Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9) Review

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Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9) ReviewI wanted to give the book atleast three stars bc i love the series so much, but I have to agree with the majority of the negative reviews on this one and say,"what happened?". The last book, from dead to worse, was so detailed and long, it was wonderful! I felt like I was reading a short hand version, or an extremely edited down piece that had to fit into a certain number of words. If CH had kept the same story line for this book and just given us the plot detail and character depth evidenced in the last book, this book would have been simply phenomenal! As a fan, I find that not only disappointing, but extremely frustrating.
ARGH!***BEWARE***THERE BE SPOILERS HERE**********************************
OK, so the two stars were basically for giving us atleast SOME progression with the whole Eric/Sookie relationship, although it still basically went NOWHERE. So he tricks her into what is basically a vampire form of marriage and she barely reacts - she had more of a hissy fit when he yelled at her for dancing with barry bellhop in rhodes! She blames her lack of anger on her blood bond, but she also states that she hasn't seen him for months and that should lessen a little over time...it just seemed weird. And as neat as that story line is, it wasn't even addressed or reacted to by anyone (except sam, but barely). I mean, come on! I don't know why it matters though, bc I figure in the next book she will find something to be mad at him for and he will be on the outs like bill, quinn, and everyone else she get's involved with - I just feel like the whole Eric thing has been building up over so many books that there should be more time devoted to finally developing that before it get's ruined for further plot development - we've been "teased" enough. Give us something more than a few scenes!
Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of this book, for me, was sookie's lack of initiative in seeking supe support and protection for herself! Especially after the last book ended recapping her strong favor with the vamps and weres! It was ridiculous that she knew she was being targeted to be killed (or worse), actually ends up killing a fairy sent to kill her, and she takes days to ask for any real assistance or call in her supe markers with the vamps or Alcide. When she finally does ask for help, it's lame coverage that falls through and she doesn't ask for back up? The coverage doesn't tell their bosses that they have left her unprotected? She doesn't want to worry her friends, who could help her, or at the very least be warned that being around sookie can be dangerous,so she doesn't tell them? She doesn't tell her brother that he is also a potential target, until after that fairies approach him?!
And why does Eric leave her bed, knowing the issue of her safety is unresolved? Yeah, he suggested maybe she stay at his place, but the whole issue of her safey is sidetracked by "what are you looking for in this relationship", vs. "hey, killer fairies are out to get my lover whom i've just officially claimed in the supe community, even tried to murder her today, and I'm out the door with a 'see ya soon'?" That doesn't seem at all like Eric. Mister, possessive vampire guy who always sends Bubba over the moment he has ANY concerns?! I mean really he had Pam DATE Sookie's roommate Amelia, just to get Pam even closer to protect Sookie, but he leaves her completely unprotected after knowing a fairy tried to KILL her?? Why would he leave w/o having her safety arranged for? Why the heck hasn't Niall arranged safety for her from the beginning, or even after the first attempt on her life? Why doesn't Claudine, who shows up when sookie falls asleep at the wheel of a car, show up when faries are trying to kill her? What the heck? And why, in God's name, would you be out running errands when you need a body gaurd bc killer fairies are out to assassinate you - do you really need to go to the post office that badly? Come on!
Also, the violence. Torture? Killing pregnant women? That added nothing to the story and was simply disturbing and unecessary. The characters she killed off - why? And more detail was given to sookie's reaction to octavia leaving than to the second pregnant woman's murder, which was just completely a waste - what a loss of a great character under such horrible circumstances.
And then, to top it all off, the whole amazing world of fae is just closed down in the end anyway, after all that - what a waste of plot and characters. I'm hoping that's not the case, and more will be done with it in the next book? Honestly, I would have loved it if Sookie had called in her marks almost immediately and all her supe friends & fairy family took the threat serioulsy, but were simply smacked down by how ruthless the fairies were, resulting in Eric becomming uber protective and rallying all the supes to work and fight together against the faires as a common threat to their common bond, our gal sookie! Yeah!! Atleast there would have been more action and the character deaths would have felt justified!

