Trailer: True Blood Season 7

The seventh and final season of True Blood premieres on June 22. I am way, way behind on this series even though I finished all of the books. I don't know exactly what's been going on in the show but, from this trailer, it looks like a battle is coming. Even though it's pretty campy, I still enjoy the show and all of the man candy it provides. I am kind of bummed that it won't be on anymore but it had a good run. Now that a bunch of seasons are on Amazon Prime, I may finally catch up.

Is anyone tuning in for the premiere this weekend?

Review: Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris

Title: Dead Ever After (Sookie Stackhouse #13)

Author: Charlaine Harris
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Ace
Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Find It: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N, Book Depository
Source: Library

There are secrets in the town of Bon Temps, ones that threaten those closest to Sookie—and could destroy her heart...

Sookie Stackhouse finds it easy to turn down the request of former barmaid Arlene when she wants her job back at Merlotte’s. After all, Arlene tried to have Sookie killed. But her relationship with Eric Northman is not so clearcut. He and his vampires are keeping their distance…and a cold silence. And when Sookie learns the reason why, she is devastated.

Then a shocking murder rocks Bon Temps, and Sookie is arrested for the crime.

But the evidence against Sookie is weak, and she makes bail. Investigating the killing, she’ll learn that what passes for truth in Bon Temps is only a convenient lie. What passes for justice is more spilled blood. And what passes for love is never enough.

Dead Ever After is the final installment of the long running Sookie Stackhouse series. This series has been steadily going downhill for me for a while now but I knew that I wanted to finish it and get some closure. After the previous book, I didn't have very high expectations for this one.

After 13 books, Harris definitely had her work cut out for her. There were a lot of loose ends to figure out and you can never really please everyone with a series as popular as this. I expected Sookie to go out with a bang, but the ending surprised me .

The book starts when a body is found behind Merlotte's.  The body conveniently has a piece of Sookie's clothing on it and she becomes the number one suspect. Harris goes back into familiar territory here as Sookie tries to unravel the mystery, while trying to stay alive. A lot of characters pop up in this book. While some of them do add to the plot, I can't help but feel that some of them are there just to make a goodbye appearance.

Of course, the big question is - which guy does Sookie end up with? Without spoiling it I have to say that I am not surprised by the outcome. Harris has been hinting in the last few books which way this might go. I think a lot of fans might be disappointed but I didn't have a strong feeling about it. In many ways I think she ended up with the right person but I also would have been OK had it gone in another direction. I guess I just didn't have that much invested in Sookie's romantic life anymore.

While I was expecting some kind of epic ending for the series with revelations and battles galore, what I got was just another Sookie book. There were more guest appearances than usual by characters I imagine Harris wanted to say goodbye to but didn't have much bearing on the plot. Harris does wrap up the major plot points. For the most part though, it really didn't feel like an ending, but just another crazy day in Bon Temps. While I was a bit underwhelmed by the whole thing, I wasn't particularly upset about the ending. Would I have liked to have seen some things resolved differently? Sure, but this is Harris's baby, this is how she wanted to end it.

Even though I wasn't a huge fan of the last few books, I will always think of this series fondly, and am interested to see what Harris will do next.

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Visit the author online at www.charlaineharris.com and follow her blog.


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Manicure Monday (23): Dead Ever After

Hello! Happy Monday and thanks for stopping by. Manicure Monday is my weekly feature where I show you a book I am currently reading along with what's on my nails. This week I am reading Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris. This is the last book in the Sookie series. While I didn't love it, I thought it was alright. It seems like a lot of people are pretty pissed about this book, but I thought it was OK. Not as epic as I thought it was going to be but not as bad as the last book. Anyway, hoping to post a full review soon. On to the manicure!

 

So it's a bit hard to see in the first pics. I decided to take a few motifs from the cover for this week's mani. Namely the bats, the big ol' flower, Sookie's skirt and the tiger tail. In hindsight, I kind of wish I had gone with something simpler and more cohesive for this look, but I still think it's pretty fun.

As you can see, my index and middle finger sport the bats that appear on the front cover. For my pinkie I tried to mimic the look of Sookie's red, sparkly skirt. It's more cute in person than I think this pic shows. 

Last but not least is a cute little tiger tail. I used a lot of polishes for this look so I'll just name a few of the main colors - China Glaze Gothic Lolita (lighter purple), Essie Sexy Divide (darker purple sponged on), Zoya Arizona (orange) and OPI Jade is the New Black (green). I used various blacks and whites to draw in parts of the images as well. There's a lot going on in this cover and a lot happening on my nails. 

What do you guys think of this one? Love it, hate it? Let me know in the comments below and link up if you have a Monday manicure. Have a great week!

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Stacked (60)

Hello and happy Sunday. Is everyone enjoying the first week of summer? It's always warm where I live so it is sometimes hard to separate summer from all of the other seasons. I try to eat lots of ice cream to help me get in the summer mood. :)  I had a pretty good week this week. Work was alright and I got myself a few books. I also get to see my family this weekend as my brother is taking his wife and kids to Disneyland. I am excited to see them all as I haven't seen the baby in a couple of months and had to miss her birthday party last weekend. But enough about me, you came here for books, so let's get to it.

eBooks for review

The Mistress by Tiffany Reisz - Thank you NG and the Harlequin auto-approved list. Super excited to read this one though I have to read my book club book before I can start this.

