I believe the secret of my success derives precisely from understanding the workings of both series and books as two different animals.
While the world of Charlaine Harris has supernatural working and lurking in every corner, it is definitely a "fun read" type of experience. In all honesty, and perhaps because of her choice of POV, her vampires- as described by Sookie Stackhouse- don't come across as lethal as they should. Honestly, for book readers, ever since book 4 people had forgotten this is meant to be a supernatural series and it has turned into a pink coated paranormal romance in which the eager reader is much more engaged by trying to guess the pattern of long haired Eric's braiding than the next preternatural threat.
Still, it is a successful series and it has it's fandom. And yes, I enjoy Eric's golden hair in braids, and I get a kick out of his sitcom marriage to Sookie and I love Bill the King of Geeks with his uncanny computer knowledge and yes I even like Pam in pastel blue.
I have no qualms whatsoever to turn my TV on Sundays and thank his all mightiness of Ball for giving me lethal, sarcastic Eric, who might or might not be interested in "I don't know who I might be" Sookie Stackhouse, and I can deal with William Compton, King of Louisiana and Pam's drop jaw fashion sense.
That's why I was sorely disappointed when reading this book. I'm not much of a writer, but I've been a fan all my life. There is one thing all authors should know.... fans are bloodhounds, and they can smell fear. It is a rare and sad case when an author proves to be so weak she can be easily influenced by other people's interpretation of her characters. It has been established that Harris can do fun, campy without sliding into ridicule and can pull sexy in a tall glass of blond bombshell. One thing she cannot do is gritty, dark and multidimensional. That is Allan Ball's territory. It didn't keep her from trying, and failing terribly.
This ship started sinking with Dead in the Family. That's when Harris tested the waters for layered Eric. In her effort to create a background story for our favorite Viking- or as I lovingly call him, Po boy's Lestat- she created Ocella, a vampire master impossible to digest and probably her most despicable character to date. And precisely, because Ocella had no redeeming qualities the character didn't resonate with the readers, as most of us found it unreasonable for book Eric to hold any kind of sympathy for him, vampire fledgling rules or not. In other words: Ocella is no Allan Ball's "Godric". By playing the minimal allegiance to Ocella, Eric became... what is the literary term? Pussified.
After the fiasco of trying to show a softer, easy target side to Mr. Blond Fun, then there was no other route than to go grittier, darker with the next installment... that is easy to pull off, right? I mean HBO book Eric up a notch... cause fans of that darn TV show looooove short haired, quick witted, cocky Eric, so why not? Because there is a big difference between being assertive and being a douche bag.
The following will contain three brief spoilers-two Eric, one Bill- just to prove my point:
- I believe the scene calls for " I do not negotiate Eric", which we have seen a dozen times in HBO, he who scared the living daylights out of the meth pushers in Hotshot, etc etc etc... well Ms. Harris decided it was time for book Eric to show his prowess by scaring a hair dresser- yes you heard me- a hairdresser within an inch of his life for not bringing a cutting cape. Said hairdresser was meant just to cut off a couple of inches of Sookie's hair WTF???!!!
- But let's just wait a minute, book Eric is not unpredictable enough, not enough self absorbed, not selfish enough, so let's spice it up... in a move that runs counter both book and series characterization. Eric beats the heck out of Pam in a fit of rage. He did so in a preventive strike manner anticipating that Pam could reveal a secret to Sookie. Really... really? If there is anything between these characters it is- all puns intended- undying loyalty. It made me close the book and grab a drink, I swear.
- And don't even let me start with Bill. And no, it is not a matter of teams, at this point in both book and series I'm team "Sookie is better off in fairyland." But I guess when it comes to sexy up quiet book Bill who has been out of the radar since book 3... well you know because those TV fans just loooove the tension, there's nothing better than concoct a scene in which a naked Sookie ends up atop Bill in his cubby. Honestly, I had to read it twice because I couldn't figure out how the hell this came to be, all while fighting that pesky cello in my head... you know Bill's theme, because the words that came out of Bill's mouth were HBO writing staff, guaranteed.
All in all, I still look forward to my Sunday nights, as far as the written word; well, I have books stacked up everywhere. I'll get to Harris when I get there.
