Living Dead in Dallas (Sookie Stackhouse, #2)

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Living Dead in Dallas (Sookie Stackhouse #2)

3.98 of 5 stars 3.98 · rating details · 144,142 ratings · 5,063 reviews

Sookie Stackhouse likes living in Bon Temps, Louisiana, and she likes working as a cocktail waitress at Merlotte's. But she is having a streak of bad luck. First her co-worker is killed, and no one seems to care. Then she comes face-to-face with a beastly creature which gives her a painful and poisonous lashing. Enter the vampires, who graciously suck the poison from her v...more

Paperback, 279 pages

Published June 1st 2009 by Gollancz (first published January 1st 2002)

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Aug 01, 2008 Shannon (Giraffe Days) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, vampires, mystery-suspense, 2008, shape-shifters

Another wonderful Sookie Stackhouse outing, fast-paced and never flagging. This one sees Sookie and Bill sent by Eric to Dallas because he's "rented" her out to the nest leader there, Stan, so she can use her telepathic gift to find out what happened to a missing vampire. This leads to the Fellowship, a truly scary psuedo-Christian cult that's very anti-vampire. There's also a scary Maenad hanging around the woods at home, demanding tribute, and poor Lafayette, the flamboyantly gay cook from the...more

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Dec 04, 2008 Beth F. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: vampires, urban-fantasy, 2008, i-reviewed-this-bad-boy

Vampire Bill is a dud.

But otherwise I really enjoyed this book, it was better than the first. I was dying laughing during most of the orgy scene...who knew Eric was so funny?

Perfect vacation reading. Added bonus, I read this on the plane last night from Minneapolis to the Dallas/Fort Worth airport. Very appropriate. :)

33 likes · like · see review

Feb 05, 2011 Buggy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal-rom, shelf-11, vampalicious, urb-fantasy

Opening Line: Andy Bellefleur was drunk as a skunk."

This was another super entertaining read; combining fantasy, action, romance and mystery that you’ll find difficult to put down. With book #2 we return to small town Louisiana and telepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse, who's still slinging beers for shapeshifter Sam and spending time with boyfriend Bill the vampire. Their relationship continues to evolve with anger and jealousies surfacing here, and even though for the most part Bill is still s...more Opening Line: Andy Bellefleur was drunk as a skunk."

This was another super entertaining read; combining fantasy, action, romance and mystery that you’ll find difficult to put down. With book #2 we return to small town Louisiana and telepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse, who's still slinging beers for shapeshifter Sam and spending time with boyfriend Bill the vampire. Their relationship continues to evolve with anger and jealousies surfacing here, and even though for the most part Bill is still sweet to Sookie his undisputed predator tendencies also make an appearance.

It doesn’t take long for Sookie’s adventures start up again when a co-worker with ties to a sex club is murdered. (This sub plot then takes a back seat returning later in the book) Soon after Sookie gets attacked by a mystical female creature which requires the assistance of Eric (and others) to suck the poison from her body. Eric then ‘loans’ Sookie out to the Dallas Vampires to aid in the search for a missing vamp. Sookie feels obligated to comply, taking Bill along as her bodyguard. (He flies as cargo in a coffin) And that’s when things get really crazy. With a new nest of vampires to deal with as well as assorted religious fanatics and several aggressive werewolves Dallas isn’t going to be any vacation. Sexy and cheeky Eric makes a welcome appearance here and I really enjoyed getting to know him better. I’m very curious to see how this immerging love triangle plays out.

Despite the progression of Sookie into the supernatural world, which at times made her feel like a clumsy super hero I still found her relatable enough that I was able to discover everything right along with her. Sookie does get injured a lot in this book however and I kept wondering why she refused to take Vampire blood. I mean if she’s going to continue playing in the vampire world she's going to need all the strength she can get so its a no-brainer really as it speeds up healing and gives humans increased power.

As much as I’m enjoying this series I guess I should have taken a closer look at the spine of this book because with this instalment Charlaine Harris switches from paranormal romance to more urban fantasy, which was a real disappointment to me. I always struggle with UF, preferring my romance front and center, without the now present fade-to-black love scenes (I want in on the steamy action) I also tend to glaze over when too many fantastical creatures are introduced and this worried me early on here with the introduction of the 'maenad' and her razorback pig companion. Luckily Harris keeps it to a minimum. Now this is not to say that I didn’t enjoy LDID, I did and plan to continue on with the series I was just thrown off by the abrupt genre switch from book#1.

It also felt to me like Harris wrote the first and last parts of this book together and then inserted the middle (Dallas) section afterwards. I mention this because as soon as Sookie returns home to Bon Temps from her Dallas adventure we start getting back-story information dumps again, as we’d had in the beginning chapters, rehashing Harris’s vampire world rules and events that took place in Dead Until Dark. This felt very strange to me especially in the last quarter of the book. The Dallas section also felt removed from the rest of the story and in all honesty except for the scenes with Eric I didn’t enjoy it very much. Anyways I’m ranting here. (less)

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Apr 08, 2011 Jim rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, paranormal-urban

It was a fast, engaging read. Different, in details, from the series, but the feel is the same. It's an interesting world that Harris has created. She brings up some well thought out points about how a vampire would differ from a normal human. It's certainly not high literature, but an awful lot of fun.

