Book Review Genre: Paranormal Romance

Disclaimer: Reading is all about exploring new worlds, but this Book Review does not shy away from spoiling specific scenes as this is more of a look inside the good and bad of a book.

The Analysis:

This was a book that’s been on my TBR for a long time. An opportunity presented itself for me to read it in the form of a live booktube book club chat. Lost the link to it, sorry. I’m going to be doing lots of readathons and TBR prompts to help myself get through my backlog of ebooks on my kindle and google play. So, let’s book review it. But first, follow me on Goodreads.

Here’s The Blurb:

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Bon Temps, Louisiana. She’s quiet, doesn’t get out much, and tends to mind her own business—except when it comes to her “disability.” Sookie can read minds. And that doesn’t make her too dateable. Then along comes Bill Compton. He’s tall, dark, handsome—and Sookie can’t hear a word he’s thinking. He’s exactly the type of guy she’s been waiting for all her life…

But Bill has a disability of his own: he’s a vampire with a bad reputation. And when a string of murders hits Bon Temps—along with a gang of truly nasty bloodsuckers looking for Bill—Sookie starts to wonder if having a vampire for a boyfriend is such a bright idea.

Cover Critique:

This cover is everything I hate about illustrated covers. I saw this in a book store years ago before the hype and just could not bring myself to buy it. It’s just not appealing to me.

Now The Story:

Book Info:
Pages: 304
Author: Charlaine Harris
Available: Google Play

Debunking criticisms in one sentence:
1) The writing is sophomoric: The writing is not overly flowery and complicated, but neither is the setting and the characters.
2) The characters are flat: I’m starting to not even no what this means because I felt like I saw the characters quite clearly and they matched up with most of the cast of True Blood to perfection. (This doesn’t often happen in book print and media print.)
3) It’s just another boring romance between an alpha and a weak woman: It’s a trope of the genre and in this iteration, it’s done quite well.
4) There is no atmosphere: Maybe, if you’re comparing it to the writing of Anne Rice, but again see reason 1.

So, what didn’t I like? Little things at a glance.
• The arrangement of the novel: The chapters are dense, and you feel less accomplished at the end of a reading cycle. [I might be committing this faux pas with one of my own novels lol. It can’t be helped.]
• Tara and Lafayette’s missing presence: Those personalities, like Tara’s inner strength and Lafayette’s quick wit and wisdom, just aren’t in this story and it kinda makes me sad.
• Bill being in the confederacy: White author’s penchant for putting vampires on the wrong side of the war without explanation or apology. This article speaks clearer than I on the subject.
• Sam: I hate the friendzone character/trope in all its iterations.

• The Mystery: The story starts to feel like a slice-of-life plot rather than an actual mystery.

I’m starting this novel, for the first time, after years of the show being off air and I still read this in the southern twang of Anna Paquin.

For most of the novel, I kinda felt like I was waiting for the granny to die. Just because that’s the prevalent scene that sticks out in my head from the show. Of course, some things went differently than what played out in the book because of 2 characters mentioned above. But more on that later. I totally agreed with Andi Bellefleur’s thoughts in the aftermath of granny’s death because I was sick of them all too. Sam playing his friendzone role, again. Jason acting out of character or in character, hard to know. Bill being overprotective in such a predictable way. Sookie acting so naive in a moment that didn’t need it. Send them all to jail, Andy.

Then came the biggest glaring absence when the granny died and Sookie was going through it alone. Where were Tara and Lafayette. My heart literally ached for the character in this moment because she didn’t have them. And despite Lafayette’s absence, this book does offer up a few accidental chuckles.

But when Bill shows up to comfort her it offers up some sweet moments. Except, I’m left feeling a little out in the cold by Bill and Sookie’s romance. I’m not sure I fully believe it and it does happen too quickly without them spending a significant amount of time together. It just feels like she’s rarely with him, but a ton of other people. But the short slightly pg sex scene does what it’s supposed to do and offers up some eyebrow-raising moments. And from that point forward their relationship gets more believable.

Sookie’s bashfulness also isn’t as sweet to read as it is to watch. For some reason, in my head, this blond blue-eyed sweet girl, doesn’t even seem real. No way she’s this sweet when it comes to sex without knowing at least a little bit with the exposure people get to sex in media these days. For some reason, I feel like in the tv show that they may have dialed this part down a bit or at least explained it.

Her most annoying moment goes to Arlene needing a babysitter. I’m not a mother, but I totally get what she was saying. Sookie had the nerve to be offended that the woman didn’t want a vampire watching her kids. I just wanted to say, shut up, Sookie to that whole scene. Arlene eventually allowing her to babysit took extreme courage and a huge risk. [Heck, my vamps are generally safe around kids, but everyone loses control and don’t no human be around when that happens.]

I guess I’m just less enamored with the character. Again, nothing that took away from the enjoyment of the novel. However, I got annoyed at her constantly mentioning how “special” it was that she couldn’t hear Bill’s thoughts. Mostly because it was a compliment said in a way that made it seem like everyone else was trash just for being human. Like chick you’re special. But that doesn’t make humans trash because they’re doing a natural human thing like thinking quietly to themselves lol. Like how dare they have thoughts around you like it’s a natural innate ability people do every day. Like we’re supposed to get mad at the world for her. It’s not great for you to be in this situation, but it’s not humans fault that you are.

Jason, her brother, is just hard to take in this story too. From his reaction to her sexual abuse to him hitting her after grannies death, just makes this character reprehensible. I don’t remember any of this happening in the show. Or maybe because the brother is played more as an idiot, I excused it. But the guy in this novel isn’t funny or head-scratchingly slow in his deduction skills. This guy is just mean and doesn’t really seem to love his sister. People like this exist in the world, of course. I’m just surprised to see it in this book for this character.

Story At A Glance:

Recommendation:  3 out of 5

Read Series Continuation:  Yes

 Book Review The Ratings:

Book Cover Appeal:

🍓🍓🍓🍓🍓

Story & Narration:

🍓🍓🍓

Romance:

🍓🍓🍓🍓

Character/(s) Personality:

🍓🍓🍓🍓

Read one of my books and leave your own book review.