Delightful. Got a little sluggish in the middle with mind reading that seemed to be of no consequence to the plot, but it ended with a bang and I felt thoroughly satisfied ( )

I'm giving all of these Southern Vampire novels 4 stars not because of the level of writing, but because of the excellent narrator on the Audible versions. They really were a fun summer read (listen) that once i started i couldn't stop. Of course you all probably know, the True Blood series on HBO is based on these novels. Kudos to narrator Johanna Parker for making this one of the most enjoyable Audible experiences I've had in awhile. ( )

I found that it had quite a few similarities to Twilight, which made me wonder who copied who..but in the end it was ok..Twilight with a comedic twist. I need a break from vampire books now! ( )

I liked parts of this book and disliked parts, I will try to explain.
Liked~ The storyline the whole vampires out of the closet,the characters were interesting even though I felt there may be too many. Oops thats a dislike.
Dislike ~Too much explicit sex~~ The killing of a character that I felt would have made the series more interesting.

I guess I didn't find this book great and don't feel it lived up to all the hype I've heard.I am reading the second installment and do so far like it a bit better except that as with this book she's killed off a colorful character in the first 10 or so pages.But this is about the first book.
So I will conclude that the jury is still out on this series of books we'll see if when I get done with the 2nd one if it makes me want to read the 3rd. ( )

I wasn't going to bother, I had a feeling that these books would not live up to the hype (or compare favourably with Twilight or the Anne Rice books) - and I was right! One of the other reviewers describes it as 'fluffy' and I'd say that is bang on!

Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it - in a sort of sugar rush, silliness, non-brain taxing way. But I found it very difficult to get over the writing style. I'm not sure if it's just written very badly, or if it's not been edited properly, but some of the sentences were so 'clunky' and their meaning so difficult to understand, even with rereading a couple of times it was very distracting.

I know it's a bit rich to say this, but I found the whole thing so damn 'unbelieveable' - bearing in mind that you first have to get over the idea that the lead characters are a mind-reading waitress and a vampire!

Some of the things that the characters did (particularly Sookie, the main character) were just weird - why would a waitress go into a car park at night with a piece of chain to defend a vampire and expect to survive - if the vampire can be so easily overcome by the attackers what hope has she?

The main problem was that I just didn't care about the Sookie or Bill, or any of the other characters - the writer brings no dimension to them, there is nothing to make me want to know what they are going to do next or even if they survived to the end of the book - I just went on reading as there was nothing else to read at the time.

I'm going to give the series a second chance, I've ordered the second book - but to be honest I'm not holding out much hope. Maybe I've been spoilt by Twilight (which I'll be the first to admit is not a piece of great literature, but is well written and engaging nonetheless) and Anne Rice (again, not stunning literature), when it comes to my vampire reading choices?

Sookie Stackhouse, a cute blonde with the ability to read minds, is thrilled when a vampire walks into the bar where she works. He's awful sweet to her, and she can't hear a psychic peep from him. But not everyone shares her fondness for vampires... or her tolerance for those who "go" with them. Someone is killing young women - young women tagged as fangbangers. And Sookie knows she's a target.

I've heard a lot about these books over the years. It seems like they're everywhere lately, what with the HBO show and all, so I figured I'd give 'em a go. See what they're like.

I feel strange saying this, given that the book is chock full of murder and bloodlust and other great stuff like that, but I found it... well, fluffy. It's a cute, fun little thing that reads up right quick.

I think Sookie herself sets the tone here. She's such a sweetie. She's friendly and bright and rather naive. She's not your typical angsty, I'll-kick-your-ass-into-next-Thursday-if-you-look-at-me-the-wrong-way urban fantasy heroine. She hasn't let all the dark thoughts she picks up on corrupt her or make her cynical. She's just a big ol' sweetie pie. I couldn't really consider this a dark, gory murder mystery. Not with a heroine like Sookie. She was my favourite part of the book.

I also liked the atmosphere. This is very much a southern vampire story. It's got a real Louisiana feel to it; the way everyone speaks, the names, the attitudes... I thought Harris evoked the setting very well. I appreciated how she incorporated the supernatural into her alternate world, too. It wasn't quite on a par with any of my favourite alternate worlds, but it still felt fairly realistic.