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Jul 11, 2010 Jasmin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: True Blood Die Hard Fans

Shelves: paranormal-romance, mystery, paranormal, romance, fiction, three-stars, vampire, shifters, werewolves, humor, romantic-suspense, suspense

It was extremely hard thinking of Eric Northman, 6'4", blonde with blue eyes, need I mention a super gorgeous hunk, a vampire, and Sheriff of Louisiana Area 5, an entrepreneur (owner of bar Fangtasia) in a PINK LYCRA especially when I pictured him as Alexander Skarsgård who looks like this

But imagining the bulge his would form, Eric Northman in a pink lycra doesn't seem like a bad idea. I think I'm pro pink lycras. Especially if someone this hot would wear them. I even think I should advocate t...more It was extremely hard thinking of Eric Northman, 6'4", blonde with blue eyes, need I mention a super gorgeous hunk, a vampire, and Sheriff of Louisiana Area 5, an entrepreneur (owner of bar Fangtasia) in a PINK LYCRA especially when I pictured him as Alexander Skarsgård who looks like this

But imagining the bulge his would form, Eric Northman in a pink lycra doesn't seem like a bad idea. I think I'm pro pink lycras. Especially if someone this hot would wear them. I even think I should advocate the wearing of lycras on men. *drool* Hmm, well maybe not in pink, but in more manly colors :))
___
Dead in Dallas, the second installment of the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris, is an entertaining quick read. I'm not a big fan of Charlaine Harris' writing style, but I have to admit, the lady has a great imagination.

This book, practically covers up the entire second season of True Blood. But don't think that it's basically the same, because it's not. It's different in a way the the TV series has more drama. But still, as I said, the book was very entertaining.

Sookie Stackhouse is attacked by a maenad, a worshiper of the God of wine and all things crazy, as a message to Eric Northman. After Sookie being healed, she is lent to the Dallas vampire sheriff, to read the humans who might have seen the missing vampire Farrell. But the search becomes complicated as they end up searching at the religious group, Fellowship of the Sun with a century old suicidal vampire as an ally. After fixing the Dallas affair, Sookie goes off with Eric Northman (yes, in a pink Lycra) to an orgy, to find LaFayette's murderer. But, not only do they find LaFayette's murderer, they also manage to be in the middle of the maenad's frenzy.

The main reason why I'm reading this, is because it's agonizing to wait for every season of True Blood in HBO to come, since it's painstakingly long. It's pure torture.

I'm not a big fan of the books, but, if Charlaine Harris makes me imagine men in more pink Lycras, I think this will soon be my favorite series :))(less)

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Jun 11, 2013 Crystal Starr Light rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, audiobook, guilty-pleasure

Sookie Stackhouse's life is as normal as a telepath can get. She has a vampire boyfriend, a house, a job, and friends. And then one day, the Merlotte's chef, Lafayette, turns up dead in Andy's car. Not to mention, she works for Eric on odd jobs, and he sends her to Dallas to do some investigating for the vampires.

Once again, Sookie Stackhouse proves to be a (mostly) light-hearted, carefree paranormal series that is fun and fluffy and doesn't take itself too seriously. No, it isn't perfect. No, i...more Sookie Stackhouse's life is as normal as a telepath can get. She has a vampire boyfriend, a house, a job, and friends. And then one day, the Merlotte's chef, Lafayette, turns up dead in Andy's car. Not to mention, she works for Eric on odd jobs, and he sends her to Dallas to do some investigating for the vampires.

Once again, Sookie Stackhouse proves to be a (mostly) light-hearted, carefree paranormal series that is fun and fluffy and doesn't take itself too seriously. No, it isn't perfect. No, it probably doesn't have the most unique spin on vampires or shapeshifters, nor will it be a ground-breaking treatise on humanity or being alive or whatever. But the Sookie Stackhouse series never purports to be that, and that's just all right with me.

The characters continue to be lively and fun. Sookie is a pretty good narrator. I like how she keeps upbeat and is able to investigate withOUT being rude (unlike Anita - though in this book she starts to analyze handshakes like Anita would and I broke into an Anita Blake cold sweat). It was a shame to see Lafayette dead (I don't remember him TOO much from the previous book, but he did seem fun), but other characters get time to shine, most notably Eric. Eric is most definitely being paved to be Sookie's newest romantic interest, and while I typically hate romantic triangles, I'm actually rather intrigued with this one. Up to this point, I've actually liked Bill, but in this book, Bill is beginning to be a little dry and dull and, most importantly, dominating. Not to mention, I'm really starting to get irritated at how each book Sookie and Bill break up only to get back together in a few pages.

Other characters shine as well, such as Sam, Andy, Portia, and newbie (and new favorite), Luna.

The mystery is pretty good; I like how there were two plotlines that were predominant in this book, Lafayette's murder and Eric's assignment for Sookie. It is neat to watch Sookie use her talents and skills to solve crimes and try to keep people alive.

One problem I did kinda have is one I often do with urban fantasy/paranormal novels: the reliance on rape/sexual assault for drama. In this book, bad guy Gabe tries to rape Sookie. Then Sookie goes to an orgy where she is felt up. This is not the first time Sookie has had to endure sexual assault or near rape in this series. Not to mention, it's odd how very little these events seem to affect Sookie long-term. I know "Rule of Funny" or "It's a fun paranormal book, not a serious lit book!", but none-the-less, Sookie has had to endure quite the trauma in just two books. It's weird that she hasn't shown any sign of this trauma other than bruises that quickly heal.

