, its fair to say Mrs. Harris HAS achieved her goal, concluding the SookieVerse in the best way possible.So, what are the main themes of the series, and how do they conclude here? Sookie's search for love, obviously, is the main theme. I'm not talking about just a boyfriend, but familiar love, and friendship, even the love of community. This search throughout the series lead Sookie into the realm of the Supes, not only to search for a man's love (Eric, Bill, Quinn, etc), but the search for a family to love (Neall, Uncle Dermot, Hunter, Claude & Claudine, and her Godfather), and the love of friends (Pam, Tara, Alcide, Haleigh, etc). Each book took Sookie step by step, from being a pariah due to her disability, as well as an orphan, to the place where this book ends, which is Sookie surrounded by family and friends, accepted by the community, able to stand up to the worst of situations with courage and inner conviction. Altho she lost family (Her grandmother, her cousin, Claudine), she has gained family as well (a sister in law, Hunter, Neall and the fae). In the end, Sookie gains a true mate, who will accept Sookie on HER terms, without requiring any sacrifice she's not willing to make. Of course, the other theme of the books could very well be the "cost" of murder, not just premeditated murder which ends in the Murderer's death (like Arlene's boyfriends, or evil supes), but justifiable homicide, which of course Sookie had committed numerous times. A murder changes everybody, including the community, the victims and their families, as well as the person committing the murder. Sookie spends a lot of time during DEAD EVER AFTER, in self examination on this point. (She literally had lost count of the people she bought to their end.) Also the community of Bon Temps changed, during the two years covered by these 13 books. A small rural community witnessed an incredible number of murders, beginning with the very first book. Andy Bellefleur seems morally exhausted by the end of this series, while his deputies practically become CSI experts at murder scenes.Without divulging any spoilers, the book wraps up the series by killing off all the bad guys, who were the motivation behind so much of Sookie's woes from book to book. This is to be expected, for a "Happy Ever After" type book. Without making any such blatant claims, we know that Sookie's worries over hidden enemies has been removed forever, for the rest of her life. Also, all the friendships, including ex lovers, that Sookie has formed from book to book, come thru for her here. For a woman who started out lonely and isolated, she winds up loved and admired by not only the human community of Bon Temps (ie Maxine, the Bellefleurs, Merlotte's customers, etc), but also the Supe community thruout the USA. (Vampires, the Fae, the Weres, the witches, the demons, etc.) This loves builds to a crescendo, as the dark forces of hatred, jealousy and cruelty, are summoned by THE DEVIL himself (well, A devil), in a last ditched effort to destroy Sookie's soul. Sookie wins in the end, receiving everything she's ever wanted or wished for. She's had loss and pain thoughout the series, but in EVERY instance, something remained that's beautiful and lasting, to enrich and deepen her experience of life. Like Sookie's fecund garden, bearing fruit 100 fold, we KNOW when we leave Sookie, that she will enrich her community with the fruits of her strange experiences, leaving EVERYBODY the better. I'm GLAD this book didn't end like the TWILIGHT books, instead, it ended with all the depth, maturity, insight, and compassion the author herself contains. Brava, Mrs. Harris. And thank you.

I enjoyed this book very much. It was great to see so many characters from other books of the series, to learn how they were doing and it gave closure for many of their stories and interesting possibilies for the future for many others. After reading the book I went back and read the many reviews downgrading the book because I was curious what they found so disappointing. Granted, I didn't read all of them but I read a fair sampling, and almost all of them gave the downgraded rating because they didn't like the ending of the Eric and Sookie love story. I, for one, was very glad that we didnt get a cheesy 'Love Conquers All' ending, but instead got one that was entirely consistant with the rest of the series.Eric was one of my favorite characters in the series and I loved the romance between Eric and Sookie. I loved Eric because he was so complex but there was never any doubt that Eric was a very long lived, powerful, and arrogant man, who enjoyed his power very much and intended to go on enjoying it for another thousand or so years. Some say that he was clever enough to find a way out of the deal with Freyda - sure he was, but the character of Eric as written would never give up all the power and prestige (not to mention getting out from under Felix's thumb) that a union with Freyda would bring him in exchange for a few years with Sookie, a human woman who's entire lifespan will be about 10 minutes compared to Eric's long life (no matter how much he loved her). He truely agonized about the decision, but he never made any attempt to halt the union (other than wishing Sookie would do it for him through magic and get him off the hook of his conflicting desires). If Sookie had been willing to be turned things might have been different, but she wasn't willing and it seems he loved her too much to attempt it against her will. There is also the matter of honoring his Maker, an important relationship in his life that lasted for hundreds of centuries. You often don't like the decisions your 'parent' makes for you, but that doesn't mean they are easily dismissed simply because you fall in love. And he didn't just dump Sookie, he provided for her the same way he provided for the other person he loved, Pam (and, we assume, Karin - although her relationship with Eric was not really explored). If there was, perhaps, as much calculation as love in that move, that was entirely consistant with Eric's character as described in the other books of the series. The only time that Eric acted the way people seemed to think he SHOULD act was when he lost his memory and didn't care about power. He was never like that at any other point in any of the other books.As for Sam, there has been a spark between Sookie and Sam since the very first book, before she even knew Eric existed. They tiptoed around through every single book, but they were always at different places, involved with different people, and nothing ever developed - but it was made clear that the spark still existed. Their becoming more than friends didnt just fly in out of the blue, it was always there in the wings, waiting for the right moment.As for the complaints that Sookie walked away too easily - when has she not done that? Look how quickly she walked away from Quinn just because he had baggage, while returning to Eric who is the King of baggage. It was entirely consistant with her character throughout the series. She truely loves someone but when she decides she can no longer live with the facets of their personality or life that are inconsistant with her standards and beliefs, she cuts her losses, no matter how painful that might be, and she moves on. It just took her a lot longer to reach that place with Eric because of the bonding.Maybe Charlaine Harris didn't give us the fairy tale ending that so many wanted, but she did give us an ending that was entirely consistant and logical with the characters she created and developed through the series. She took supernatural creatures and explored them as if they were normal complex people, with conflicting desires and loyalities and faults and honorable qualities all tossed together just like all of us. I'm really sorry to see the series end, I will miss them. And I want to know how Quinn's baby turns out!

