Dead Ever After

A Sookie Stackhouse Novel, Book 13

By: Charlaine Harris

Narrated by: Johanna Parker

Length: 10 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Number-one New York Times best-selling author Charlaine Harris has won numerous awards for her Sookie Stackhouse Southern Vampire series, which has been adapted into the hit HBO show True Blood. In this 13th and final book, a murder rocks the town of Bon Temps and Sookie is arrested for the crime. After making bail, she sets out to clear her name - but her investigation only leads to more deaths.

©2013 Charlaine Harris, Inc. (P)2013 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"The Sookie Stackhouse series seamlessly mixes sensuality, violence, and humor." ( Boulder Weekly)

"Harris’s creation offers a magical and mysterious twist on traditional vampire stories." ( Houston Chronicle)

"What sucked me in? Definitely the books’ oddly charming, often funny mix of the mundane and the absurd. And the chills and thrills in boudoirs and various locales around the South aren’t too bad either." ( The Seattle Times)

thanks for the ending or lack there of!

ok I have listened to ALL of these books. this ending sucked. how do you wrap a story this way? her books have all been big then this horrible tiny ending with no flare. I feel the author just didn't care what happened. I'm giving it two stars to be generous.

Drunk?

Every character sounds like a spoiled whiny teenager who stayed up all night drinking and smoking. I can picture smudged cheap eye makeup, a too short jeans skirt, and some kind of tube top. Even our sweet and intelligent Sookie sounds like a trashy girl who just puked behind a dumpster and went right back to flirting with the nearest guy in this one.

Dissatisfied with the parade of old characters

What would have made Dead Ever After better?

This book did not read like a SVM story. I felt like I was reading fan fiction story ideas. There was a very weak plot and uninteresting side stories. Ms. Harris seems to have wanted the readers to have one last visit from many old characters even if it was forcing a contrived story line. ****Spoiler****. It was ridiculous that Copley, Marley, Steve N and more were all murderously angry with Sookie. I don't mind that Sookie ends up with Sam, but the complete dismissal of Eric's character was disappointing. He was developed as a love interest for Sookie since book 2, growing even more important to each other after the summit. The characters in Book 13 had stark differences from the rest if the series. It was as if someone else wrote the book or that Ms Harris was sick of writing these stories and just wanted to end it. I would have been happier if she had stopped at 12 or maybe even earlier.

What was most disappointing about Charlaine Harris’s story?

She developed Eric and then threw the character away without at realistic break up and good bye.

Which character – as performed by Johanna Parker – was your favorite?

Diantha! Her fast talk makes me laugh.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Frustrated and disappointed.

Terrible ending for a great series

What disappointed you about Dead Ever After?

The main characters were basically totally out of character in regards to the previous books. It was a parade of everyone that ever showed up in Sookie's life but with very little substance or relevance to the plot of the book.

A total disappointment!

Would you ever listen to anything by Charlaine Harris again?

Yes but not necessarily read all books in a series.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narration was fine, it was the dialog that was the issue.

What character would you cut from Dead Ever After?

Karen Slaughter - after all Pam was Eric's only child.

Any additional comments?

I was so looking forward to an exciting conclusion but it most assuredly was not there.

Major disappointment

I'm not upset about who Sookie ended up with. This book just plain sucks. The only thing I can think of is that Ms. Harris wasn't really interested in this book for whatever reason. It would have been better to have left it unfinished that to leave this final impression. There are unnecessary details that only served to fill pages without adding to the story and who the heck cares about new waitresses at Merlotte's who don't really have a part in the story? I finished this only because I've read the entire series and I especially enjoyed the earlier books.

I read one review that speculated that perhaps a ghost writer composed this novel and after listening I have to agree that that possibility seems rather likely. This just doesn't read like the other books.

This sucked!! So sorry I read the whole series!!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Writer should have stuck to the character traits with which she began the series

Has Dead Ever After turned you off from other books in this genre?

No, but I will never read another book from this writer.

What three words best describe Johanna Parker’s voice?

Versatile, interesting, pleasant.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

None.

Any additional comments?

So disappointed!

Ridiculously Bad Effort By Harris

Thanks Charlaine Harris for ending this series and leaving a horrible taste in my mouth. Did you even try when you wrote this book? I mean it's horrible. I guess she's just raking in that HBO money and doesn't need to worry about her pesky book fans. Nobody who's read every book in the series will be able to pass on reading the 13th and final book but just be warned...you will hate it because it's simply not good.

Dead Ever After--and hoping it never rises again.

Would you ever listen to anything by Charlaine Harris again?

Not really--I have listed to her Grave Series, and I see a trend of starting off interesting and then being unable to carry the story along.

What does Johanna Parker bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Johanna Parker is my favorite female narrator, and second overall (Scott Brick takes top honors). It's a shame she has been hired to read stories I really don't care for (Stackhouse being the only one that is of interest to me). It's because of her that I was able to finish the story; if I had been reading it in another format there would be a book on my fire or a melting Kindle.

Johanna Parker saved my Kindle from the flames. Bless her for that.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Dead Ever After?

Reject the entire manuscript and say "Try harder--your fans deserve better."

Any additional comments?

I will keep this short and to the point: Harris was losing her grip on the story two books ago, and with "lucky" number 13 she drops it into the Bog of Eternal Stench where it will hopefully remain submerged for the rest of eternity.

This book is merely a Trapp Family Singers "So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, good night...." as each character (still living, and those undead with the ability to move) are marched out for final parade review and released into the void never to return.

Yes, it's that brief. Here's the formula: "Hi! Remember me from [insert book]? This is what I have been up to since you last saw me, and I am here to help Sookie with this little piece of deus ex machina. My work here is done. So long...farewell....auf Wiedersehen, good night...."

And the character disappears.

The good news is that the series is FINISHED. Now, Harris left plenty of room to come back if she needs to, but the original series has now died of natural causes with no vampire around to offer it blood.

If there are any attempts to revive this series it will resemble a decomposing zombie which should be struck repeatedly on the head by all rational book readers until it stops moving.

What happened?

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

No. What a disappointment.

Would you recommend Dead Ever After to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes. Only because it is the last book in the series otherwise I would say don't waste your money.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Johanna Parker?

Yes, I love Johanna Parker.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Absolutely!

Sad but not unexpected

I must confess: I have a love/hate relationship with this series. I really came to like most of the characters, but after the first few novels, this series really went downhill. At the end of every book, I swore I'd never continue on, but then I'd see it on sale for cheap and pick it up, only to swear off it again.

This (on-sale daily deal) was the end of the series and I was kinda hoping Sookie would die maybe. Instead, the author paired her off with the only person left she hadn't hooked up with and yet again, more attempts on her life for reasons so far-fetched, you might think Harris was drunk while writing. What a stretch. If you are looking for a satisfying conclusion, try the HBO series and cross your fingers. Number 13 is an unlucky one for anyone who reads these books.

As with all awful experiences, I'm glad it's over. I really need to work on my completion complex apparently.