Alone in the Dark
With a good book by Charlaine Harris
Reviewing Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series
Winter is a time for reflection, hibernation, quiet. When the nights get long, I hunker down with a great book, or better yet, a lengthy series for binge reading. Here are a few of my favorite things about Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series, that begins with Book 1 - “Dead Until Dark” and continues to Book 13 - “Dead Ever After”.
I recommend these books because the characters and story are complex and engaging, so much that I have re-read several times since discovering them. I appreciate novels that delve into the inner struggles of the characters on themes of dark and light.
Harris is a master at the inner conflict of a character who has had violence awaken a dark side in their being. Sookie Stackhouse at first is naïve about the savage fact that humans are the vampire’s food; throughout the book series, the interspecies murders and wars pull her into the depths of the otherworld and the violence done to her (by book 9) fuels the darkness within her.
The competition of Sookie’s light and dark characteristics, which aspect predominates, and why, makes Harris my go-to for how to write inner conflict.
Sookie is interesting to me because of her values as a character. She stands up for what she believes is fair, just, and proper. She doesn’t put up with others’ posturing. As her character develops through the series, one of the main themes that arises to me is how a person maintains their humanity when faced with inhumanity – i.e. the undead vampires.
What I admire about Sookie’s character is her consistency on relating to people – she is very loyal to her boyfriend, boss, family/friends; she offers hospitality to all who come into her home, and although the situation may be difficult, she is always kind to others (especially to those in need, but also with those who are difficult).
She champions fairness so much that she negotiates with vampires when others are stopped by fear and intimidation, and stands up in the face of danger for what she believes. One of her main motivators for engaging with the supernatural is her search for love, as a telepath she cannot date human men, knowing what they are thinking ruins the romance. In each book there is a love story as she dates various suitors from the otherworld and I wonder will they get together, will they overcome the challenges.
Harris is my go-to for how to write inner conflict
Love conquers all - in the romance genre, there is the assumption that the two lead characters want to be together, joining is the goal. One or both may question the other or themselves, but ultimately they want to have a partner. Sookie has several boyfriends thru the series, and learns about other’s motivations or beliefs about relationships, which don’t always match her own.
She just wants to find her true love and I keep cheering for her through the 13 books!
Sookie represents goodness, innocence, strength - and as she is drawn into the supernatural world, she battles external evils and wrongs as well as her internal self-awareness on morality that isn’t always black and white.
What would you do in the name of love?
What would you do for a friend? for a lover? As part of a deal? - The adventure into the supernatural world puts Sookie into all sorts of hijinks. The fast paced plot is a page-turner through all thirteen books. In each dilemma, Sookie keeps her wits about her, evaluates the options, checks with her inner compass and solves the problems with ingenuity, grace, and spunk.
great summary. I only got partway through book 1 because I don't have the capacity for longer series, but I can see why you love them.