If your question is, "Does Jessica still hate Bill?" The answer is a resounding YES. (Seriously. Thank you, Charlaine, for Club Dead and its lack of Bill.)


Club Dead
by Charlaine Harris

Things between cocktail waitress Sookie and her vampire boyfriend Bill seem to be going excellently (apart from the small matter of him being undead) until he leaves town for a while. A long while. Bill's sinister boss Eric has an idea of where to find him, whisking her off to Jackson, Mississippi to mingle with the under-underworld at Club Dead. When she finally catches up with the errant vampire, he is in big trouble and caught in an act of serious betrayal. This raises serious doubts as to whether she should save him or start sharpening a few stakes of her own.


Well, well, well, Club Dead had a lot of good going for it. Number one, naturally, being the lack of Bill Compton. No matter what, it would appear that it's virtually impossible for me to like Bill. Don't ask me why. But, if you'd like a reference, I would gladly point you to an event that occurs towards the climax of Club Dead. (I was team LITERALLY ANYONE BESIDES BILL in the show, so I guess it's only fitting that this is my way of thinking in the novels too. Sookie just deserves better.)

Generally speaking, I loved the plotlines in Club Dead above the previous two installments. Maybe it was merely my eagerness of Sookie being away from Bill, spending more time with Eric, and finally meeting Alcide. Maybe it was the continued world-building, featuring that healthy dose of mystery, action and romance. Regardless, I positively devoured this installment (via audiobook) and couldn't focus on much of anything else for the duration of the day.

Club Dead is that good.

While Charlaine Harris has proved her addictive, electric quality within pages of the first installment, Club Dead is proof that she'd only just gotten into the swing of things. Club Dead rarely gives us the chance to catch our breath, and I love it all the more for this! Readers are left reeling from mysteries, plot-twists, jaw-dropping moments, sizzling chemistry and more world-building.

Her writing, though cheesy and at times a bit prone to causing a serious case of the cringe, seems to glow with its own growth throughout Club Dead. Not only was it smoother, it felt more and more like the story was coming to life before my eyes. Still, it held the familiarity of its predecessors--only it felt more polished, cohesive and enthralling.

Ultimately, I adored Club Dead. While there were some moments within its pages that made me scoff a bit, it was a highly addictive substance that I didn't want to be parted from. With all the drama of Bill's actions, and his relationship with Sookie on the backburner, I'm excited to see Harris explore the chemistry between Sookie and Eric--who are by far the superior relationship in the series so far. As always, I'm excited to continue on with this series and am ready to devour book four.