Review: Dead in the Family

Reviewed by Jen
 

This book begins in a very dark place for Sookie Stackhouse.  Her body and soul have been ravaged by the torture she endured in the Fae Wars.  Claudine is dead. Bill is on death's door.  And Amelia is going back to New Orleans.  But Sookie isn't one to let herself stay down for long.  With the love and support of Sam and Eric, she is slowly recovering.  And that's a good thing, because more trouble lies ahead.

Victor, the second-in-command to the new vampire King of Louisiana, has it in for Eric --and by extension, Sookie.  She and Eric are married by vampire law and the blood bond between them is strong. Essentially, she is both a strength and a weakness for the Viking vampire.  Victors games are forcing Eric and Sookie to spend more time apart than she'd like. And she's quickly becoming a target for Victor's aggression.

To make Eric's life more complicated, his maker pays a surprise visit, with a new "child" in tow.  Eric has mixed feelings for his sire, Appius.  There is affection there, but also fear of the control his maker has over him.  Eric's new "brother" comes in a child's body. He's bat-shit crazy --and a bed partner for Appius.  It's creepy all the way around, but Eric has no power to influence the situation and Sookie has even less control.

While all this is going on, there is an unidentified Fae lurking on Sookie's property. She must deal with that threat; help the weres with the mystery of who killed one of their pack; and lend a hand to her young telepathic cousin, Hunter.  Oh yeah, and Claude is back, asking to be Sookie's new roomate.

It wasn't a bad book. Fans finally get the Sookie and Eric coupledom that has been dangled like a carrot for so long. There's plenty of action. But there is something intangible missing from this installment. Maybe it's the change in Sookie, the loss of her innocence and optimism.   Maybe it's the lack of sexual tension in her love life... she's got her man and the anticipation is gone.  I'm not sure.  But it was still good stuff and I can't wait to see what happens next.  Almost 4 stars.