But the rest of the book... well. It's fluffy. It's good, I don't want you to think it isn't, but it's not really very deep. Sookie and Bill's relationship is sketchy at best. I never felt the chemistry between them. Ditto for her friendships with the rest of the town. They're sweet and all, but I couldn't find the spark. I couldn't find the oomph.

The mystery is much the same. It didn't leap out at me. For the most part, I felt like it was just a vehicle whereby Harris could introduce her characters and their world. Given that the series seems to be a vampire detective kind of a deal, I do think she might have done more to build up the mystery angle and show her characters actually solving the crime. Sookie does do a little bit, but for the most part she seems to just fall into the answers she needs.

I also had some trouble with the tenses. The book is told from Sookie's first person POV. At the very beginning, Harris slips back and forth between the past tense and the present tense in order to show that the book's events are in Sookie's fairly recent past, but it doesn't quite jive with the story. Stuff like that bugs me no end.

My final verdict: a fun book and a decent way to pass the time, but nothing special. It reads like the series opener it is. I'll probably read a couple more of the books, but I'm not really sold yet.

(A slightly different version of this review originally appeared on my blog, Stella Matutina). ( )

My first foray into the Sookie Stackhouse series which has been made into HBO's True Blood (which I probably won't get from Blockbuster for a few more years). This was actually a cute book, not serious or heavy. Something of a beach read.

Sookie is a waitress in a local bar and has the unique ability to read minds. She does her best to stay out of people's heads and even calls her ability a "disability". Vampires have just become legal citizens and the folks in Bon Temps are eager to see their first vampire.

Enter Bill. How that's a name for a vampire, I don't know, but his name is Bill. Bill and Sookie end up as a couple while trying to figure out a series of murders that have suddenly happened in Bon Temps.

Quick read, cute characters. ( )

Best of book of the series as far as I've read. ( )

I think Dead Until Dark had the possibility of being a 5 shot book, but I watch True Blood. I spent the majority of the novel wondering where Tara was, comparing the actors to the characters in the book and wishing they had used Bubba in the show. Had I not watched the show first, I really believe this book would have been amazing. The book is still very good and I picture Sookie more Jessica Simpson than Anna Paquin now. It was fast, easy, fun and has the potential of being very exciting for someone who hasn't seen the show yet. ( )

Introducing Sookie Stackhouse - mild mannered barmaid in Bon Temps, Louisiana - who just happens to be telepathic...and a bit more (that is not fully explained in this book). When she saves the life of a Vampire, Bill Compton, her life begins to change in ways she could never have predicted. Sexy, engaging - this book is difficult to put down. ( )

In general, I am wont to make scathing deprecations of vampire books. Historically, I have preferred to think of myself as sticking to a program of self-improvement suggested to me so many years ago by Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography. But really, sometimes one just wants to have fun.

Dead Until Dark is the first book of this mystery series that features Sookie Stackhouse, a saucy, telepathic blonde, blue-eyed, 25-year-old barmaid from northern Louisiana who falls for a vampire named Bill. Bill is tall, dead, and handsome; preternaturally strong and correspondingly unhumanly gentle; and filled with a longing for love that has been building for centuries.

The author of the Sookie Stackhouse books (adapted by HBO into the series “True Blood”) has a delightful sense of humor and an impish imagination. She portrays vampires as having a social status analogous to gays: vampires can now be “out of the coffin” (read: closet); there is controversy over how they got to be that way; there are politically correct ways to refer to them; there are hangers-on called “fang-bangers” (read: fag-hags); and there is some vicious prejudice against them and occasional hate crimes. Yet this sometimes serious approach is both tempered and augmented by the author’s sense of humor.

Sookie’s telepathy also adds to the fun, especially since vampires’ minds are closed to her – which is part of Bill’s appeal. As Sookie says:

"…sex, for me, is a disaster. Can you imagine knowing everything yor sex partner is thinking? Right. Along the order of ‘Gosh, look at that mole…her butt is a little big…wish she’d move to the right a little…why doesn’t she take the hint and…?’ You get the idea. It’s chilling to the emotions, believe me.”

By the way, yes, there are sex scenes, but they mange to be romantic and titillating [sic] without any off-putting language or anatomical detail. And yes: apparently having sex with a vampire is all that it’s cracked up to be!