Even with the road bumps, I still found this fun, I dare say, more fun than book 1. The characters are interesting, Harris is setting up a neat little world, and I can't wait to learn more (as long as Harris drops the idea of an executioner in this world - I do not want to see grumpy, sexist Anita Blake in this upbeat world!). I'll definitely be loading up book 3 in my iPod tonight!(less)

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Aug 20, 2007 Inara rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: vampire lovers

Shelves: novels-vampires, author-charlaine-harris, first-person-narrative, novels-paranormal, novels-romance-paranormal, novels-shapeshifters-werewolves

Title in German:
Untot in Dallas

This is the second very entertaining adventure of Sookie Stackhouse and her vampire boyfriend Bill. This time Sookie ends up in Dallas to find a missing vampire. Hardly arrived she is at once right in the middle of the events and meets vampires, shapeshifters, an other telepath and has to put up a fierce struggle at not being captured by the ominous "Fellowship of the Sun" an anti-vampire club. A second plot is the murder of Sookies colleague at Merlotte´s Bar the...more

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Jul 20, 2009 Elizabeth rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, in-by-of-the-americas, vamps-and-other-mythical-beasts, reviewed, fantasy-sci-fi, hem-steppers-and-bodice-rippers

Sookie is still getting her fashion advice from the mannequins at Wal*Mart, and the author is still describing it in loving detail. Now she's discovered real lingerie so we must have a description of her thongs as well. I can't quite tell if Harris wants to be Sookie or fuck her.

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Mar 07, 2010 Amanda rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: to-be-used-as-toilet-paper

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Once again..... I don't know WHY I read this book.... I was hoping that the Authoress would have expanded her imagination a bit and maybe improved her writing skills, but it didn't happen. I'm two into the series and I'm kinda anxious to see what happens with Erik and Sookie, so I happened to put a hold for the next 3 books at the library.... we'll see if I make it that far. These books don't take long to read.

The first book was all murder murder murder.... blah blah blah... they solved the prob...more Once again..... I don't know WHY I read this book.... I was hoping that the Authoress would have expanded her imagination a bit and maybe improved her writing skills, but it didn't happen. I'm two into the series and I'm kinda anxious to see what happens with Erik and Sookie, so I happened to put a hold for the next 3 books at the library.... we'll see if I make it that far. These books don't take long to read.

The first book was all murder murder murder.... blah blah blah... they solved the problem and everyone moves on. The second book picks up where the first leaves off, but not without a considerable amount of lenghy recap... like anyone reading this book, being the second in the series, would need all of that?! Seriouslly.... ok, so it gets going and then BAM! a murder. Whoopdeedoo..... Then out of now where, Sookie and Bill get in a fight... again.... whoopdeedoo... However, the interesting climax to the fight was Sookie storming off into the woods alone, getting attacked by a Greek mythical creature and then Bill having to find her, take her to Erik where they and 2 other Vampires had to suck out all the poison in Sookies blood and then give her a transfusion... oh they did this to her naked...Why?

Bill seems to be addicted to sex with Sookie... because even when she is banged up and hurt,feeling human, needing sleep, ect... he doesn't seems to care (or maybe it doesn't take him too long to finish, whatever) and makes her do the deed anyway.

Sookie and Bill get loaned out to the Dallas vampires to help locate a missing "brother" while Bill is sleeping, of course, Sookie gets into trouble and having to rely on the help of a suicidal vampire and shapeshifters. This was actually a pretty good part of the book mainly because Bill wasn't involved. At the end of the Dallas ordeal, Erik is the one that is "there" for her when she is thrown out of the car... seriouslly, this guy has an obsession with Sookie that only gets all too interesting. He gets her cleaned up, doctored and then Bill comes in.... pansy... and what does he want to do after Erik leaves? yeah.... addidicted pansy.

The next night they went to a vampire party to celebrate the brother being returned, Erik was talking with Sookie on the couch, because obviouslly her injuries and health made it impossible for her to "party". So, Erik, being a gentleman, sat with her and visited, Bill was talking with another vampire lady... suddenly the house is attacked, Erik flings himself on Sookie to protect her, he takes a bullet for her, in which, after the turmoil ended she sucked out of him. Bill was no where to be found for a few minutes until he came back from chasing the humans that open fired, consequently killing a few of them. Sookie gets angry (understandably so), flies back to Shreveport alone and doesn't speak to Bill for 3 weeks afterwards. She is talking with friends when Bill gets mighty jealous goes to her house afterwards and ummm....shocker here... sexed her up a few times even though she pleaded with him to be nice, ect.... pansy.

Bill finds himself needing to go back to Dallas (you know, to get away from the obvious danger Sookie is in again) She gets invited to a party (one that she will be able to determine the killer of the murder at the beginning of the book) Oh.. this party just happens to be an orgy...(Where is the imagination folks.....? I ask you, where??) Sex, murder, Sex, couple fighting, Sex, almost murder, almost raped, sex, lust, *hmm, I think I'll throw in an orgy!*, ORGY! stupid. Yeah, sure throw in an orgy, invite Erik along to protect Sookie, throw him in a horrible outfit to show off his huge-ness and then not do a thing to describe anything. Not that I'm complaining that I didn't have to read about the sex acts going on... I'm not. But if you are going to write about an orgy, you might as well write it. This author, I've noticed has a very limited vocabulary when it comes to writing her sex scenes....basically just telling enterance, the climax and the exit... Oh and the complaining from Sookie because half the time Bill is trying to have sex with her, she's hurt. Duh.

Anyway, Erik and Sookie have some moments that maybe they shouldn't have had.... Go ahead and have them I say, Erik isn't a pansy. Bill just happens to show up the moment Sookie gets a conscience and tells Erik to get off... (if Bill would have only been there a few minutes earlier, LOL!) Anyway, the book hits another anti-climatic climax and then everything flows back to be normal....

