Dead in the Family (Southern Vampire Mysteries #10) by Charlaine Harris

Book Summery:
*Contains mild spoilers. Do not read the summery if you haven't read the rest of the series!*

Sookie Stackhouse has finally settled into a relationship with the Viking vampire Eric, and her errant brother Jason seems to have his life in order, too. But all the other people in Sookie’s life – Eric himself, her former lover Bill, her friend and boss Sam – are having family problems. Eric’s maker shows up with Eric’s ‘brother’ in tow, the ailing Bill can only be healed by a blood sibling, and Sam’s brother’s marriage is about to take place... or will it? The furor raised by the coming out of the two-natured has yet to settle; some people are just not ready to sit down to dinner with a man who turns into a dog. And Sookie herself is still recovering from her last ordeal. She’s definitely improving, physically and mentally, but she’s always going to have some dark moments now. The werewolves tell her that there have been strange and ominous passers-by in the Stackhouse woods; now Sookie is about to come face-to-face with one of her more distant relatives...-goodreads.com

Book Review:
I am a fan of the series for sure. However, this series can read like a roller coaster at times. There are books that I enjoy more than others. This one was not among my favorites, but definitely fitting with the rest of the series. There was very little action, which compared to the last book, Dead and Gone, was a huge change. This is definitely a more somber book filled with Sookie's thoughts and insights, which made for slower pacing. I also felt that Harris was trying to incorporate the TV series True Blood into the book, which honestly annoyed me a bit. For instance, in previous books, Eric's character is definitely colder and less friendly than Bill, but he definitely had some humerus moments. In this book, Eric was cool and standoffish with zero light moments, much like the series. Now, as I said, I am long standing fan of the series, so there is an excellent chance that I am being way too critical. Either way, I am glad I read the book, and it is fitting with the series, just make sure to take it with a grain of salt (these are essentially fun reads for me). I still look forward to more of Harris' works, she is one of my favorite authors after all. :)

Favorite Quote:

"I went into the house, sank to my knees right inside the door, and cried. My hands were skaing. My wrists ached. The whole time we'd been talking, I'd been waiting for him to make his move. I realized I wanted to live." (p. 9)

Cover Art Commentary:
I am a fan of the cover art of this series. It's one of the components that initially drew me to the series. Though this isn't my favorite cover, I still find it whimsical and fitting with the rest of the series.

Overall Rating:

Grave Surprise by Charlaine Harris

Harper Connelly and her step-brother Tolliver are back in action in Harris' Grave Surprise. This time the dynamic duo are in Memphis, hired by a professor of the paranormal, who gets his kicks by proving psychics and the like are farce. During her "demonstration," Harper comes across the body of a young girl, Tabitha, who she had been previously hired, and failed, to locate. Harper and Tolliver become entangled in the investigation, which ultimately leads to another death. One which places Harper and Tolliver as prime suspects. While Harper and Tolliver work desperately to clear their names, the killer lays in wait, desperate to strike again.

A delightful follow up to Grave Sight. Harris has more to offer this time around, and it shows. Grave Surprise offers a fully charged plot, an introduction to a new cast of characters and deeper insight into the minds and pasts of the two main characters. I can say with stark honesty, that the Harper Connelly series is completely different than the Sookie Stackhouse series. It took me a while to get used the difference, but I fully enjoy seeing another side to Harris' writing. I look forward to reading more books in the series.

Grave Sight by Charlaine Harris

Harper Connelly has an unique ability. Not only can she find the dead, but is able to determine their cause of death, for a price of course. Harper travels around the country with her brother Tolliver, solving death mysteries and leaving as quickly as possible,as people aren't too keen to discover the information they have been seeking since their loved ones death. In the small town of Sarne, Arkansas, Harper and Tolliver become a bit more involved than they normally like. In the end, they hope to make it out of Sarne before it becomes the last case they ever solve alive.

As a fan of Harris' Southern Vampire Mysteries, I greedily picked up the first three books in the Harper Connelly series. While I found the story delightful and intriguing, it wasn't, in my opinion, as good as the SVM. However, I enjoyed reading Grave Sight. I was able to identify with the main character and found myself laughing along with the characters. The ending seemed a little rushed, however. I still look forward to reading the next book in the series Grave Surprise. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a little fun escape from reality.

Dead and Gone (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 9) by Charlaine Harris

Absolutely phenomenal! I have overall enjoyed the entire series, but there have definitely been books that have caught my interest more so than others. This is definitely one of them. I would highly rank it up there with books 1, 2, and 4, which have been my favorites. I am still in utter disbelief that I enjoyed the series this much. I am so sad that I am at an end in the series (for now). I can't believe that I had no intentions of reading them in the first place! Much thanks to Sarah for the rec! I look forward to finishing out the HBO series and continue to look forward to more books in the series!

From Dead to Worse (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 8) by Charlaine Harris

The plot gets deeper and more intense in this volume. I am sad to be coming to a close of the series. I have no idea how many more volumes in the series Harris will write.

Next up is Dead and Gone.

*Oh, and I got to watch the first two episodes of the first HBO season. Slightly different from the books, but soooo good! :)

All Together Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 7) by Charlaine Harris

Not THE best in the series, but definitely ONE of the best! :) I demand more Eric!

Up next is From Dead to Worse.

Definitely Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 6) by Charlaine Harris

The series takes an interesting turn in Definitely Dead. Poor Bill got dealt a bad hand in this one. I am very interested to see where to story goes from here.

Up next is All Together Dead.

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

Another great volume in the series. I still hold that Dead to the World is my favorite, but this book holds a lot of unexpected twists and a variety of new characters.

Up next is Definitely Dead.

Dead to the World (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 4) by Charlaine Harris

My favorite book out of the entire series yet. :)

Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 3) by Charlaine Harris

The third volume of the Southern Vampire Mysteries has a slighter darker side than the previous two volumes. Lot's of action, blood, and plenty of mystery to boot. An interesting cornerstone in the series. I am curious to see where the story goes from here.

Up next is Dead to the World.

Living Dead in Dallas (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 2) by Charlaine Harris

Just finished the second volume of the Southern Vampire Mysteries. At first, I was a little (just slightly) disappointed with the book. I felt it was a little flat in comparison to the first book. However, the more I read, the more enveloped in the story I became. Overall, I absolutely enjoyed this book, laughing along with the characters at some points. A wonderful follow-up to the beginning of the series. I look forward to more mysteries with ever popular Sookie Stackhouse.

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

Sookie Stackhouse is a small time waitress in a rural town in Louisiana, in a time when vampires have become more or less accepted by society. One night a vampire stumbles into the bar in which young Sookie works, and from there the story takes off and doesn't slow down until the very last page. If you are looking for fun, mystery, death, and romance, this book is not to be missed. Originally, I had no plans to read the series until Sarah recommended that I do so. Though, it's more of a "guilty pleasure" read, I feel that I would definitely have missed out by skipping the series. It's highly addictive. Looking forward to watching the series by HBO.

Up next is Living Dead in Dallas, what else? :P