Almost two years has passed since the release of Dead Ever After, but after not being completely bowled over by Deadlocked (Sookie Stackhouse #12), I was reluctant to read it. However, I couldn’t read a whole series and then miss out the last book! And, I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with this final story! Amazingly, I have also been able to avoid reading any other reviews of the book and so have read Dead Ever After with a fresh approach.Throughout the story Sookie has many worries. To begin with, after raising Sam from the dead, using her magic from the cluviel dor (which could only be used once), she noticed a clear coldness from Eric. Is he annoyed with her for using her magic on Sam and not saving it for him? Well, that’s just tough luck for Eric as there was no way she’d let Sam die! Not only has she to worry about Eric, but Sam seems to have changed after his experience too.Sam seems really quiet and a little off with her, or maybe he is shaken up from the whole coming-back-to-life episode. Sam has been through a lot and, when Sookie sees Sam next, he has forgotten a great deal. Sookie then reminds him of everything, even the events he probably doesn’t want to remember, as she knows it’s in his best interests for him to face up to them. This is also a great way for Charlaine Harris to recap the last story, and provides the reader with enough detail to understand what has happened, but doesn’t bore the regular reader of the series either.As the story moves forward Sookie is in for some more surprises. First, Arlene, an ex-friend and colleague, has been released from prison and approaches Sookie at Merlotte’s bar asking for her old job back. Now a part-owner of Merlotte’s, Sookie clearly stands her ground and refuses. She can’t believe the nerve of her after Arlene had tried to have her killed. Shortly after, Arlene’s body is found in the dumpster behind Merlotte’s, and you can just imagine who will be accused. Yes, poor Sookie!And then, there’s Eric. After everything that has happened, Eric has almost abandoned Sookie for reasons that Sookie and the readers are not sure of. It appears to us that he may be a little irked after the incident with Sam. And yet, there is more going on in the vamp world that he needs to attend to and this will have a definite impact on Sookie. The ever-practical Eric has to do not just what is in his best interests, but also what is expected of him.Will Sookie be cleared of a murder she didn’t commit? Will her and Sam be able to return to a their comfortable friendship? And, will Eric deal with his vamp problem and return to Sookie? Or, will Sookie rekindle her love with her first love, Bill? This final instalment certainly has many questions to answer. And the reader will find out the answers to all as it all wraps up.Although fairly well written, with plenty more going on, I found it didn’t grip me with intensity. However, the storyline itself was good. Sookie’s love interests were not present too much in the book and I know many won’t be too happy with the ending. But, I was fairly happy. As long as Sookie ended up with either Bill, Eric or Sam I was going to be happy as I have come to appreciate all three characters over the course of the book series, as well as tv series.It is very difficult to read this after seeing the tv series, though, as it is hard to differentiate between the, sometimes very different, storylines but with the same characters. In hindsight, I do wish I had read all of the books first, before watching the tv series. That said, I do like how the book series has gone in terms of keeping more with the telepaths and witches. This certainly adds to the magic of the story, as well as remind us that our focus is Sookie, even though we can all get carried away with the strong male characters.All-in-all, the book series is a great read, and I would encourage anyone, whether read the series before or not, to start at the beginning and read each book in order to remind ourselves of Sookie’s journey, and what Charlaine Harris wanted us to get from the series.