Go ahead and red the book, but don't expect much from it. I'm guessing the HBO screen writers have done a better job with the story... guess I'll have to check it out sometime.(less)

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Sep 15, 2009 Heather rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, paranormal-romance

Perseverance pays off, especially when reading this series. After I completed Dead Until Dark, I was hesitant to continue on with the second installment. However, I had made a promise to a friend to stick it out, and I had already purchased the book, so I got comfortable and braced myself for the impending doom. At first, my fears were realized. Sookie was still dingy, annoying, and cried at least four times in the first 30 pages. My outlook was grim, but I prevailed on in hopes that the small g...more Perseverance pays off, especially when reading this series. After I completed Dead Until Dark, I was hesitant to continue on with the second installment. However, I had made a promise to a friend to stick it out, and I had already purchased the book, so I got comfortable and braced myself for the impending doom. At first, my fears were realized. Sookie was still dingy, annoying, and cried at least four times in the first 30 pages. My outlook was grim, but I prevailed on in hopes that the small glimpse of Eric provided within the first few chapters would escalate into a consistent presence and that Dallas would prove to be a more intriguing setting than Bon Temps. I got my wish.

Living Dead in Dallas was a drastic improvement over its predecessor for a few reasons. First, Sookie was much less grating in this installment. She is still prone to emotional breakdowns (crying), false and borderline obnoxious displays of sarcasm, bravado and wit. Moreover, she is unfortunately still attached to the creepy and condescending Bill Compton. However, I admire her ability to stand her ground against the supernatural forces that surround her and she can be funny at times, though I tend to laugh at her as opposed to laughing with her. If she could only refrain from mentioning her boobs and long blonde hair, I just might be able to stand her.

Second, Harris must have recognized what a gem she had in Eric as he has a commanding presence and quite a large role in Living Dead in Dallas. He continues to steal every scene he is in and is worth reading this series for. He is absolutely hilarious and sultry and just all together drool worthy. His only flaw being that he, like every other guy in this series, is lusting after Sookie.

Lastly, the plot improved by leaps and bounds, though it is still lacking. I was kinda bored with the mainstreaming vampires in Dead Until Dark. I like my supernatural beings to cause a little mayhem, not rely on insane humans to create their havoc for them. Harris didn’t disappoint. In addition to Vampires, readers are introduced to Shape shifters, Werewolves and a Maenad. Throw in a cult of radical Vampire haters and a few Bon Tempers with uh; eclectic tastes and you’ve got Living Dead in Dallas. I am now looking forward to see what Sookie is in for next. I’m crossing my fingers that it has something to do with Eric ,that Bill will meet an unfortunate end, and that Sookie will develop a personality outside of her primal urges, breasts, and hair.

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Mar 16, 2010 Fani rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010-purchase, audiobooks, best-of-2010, romantic-suspense, urban-fantasy

I managed to actually bloody myself (!) by biting the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing out loud when listening to this one while I was at work:) This was much funnier than the first one and IMO less romantic oriented. However, I absolutely enjoyed it and had a hard time keeping my giggles quiet every time Eric showed up. The lines he and Sookie exchanged cracked me up big time. I just love those books and I don't think I'll stop until I've read everyone of them.

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Sep 28, 2008 Amanda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Yes

Recommended to Amanda by: Chad

This is a great read!!! Book #2 of the Sookie Stackhouse series is light years better than book #1 (see Dead Until Dark). Having already laid the groundwork in book 1, author Harris is able to pick up where she left off. The result is a fast-paced, suspenseful, action-packed plot sending Sookie to Dallas and smack-dab in the middle of (another) vampireunderworld where she's their best hope for finding one of their own and defeating an extremist religious cult trying to annihilate them. Some of t...more

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Mar 15, 2009 Lisa (lisaisbusynerding) added it · review of another edition

Shelves: own-it

(this is the second book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series. beware of spoilers for the first book, Dead Until Dark)

in a sentence or so: Sookie is back in action. between a dead body in the backseat of the local police officer's car in the parking lot of her bar, a maenad reeking havoc, and being sent out to find missing vampires in Dallas, she's a pretty busy telepathic barmaid.

Sookie, the local telepathic barmaid in Bon Temps, Louisiana, is dating Bill, a vampire. when she arrives to wor...more (this is the second book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series. beware of spoilers for the first book, Dead Until Dark)

in a sentence or so: Sookie is back in action. between a dead body in the backseat of the local police officer's car in the parking lot of her bar, a maenad reeking havoc, and being sent out to find missing vampires in Dallas, she's a pretty busy telepathic barmaid.

Sookie, the local telepathic barmaid in Bon Temps, Louisiana, is dating Bill, a vampire. when she arrives to work one morning to discover one of their short order cooks dead in the backseat of a police car, Sookie is a bit worried. murder isn't exactly an everyday occurrence in the little town, and disposing of bodies in the back of police cars isn't exactly the norm either. however, before she can dig too deep into that mystery, she and Bill are summoned to do some 'work' in Dallas. as a telepath, she is a huuuuuge help to other vampires, and is 'loaned out' to find information they need. not exactly her favorite thing to do, but at least she prevents the vampires from killing innocent people unnecessarily, right? there are vampires missing in Dallas, and Sookie soon learns that a group calling themselves the Fellowship of the Sun Center, may have some pretty sinister motives.

