|
| All Together Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 7) | 
 enlarge | Author: Charlaine Harris
Publisher: Ace
Category: Book
List Price: $7.99
Buy New: $4.03
You Save: $3.96 (50%)
New (9) Used (16) from $3.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  164 reviews
Sales Rank: 1919
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 6.5 x 4.1 x 0.9
ISBN: 0441015816
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780441015818
ASIN: 0441015816
Publication Date: March 25, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: 100% Brand New! - Ships Today! Identical to Amazon's book in every way. Flawless! Not a cheap Remainder or Book Club Copy! *We recommend Expedited Shipping option for much faster mail delivery
|
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Betrayed by her longtime vampire love, Louisiana cocktail waitress Sookie Stackhouse must now not only deal with a possible new man in her life-the oh-so-handsome shapeshifter Quinn-but also contend with a long-planned vampire summit. With her power base weakened by hurricane damage to New Orleans, the local vampire queen is vulnerable to those hungry for a takeover. Soon, Sookie must decide what side she'll stand with. And her choice may mean the difference between survival and all-out catastrophe.
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 159 more reviews...
Better than Definitely Dead... May 12, 2007
51 out of 57 found this review helpful
I wasn't exactly thrilled with Definitely Dead, since it felt as though Harris was trying to cram in all of the characters and subplots into two-hundred-something pages. I also didn't like the totally lame twists regarding Bill. I thought it was a little too convenient for my taste. So, I wondered if the series had jumped the shark and if I should read the next book. All Together Dead, while not as good as Dead to the World, my favorite Sookie book so far, was far more enjoyable than its predecessor. It was time for the vampire summit, and Sookie, our adorable telepathic heroine, under orders from Eric and Sophie-Anne, the Queen of Louisiana, is forced to attend. In addition to Eric and the queen, Sookie would join boyfriend weretiger Quinn and vampire ex-boyfriend Bill. Sookie also reunites with Barry the Bellboy, a fellow telepath introduced in Living Dead in Dallas. The summit, aside from parties and business conventions, would also feature a few criminal trials, one of which is the queen's trial for the murder of her husband (Definitely Dead). But, as expected when vampires get together, strange things begin to occur. Vampires turn out dead. The murders seem to be connected with the queen's trial. But soon bigger threats arise, and it is up to Sookie and Barry the Bellboy to figure out what is going on. There are some twists throughout the novel.
When the action began, the novel was quite riveting. I liked some of the twists that went on toward the end as well. I also liked the inner conflicts Sookie was encountering. She has reached a point where she doesn't know if her life will ever be normal again. Her connection with the vampires become more integral in this installment, and I think that Harris foreshadows Sookie's descent from having a fairly average life to one solely centered on the supernaturals around her. Other than those good points, I thought the novel was all over the place. There was little resolution regarding Sookie and the men in her life. She cares for Quinn, and she likes that he seems more normal than the vampires, but she doesn't know if she loves him. She also doesn't know how she feels for Eric. And she has unresolved issues with Bill, whom she still resents for having lied to her. (On a good note, it appears that Bill shows genuine remorse for everything he had done to her. Come on, Sookie, the guy's sorry! Sookie is being petty and downright childish when it comes to him. I wonder for how much longer the author will drag this on.) There is little interaction with Quinn and Eric -- the latter of whom is very sexy in this installment. If she were to choose between these two men, I'd like for her to choose Eric. (But, to be honest, I still prefer Bill.) However, I believe the journey is better than the destination, so I don't mind more romantic tension between her and Eric and Bill (more with the latter please!). Quinn is a little more developed here, but I don't like him much. I tried to, but I can't picture a bald-headed, olive-skinned, beefy guy without picturing a pro wrestler or Mr. Clean. I also hate his annoying habit of addressing Sookie as "babe." Going back to Sookie and Bill, there is no closure between them. Bill was just sort of there, making brief appearances throughout the novel. He went from a strong lead to sort of a filler character, and I'm not happy with that. Secondary characters are thrown in and out without much purpose. (I did like the scene where Pam talks about her past though.) Even though I like the simple scenes of Sookie working at the bar or interacting with her small town buddies, those scenes in this book seemed forced. All in all, All Together Dead is rushed and uneven. Charlaine Harris should really forget about the small characters and concentrate on Sookie and the main characters. She tries to do too much in a limited amount of pages. I give this novel four stars because it was entertaining nevertheless and there were some hilarious passages. I especially enjoyed the scenes with roommate Amelia and her cat/boyfriend Bob. The Southern Vampire Mysteries is still worth reading, but Harris should do one of the following two things: either do a little house-cleaning with the characters and subplots, or consider making the future novels longer. So it may be time to get her publisher to increase her word count limit.
 Sookie's back again May 2, 2007
49 out of 57 found this review helpful
This is the seventh book in the Southern Vampire Series (Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Bk. 1), Living Dead in Dallas (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Bk. 2), Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Bk. 3), Dead to the World (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Bk. 4), Dead as a Doornail (Southern Vampire Mysteries), Definitely Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries)). Our favorite telepath is back again is this new adventure. I couldn't put it down!
We deal mostly with Vampire politics in this book, as opposed to the Were community. Sookie is hired by the queen of Louisiana to assist her at an important summit. Guess who else gets to go? Quinn, Eric, and Bill to name a few. We also learn why everyone seems so impressed by Quinn, and its not just because he's a pretty face.
I quite enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it! I was also delighted to see a cameo by Blue Moon dancers Sean and Layla. If you'd like to read more about them, check out the anthology Night's Edge. Charlaine Harris is one of three contributing authors in that book, and Sean and Layla's story is a great one.