The Marquess Who Loved Me by Sara Ramsey - Requested this on a whim from NG and am glad that I did. A story of lovers reunited after 10 years and they're not very happy with each other. First time reading Ramsey but not my last.

Bought & Borrowed

The Wig in the Window by Kirsten Kittscher - This is a middle grade mystery. I went to the launch party for this earlier in the week and got a signed copy. You can read my recap here.

Paradigm by Helen Stringer - At the Wig book signing, I ran into Helen Stringer who is friends with some of my friends. Helen was kind enough to give me a copy of her new YA novel. It's sounds a bit dystopian/apolcalyptic. Unfortunately I can't find it on Goodreads yet but I have linked to Helen's author page.

Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan - Snagged this at the library. I've heard that it's very good.

This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith - Another library score. I really enjoyed Smith's first novel and am looking forward to this one.

Last but not least is Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris. Yes, yes many of you will probably say that this series jumped the shark a while ago. I don't disagree but I have read every book in this series and I am going to see how it ends. Crossing fingers that I like it better than the last one.

That's my book haul this week. What's in your mailbox?

**Almost forgot to mention that one of my manicures was featured on Book Riot this week in a post about awesome YA inspired manicures! They featured my most recent manicure for Love and Other Perishable Items and I am beyond happy to be included in such great company. Check out the link to see all of the manicures featured. Alright, I'm out for real now. Happy Sunday!

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Charlaine Harris Starter Set - Birthday Month Giveaway (INTL ends 7/31)

Hey everyone! Alethea here. I'm kind of hijacking the blog (in a good way) while Thuy is on vacation and enjoying her totally adorable new niece. I'm doing some giveaways over at RNSL so I thought I'd do some over here, too!

July is my birth month!

So to share the love, I will be sending you presents. You! Yes, you.

That is, if you're lucky enough. My birthday is 7/11. That's pretty lucky.

Now, don't try to stake me--I'm not as big a Charlaine Harris fan as all you True Blood folks are. (Blame Anna Paquin, I can't watch anything she's in since she played Rogue in the X-Men movies). But I do think her books are super fun. Did you know she has mystery series aside from the Sookie books? You can click on the covers above to read more about them.

Well, that's what's up for grabs today. You could win the first book in each of Charlaine Harris's series: Sookie Stackhouse, Lily Bard, and Harper Connelly. (If the winner already has one or more of those titles, I can be flexible on which ones you get as long as the $ does not exceed my $21 budget :) The Aurora Teagarden series is also included in the options, I just happen not to have any of those right now.

This contest is open internationally! Click on the bottom of the rafflecopter widget for the rest of the fine print. If the contest reaches 711 entries by the end of the month, I'll draw 2 winners!

There are no mandatory entries, but you have to do at least one to enter. Good luck, and happy birthday to me! Click "Read more"to enter below!

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a Rafflecopter giveaway

Dead Reckoning - Review

Dead Reckoning (Sookie Stackhouse #11) by Charlaine Harris
Publication date: 03 May 2011 by Penguin/Ace Roc
ISBN 10/13: 0441020313 | 9780441020317

Category: Adult Urban Fantasy
Keywords: Urban fantasy, vampires, weres, fae, shapeshifters
Format: Hardcover, eBook and audiobook

From goodreads:

With her knack for being in trouble's way, Sookie witnesses the firebombing of Merlotte's, the bar where she works. Since Sam Merlotte is now known to be two-natured, suspicion falls immediately on the anti-shifters in the area. Sookie suspects otherwise, but her attention is divided when she realizes that her lover Eric Northman and his "child" Pam are plotting to kill the vampire who is now their master. Gradually, Sookie is drawn into the plot-which is much more complicated than she knows.

Thuy's review:

Sookie finds herself once again in a whole heap of trouble when she witnesses a fire bomb at Merlotte’s. The suspicion falls on the anti-Shifter groups in the area but Sookie has her own ideas about who might be behind it the attack. Throw in an assassination plot to kill the current vampire king and Sookie may have bitten off more than she can chew.

Charlaine Harris gets back on track with Dead Reckoning. The last book in the series was a huge disappointment for me. It was bogged down with way to many characters and dry explanations of vampire politics. This book returns to what I loved about the series in the first place - fun and interesting characters, drama and hot vampires! There was a little less Bill than I would have liked (Team Bill!) but Eric was definitely great. Some changes to Sookie and Eric’s relationship happen that I think were inevitable. There’s also plenty of sweet, sexy Sam in this one. Harris seriously needs to give him a girlfriend who isn’t mean or crazy (and yes, I volunteer).

We see the return of fan fave Bubba in a rare concert performance and Amelia the witch even makes a brief appearance. Sookie learns more about her fae heritage and the origins of her telepathic ability. This revelation wasn’t quite what I was expecting but it’s a nice piece of the Sookie puzzle to have.

Dead Reckoning is a quick, fun read that reminds me why I originally started reading this series and why I love Sookie. Looking forward to the next installment!

say "twee!"

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Find Thuy on Twitter @fishgirl182