Best vignette:

The first time Sookie brings Bill home to meet her grandmother (with whom she has lived ever since her parents died when she was almost seven), she tells Bill: “Gran says to please eat before you come.”

Worst revelation about myself:

Ugh: Clearly I’m in that demographic that has long transitioned from the passionate excitement of romantic pursuits and crazed hormonal longings to the mundane quotidianness of settled life. (read: “whose turn is it to wait for the cable guy?” and “don’t forget the trash!”) I’m just ripe for the picking for this kind of book, in which I can thrill to the “Remembrance of Things Past.” How embarrassing. Sigh.

Evaluation: A bodice ripper with blood, and loads of fun.

Dead Until Dark is a poorly written, but comforting book.

I picked up Dead Until Dark when I was halfway through watching season 1 of True Blood, the HBO show based on the Sookie Stackhouse series. Although the book is one of those quick n' dirty reads where you can't put it down until you reach the end, I really think this is a case where the show is superior to the book. In True Blood, the characters are more fleshed out and interesting. Sookie is kind of a blank slate in the book, and is far stronger and sassier in the show. Jason Stackhouse is an average guy in the book and is far more amoral (and, again, more interesting) in the show. In fact, I really shouldn't be comparing the book and the show since they're kinda apples and oranges.

But Dead Until Dark, in my opinion, is pretty weak in its own right. I think Charlaine Harris touched a cultural nerve when she sat down to write this book. Vampires are really having a moment right now--and she put a unique spin on the vampire-romance-mystery genre by having the vamps "come out of the coffin" to be a socially recognized minority (a theme Alan Ball pushes in True Blood). Harris can definitely write a page-turner. However, just because the book is hard to put down doesn't mean it's written well. The dialogue never really flows realistically. The descriptions are lacking (hence, the overall boringness and one-dimensionalness of the characters). Perhaps Harris' writing improves in the other Sookie Stackhouse books--I can't say since I haven't read them. But in my opinion, Harris had a good idea which was improved upon by Alan Ball. In this case, I'd recommend True Blood, season 1 over Dead Until Dark. ( )

I've been hearing a lot about the HBO series True Blood and the novels it's based on, the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. I read the first book, Dead Until Dark, and while I liked it, I don't think it's "Twilight for adults" as I've heard it called. Don't get me wrong, it's definitely not PG like Twilight (there's a reason it's an HBO show and not a network show). But it didn't grab me like Twilight did.

Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress in a small bar in a small town in Louisiana, and she has the rare ability to read minds. This makes her a bit of an outcast and dating is almost impossible. But then suddenly she meets Bill, and she can't read a single thing he's thinking. The catch: Bill is a vampire.

Two years ago the Japanese invented synthetic blood that provided vampires (who were now legally allowed to exist and therefore were somewhat socially acceptable) the nutrients they needed, but it doesn't entirely quench their thirst. The only problem is that not all humans accept the vampires, and vice versa. There are still plenty of "Unfortunate Incidents" and when murders start to happen in the town of Bon Temps, fingers start pointing. But who's behind the murders? Is it Bill, Sookie's handsome vampire? Or her brother? Or is there a different type of menace lurking around the town?

This was definitely a good book; it kept me interested and turning the pages. It just didn't pull me into the characters as much as Twilight did, but that's more to do with writing style than the story (I mean, really, this book would be much longer if there was much more character development). So, I'd be interested in reading this again, and I will be checking out the next book in the series (which I hear is much faster-paced and intense) so I give this one 3 out of 5 stars. ( )

Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana. Sookie can read minds – this would seem like a gift to some, but to Sookie, it’s a disability. Listening to everyone’s thoughts is overwhelming and blocking them out gets very tiring. Sookie is thrilled when a vampire, Bill Compton, comes into the small bar she works in because she’s been wanting to meet a vampire ever since they became legally recognized.

Sookie and Bill become involved in an on again/off again relationship and several women in Bon Temps have been murdered. Some people suspect vampires are guilty and others suspect Sookie’s brother, Jason. Jason asks Sookie to do some mind reading to solve the crimes and clear his name.