i liked the introduction of other supernatural characters to this mystery, and i thought they were weaved in pretty well. i think my biggest challenge was that the book felt a bit like a sandwich. it opened with the murder in Bon Temps, had the mystery in Dallas, and then closed with the murder in Bon Temps. it didn't feel as if the two stories meshed well together - and by the time she returned home from being in Dallas, i had almost forgotten the opening of the story all together.

overall, i still really dig Sookie's voice and her personality. not over the top, but confident. i can tell that Harris is setting up some love-triangle-drama for the rest of the series, which should compliment the mystery well. while i did not enjoy this one as much as Dead Until Dark, i still plowed through the book in a matter of days. it deals with more serious issues than Dead Until Dark, and did so well. the furthering of the vampire and supernatural mythology was laid out for future books too - and i can't wait to read them!

fave quote: "Though I was a human-albeit a weird one-I knew better. I'd been a lot happier when I believed Bill had some classifiable illness. Now, I knew that creatures we'd shoved off into the realm of myth and legend had a nasty habit of proving themselves real. Take the maenad. Who'd have believed an ancient Greek legend would be strolling through the woods of northern Louisiana?" (63)
fix er up: the clunky-ness of the two mysteries. if they had meshed or overlapped more, that would have been nice.
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May 19, 2013 Mimi rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy, vampires

Definitely better than the first book, which isn't that difficult an achievement.

There's an interesting plot that came close to being convoluted. On the other hand, the characters seem to have found their personalities and the writing has established a non-annoying pattern. As for the central mystery, it was less convincing than the first book, but more fun to follow along.

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Feb 22, 2009 JuliAnna rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: paranormal romance fans only

Recommended to JuliAnna by: Next Best Book Club folks

Shelves: guilty-pleasures

This is not a great work of literature nor even a good fantasy novel; it is an entertaining paranormal romance novel. If you are up for a romance novel with supernatural creatures, this is a good bet. If you were only lukewarm on the first novel in the series, you should still give this one a try. If you like a little substance with your romance, I would stay away from these books.

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Jan 25, 2009 Cathy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror, mythology, paranormal, urban, ebook-read, read-in-2009, shifter-not-wolf, vampire, ebook-owned

It was good. I like that Sookie isn't blasé about having a vampire boyfriend and the problems and occasional horrors that go with it. She's just trying to make the best of her situation, just like the rest of us; only her situation involves telepathy, supernatural creatures, murder and mayhem. Therefore the drama. Bill is still a bit boring to me, not as interesting as Sam or Eric. In real life, he'd be my guy (minus the dead part), but I like my story heroes more interesting. Looking forward to...more

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Jan 05, 2010 Anna705 rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I think this book, Living Dead In Dallas, is really complicated and mysterious. There is always a villian or problem that Charlaine Harris don't uncover until the end, which is really agonizing. She gives you some clues that will probably help you figure it out but in the end it's a huge surprise.
In the investigative shows my mother and I watchlike Law and Order, Ncis, Csi the clues always lead up to one person, but then in the end that person was framed or something because the culprit is a t...more I think this book, Living Dead In Dallas, is really complicated and mysterious. There is always a villian or problem that Charlaine Harris don't uncover until the end, which is really agonizing. She gives you some clues that will probably help you figure it out but in the end it's a huge surprise.
In the investigative shows my mother and I watchlike Law and Order, Ncis, Csi the clues always lead up to one person, but then in the end that person was framed or something because the culprit is a totally different person than who you thought and it comes as a big surprise. Such things also happen in this book.
Sookie on the other hand has a certain gift that gives her the power to know who actually did it. But the gift of mind reading isn't always good in Sookie's case. Because of that "gift" she always gets in trouble.
Sookis lives in a town with vampires, and it just so happens that her boyfriend Bill is a vampire. Him, Sookie's brother Jason, and Bill's vampire friends always depend on Sookie to use her gift to figure out what happened to their friends, or crimes. Which usually gets her hurt with the people who actually commit these crimes. People that aren't usually people, they're usually other creatures like Maenads, shapeshifters, and werewolves.
Now I know that stuff really doesn't exist in the world we live in but people get hurt like that all the time. They get in to the wrong stuff at the wrong time and then they end up getting hurt by people they don't even know. But those people blames this one person for something. Usually that happens to them because the person who they thought was their best friend betrayed them somehow.
Now Sookie is kind of in a different situation, but also a similar one because she knows she can trust the people around her but the people around the people she is around are really bad people. So she gets dragged in.
I do that to my brothers all the time. If I get in trouble I would say my brother did it. Or when I want to plot something against my sister or my other brother. I will drag my brother into it.
So really this book is a book taking place in a magical world, with creatures beyond us. Some people in the world are good to hang around some aren't. Some things are good for you some aren't. Just, you don't really want to get involved into something, that you don't know where it will take you.
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Apr 14, 2009 Greg of A2 rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-mystery-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 26, 2011 Jen (Red Hot Books) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sookie, urban-fantasy

Sookie Stackhouse is back. She’s happy and she’s in love. Her romance with Vampire Bill is a few-months strong and for the first time, she has somewhere she belongs. But the peace she’s been enjoying can’t continue forever. The small town of Bon Temps is turned upside down again, when Lafayette, the flamboyant gay cook at Merlotte’s, is found dead in the backseat of Detective Andy Bellefleur’s car.

But that mystery has to wait. Because Bill’s vampire-boss Eric is sending Sookie to Dallas to do a...more Sookie Stackhouse is back. She’s happy and she’s in love. Her romance with Vampire Bill is a few-months strong and for the first time, she has somewhere she belongs. But the peace she’s been enjoying can’t continue forever. The small town of Bon Temps is turned upside down again, when Lafayette, the flamboyant gay cook at Merlotte’s, is found dead in the backseat of Detective Andy Bellefleur’s car.