Quinn is in one scene and then is gone for the rest of the book - why bother? Heck, how bout if he had found out that Sookie was in trouble and insisted on staying to gaurd her regardless of Eric - the guy's a weretiger and a pit fighter trying to prove himself! That would have been kinda cool, and interesting from a love triangle point of view too!
We were told Hunter was in this book - what, one mention in a phone call? And then sookie just assumes the kid's not a target bc she THINKS Niall doesn't know about him? Give the kid's dad a warning, something, "get the kid away for awhile, be careful, look out for bad guys, stock up on lemon juice" - something!
Ok, obviously I found this book frustrating and I think my review has turned into more of a cathartic threapeutic venting session than a commentary. I'm not giving up on sookie, just hoping this is an anomaly, and hoping for more of CH's great writing in the future (please). Although, if the book continues to average 4 out of 5 stars (geez, are we reading the same book here people?), I can't believe that would give the author any incentive to give us better in the future! Why put more work into something when the readers are 4/5 happy with less?
This is such a wonderful series, I'd hate for it to deterioate!Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9) Overview

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Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) Review

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Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) ReviewI adored both Twilight and New Moon (gave them both 5 star ratings) and was happily anticipating loving Eclipse as much as I did the first 2 in this series. Unfortunately, the bad things really overshadowed the good for me in this installment.
I think Stephenie Meyer has an amazingly readable writing style; she's definitely one of 3 writers that I budget time to read their latest books in one sitting (Rowling, Charlaine Harris and Meyer). Eclipse was no exception in terms of being a page-turner. This novel really showcases Meyer's great sense of humor as well. Obviously from the amount of time and emotional energy I've invested into the series over the last couple of years, I care very intensely for her characters, and I think having your readers care so much for the characters should be a real tribute to any writer.
I was very pleased that Edward and Bella finally confronted the issue of their sexual relationship. It was tastefully depicted in my judgment, and it was long overdue. I also think it makes perfect sense for Bella to realize that having human sexual experience before sacrificing her humanity is worth exploring.
While I agree with so many other reviewers that the action plot in this book was only ho-hum at best, I did cheer that Bella (and we readers) at long last got to see Edward the Vampire in action. Now she has a better idea what she'll become, and he understands that she doesn't think him a monster for having witnessed him being a full-fledged vampire.
I didn't like the concept of imprinting (which is limited to the werewolves). It eliminates free will entirely, which I found very unsettling. I also found the similarities between imprinting and Bella's relationship with Edward to be more than a bit disturbing (more on that below).
The Cullens and the Wolves are no closer to understanding the core of humanity that resides in each of them. Jacob acknowledges that Edward loves Bella, but he still doesn't understand their love at all and hasn't made any attempt to understand the Cullens generally. Same, of course, holds true for the Cullens not being keen on the wolves at all. I really thought this would have to be the central theme, but I would have expected more progress in Eclipse.
Now for the Ugly .....
I'm shocked and appalled that Ms. Meyer could believe that many of us who disliked or were on the fence about Jacob in previous books would suddenly convert to pro-Jacob fans after reading Eclipse. I'm truly shocked.
After her book-signing tour for Eclipse, Meyer updated her website with some FAQs about Eclipse, and she has this to say about Jacob: "Those who are upset by some of his tactics should consider his youth and the fact that he is, after all, right. Bella is in love with him."
I thought Jacob was absolutely horrid as a person for the entirety of the novel, and it went beyond simple immaturity. Bella defends Edward (and her love of Edward) to Jacob at one point, emphasizing that Edward is decent. And Edward is decent. And good to the core.
Jacob, however, is not. He is so not decent. I truly despised him by the end of Eclipse and quite honestly, I wish he would just never return from his sojourn in the forest.
I've read enough reviews and talked to enough other readers to know that I'm not alone in being extremely upset and bothered by the Forced Kiss. No decent man would force himself on a woman, no matter what. His inexperience and immaturity don't excuse it. His goal of forcing Bella to acknowledge the connection between them is not sufficient reason for him to have done that. His apology might have ameliorated the wrong, if he had followed through and stopped trying to force or trick Bella into intimacy with him. I think the Forced Kiss sends a horrible message to Meyer's younger fans too. There are no repercussions from his forcing himself on her. Even Bella's father good-naturedly congratulates Jacob for having kissed Bella against her will! Yes, really.