There’s a little more to DEAD UNTIL DARK by Charlaine Harris, but I don’t want to reveal any spoilers. I’ve read a lot of reviews of this book and know lots of people who loved it. I think my expectations were set too high, because it was just a little better than average for me. I couldn’t understand Sookie’s attraction to Bill and was frustrated at times with their relationship. I also felt like the story got bogged down in unnecessary details and like the reader wasn’t given enough clues to try to solve the mystery. The story was a light, fun read but it just didn’t draw me in like I was expecting it to. ( )

I received this book as a birthday gift and was quite excited (see earlier mentions of squeals and dances when books are received as gifts). I was hesitant to read this series because I love “True Blood” and have heard that the show differs in a few ways from the books, but that’s to be expected. Initially when I started reading Dead Until Dark I hated it. I thought Sookie’s personality was ditzy and annoying. It’s all first-person point of view, so I thought the whole book would be trouble for me, having to be in her head the whole time. But I took a breath, and relaxed, and once I got used to it I was able to set aside my preconceptions from HBO and read the book pretending I didn’t know anything about it. Having said that, I am not a huge fan. I liked it, but I like the show more. I think the characters are more enjoyable in the show since the first person POV in the book tends to make any other character development impossible. I also think the book would have been very bland if I hadn’t already seen the show and had images in my head. I was annoyed by the amount of detail given to Sookie’s every wardrobe change, whether it be denim dress, or shorts and Grateful Dead t-shirt. Granted it was only one or two lines, but it was every time she decided to change, which was frequently. And at one point she put a scrunchy over her ponytail, and I have major issues with anything from the 80s happening in a book written this century. It’s the reason I no longer read the Women’s Murder Club series.

There were some good things about it, it wasn’t complete nonsense. It was a very quick read; I could have finished it in a day if I wanted to. And it’s a light read, I didn’t feel weighed down in the process which was nice. It’s obviously a good idea and a good plot, but I hope the next book is better. My favorite part by far was Bubba, the man from Memphis. All I will say is that it involved Googling on my part because I thought I had missed something, and then when I did Google, I laughed hysterically because I was kinda-sorta right. If you’ve read the book you might know what I mean (but don’t spoil it for anyone else!) but if you have read the book and don’t know what I mean, you should Google. But don’t read too much because I inadvertantly read a spoiler and am SO annoyed by people who don’t warn.

In my mind, Dead Until Dark doesn’t yet match up to the emotional connection of Twilight, or the suspense of Harry Potter. But it’s only the first book in the series, so I’m not writing Ms. Harris off just yet. I’m giving it 2-3 stars (sorry, I usually try to avoid half stars) and will read the second one a few books down the road. ( )

While I enjoyed it from a romance novel perspective, I missed the multiple storylines that are in True Blood. These are impossible for Harris to tell, since she utilizes the first person narrative structure. The sex scenes are also not terribly exciting. However, the dialogue between characters are excellent, and Harris has talent for showing the reader Louisiana. ( )

I read this after watching and loving the first season of True Blood. The book clears up exactly why Sookie finds Bill so irresistable. Unfortunately, it is first person, so a lot of other storylines are missing--most notably Jason's and Tara's. Sookie is a stronger person in the book than the tv show, though, and I appreciated that.

For my extended review, check out my blog: http://wp.me/pp7vL-3R ( )

I needed an easy read while on break, and since I've been wanting to read this for a while I picked it up. I began watching the first season of True Blood on DVD after I had begun reading this book. I think I may have to re-read the book to give it a fair review. While I thought the book was okay, I really enjoyed watching True Blood. You really get two completely different experiences from the book and the show.The author's writing is sometimes confusing. Her sentence structure had me scratching my head a few times, but it did not take away from the story too much. By far, I prefer Sookie's character in the book more than Anna Paquin's portrayal of the character. In the book, she's spicy and hot tempered at times. In the show, she flies off the handle way too much and her attitude gets annoying. There are a couple of characters that have a minor role in the book, but get more face time in the show. For that, I am grateful to the show for. You get to know the characters more in depth in the show than in the book. I loved Lafayette and kept wishing he was a major character in the book. Another positive about the book is that it did not focus on "V juice". I felt the show dedicated more time than necessary on it.The premise of vampires "coming out of the coffin" was entertaining. Overall, a pretty fun read. ( )

I am reviewing Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris. I chose to read this book because they have a television series for it on HBO and i love the series. I think that the characters in it are very facinating and it puts a spin on vampires, good or bad. I thought that this book was pretty awsome.

