Customer Reviews

A Touch of Dead (Sookie Stackhouse: The Complete Stories)

5 star:		(89)
4 star:		(60)
3 star:		(69)
2 star:		(59)
1 star:		(62)

 

 

In A Touch of Dead you get five Sookie Stackhouse short stories that Ms. Harris has written over the years and have finally been published together for the first time.

"Fairy Dust" takes place after Dead To The World.
There we meet Claudine and Claude who have asked Sookie for "special" help in order to solve a murder mystery.

"Dracula Night" takes place before Dead As A Doornail.
Eric is throwing a big bash at Fangtasia to celebrate the birthday of the one-and-only, you guessed it Dracula. And Sookie's got an invitation to the fun.

"One Word Answer" takes place after Dead As A Doornail.
Sookie finds out that her long lost cousin is dead and meets some well-known characters for the first time.

"Lucky" takes place after All Together Dead.
Sookie and Amelia are approached by local real estate agent to help him solve a mystery. But this mystery is much more complicated then the girls originally anticipated.

Gift Wrap" takes place before Dead And Gone.
Sookie is spending this Christmas on her own. But when when she finds a naked man on her property and an unexpected guest pays a visit, it just might be a Christmas that is unforgettable.

As a fan of Ms. Harris' Sookie Stackhouse novels - this book is a needed addition to your collection. I don't know if you're like me, but there was a time or two where I would start one of the books and feel like.. huh? did I miss something? Now we know why. These short stories fill in some of those gaps no matter how small they were. THIS is what you were missing. I personally never went out to buy any of the books Ms. Harris and Sookie were featured in. With A Touch of Dead, you have them all in one volume and can read them as you are reading all the books or, like me, who is all caught up in the series, can read them all together.

This was a fun, quick read... with a special dose of the Sookie Stackhouse universe we have all come to love. This is a must-read for any fan of the series.

Are they KIDDING me charging 18.99 for the Kindle version? That's more than the hardcover! What, are they trying not to sell it? I hear it's the publishers trying to set limits, if so, what they are doing is killing their profit margins, turning away customers, and making sure customers don't buy books from that author. It's a shame too, as buying via Kindle can be a very good (and green) alternative to buying paperbacks.

And I hate to say it, but the Charlaine Harris books are the worst of the bunch. If I were the author, I would stand up to the publisher on the fans' behalf.

As it was, I borrowed this book from a friend, it was a fun, short read, not as good as the books, but no where NEAR worth buying for the ridiculous inflated Kindle price.
And yes, pricing policies like these DO affect the reviews of the books and the feelings of the public towards the publishers and authors.

These mysteries are interesting, and occassionally helped to fill holes that the series novels skip over. The stories lack complexity - the plots are not very developed due the length of each story.

Having read all of Charlaine's Sookie Stackhouse Series novels, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the short stories that revolve around the same characters. I was disappointed. I knew they were short stories, but hadn't realized how different they would be. For me, this wasn't a valuable addition to my collection or to the Sookie Stackhouse series.

Bottom line: These are fun, easy, quick reads - but don't expect what you're used to in the series.

Like most urban fantasy authors, Charlaine Harris puts out a lot of short stories when she isn't writing full-length novels. And thankfully, Harris has produced "A Touch of Dead" -- a short story collection that brings together (almost) all of her Sookie Stackhouse short stories, with their mellow Southern charm and slightly chilling urban fantasy flavor.

But be warned: this is not a new book, it's a short story collection. It's got five stories and rather enlarged print.

In "Fairy Dust," Sookie is already in a bad mood when fairy Claudine arrives at Merlotte's, seeking her psychic brand of help -- she and her brother Claude want to find the murderer of their sister from a local strip club. They have three suspects tied up at their house, and they want Sookie to do her mind-reading thing to discern who murdered Claudia.

"One Word Answer" has Sookie receiving an unexpected legacy when her wild cousin Hadley meets with an "Unfortunate Incident" ("My cousin Hadley, the cheerleader, had become a vampire lesbian
voodooienne. Who knew?"). But she suspects that she isn't getting the whole story from a slick lawyer and weird vampire. And "Dracula Night" comes up when Sookie is invited to celebrate the birthday of Dracula -- and like Linus, Eric is sure that Dracula himself will appear. Of course, nothing goes that smoothly.

Then Sookie gets "Lucky" when Greg Aubert reveals that he thinks his insurance agency is being sabotaged, and Sookie soon discovers a supernatural "in" using one of his family members. But the answer might be something a bit more bizarre... and it might have to do with his flourishing business. And Christmas in Bon Temps inevitably leads to "Gift Wrap" -- a lonely Sookie goes for a walk, and stumbles across a strange, naked young man, who gives her a Christmas to remember... and not just in the way you think.

The stories in "A Touch of Dead" have all been published elsewhere, just never before in one big Charlaine-Harris-exclusive volume. These stories are relatively lightweight compared to the full-length Sookie Stackhouse novels, but they are really entertaining and well-written -- and though each story has Harris' pleasant, down-to-earth Southern charm, they also have a good range of emotion -- from bittersweet to creepy, hilarious to mysterious.

