Book Review: From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris

by Tammy Thompson

From Dead to Worse
(Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book (Hardcover)
by Charlaine Harris
Publisher: Ace Hardcover (May 6, 2008)
ISBN-13: 978-0441015894
Buy This Book
Buy the First Book in the Series

The latest installment in the Sookie Stackhouse mystery series, From Dead To Worse, picks up a few months after the last book, All Together Dead, leaves off. Reeling from the aftermath of both hurricane Katrina and the fiery disaster at the Vampire summit, Sookie tries to regain some normalcy in her life. Unfortunately, events conspire to make her life anything but normal, at least by human standards.

Unlike previous books in this series, From Dead To Worse is more about wrapping up several storylines rather than any one mystery in particular. If there is a prevailing theme it would be change, lots of change for not only Sookie, but many of the characters we’ve come to know, love, and in some cases hate. Several ongoing storylines are wrapped up, a couple new ones started, and maybe a hint or two about upcoming developments. Definitely a lot going on in a short space of time, so bear with me, we‘ve got a lot of ground to cover.

On the family forefront, new relatives she didn’t know existed come to light, who will hopefully be good for Sookie, and not be the perpetual problem her no account brother seems to be, and in this book is no exception. Jason once again uses Sookie for his own advantage.

I thought both the Vampire and Shifter wars would dominate the book, but this is not the case. Both factions succumb to major changes, whether or not they are good changes remains to be seen. Several ongoing and well past their prime storylines end, including the Debbie Van Pelt saga. The rest of the Shreveport Were’s, we hope will fade into the background where I think they work best as supporting characters.

The Vamps get a new regime, how Eric & company will weather the changes, again we shall see. I’m happy to see several good things where our two favorite vamps are concerned, mostly that Sookie seems to be able to get past her anger about Bill. While I would not like to see her back with Bill, I would like to see her forgive and care for him as a friend. I predict the Bill storyline will eventually break my heart.

This brings me to Sookie’s love life, which once again is in a state of flux. Quinn’s disappearance and the reasons for it cause a major upset for Sookie. Although now with Quinn out of the picture, I suspect that things with Eric will become more complex for Sookie, even though she is still conflicted about Eric. With his memory restored, the blood bond is the least of her problems.

Unlike most of the other books in this series, you really need to have read at least the last two books to not be totally lost about what is happening, or run the risk of not only major spoilers but probably a lot of confusion. While being a standalone book in a series can be a good thing, occasionally you need a book like this one to put things in order, whether it is putting the series back on track or changing the course of the series, either way it’s a good thing. Not my favorite book in the series, I think she did a major disservice to the Quinn character, and in the long run maybe even Sookie. A decent read and a definite must to anyone continuing in the series.

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Tammy Thompson lives on the Space Coast of Florida. An Elementary School Lunch Lady for most of the year, she keeps her eye on the Kennedy Space Center, just in case that space station gets a cafeteria and needs a Lunch Lady, and she’ll be ready to volunteer. Married with children, grandchildren, cats, rabbits and a beta fish named Dexter, and so many books they threaten to overtake every nook and cranny of our house. When she isn’t dishing out green beans, being mom, or taxi driver, she has her nose in a book.

Read Tammy’s blog 10 Forward: Confessions of an Intergalactic Lunch Lady.

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