I really liked Sookie. She is a strong, independant woman and she will do anything to help her loved ones. I could have gone without the sex scenes but overall i still loved it and really want to read the next one.

I think that Dead Until Dark met my expectations that i had because of the tv series. I was kind of shocked about how close that they stuck to the outline of the book. It was pretty awesome book and i suggest that anyone who can get past the sex scenes should read it.

This was a really great start to this series. I am not a big fan of vampire stories but I truley did enjoy reading this book. Sookie is a great character. ( )

Love the HBO series, the book is a lot of fun!

C’est une série de vampires qui se déroule à la Louisiane, dans une petite ville du nom de Bon Temps.
Sookie est serveuse dans un petit bar près de la forêt (drôle d’endroit pour un bar…) et un beau soir, ne voilà -t-il pas, qu’un vampire vient s’installer à une de ses tables? Sookie frôle la crise cardiaque tellement elle est heureuse d’en voir un. Et quel spécimen! Bill, oui oui c’est le nom de notre vampire, est beau (forcément hein…), mystérieux (comme la plupart des vampires), et bien sur elle se sent inévitablement attirée par lui.
Pourtant quand une série de jeunes filles ayant pour point commun leur fréquentation vampiriques sont retrouvées mortes, tout désigne Bill comme un suspect potentiel. Sookie va devoir retrouver le meurtrier et faire accepter son vampire chéri au sein de la communauté de Bon Temps.
P.S.: Nous avons même droit à une guest-star, une star qu’on croyait morte dans ce numéro fait une apparition.
Mon avis général sur ce premier volume, qui met en place les personnages et leur personnalité, est que c’est un bon divertissement dans le train. Ca se lit à une vitesse TGV. L’écriture est très visuelle, d’ailleurs elle a été adapté à la télé sous le nom de True Blood. Le premier volume représente l’équivalent de toute la première saison.
Bref un excellent livre pour passer le temps pour ceux et celles qui ne sont pas trop exigeant. ( )

The high-school vampire novels I read last week were but mere hors d'oevres in preparation for this - the main course. The Sookie Stackhouse novels have been given the HBO treatment by Alan 'Six Feel Under' Ball, and are currently on our screens as True Blood, but before I watch the TV series (I've recorded initial episodes) I wanted to read the first book...

Pretty Sookie Stackhouse waits tables at Merlottes, a bar in Bon Temps, deep in the heart of Louisiana. The locals think she's slightly crazy - but they don't know that Sookie is a telepath and can hear everyone's thoughts - to stop herself going mad she has to concentrate to keep her guard up. She lives quietly with her Gran, boyfriends being difficult with her knowing everything they are thinking!

Since the invention of synthetic blood, vampires have come out into the mainstream but one has never been to Merlottes, until Bill. Unfortunately he sits next to the wrong people who are after his blood - it's worth $200 a phial, and they lure him out to the woods beyond the carpark where they tether him with silver and start to drain him - until Sookie intervenes. She saves Bill, and it's fair to say it's love at first sight for both of them - particularly as Sookie can't hear Bill's thoughts. Bill now owns the old house across the way from Sookie's Gran. He's one of the few who wants to intregrate into a community - to live quietly, and only drinking synthetic blood. He was made a vampire during the civil war and is tired of living on the edge.

The only problem is that as soon as Bill appears, murders start happening. They're all good-time girls who have a bit of a reputation as 'fang-bangers'. Suspicion is automatically on all the vampires in the region, but Sookie's brother Jason also knew the murdered girls. Sookie decides to use her powers to help solve the crimes. The wider vampire network is a dangerous place and there is a serial killer somewhere out there in this close-knit community that must be caught.

A kooky heroine and vampires combined with a top-notch crime novel set in America's Deep South is a winning combination - I absolutely loved it! Sookie is sparky and resourceful, yet has been waiting for someone to love; Bill wants to be normal and to be taken at face value - he is a good and chivalrous vampire and Sookie awakens his protective instincts. This book is immense fun, it's sexy and intense with thrills aplenty. Volume two, Living Dead in Dallas is already in my reading pile. (10/10) ( )

#1 - Sookie Stackhouse southern telepath w/ vampire boyfriend