But that mystery has to wait. Because Bill’s vampire-boss Eric is sending Sookie to Dallas to do a job. He’s loaned her out to the vampires there to help them find one of their own who has gone missing. Sookie uses her telepathic skills to figure out what happened to Russell. That draws her into the clutches of the nefarious Fellowship of the Sun, a group dedicated to the destruction of all vampires.

A lot happens to Sookie in this book. She meets Barry, a hotel bell boy who is also a telepath. She makes a big impression on the Texas vampires, including their leader Stan… who will be back in later books. For the first time, we get glimpses of the sizzling sexual tension between Sookie and Eric. And fissures begin to show in her relationship with Bill. We see, along with Sookie, what Bill’s lack of humanity really means. And she has to ask herself some very tough questions about what she can and cannot accept in her life.

I enjoy Sookie’s voice. She maintains her spunky, country-girl mentality. She holds on to her own morality, though admittedly she doesn’t stay too rigid –she allows herself to recognize that some of her formerly held beliefs may have been naive and in need of adjustments. But Eric is definitely a shining star here… just a glimpse of the supernova character he’ll become.

(Season two of True Blood is based on this book. But there are some very big differences here. And I have to say, as with every season so far, other than the glory that is Alexander Skarsgard, the show is vastly substandard to the storyline in the book. There is a maenad, but it’s only a very small part of the storyline. Lafayette is the body in the car, because there is no Miss Jeanette. Tara is not Lafayette’s cousin. In fact, her role is very small and her character is nothing like it is the show. Oh yeah. And Godric is not the kidnapped vampire. He was the bait that helped kidnap Russell. And he’s not Eric’s maker. He is a child molester and killer. Just read the book.) 4 stars.
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Mar 25, 2013 ChattyKat rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: my-favorites

Book two in the Sookie Stackhouse series was when I really began to get hooked on this series. We got to spend more time with our sneaky little viking... Eric. It's also the book that further agitated me in regards to Bill. For someone who is clearly so possessive of Sookie he is quick to hand her over to other men. Got self-esteem issues much Bill??? In Book one he tells her to go to Sam if anything ever happens to them and then as I'm finishing book two he tells her to go to ERIC... so perhaps...more

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Jan 10, 2012 Geraldine O'Hagan rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Equally as terrible as the first book, if not worse. Sookie continues to have as little personality as previously, alternating between lusting cheaply after anyone male who crosses her path, indulging herself in weeping sessions over the pain of her unasked- for super-abilities and talking about clothes. Luckily her vampire boyfriend, despite being 150+ years old, is dumbstruck by the sight of a blonde in a thong and therefore continues to have regular unpleasant sex with her, whilst pimping her...more

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Aug 05, 2010 Sebina (Classicmaiden) rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: paranormal Romance/urban fantasy fans

Shelves: _fantasy_urban-fantasy, _fantasy_paranormal-romance, _type_owned-book-copy, _fantasy, _type_sexy-romance-fiction, _romance

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. As much as I loved the first book, I found myself loving the second book even more. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that there was more Eric this time around? Probably!

Unlike in the first book where much of the time was spent in Merlotte’s bar, this book takes us on a ride to Dallas. Sookie is hired by Eric, to help a vampire named Stan who has a vampire nest in Dallas. With the help of Bill, she tries to help Stan's vampire nest locate a missing vampire by using her telepathic abilit...more As much as I loved the first book, I found myself loving the second book even more. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that there was more Eric this time around? Probably!

Unlike in the first book where much of the time was spent in Merlotte’s bar, this book takes us on a ride to Dallas. Sookie is hired by Eric, to help a vampire named Stan who has a vampire nest in Dallas. With the help of Bill, she tries to help Stan's vampire nest locate a missing vampire by using her telepathic abilities. While in Dallas, she meets a fellow telepath Barry, whom she can contact from miles and miles away; this turns out to be useful when she finds herself captured by a vampire-hating group called The Fellowship of the Sun, while she is undercover at The Fellowship with another human called Hugo. The telepath Barry gets in contact with her allies the Vampires (Bill, Eric and Stan’s vampires), but everything is turning too quickly at The Fellowship and she is in constant danger.

Just in time, she is saved by a shapeshifter called Luna who together with a group of other shapeshifters has been working undercover at The Fellowship for months. Stan’s nest is later ambushed by The Fellowship with a gun raid where many humans are killed. It is here that Sookie sucks a bullet out of Eric (after Eric had been laying on top of her, protecting her against the gunshots) and accidently swallows some of his blood, making a bond between the two of them.

After solving and ending the case for Stan's vampire nest, she again goes undercover (at an orgy), this time with Eric, to find out who killed her friend, the cook Lafayette. While undercover, a Maenad pays a visit, making Sookie alert having earlier been injured by the Maenad and because she knows that the Maenad feeds on drunkenness and pride. It is through the Maenads information about how Lafayette was killed and using her telepathic abilities on the humans that Sookie solves the case.

I loved that the book was action-packed with twists and turns and that we learned more about the vampire race in Sookie Stackhouse’ world, while at the same time discovering other supernatural beings, like the Maenad! It was nice to discover other shapeshifters besides Sam, as well.

But it was evidently the moments between Eric and Sookie that kept me enthralled; I really look forward to more interactions between the two in future books in the series. It’s no secret that I am Team Eric, even though I also love her with Bill at this point in the series.

