What will happen on season 3 of True Blood?

HBO announced in July that True Blood has been picked up for a third season, scheduled to begin airing in June 2010, but now that season two of True Blood is dead and gone (pun intended), fans can’t help but wonder - What in the heck will happen on season 3 of True Blood?

True Blood season 3 will be based upon the third novel in the Southern Vampire Mysteries aka Sookie Stackhouse Mysteries by author Charlaine Harris - Club Dead (for a review of the nine books in the series, read A Review of Charlaine Harris‘s Southern Vampire Mysteries and Dead and Gone (A Southern Vampire Myster aka Sookie Stackhouse Novel) by Charlaine Harris).

At the end of the final episode of True Blood season 2 (read a recap here) Bill has apparently been kidnapped. The book Club Dead starts out with Bill going on a mission for the Queen of Louisiana and not returning. Sookie discovers that he has been kidnapped and sets out to help find him. She travels to Mississippi in the company of one Alcide Herveaux - a contractor who is indebted to Eric.

Alcide has something special about him, though - and it makes for some hairy (snickers - yet another pun) entanglements.  Alcide is a Were - a shape shifter who turns into a wolf. Alcide is definitely an alpha male and I’m hoping they bring this character on board in True Blood and give him plenty of screen time as he is a great character in the novels and a warm and toasty opposite to the vampire loves in Sookie’s life.

Alcide becomes yet another love interest for Sookie as she struggles with the anger and betrayal she feels over Bill’s disappearance (in Club Dead, Bill left Sookie for his maker, Lorena - who actually kidnapped and tortured him) and her feelings for both Eric and Alcide.

Several new characters are introduced in Club Dead, and according to True Blood season 3 spoilers ontruebloodnet.com, True Blood season 3 will see several of those characters - including the King of Mississippi - Russell Edgington, stately vampire Franklin Mott and white trash shape shifter Debbie Pelt (the ex-fiancee of Alcide Herveaux - who is bound to be given more bite and role than she had in the books).

Oddly, while these characters have been mentioned, Alcide has not - but Alan Ball - the creative force behind the television series True Blood has hinted that werewolves will be a part of season three. Let’s hope so.

For fans who adore the relationship between Sookie and Bill - hard to say where that will go. Club Dead saw the breakup of the couple and the rest of the book series has Sookie finding new love interests. True Blood could go in any direction with that. Perhaps Sookie will be drawn closer to Eric or maybe she’ll chuck the undead and go for Sam or another of the two-natured.

Who will be back from the previous two seasons of True Blood and who will not be back? We know for sure that Godric and Maryann are dead, but who knows in television. Those characters could easily show back up in dream sequences and flashbacks.

As for the rest: A surprise is around every corner with True Blood. It will be interesting to see what direction season 3 of True Blood will go - it‘s bound to be a wild ride.