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Dead Until Dark

Book 1 in the series:Sookie Stackhouse

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Dead Until Dark is a paranormal romance novel set in a small Southern town, focusing on the telepathic protagonist Sookie Stackhouse and her encounters with vampires. The book follows Sookie as she navigates a world where vampires have come out of hiding, solving a murder mystery while dealing with romantic entanglements. The writing style is described as engaging, light, and fun, blending elements of mystery, romance, and fantasy to create an entertaining and addictive read.

Characters:

The characters, while relatable, often lack depth, with Sookie as the main focus but occasionally appearing naive.

Writing/Prose:

The writing style is light, casual, and easy to read, suitable for a broad audience but often lacks complexity.

Plot/Storyline:

The story follows Sookie Stackhouse, a telepathic waitress, who becomes embroiled in a local murder mystery involving vampires.

Setting:

The small-town Louisiana setting plays a crucial role in the story's charm and the interactions among characters.

Pacing:

The pacing can be uneven, with some sections flowing smoothly while others may feel bogged down.
Ever since vampires came out of the coffin (as they laughingly put it) four years ago, I’d hoped one would come to Bon Temps. We had all the other minorities in our little town—why not the newest, the...

Notes:

Sookie Stackhouse can read minds, which she perceives as a disability.
The story takes place in Bon Temps, Louisiana, where vampires have recently come out as legal citizens.
Bill Compton, a vampire, is a central character and Sookie's love interest.
Sookie is described as a southern belle with blonde hair and blue eyes.
The book tackles themes of prejudice and acceptance related to vampires as a minority.
The series has been adapted into an HBO show called True Blood, which follows a similar plot to the first book.
Charlaine Harris blends mystery, romance, and supernatural elements throughout the series.
Sookie's brother Jason is suspected of being involved in a series of murders targeting women who associate with vampires.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings include graphic violence, murder, and sexual situations that may not be suitable for younger audiences.

Has Romance?

Romantic relationships play a central role in the story, particularly between Sookie and Bill.

From The Publisher:

Sink your teeth into the first novel in the #1 New York Times bestselling Sookie Stackhouse series-the books that gave life to the Dead and inspired the HBO® original series True Blood.

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Bon Temps, Louisiana. She's quiet, doesn't get out much, and tends to mind her own business-except when it comes to her "disability." Sookie can read minds. And that doesn't make her too dateable. Then along comes Bill Compton. He's tall, dark, handsome-and Sookie can't hear a word he's thinking. He's exactly the type of guy she's been waiting for all her life…

But Bill has a disability of his own: he's a vampire with a bad reputation. And when a string of murders hits Bon Temps-along with a gang of truly nasty bloodsuckers looking for Bill-Sookie starts to wonder if having a vampire for a boyfriend is such a bright idea.

Ratings (249)

Incredible (33)
Loved It (96)
Liked It (74)
It Was OK (27)
Did Not Like (14)
Hated It (5)

Reader Stats (366):

Read It (266)
Want To Read (47)
Did Not Finish (6)
Not Interested (47)

8 comment(s)

Loved It
2 weeks

Liked it a lot more then I thought I would!

 
Loved It
3 weeks

(*signed @ 2016 NOLA StoryCon)

 
It Was OK
1 month

Not bad, but not my favorite kind of vampire story. I've never seen the show so I can't make a comparison, but I am interested to see how they differ. However, after reading the first book, I have no real desire to continue reading the series. All in all, it was just okay.

 
Hated It
3 months

I really wanted to like this book. I've heard great things about it from my booktwins*, and I enjoy the TV show. But I knew this would be a DNF from the first page:

"I'm blond and blue-eyed and twenty-five, and my legs are strong and my bosom is substantial."

The first page, people. This is the kind of thing I expect from high school creative writing classes (I should know, having produced similar info-dumps regarding similar Mary Sue heroines in my high school career). Sookie is annoying, her voice is flat, and I do not understand why everyone loves her.

I cannot imagine why this particular series was chosen for television development. I like the TV show, but the books are emphatically not for me.

*People** whose reading tastes generally mirror mine.

**I don't know any of these people. Unless by "know," you mean "lurk on their blogs." In that case I know them very well.

 
Did Not Like
3 months

I rarely DNF books, so I really was sad to do that with this one, but the central romance bugged me enough that I couldn't really bring myself to keep reading. 2.5 stars, though, an extra half a star because I thought the idea was unique and the main character wasn't the sort of archetype I've seen much before.

 
Hated It
7 months

I'd been hearing rave reviews about the television show when I decided that before I dived into the show I'd read the books. What I failed to realise was the book is simply erotica dressed up as a vampire story. The plot is pretty much non-existent beyond she finds vampires hot and lo and behold she finds one and sleeps with him. The end. I won't be continuing with the rest of the series.

 
Loved It
1 year

Thoroughly enjoyed the entire series. Such a great take on supernaturals, vampires in particular. I've read most of the books more than once and loved the FMC and the world-building. Fast-paced, full of action, romance, heartbreak, witty repartee and interesting characters. All pageturners! I wholeheartedly give every book, up to the penultimate novel, an "I loved it". Alas Harris did herself, this series and all her readers a disservice with the ending. As if she no longer had inspiration nor heart for the books. "Okay, let's let her end up with X". Too easily dumped on us, came out of nowhere-weird and didn't feel right. A better choice would've been a Sookie who decided to remain happily single. I remember being upset after I'd invested so much time, money (Have all books, half in hardcover) and heart in. Back then it ruined the series for me. Looking back, I'd still absolutely recommend it, with the added warning that the ending, the HEA part, might make you furious.

 
It Was OK
1 year

I loved the series, but the ending was very abrupt and not satisfying. Kind of ruined the whole series

 

About the Author:

Charlaine Harris is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse and Midnight, Texas, fantasy/mystery series and the Aurora Teagarden, Harper Connelly, and Lily Bard mystery series. Her books have inspired HBO's True Blood, NBC's Midnight, Texas,…

 
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