And Harris infuses the prose of each story with gentle humor, from vampiric holidays to Sookie having to read the minds of an average suburban family. Her prose has plenty of lovably tongue-in-cheek moments ("I wouldn't have thought northern Louisiana was very hospitable toward beings of the fairy persuasion, anyway"), and Sookie has plenty of fun little moments with witty humor ("I hate it when fairies come into the bar. They don't tip you worth a toot").

Sookie herself is the same as always -- a sensible, matter-of-fact woman with a wee ruthless streak, and a tendency to find herself in the middle of the supernatural action. Sometimes it comes to her, and sometimes she goes to it. And assorted other favorites appear in the story: the cool and calm Vampire Bill, an unusually fanboyish Eric, the fairy Claudine (plus her hot stripper brother), the adorable Bubba, and the ever-awesome Pam.

"A Touch of Death" is a little buffet of previously published Sookie Stackhouse stories, but it's nice to have all these little nuggets of light urban fantasy fun in one volume. At the very least, it might tide you over until the next novel.

I am a devoted fan of Charlaine Harris and her Sookie stories so I looked forward to reading this book. Unlike some other reviewers, I knew it was not a continuation of her novels, but a collection of short stories. However, the stories were really not that good or interesting and I suspect these stories were probably edited out of her larger novels for this reason. I did give it 3 stars because as a Sookie fan I still enjoyed reading more of Sookie and her world. My advice: do what I did and spend a hour or two at your neighborhood bookstore and read it there for free. There are only 4 or 5 stories in the book; the stories are ridiculously short and written in a really large font.

I've read all of CH's books and to be blunt I think she's getting bored of Sookie and Bon Temps. This series of short stories, covering a variety of timelines in the Sookie Stackhouse universe, really feels like fanfiction rather than original work by the author. The dialogue is abysmal and the plot contrivances are amateur at best. I've never seen CH's work as being superlative in general, but she at least creates a generally cohesive set of characters and dialogue that tends to further their development.

In fact, the last story in this series really sets Sookie into a completely negative light. I've enjoyed the fact that Sookie has "moved on" after Bill and has pursued some other relationships, albeit only with other supes. But without spoiling the story (thin at is in the first place) she all but spends Christmas Eve with a male prostitute. Sookie deserves better treatment than cheap one-night stands, but Ms. Harris must believe she is just not worth a true relationship any longer.

Rather than being short stories, I feel these were drafts for other books she simply decided to abandon or were edited out of her manuscripts. They should have remained as unpublished or released as "bonus stories" on her website. Don't bother, even if you are a true fan. You'll find yourself thinking far less of CH and her character Sookie if you read this.

My sister gave me the first four Sookie books for Christmas and I became an instant addict, finishing those and then whipping through the next four all in two weeks. Point being, I'm normally a huge fan. This collection was a disappointment. These stories don't stand alone well--if you haven't read the novels you are sure to be confused while trying to figure out all the previous history. (However; if you are a fan of the books, the awkwardly forced exposition takes up way too much time in these very short stories.) Charlaine Harris has created a world that is simply too full to easily fit into a short story. The result is stories that feel thin; incomplete; and, most disappointing and preventable, often don't ring true to the established spirit of the characters.

Take away messages:
1)If you are a Stackhouse fan nothing is going to stop you from reading this collection because it exists and you are anxiously awaiting anything Sookie. Go in with low expectations, and take the advice of other reviewers and borrow it from the library or a friend.

2)If this collection was your introduction into Sookie's world and you were disappointed please, please don't give up. They novels are a much different experience, give them a try!

I don't know what the publisher is doing with this. I would have happily paid something, and heaven only knows I spend enough on Kindle books, but I checked this out of the library instead. My local branch offers ePub format books, including this one. I read it on my iPad, but a computer would have worked, too.

I've read the whole series so far. The stories were slight, but thoroughly enjoyable, and fill in some little holes I noticed in the books.

I just finished reading this compilation of stories and consider myself to be a true Sookie Stackhouse fan. However, Ms. Harris has done a disservice to herself and her Southerm Vampire Mysteries series by publishing this....thing. Understanding that Ms. Harris is not a short story writer, her struggle to "obey the short story rules" is evident in each and every chapter. The familiar characters lack their usual depth, are OUT of character completely, and the chronology of events and story placements are confusing. I cite particular grievances (without spoilers) against the portrayals of Pam, Clancy, Niall, not to mention Sookie herself (in "Gift Wrap"). I was extremely excited to purchase this book, believing it would tide me over until May 2010; however, I wish now I had never read it. Ms. Harris has demonstrated her fantastic plot-weaving skills over the entire 9 book series--this thing is no better than fan fiction written by 15 year old girls on a website. Most disappointing.

I love Charlain Harris and have the Skokie Stackhouse series on my Kindle. But I will check out this book from the library instead if buying it at Amazon. They are selling the hardback for $8.00 and the paperback for $8.09, but they are selling the Kindle version for $18.99? That doesn't make any sense.