From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris

   2008; 308 pages.  Book 8 (out of 13) in the “Sookie Stackhouse” series.  New Author? : No.  Genres : Paranormal Mystery; Gothic Romance; Vampires; Werewolves.  Overall Rating : 7½*/10.

 

    To say that these are turbulent times in Sookie Stackhouse’s life would be an understatement.  The Were clans (as in "Werewolf") in Bon Temps, Louisiana are engaged in a bitter struggle for supremacy and somehow Sookie is in the middle of it.  Sookie’s beau, Quinn, is a "weretiger" and is currently missing-in-action.

 

    The Vampire factions are also warring against each other, for dominance and Sookie is known to have a blood bond with one of the leaders.  One of her neighbors is a vamp, and he’s also one of her ex-lovers.  A vampire named Jonathan has been asking around about Sookie, which means he’s probably a spy for one of the factions.

 

    Sookie’s brother Jason is having marital difficulties with his werepanther wife.  Sookie’s roommate is a witch who’s in bad graces with her coven for accidentally turning a human into a pet cat.  The whole Pelt family thinks Sookie might be responsible for the killing of Debbie Pelt.  And in truth, they’re right.

 

    What’s a telepathic human to do?  Well, maybe keep showing up for work on time (a waitress at a local bar) and hope that Quinn shows up again, unharmed.

 

What’s To Like...

    From Dead to Worse is the eighth book in Charlaine Harris’s completed “Sookie Stackhouse” series.  I’ve been reading these books in order, so am a bit more than halfway through.  The book is written in the first-person POV, Sookie’s, and is a continuation of the events in the previous book, All Together Dead, which is recapped in the opening Prologue.  I much appreciated that, since it’s been a year since I read that one.

 

    There isn’t really a “main plotline” here.  Instead, the reader joins Sookie in about ten mini plot threads, including a.) who’s the withered man, b.) where’s Quinn, c.) who sent the phony cop to try and kill Eric, d.) who killed Maria-Star Cooper.  Plus about a half-dozen more.

 

    Sookie gets to meet two members of her extended family, which I thought was neat.  Early on, she meets her great-grandfather, Niall, whose fairy bloodline means he’s been living for a very long time.  At the book’s close, she meets a younger relative, whose identity we’ll refrain from giving since it would be a spoiler.

 

    The usual creatures—dead, undead, ultra-religious, and magical—are all once again present.  I liked the “ectoplasmic reconstruction” ritual, which would be quite useful.  The Thai courteous greeting known as “wai” is worked into the story and brought back fon memories.  I learned and used it on a business trip in Bangkok long ago.  I also enjoyed Charlaine Harris’s music nods: Evanescence, Dixie Chicks, Travis Tritt, and Carrie Underwood.  Those selections show good tastes.

 

    There’s no build-up to a rock-'em, sock-'em ending.  Instead, you get a bunch of “mini-endings” for each of the short plotlines.  Happily, all of those get resolved, including Bob the Cat’s dilemma.  From Dead to Worse is both a standalone novel and a part of a series.

 

Ratings…
    Amazon:  4.6/5 based on 3,511 ratings and 722 reviews.

    Goodreads: 4.01/5 based on 188,428 ratings and 4,051 reviews.

 

Excerpts...

    She bowed her head.  “The prince is my grandfather,” she said.

    “Oh,” I said.  “So, we’re like cousins?”

    She looked down at me, her eyes clear and dark and calm.  She didn’t look like a woman who’d just killed two wolves as quick as you could snap your fingers.  “Yes,” she said.  “I guess we are.”

    “So what do you call him?  Granddaddy?  Popsy?”

    “I call him ‘my lord.’ "

    “Oh.”  (loc. 2107)

 

    “Ah, that seems likely to result in some pretty bad things happening to Tanya,” I said.

    “Isn’t that what you want?”  Octavia looked innocent in a real sly way.

    “Well, yeah, but I don’t want her to die.  I mean, I don’t want anything she can’t get over to happen to her.  I just want her away and not coming back.”

    Amelia said, “ ‘Away and not coming back’ sounds pretty final to me.”

    It sounded that way to me, too.  “I’ll rephrase.”  (loc. 3541)

 

Kindle Details…

    Right now, From Dead to Worse sells for $7.99 at Amazon.  The rest of the books in the series are all in the $3.99-$9.99 price range.  Charlaine Harris has several other series for you in Kindle format, none of which I’ve read.  The prices of those books are in the $2.99-$14.99 range.

 

 I was practically reeking with normality by the time I got home.  (loc. 3601)

    I noted nine instances of profanity in the first 25% of From Dead to Worse, including one f-bomb.  That seemed about normal for this series.  I only caught a couple of typos: sooth/soothe and adherants/adherents.  I don’t recall any “adult situations”.

 

    After the Prologue, there’s a wedding chapter that gives updates on a bunch of characters that have little impact on the rest of the tale.  I think it’s the author’s way of introducing and giving updates for a slew of characters from the earlier books in the series, but if they don’t play a further part in the book, isn't it just wasted effort?

 

    The biggest issue has already been mentioned: the lack of an overarching storyline.  I felt like I was reading a Sookie Stackhouse anthology, and I’m not a big fan of anthologies.  Still, Charlaine Harris’s writing skills are sufficient to make it work.  But I think less-proficient writers should avoid the temptation of trying this.

 

     From Dead to Worse is a solid contribution to this series, but I wouldn't call it a top-tier entry.  Nevertheless, I enjoyed it, and look forward to the next book, Dead and Gone.  Hopefully, it will have an “everything builds to an exciting climax” storyline.

 

    7½ Stars.  Subtract 1 star if you’re not reading this series in order, particularly if you haven’t read the previous book, All Together Dead.  The backstory in the Prologue only helps if you’ve read the "back story".