The second later kiss (the one where he threatens to commit suicide since Bella doesn't care about him, provoking her to ask him to kiss her, henceforth the "Trickery Kiss") also proves unequivocally that Jacob is neither decent, nor a man. He's just a bitter, conniving, dishonorable and immature little boy who will apparently stop at nothing to try and get what he wants. I don't believe for one moment that Jacob is motivated solely by the lofty aspiration to save Bella from a fate worse than death (being turned into a vampire). Jacob wants what will make Jacob happy, and he makes absolutely no attempt to genuinely understand Bella's perspective.
Meyer clearly wants readers to feel Jacob's "pain," but honestly, he's 16 years old (which, remember, apparently gives him license to be a total jerk). But, if he's just an average immature 16 year old kid, then he'll just get over Bella and move on, right? I don't fundamentally understand why Jacob's broken heart is supposed to tug at my heart-strings. At the end of Eclipse, it is late June or perhaps mid-July. Jacob and Bella became best friends in January of the same year. He's really known her well for all of 6 months and he's 16 years old. It's a big shrug, isn't it? And if it isn't, why not? Hmmmm......might it be because Bella is turning into the biggest Mary Sue in all YA literature?
Bella frankly comes off worse than Jacob in this book. I've been a big Bella fan and defender in the prior books, but she left me cold in this one. I think she is selfish, whiny, indecisive, subservient to every male in her universe and generally a terrible role model for younger readers of these novels.
I think that Bella was portrayed in Twilight as an "old soul," and the love that she and Edward have (had?) was meant to transcend the normal love relationship that average teenagers might experience (or even that most adults might have). Their love was painted as something that was a cut above all other romance. Most average love affairs get tested by threats such as what Jacob poses. But, the Bella/Edward love story was, I thought, something different. If you take away the supernatural trappings of the two males, then you're left with a rather humdrum average love story, are you not? Again, what was the point of the New Moon epiphany if Bella just throws it all out the window in the next book and remains convinced that she's not good enough for Edward and starts to have romantic interest in another guy?
Bella did at last agree to marry Edward in this book. She made that promise to him, was engaged and then cheated on him. Just because she is only going through the formality of the wedding and an actual marriage because it's important to Edward is no excuse to treat it as though it isn't a promise. And it just kills me, absolutely breaks my heart, for her to be thinking "How soon can I give him back this ring without hurting his feelings?" when he's so suffused with joy and happiness at seeing it on her finger, at knowing that she's agreed to compromise and make him happy with a marriage that is clearly very important to him. That is heart-breaking. Edward deserves so much better.
Further, her objections to marriage are weak. Since we knew in New Moon that Bella had undefined "issues" with marriage, I expected Eclipse to reveal something more along the clichéd line of "child of divorced parents" than the reality. The "I don't want to be that girl" reasoning is really, really lame when you consider what Bella's ultimate plans are. Why the hell would she care what the kids she graduated with are saying about her, when she's never going to see any of them ever again? Since when did Bella Swan care about gossip or what other kids her own age thought about her? Charlie and Renee might be disappointed and encouraging her to wait until after college, but if Bella said the right things, her parents would accept her decision. I can understand the whole "that girl" argument, really I can -- but it makes no sense for Bella to be making that argument. It's weak and completely out-of-character. As one reviewer noted, it's a manufactured conflict designed to stretch out the storyline by another book.
I'm also growing very weary of Bella's self-esteem problems. I can't help wondering what happened to that great epiphany she had at the end of New Moon? The one where Bella and Edward both realized that they love each other completely and would always belong to each other --- what happened to that? In Eclipse, Bella is right back to viewing her relationship with Edward as "out of balance." As Edward noted once, "the way you regard me is ludicrous." I thought we were past all that, and yet Eclipse drags us right back down into the abyss of Bella's self-esteem issues. It's really growing tiresome and overdone (much like the continued repetitive emphasis on Edward's beauty). Grow up and grow a spine, will you, Bella? Please do us all a favor and get a backbone.
In literature (or movies), the author has an obligation to lay some clues that a love triangle is in the offing. Otherwise, it's just cheating. And I feel cheated, completely and utterly cheated. If Bella is resolute about anything, it's that she loves Edward and has only friendship feelings for Jacob. In her Eclipse FAQ again, Meyer insists that Bella fell in love with Jacob in New Moon and states: "Bella has only fallen in love one time, and it was a very sudden, dramatic, sweep-you-off-your-feet, change-your-world, magical, passionate, all-consuming thing (see: Twilight). Can you blame her for not recognizing a much more subtle kind of falling-in-love?" Well, Bella may not recognize it for what it is, but the readers darn sure should be able to see it. I know I'm not alone in finding no evidence of Bella...Read more›Eclipse (The Twilight Saga, Book 3) Overview

