Dead to the World by Charlaine Harris

Dead to the World is the fourth installment in Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series. The series focuses on a young Louisiana woman with telepathic powers who is pulled into the world of the supernatural. Each book introduces the reader to new parts of the supernatural world, a world that for the most part is unseen to the average human.

It's a new year and Sookie wants to turn over a new leaf, mostly in resolving to stay out of trouble. She thinks this will be pretty easy since her ex-boyfriend, Bill, is in Peru on vampire business. But on the way home from work New Year's Day, she almost runs over Eric, Bill's boss. Eric is half-naked, on the run from someone or something, and has amnesia. This Eric is seductive not through his actions but by the fact that he is so much more likable than his normal undead self. Of course, problems usually come at once in Sookie's life, just like now. 

Eric's condition is due to the fact that he has been cursed by a witch. The witches are on the lookout for him, Sookie's hiding him, and her brother Jason has gone missing. While worrying about keeping Eric safe, she also has to worry about finding her brother. Other supernatural creatures in this book are the werewolves, shape-shifters, and the introduction of Claudine, a fairy. I'm still not sure at Claudine's introduction and hope that Harris has a plan for her. 

I picked up this book because I had just started watching True Blood, the HBO series based on the Southern Vampire series. This book was much easier to get into than it's predecessor, and I enjoyed it so much more. Sookie, unlike Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, has changed over the course of the books and is tired of dealing with what she's gone through. Due to her telepathy, she's hardly normal, but she knows she can't return to her previous life. 

I fully enjoyed the return of Alcide, the werewolf, in this book. I love Alcide, and as far as Sookie's potential and former lovers are concerned, he's right up there for me. That alone made this book a good one for me. The pacing was good, the plot was interesting, and I like how Jason has changed in this book. 

A.