I have actually had this book since it's release date last year (7 May 2013) however it has been sitting on my bookshelf all of this time waiting to be read and I have been an avid Sookie Stackhouse fan for a few years now. Two reasons it has been unread and the first being that I have also been watching the True Blood series alongside reading the books and with them being so totally different from each other I have actually found myself getting mixed up on what has happened where which has left me not being as enthusiastic to read the books as to pre True Blood.The second and most important reason is that the last few books just haven't been all that great if I'm honest and especially not in comparison to the first few in the series and so other series' I have been reading have always jumped the queue to be read ahead of this book as I have been eager to find out what happened next with them. I am truly disappointed that I actually picked up this book to read it and actually wish I had left it on my bookshelf to wonder about what happened next. Yes Sookie didn't end up with who I felt she should have but that wasn't the reason I feel so let down by the book. I feel so let down as it felt too rushed and everything has been too tidied up. I echo the sentiments of other reviewers in that I think the author has lost interest in the series a few books ago but has carried on writing in order to fulfill her publishing contract. As a Sookie Stackhouse fan I feel very let down by the author who I have loyally stuck with through the last few books in the hopes that they would improve despite them not having the same magic as the first several in the series. I won't go into what happens in the book in detail as this has already been covered in great detail by others and much longer ago than me reading the book now but I was disappointed in an old faerie turning back up to explain the attempts on her life along with the obvious non solved Eric situation. I was also disappointed that despite Eric and Sookie having this fiery relationship and the feelings for each other that this was so easily let go of by them both as I just didn't think that this felt real. Anyway I'll stop moaning now and put the book away on the bookshelf with the rest of the series and maybe just maybe I might be able to bring myself to read it again in the distant future.

I've just finished the wrap-up book and found it a fitting and satisfying end to an exceptional series. Charlaine Harris has given us a wonderful cast of characters and a distinctive heroine whose voice for me makes all other vampire series fade away by comparison. Its been a real pleasure to inhabit Bon Temps and she deserves respect as a writer for creating the Southern Vampire series.As far as the ending goes, writers often say that the characters have a life of their own and in this case Sookie makes choices entirely consistent withher character over the series. For those complaining about a lack of excitement in the last book, one scenario that occurred to me was to have killed off Eric while he was defending Sookie, wildly romantic and we could have had a little period of grief afterwards and maybe all the Eric fans would have found that more satisfying than Eric continuing to be an astute businessman, which has been the most prominent part of his character up until now.The books have also inspired the series "True Blood" which has gone off on its own path, so there is still hope for all the fans who would have preferred a different ending.****spoiler alert****I've been on team Bill from the beginning, but also from the beginning could see this coming. Sookie has matured, its always been made clear that sunshine and a future family were important to her so that any other choice would have involved great and unhappy sacrifice. That she ends up with a good man who has stood by her throughout seems entirely appropriate. I could have done without the coarse description of the sex though, restraint has always been one of Sookie's character traits.I felt that Bill was shortchanged for an ending, but its not going to result in my trashing what is essentially a mature conclusion to a great series.

Having been off the web for a couple of weeks I was unaware of the furore surrounding this final, but apparently not final, book in the Sookie series; I took advantage of the free Wifi at Athens Airport to download my Kindle for iPad copy, and sat back anticipating one last view of the world through Sookie's eyes.And that was the first problem; the use of third person reporting undoubtedly made telling the story easier for the author, but it did not make telling the story better; all of the information in the prologue could have emerged in the course of the novel, starting with Sookie investigating just how Arlene turned up in Bontemps alive, and then dead, but it would have taken a lot more work for both author and editor. It seems that they did not want to put in the work.This disconnection with the rest of the series continues throughout the book; like many other reviewers I often felt that I simply did not recognise the characters as the people I had come to know in the previous 12 books. People, whether they be human, fae, vampires or shifters do change, but they change for reasons; the author needs to show those reasons if we are to find them credible. Equally, producing a vitally significant character like Karin the Slaughterer from nowhere destroys the willing suspension of disbelief on the part of the reader. We have been told over the course of the series that a vampire sire can force his children to do anything, and yet we are expected to believe that Eric simply did not bother calling his child to his defence against Victor, even though he knew that Victor intended to kill him and had hired the scariest vamp around to help do the job.That one won't fly, even if Eric can; it's equally implausible that the intelligent Sookie, who has built her self-esteem over the course of the books, would fail to understand the consequences of Sam telling her that he just couldn't help himself with the Maenad. After all, Callisto might decide to make a return visit, and Sookie could end up dying in agony, whilst Sam was romping in the woods with her killer.I have never seen these books as romance novels; I am not looking for a HEA. On the other hand, I am baffled by the inconsistencies, and regret the fact that there is apparently another book due to tie up loose ends; it looks like author and publisher seeking to extract yet more money from a series where the creative fire has died. I will try rereading DEA to see if it improves with familiarity, but I can't see myself buying the final final volume...

I admit that the series was predictable at times, but anyone who reads this and complains about how it ended obviously wasn't paying attention in the previous 12 books. I mean come on, how could you not know who Sookie would end up with?That said... It did tie up all of the loose ends. I was surprised by who the ultimate antagonist was. I had felt that each book was its own story with continuing relationships/friendships evolving in each novel, so I didn't expect who was causing all the bad.While all of the books are relatively short, I had thought this one might be longer or that there would be more depth to each situation. I used to feel more in touch with all of the characters but in this book every time I started to feel some emotion the scene would be over and I'd be left wanting more interaction.I was also disappointed that Bubba didn't make an appearance. :(I'm not sorry I read it... but I won't ever re-read the series.