Book Review - Dead to the World

Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris

Book four of the Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series is arguably the best one of the series so far. Setting the action back in Bon Temps, after the previous two books were set out of town, this time around Sookie must protect Eric, who is suffering from memory loss due to a witches curse, from a coven of evil witches. She must also deal with the disappearance of her brother Jason, as well as her break-up with Bill, who spends most of this book in Peru.

There's a bit more supernatural stuff going on this time around. We meet some new beings, or Supes as they are called in the book, including some new Shifters, a fairy and a coven of witches. Sookie's brother Jason also gets more to do in this book, he becomes involved in the supernatural world and his character will certainly never be the same again after this book. Some of the characters who we met in the previous book, Club Dead: A True Blood Novel also reappear, most notably Alcide, Sookie's werewolf friend (although he, along with many other male characters is something of a love interest for her).

If you have read any of these books before then you know what to expect here; a fun, slightly tongue in cheek paranormal mystery. Our heroine, Sookie is fairly brazen and although she isn't the sharpest tool in the box, acts as a very entertaining narrator. Style wise, the book is very simple to read, and it won't take you long as it is quite addictive reading, as are the other books in this series. If you haven't read any of those, then I suggest you go back to Dead Until Dark: A True Blood Novel and start from there, as although this can be understood and read as a single mystery, there are things that do overlap from book to book, such as characters and mythology. Nothing too mind boggling, but it's always best to get the whole effect of this world.

So all in all, this is an addictive, fun and at times suspenseful read, which is the strongest addition to the series so far. Let's hope that book five keeps up with this trend.