Club Dead by Charlaine Harris (2003, Paperback, Reissue)

Club Dead is book 3 in the Sookie Stackhouse series about Southern vampires. As in other previous books, Sookie's life is in termoil again due to her vampire's Bill disappearance. This adventure introduces us to some new characters and is very fun, fast paced reading. The book is fantasy and it lets your imagination run wild & sometimes has you thinking about things not so pleasant. I enjoyed this book a lot and am ready to start reading book 4.

I would recommend reading the books in order.

If you read the two books that preceded "Club Dead" in the series, you know that the Sookie books are fluff reading. Fun to read and then forget about -- no depth at all. You can read this book without reading the prequels even though the characters remain the same. Harris does a good job of covering the facts brought out in the previous books that you need to know.

However, I found "Club Dead" disappointing because Sookie becomes a real slut in this one. Plus it was extremely difficult to understand the situation with Vampire Bill. He goes off on a secret mission that we're told almost nothing about, except that it is for the "Queen of Louisiana" and promptly falls back in love with an old girlfriend, Lorena the Vampire -- and is kidnapped. Since we're told NOTHING of Bill and Lorena's past, it is difficult to understand why they are together. The plot leaves us in the dark about the relationship and also the Queen's mission. Also, I am getting tired of Sookie constantly being beaten up with the same result: saved with that old standby - vampire blood.

The story of Sookie Stackhouse continues. Sookie is a waitress who works at a bar. She can read minds. Most men are afraid to date her. Not Bill!You see Bill is a Vampire. She can't read a vampire's mind. Only fussy a word or two at times. They are a perfect pair. In this book, Bill goes missing and Sookie heads out to Club Dead to find him. Not one of my favorites,but you will need this book. I will tell you why. Come fall there will be a new pilot series picked up by HBO called True Blood. You will need to read all the Sookie stories to follow the storyline. My favorite one is DEAD TO THE WORLD by Chairlaine Harris.

This is the Charlaine Harris series that inspired HBO's True Blood. Based in the small town or Bon Temps, Louisiana; the series is narrated by Sookie Stackhouse. The books tell her story of discovering not only herself but the supernatural world around her. Charlaine Harris creates her own world of Vampires, Shapeshifters, Faeries and Folklore. HBO's series only begins to touch the magic created by Charlaine Harris. In this installment Sookie travels to Mississippi to find Bill.

Club Dead has a fast paced plot, filled with humor, suspense, vampire lore and politics, new characters and excitement - not to mention Sookie's depression at being betrayed by Bill. I must say, that for a dumpee, she certainly gets plenty of male attention, although the men aren't human. Author Charlaine Harris also gives more depth to Sookie, Bill and Eric. I really like Alcide as a character and hope to see more of him in future novels. I also enjoy Sookie's downhome attitude. She is proud but not pretentious, feminine but no shrinking violet. She has got great instincts and her sense of humor is downright wicked! This is light, escapist reading at its best.