Sookie," Eric said. I didn't think he'd heard a word. "Yield to me." Well, that was pretty direct.

If I was getting harder, it was in response to the world around me.

Following Simon's adventures is like being the pinball in an especially antic game, but it's well worth the wear and tear.

There were definitely parts of my character I didn’t approve of, and maybe from time to time I had moments when I didn’t like myself much. But I got through each day as it came to me, and so far I’d survived every thing life had thrown at me. I could only hope that the survival was worth the price I’d paid.

My favorite fantasy? You come down into my daytime resting place stark naked," he said, and I could see the gleam of his teeth as he smiled. "Oh, wait," Bill said. "That's already happened.

I gripped the stapler even harder and felt like a fool planning to battle a crazy man with a stapler that even, I suddenly remembered, contained no staples. Well, strike that line of defense.

And since I’m going to be in the neighborhood, you thought I might do as an escort? To an orgy?