Review of Deadlocked by Charlaine Harris

Title: Deadlocked (Sookie Stackhouse #12)
Author: Charlaine Harris
Narrator: Johanna Parker
Published by: Recorded Books Inc.
Length: 8 sound discs (9 hr., 30 min.)
Source: Libary
Format: Audio
Rating: 3 stars

Summary from Goodreads:  With Felipe de Castro, the Vampire King of Louisiana (and Arkansas and Nevada), in town, it’s the worst possible time for a body to show up in Eric Northman’s front yard—especially the body of a woman whose blood he just drank.

Now, it’s up to Sookie and Bill, the official Area Five investigator, to solve the murder. Sookie thinks that, at least this time, the dead girl’s fate has nothing to do with her. But she is wrong. She has an enemy, one far more devious than she would ever suspect, who’s out to make Sookie’s world come crashing down.

Sookie, Sookie, Sookie...we are on the 12th book and people are still trying to kill you.  Don't get me wrong, I love this series.  I've read and listened to all the books, however, they are all starting to sound the same. 

After Sookie is summoned to Eric's house to entertain Felipe de Castro, all hell brakes loose when they find a dead girl on Eric's front lawn.  After the last book I expected the wrath of Felipe de Castro to be a little more terrifying.  He is supposed to be this big bad vamp and yet a lot of the book didn't focus on that.  In fact, it didn't focus much on vampires at all much to my disappointment.  I wanted some quality Eric time and this book didn't deliver that, instead it focused mostly on Sookie.

Sookie is her typical self; a little flighty, quick tempered, and forced into awkward and dangerous situations.  However, she does seems to be doing a little soul searching in this novel.  She looks over her life and all the things and people in it.  I think this may be leading up into the big decision that the next (and last) book in the series will hold.  Who does Sookie really belong with? Eric, Bill, Sam, Alcide or someone completely new and human? 

The plot was pretty much the same as all the rest of the books in the series.  Though the ending does bring a bit of a surprise that I wasn't expecting.  Overall, I felt like this book was pretty much setting up everything for the final installment of the series.  It wrapped up a couple of loose ends and set up some decisions Sookie will have to make about her life. 

Even with its predictability and typicality's it was still a fun book to listen to.  I enjoyed listening to Johanna Parker read as Sookie.  I know she's narrated some Meg Cabot and Jennifer Weiner books, but to me she will always be Sookie.