Bea Reviews The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Stories by Charlaine Harris

Series: Sookie Stackhouse
Publisher: Ace Books
Source: the publisher in exchange for an honest review
Release Date: November 21st, 2017
Buying Links: Amazon* | Book Depository* | iTunes* | Barnes & Noble
* affiliate links; the blog receives a small commission from purchases made through these links.

Blurb from goodreads:

For the first time together in one volume, the complete short story collection starring Sookie Stackhouse--with a new introduction from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the series, Charlaine Harris.

For the first time together in one volume, here is the complete short story collection starring Louisiana's favorite telepathic waitress, Sookie Stackhouse--from #1 New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris. New fans can fill in the gaps in their Sookie lore while old friends can revisit some of their favorite moments and characters. From investigating the murder of a local fairy to learning that her cousin was a vampire, from remodeling her best friend's house to attending a wedding with her shapeshifting boss, Sam, Sookie navigates the perils and pitfalls of the paranormal world.

Belly up to the bar at Bon Temps's favorite watering hole and hear stories that will make you wish Sookie never left, including...

"Fairy Dust"
"One Word Answer"
"Dracula Night"
"Lucky"
"Gift Wrap"
"Two Blondes"
"If I Had a Hammer"
"Small-Town Wedding"
"Playing Possum"
"In the Blue Hereafter"

This definitive collection is the perfect binge read for people who like their stories with bite!

My Thoughts:

Anthologies that have stories by a single author are wonderful for catching up on stories that have been published in a variety of sources and you may have missed one or more. All of these stories have been previously published in other, multi-author anthologies. I'd read most but there were some I hadn't. Many of the short stories involve mysteries. Each story is prefaced with a short note from Ms Harris, with a brief intro on the story and placing it in the series timeline. The stories range in length, with the longest one being a hundred pages and the shortest one being twenty-two pages. Sookie is the star of all but one of the stories, showcasing her talents. People have a tendency to underestimate Sookie and I enjoy seeing her show them up. While I enjoyed the stories, I had read many of the books and knew the main characters and the world. I don't think it would work as well if you're new to the world.

Fairy Dust 3 stars. A dead fairy and missing money. Sookie did a nice job asking questions, the solve was a surprise, and I'd forgotten about the allergy. It wasn't gripping but it was pleasant.

One Word Answer - 3 stars. Clever story. Once again, Sookie is smarter than she seems.

Dracula Night - 3 stars. Eric's excitement about having Dracula attend his party is both silly and relatable. The 'mystery' was meh but nice background on Dracula.

 Lucky - 3.5 stars Nice little mystery, Sookie's getting good at solving them. Good use of both Sookie and Amelia's powers.

Gift Wrap - 3 stars. Weird, yet sweet Christmas story. I was never a fan of Niall or that whole story line.

Two Blondes - 3 stars. It was fun to see have Pam and Sookei have a night out.They have an odd friendship and the story showcased that nicely. The events didn't make a whole lot of sense but they let Pam and Sookie shine.

If I Had a Hammer - 2 stars. Depressing, moody story. It was nice to see Tara and JB bu tthe story was muddled and dark.
 
Small-Town Wedding - 3 stars. A novella, not a short story. Sam and Sookie go to the wedding of Sam's brother. But weres, including Sam's mother, were recently outed and tensions in town are high. Nice use of motorcyclists and a decent look at the tensions and hostility towards people perceived as outsiders, but the story was a little long.

Playing Possum - 3 stars. Events in this story are much too current as they involve a shooting at a school. I wish Hunter had played a larger part in the story but at the same time, I wish this hadn't happened to him. Still, Harris did a good job portraying Hunter and Sookie's use of their powersin teh situation.

In the Blue Hereafter - 2.5 stars. Sookie is a side character in this story. The focus is on Manfred, a psychic from her Harper Connelly books , who later went on to star in the Midnight Texas books. The story was slow, meandered, and just didn't grab me.