If you'd like to read more by Charlaine Harris. I recommend the Aurora Teagarden series. (Real Murders: An Aurora Teagarden Mystery, Bk. 1, 'A Bone to Pick', 'Three Bedrooms, One Corpse', 'The Julius House', 'Dead Over Heels', 'Fool and His Honey', 'Last Scene Alive', 'Poppy Done to Death')
A Vampire Convocation June 18, 2007
24 out of 27 found this review helpful
All Together Dead (2007) is the seventh Rural Fantasy novel in the Southern Vampire series, following Definitely Dead. In the previous volume, Sookie Stackhouse spoils plans of the Vampire King of Arkansas and Peter Threadgill switches to an alternative plan. Sookie manages to escape the ensuing violence with a little help from her friends.
When Sookie returns to her New Orleans lodgings, Amelia Broadway -- the witch who is her landlady -- announced that she has accidentally turned her lover Bob into a cat. Now Amelia needs a place to hide until Bob is restored. So Amelia travels back to Bon Temps with Sookie the next day.
In this novel, Amelia is living in Sookie's spare bedroom. Nobody really questions Amelia's presence since Bon Temps has its share of Katrina victims. Bob is still a cat and Amelia hasn't yet found anyone to work with her on restoring him to his human shape.
The weddings of the Bellefleur siblings had been postponed when Miss Caroline -- the clan matriarch -- suffered a heart attack in the spring. Now Sookie is busy attending bridal showers for Halleigh Robinson (but not for Portia Bellefleur). Of course, Amelia is one topic of conversation at the showers, but Sookie just tells the truth (but not the whole truth) and people assume the rest.
Sookie also has to prepare for the Vampire Summit. Since all the Arkansas vampires participating in King Peter's plot had failed to survive, Sookie is going to be a prime witness at Queen Sophie-Anne's trial. Moreover, the Queen wants Sookie to pay close attention to the thoughts of humans attending the summit.
Sookie will once again be working at the summit with Barry Bellboy -- formerly Barry Horowitz -- of the Texas delegation. Barry is the only other human telepath known to Sookie. He has come up in the world since their last meeting, but she later learns that he is still less mature than herself.
The summit will be held at the Pyramid of Gizeh -- a vampire hotel and tourist attraction -- in Rhodes, Michigan. Amelia googles the website for Sookie. Of course, the hotel has a pyramidal shape, but is shorter and less steep than the Egyptian version. Also, the pyramid has smoked glass windows and sits on a big rectangle that contains the convention center.
Sookie has orders to dress sumptuously and has been provided a credit account at Tara's Togs. Tara has been advising her on clothes for years, but Sookie has always been on a limited budget. Now Sookie gets to splurge, outfitting herself from head to toe.
In this story, Sookie and Amelia also attend the wedding of her brother Jason Stackhouse. Even before Jason became a partial werepanther, he had been going with Crystal Norris. Now the Hot Shot community is going all out for the wedding.
Sookie just hopes that her brother stops his tomcatting with normals. The werepanther community is very inbred and wants to reserve his genes for themselves. Think of dozens of irate brothers and cousins with shotguns and claws.
Highly recommended for Harris fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of vampire intrigues, homicidal conspiracies and telepathic detectives.
-Arthur W. Jordin
 Just okay... you might want to wait for the paperback May 7, 2007
23 out of 37 found this review helpful
All in all, this is a nice read, but a bit of a let down. The first third of the book is small town life, wedding showers and the entailing gossip, tepid family dynamics, shopping for clothes.
The summit Sookie attends takes up the next third, and despite the fact that this gathering is of vampires and other paranormals, it reads like every business convention I have ever attended. Kiosks selling related products, meeting old business acquaintances, scrambling for power among the bosses, and, naturally, concerns about what to wear to each event. Description of Sookie's clothing takes up a lot of ink.
Life threatening danger (a minor mystery that you figured out long before the characters did), big finish, and Sookie goes home, with her life in the same limbo it was before she left. Sookies's relationships with Quinn, Eric, Bill is left up in the air, and you get to wait and see if the next book gets us anywhere new.
An easy read, but ultimately dissatisfying.
PG-13 sex, mild language.
Walk Like An Egyptian. Or a Britlingen. May 29, 2007
17 out of 18 found this review helpful
In this, the seventh installment of Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire series, we enter an expanded world. Heroine Sookie Stackhouse has grown from being mere barmaid in a small town to being telepathic aide-de-camp to Queen Sophie of Louisiana at a summit of vamps and others in the city of Rhodes. The situs of the convention, the Hotel Gizeh, bears a striking resemblance to the Luxor in Las Vegas which, when combined with the vampire patronized Anubis Airlines, adds a nice undead Egyptian touch.
However, Sophie Anne arrives at the meeting somewhat depleted. Hurricane Katrina has ravaged her queendom, killing many of her subjects and doing untold property damage. Additionally, she is charged with the murder of her husband, and Sookie alone is witness to the facts that can exonerate her at the upcoming trial. Underlings vie for position, rivals plot overthrows, and potential suitors connive for a powerful alliance. In other words, your typical regional professional meeting.
Mix in Sookie's growing romance with were-tiger Quinn (grrrowl!), political intrigue and power plays, otherworldly bodyguards known as the Britlingens, and a cast of new characters representing vampire royalty from all over the U.S., and you have a wonderful fresh tale. I marvel at the imagination of Harris as she plucks new beings and social systems from out of seeming thin air and breaths life into them with absolute believability and skill.
This is a transitional novel, and as such some of the dramatic tension of the earlier books is replaced with laying the foundation for what promises to be a dynamite next chapter in this exciting and ever-entertaining series. Why does the cover art show Sookie clinging to Eric as they fly on an obviously preoccupied coffin? Well I'll let you find that out on your own.
|
|
|
Powered by Associate-O-Matic
| |