If you already loved the first book, well, then you’re in for a treat with this one; it’s a great continuation of the paranormal world of Sookie Stackhouse.(less)

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Jun 29, 2010 K rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone

Living Dead in Dallas continues the story of Stackie Stackhouse and her friends- human and nonhuman. This time, Sookie finds herself heading to Dallas, at the request of Eric, to investigate the dissapearance of a vampire taken by humans. If this isn't enough, she is also determined to find out who murdered her friend. Add to it conflict and conflictual feelings related to Bill (her vampire boyfriend), and budding feelings for Eric (his vampire boss), and you have a story that is a fun, enjoyabl...more

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Oct 19, 2009 Gemma rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: urban-fantasy

OVerall, I really enjoyed this book. I liked the increased intrest Eric has for Sookie and believe that not everything is as it seems there.

I'm finding it difficult to distinguish between the books and the tv series and have decided that I really need to read the books first. I think that judging the books on there own, they are good and I find myself starting to like Sookie a bit more. Yes, people comlain about her Mary Sueness, but I disagree. She is very honest with Bill and although she did...more

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Sep 13, 2009 Rebecca rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: made-into-movies

Charlaine Harris is one of those authors who has great characters, moderately interesting stories, and only mediocre writing. Sookie Stackhouse is a great character; it's a shame that she doesn't have a better vehicle. The plots are interesting, but in both this book and the first one, they have an unfinished, first-draft feeling. Harris sets up a lot of plot points, but only roughly draws them together, and sometimes seems like she forgets about them until the very end, where she suddenly says...more Charlaine Harris is one of those authors who has great characters, moderately interesting stories, and only mediocre writing. Sookie Stackhouse is a great character; it's a shame that she doesn't have a better vehicle. The plots are interesting, but in both this book and the first one, they have an unfinished, first-draft feeling. Harris sets up a lot of plot points, but only roughly draws them together, and sometimes seems like she forgets about them until the very end, where she suddenly says "oh, yeah, I forgot those were hanging out, and it's the last ten pages, and...now they're tied up with a pretty bow and we're done, ta da!" The maenad Callisto is a perfect example; she was set up within the first few pages of the book and referenced periodically, but never really dealt with, until the very end--then she pops up again, says her piece, and then goes on her way, with no explanation and without truly being used. Yes, she was sort of tied up, but what the point in her being there? Why go to all the trouble to research and bring in a Greek creature, and then barely use her? That's a lot of firepower to bring into a story, and then not truly pay it off.

We definitely see the limitations of the limited first person POV in the book. Since we're stuck with Sookie and her information, we only know something if she knows or experiences it. For her to find things out she either has to end up in all kinds of unrealistic or bizarre positions to overhear or see something at just the right time, or people have to come and tell her what's going on. That makes for some rather awkward plot predicaments, and also has the unfortunate side effect of reducing all the other characters pretty much to cardboard cutouts. They come in, they give Sookie whatever information she requires, and they go about their business. Bill and now Eric are to an extent more than that, but almost everyone else is still stuck as a sort of prop. Really, and once again, the book could have benefited from at least another hundred pages, maybe a couple of hundred more, to add some more structure to the plot and flesh out the other characters. I keep feeling like I'm reading her first draft that she was going to go back and fix later, but it somehow got published by mistake. I'll keep reading, because I'm curious to see where she goes from here, and also because I hope that she'll learn from some of these rookie mistakes and get better as she goes along. (less)

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Aug 19, 2009 Jessica rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2009

I'm truly not crazy about this series... but for some reason I keep finding myself wanting to read them. I blame HBO entirely. I love the show, trashy as it may be.

I find Sookie (in the books and show, but more so in the books) to be incredibly corny. She "loves" Bill, but thinks Eric is tasty, and Sam is also kiss-worthy. She's kind of a bimbo, yes?

It's very odd for a television show to be better than the book(s) it is based on, but that seems to be the case here. The characters in the show ar...more

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Jun 29, 2009 Alice Osborn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone who loves a good Southern vampire tale or watches "True Blood"

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I was glad to start "Living Dead in Dallas" as I was in the middle of "True Blood" on HBO since the series introduced many characters in Book 2 who will also become regulars in True Blood's Season 2. Creator Alan Ball has also mentioned that Season 2 will take a lot of inspiration from "Dead in Dallas," but I hope he improves on the novel.
The novel opens with Sookie finding the dead Lafayette in Andy Bellfleur's patrol car. She then has an encounter with the maenad (Marianne Forrester in the sh...more I was glad to start "Living Dead in Dallas" as I was in the middle of "True Blood" on HBO since the series introduced many characters in Book 2 who will also become regulars in True Blood's Season 2. Creator Alan Ball has also mentioned that Season 2 will take a lot of inspiration from "Dead in Dallas," but I hope he improves on the novel.
The novel opens with Sookie finding the dead Lafayette in Andy Bellfleur's patrol car. She then has an encounter with the maenad (Marianne Forrester in the show) and then she and Bill head to Dallas to help Stan the Dallas vampire chief find his missing nestmate. Here in Dallas we meet the Fellowship of the Sun -- which I believe will be an important antagonist in Season 2. Sookie gets beat up a lot from beginning to end and after she and Bill survive two lovers' fights she helps Andy find who killed Lafayette. She kisses Eric the vampire and likes it and Bill doesn't seem to be all that jealous. This novel is full of plotholes (now, really, Bill doesn't know how he's related to the Bellefleurs and he hasn't looked at the family Bible since he's been living in Bon Temps?)and swift summaries -- like Harris knew she was going to go back and elaborate on her scenes, but never did. Perhaps she was bored with them and needed filler. Most of the cat and mouse scenes in Dallas reminded me of a Nancy Drew mystery and I couldn't finish this book long after I started it. But after Sookie and Bill leave Dallas the action picks up. In fact whenever Eric, Sookie and Bill are in a scene together (pick Eric/Sookie or Bill/Sookie) the writing is full of energy and is extremely enjoyable to read. Why can't all of the book be this way?
As some of the other reviewers have stated, I found Sookie very annoying in this book because she's written like a selfish bimbo. She is looking to pick a fight with Bill and seems to totally forget he's a vampire - Hello?!
I prefer everything about the show to the books, so far, but I like the books for the background information since the show throw's so much information at you to digest right away. All I can say, is Harris is a good writer, not a great writer, and she gave Alan Ball plenty to work with. (less)

