It seems Charlaine Harris is finally winding things down. I can’t say I’m sorry that this series is ending. It’s one of those series that was a lot of fun for the first four books, then just kept going for years.
After a young shifter girl dies outside Eric’s house one night, a murder investigation begins. On top of that, Sookie is dealing with issues in her Fae family. Eric and Sookie are on the rocks in this one, which means no Viking sexy time. That was, admittedly, one of the only reasons I picked this book up. I’ve always loved Eric, but he was barely present in this book. There was a weird mystery with a random girl dying at Eric’s house, part of her Fae family disappearing for a bit, and a crazy werewolf who has it out for Sookie. As in many of the Sookie books, it’s all linked somehow. Frankly, I was disinterested in pretty much everything that happened in this book. This series has just been run into the ground. Couldn’t it have ended sometime around book four? That’s the last one I remember loving. I can hardly remember anything that happened in the following books. It was just really unsatisfying. Looking ahead to the last book, I can only say that I’m kind of hoping that Sookie just gets back together with Bill and everyone who’s been a problem for last million books dies. That’s how ready I am for all this to be over. I’ll pick it up just because I want to know how things wrap up.
This one just didn’t hit the mark. This series is dead.
Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my local library.
Book Information
Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris, read by Johanna Parker
Sookie Stackhouse #12
Recorded Books, 2012
Unabridged Audio CDs, 9.5 hours
ISBN 9781464035234
Also in this series
Dead Until Dark – Living Dead in Dallas – Club Dead – Dead to the World – Dead as a Doornail – Definitely Dead – All Together Dead – From Dead to Worse – Dead and Gone – Dead in the Family – Dead Reckoning
I had to give myself some space from this novel after I finished it because I was so floored. I’m still not sure I can capture exactly how it made me feel or how much I loved it.
Aristotle, or Ari, is angsty and confused. He’s angry that his parents won’t talk to him about his brother, who’s in prison. He’s also a loner, never feeling like he quite fits in with other boys. Dante is a brilliant boy who tries to look on the brighter side of life. The two seem to have nothing in common, but learn a lot about themselves through their friendship. Ari and Dante are the kinds of characters that feel very real and jump off the page, but you would be hard-pressed to find real people like them. I loved the literary references, commentaries on different aspects of life, and their parents. It’s so easy to find YA books with parents who are either never around or are unsupportive. Ari and Dante have wonderful parents who love them, talk to them, and want them to be happy. I wish everyone could have parents like them. The writing was so beautiful that I immediately wanted to read everything Saenz has ever written. I liked that the LGBT elements weren’t of the in-your-face variety. It’s just genuine. I also loved their struggle with where they stand as Americans and Mexicans. It was so refreshing to read about these topics when they’re handled subtly and well. This book definitely deserves all of the acclaim and awards. The narration was good, but I had to let it grow on me. I wasn’t sure about his voice in the beginning. After listening to nearly the entire book in one sitting, his voices became the characters’ voices to me. I’m already re-reading this one in print to pick up on any quotes I might want to tag and I can still hear the narrator’s voices in my head.
Disclosure: I received this audiobook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Book Information
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
by Benjamin Alire Saenz, read by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Simon & Schuster Audio, 2013
Unabridged Audio CDs, 7.5 hours
ISBN 9781442366411
Anyone looking for more material to fire up their Beatle mania?
It’s 1960 in Hamburg, Germany and there aren’t many people who have heard of The Beatles yet. Astrid Kirchherr’s ex-boyfriend drags her to a seedy club just to see them. She’s immediately drawn to them, particularly Stuart. What follows is a melancholy love story. I’m sure this story is nothing new to well-researched Beatles fans. It’s just a new way of telling it. Bellstorf does a fantastic job weaving song lyrics throughout this book, and I did feel a connection to the Astrid and Stuart. The art, however, didn’t match up for me. It was mostly frames of black turtlenecks, dangling cigarettes, and broody stares. He’s certainly talented; I just wanted a little more variety. The art never felt like it was helping to tell the story.
I would have preferred to read this novel in narrative form. Still, if you’re looking for some material on The Beatles in their early years, you might want to check this out.
Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my professor.
Book Information
Baby’s in Black: Astrid Kirchherr, Stuart Sutcliffe, and The Beatles in Hamburg
by Arne Bellstorf
First Second, 2012
Hardcover, 208 pages
ISBN 9781596437715
This is a weekly round that includes info about my life, the blog, my reading, bookish news, and awesome blog posts I read. It’s inspired by the many weekly posts out there such as It’s Monday! What are you reading?,Sunday Post, and Clock Rewinders.
I missed the last spin and I’ve really fallen behind with my classics club list so I thought I should participate in this one. I didn’t really pick from every category. I basically picked a few I’m dreading and mostly books that I already have copies of on my shelf. Wish me luck! You can read more about the classics spin at The Classics Club Blog.
- Atwood, Margaret: A Handmaid’s Tale
- Baldwin, James: Giovanni’s Room
- Bronte, Charlotte: Vilette
- Burnett, Frances Hodgson: A Little Princess
- Carroll, Lewis: Through the Looking Glass
- Dante: Inferno
- Dickens, Charles: A Tale of Two Cities
- Faulkner, William: The Sound and the Fury
- Fitzgerald, F. Scott: This Side of Paradise
- Gaskell, Elizabeth: Wives & Daughters
- Hardy: Thomas: Tess of the D’Urbervilles
- Hesse, Hermann: Steppenwolf
- Hugo, Victor: The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- Kerouac, Jack: On the Road
- Milton, John: Paradise Lost
- Montgomery, L.M.: Anne of Green Gables
- Pyle, Howard: The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
- Salinger, J.D.: The Catcher in the Rye
- Salten, Felix: Bambi
- Wilde, Oscar: The Importance of Being Earnest