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New Moon (Twilight Saga, Book 2) Review

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New Moon (Twilight Saga, Book 2) Review4.5 stars
NOTE: I'm adding, rather late, apparently, that there's a bit of a spoiler in this review. So, read with caution. That said, if you paid attention while reading Twilight, I'm puzzled as to how my spoiler could possibly be a spoiler. Myers spelled it out, in the book and interviews, almost as clearly as she spells out Bella's awed perception of Edward.
**********
In my review of Twilight, I said that the book had more in common with "Catcher in the Rye" and "Pride and Prejudice" than it did with any vampire novels or stories. That still holds true, although be certain: I'm not comparing Twilight or New Moon to these books in terms of literary quality. There are few that match either.
In New Moon we miss the vampires for most of the story, and Bella spends time with her friend Jacob, an Indian fated with becoming a werewolf, and fated to hate all "bloodsuckers", regardless of whether or not the bloodsuckers took human lives. (Btw, that little bit is cleared up at the end...what exactly their treaty entails. It's interesting, kind of, but I have to wonder if the author thought of it as the story was being written, and that it wasn't planned when the "treaty" was first mentioned. I suppose it doesn't matter.)
If you're reading this story because you like vampire stories, you will be disappointed. Edward's only around for a bit less than 1/3 of the book. When he is around, however, his presence is appreciated. One thing that the author didn't do this time, and it was similarly appreciated, was to have Bella writing down every single thought that she had regarding his absolute perfection (remember, this is a first person narrative).
While spending time with "the wolves", Bella goes through some interesting growth patterns. I say interesting, because I'm not entirely certain that I followed them or that if I understood them that I agreed with them. That said, I've never been a teenage girl, and the author has been a teenage girl, so I have to bow to her experience in this.
Many readers will look at Bella's behavior during her "dalliance with wolves" as bizarre and entirely unbelievable. I don't think they were. For anyone that has had the absolute love of their life torn from them, with the *absolute* belief that this love would not return, and if you happen to be emotionally immature to top all of this off, your behavior wouldn't be too far off from Bella's. I'm not saying exactly like Bella's, just not too far off.
Again, this is not a vampire story. The fact that vampires were not around in this book as often as some may have liked did not lessen the quality of the story. What was missing, though, was the urgency, and the mystery. For example, we never knew why, in Twilight, Edward recoiled upon first seeing Bella until the very end. We had a reaction, and a resolution, and during that time we had lots of questions. That type of immediacy was missing here. Everything was rather straightforward.
When Edward lies to Bella, we know that he is lying, and we know that there will be resolution. The problem is that we know he's lying, and we know the resolution won't be too surprising.
I did enjoy the unique take on werewolves, but I felt that since we had seen so much of the vampires in the first book, that we should have seen and felt more of the werewolves in this book.
One thing that I found particularly frustrating was the similarity of emotion that both Jake and Edward have for Bella. Yes, Bella is a clutz, and she definitely needs protecting. But to have two main characters, in two separate books, respond to her in a nearly identical manner (both fearing for, and being vocal about, her need to be less careless), is tough to buy.
There were some hints of future issues between the Cullens and Jake's clan. I hope we see them. And I hope that this story can survive the necessary metamorphosis - at some point, it will need to be less about Bella's intense love for Edward, and more about the actual situations surrounding them.
This may sound like a negative review. It's not. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I've seen others that gave Twilight 5 stars give this 1 or 2 stars, and I've questioned that. I think that given the nature of this story, readers need to be more aware of what this story is really about. See the first paragraph of this review for that.
I'm anxiously awaiting the third book. There are a lot of possibilities, and I can't help but wonder which possibility the author will choose, and how she will resolve whatever roadblocks her choices give her.
New Moon (Twilight Saga, Book 2) Overview

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