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Nov 21, 2008 Julie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: people looking for less skanky paranormal romance

Recommended to Julie by: Shannon

Shelves: paranormal, mystery, 2008

Book 2 in the Sookie Stackhouse series, Living Dead In Dallas kept the fast, intriguing pace of the first book. Sookie is a likeable, sensible Southern girl, who seems to have a good head on her shoulders, even if that head happens to be able to read others' minds.

It was fun seeing Sookie and Bill a little farther into their relationship—the tender moments as well as the struggles. I also like the fact that while these books do assuredly have sex scenes, they are far from skanky.

Two things weird...more

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Mar 12, 2009 Mahlet rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: pnr, mystery-suspense, audio, series

I really enjoyed this, especially all the interaction with Sookie and Eric...I actually liked their scenes together a lot more than Sookie's scenes with Bill! With Eric, it was always hot, or hilarious, or a combination of both! I can't wait for Sookie & Eric to eventually get together *fingers crossed*

I also don't understand all the reviewer comments regarding too much sex - did I miss something? I didn't think there were many Sookie/Bill bedroom scenes, and I found the ones that were incl...more

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Feb 19, 2009 Alaine rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi

Charlaine Harris did it again! Being fairly new to this sub genre of fantasy I am really enjoying it. This book is action packed with some more 'species' introduced. The vampires are fairly typical and in this book we learn a lot more about them. This book is probably not quite as funny as the first but it is still extremely entertaining. In this book we also find out more about Bill's family.
The author still has a lot of scope to develop the characters further in the following books, which I pe...more

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About Charlaine Harris

Charlaine Harris has been a published novelist for over twenty-five years. A native of the Mississippi Delta, she grew up in the middle of a cotton field. Now she lives in southern Arkansas with her husband, her three children, three dogs, and a duck. The duck stays outside.

Though her early output consisted largely of ghost stories, by the time she hit college (Rhodes, in Memphis) Charlaine was wr...more Charlaine Harris has been a published novelist for over twenty-five years. A native of the Mississippi Delta, she grew up in the middle of a cotton field. Now she lives in southern Arkansas with her husband, her three children, three dogs, and a duck. The duck stays outside.

Though her early output consisted largely of ghost stories, by the time she hit college (Rhodes, in Memphis) Charlaine was writing poetry and plays. After holding down some low-level jobs, she had the opportunity to stay home and write, and the resulting two stand-alones were published by Houghton Mifflin. After a child-producing sabbatical, Charlaine latched on to the trend of writing mystery series, and soon had her own traditional books about a Georgia librarian, Aurora Teagarden. Her first Teagarden, Real Murders, garnered an Agatha nomination.

Soon Charlaine was looking for another challenge, and the result was the much darker Lily Bard series. The books, set in Shakespeare, Arkansas, feature a heroine who has survived a terrible attack and is learning to live with its consequences.

When Charlaine began to realize that neither of those series was ever going to set the literary world on fire, she regrouped and decided to write the book she’d always wanted to write. Not a traditional mystery, nor yet pure science fiction or romance, Dead Until Dark broke genre boundaries to appeal to a wide audience of people who just enjoy a good adventure. Each subsequent book about Sookie Stackhouse, telepathic Louisiana barmaid and friend to vampires, werewolves, and various other odd creatures, has drawn more readers. The Southern Vampire books are published in Japan, Great Britain, Greece, Germany, Thailand, Spain, France, and Russia.

In addition to Sookie, Charlaine has another heroine with a strange ability. Harper Connelly, lightning-struck and strange, can find corpses… and that’s how she makes her living.

In addition to her work as a writer, Charlaine is the past senior warden of St. James Episcopal Church, a board member of Mystery Writers of America, a past board member of Sisters in Crime, a member of the American Crime Writers League, and past president of the Arkansas Mystery Writers Alliance. She spends her "spare" time reading, watching her daughter play sports, traveling, and going to the movies. (less)

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Books by Charlaine Harris

Dead to the World (Sookie Stackhouse, #4)

Dead as a Doornail (Sookie Stackhouse, #5)

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Quotes from Living Dead in Dallas

“Sookie, my little bullet-sucker"
Eric, my big bullshitter” — 438 people liked it

“By the way, I haven't heard an 'I'm sorry' from you yet." My sense of grievance had overwhelmed my sense of self-preservation.
I am sorry that the maenad picked on you."
I glared at him. "Not enough," I said. I was trying hard to hang on to this conversation.
Angelic Sookie, vision of love and beauty, I am prostrate that the wicked evil maenad violated your smooth and voluptuous body, in an attempt to deliver a message to me."
That's more like it.” — 380 people liked it

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Living Dead in Dallas (Sookie Stackhouse #2)

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