Rating: 
Summary: very good..
Review: Well, when I read this book it had just come out so I'm a little late in reviewing it but who cares right, anyway all I have to say is wow this was the first serious vamp novel I had ever read since I have read more but none match up to the stature of this.. Hope there is a sequel, many in fact..
Rating:
Summary: Sexy vampire! Likeable heroine! Unexpected Plot Twists!
Review: Loved it. My only objection is that it seemed to end rather abruptly: the mystery wrapped up but the love relationship unresolved. Hopefully that is because Ms. Harris is working on a sequel. Keep the Sookie Stackhouse adventures coming!
Rating: 
Summary: Southern Fried Fun
Review: This is one terrific romp of a book. Vivid characterizations and setting make this a really fun read. This book is a rare find indeed- a convincing vampire tale with a sweet and touching romance as its center. Try it- you'll like it!
Rating:
Summary: Yes, there is a teep, vamps & werewolf, but the setting...
Review: ... is the reason this book is so special.I really like novels with good vampires. Well, not just novels I'm addicted to "Buffy" and "Angel," too. So, yeah I've read Laurell K. Hamilton, Tanya Huff, P.N. Elrod and others. What makes this so successful, besides the humor, is the setting. Anita Blake is a city gal. Tanya Huff's vampire books take place in Toronto. Elrod's Jonathan Barrett books take place in Revolutionary War-era Long Island and London. Her series with the vampire PI is set in Chicago. I also read books about telepaths. In a way, I'm surprised Sookie hasn't read Bester (or watched Babylon 5) and learned to erect barriers his way. Sookie is a quite believable teep, I'm glad she's not yet crazy, and found two people she can be herself with. Sookie Stackhouse, Bill, Sam and the rest live in a small town named Bon Temps in northern Louisiana. Though I don't live in the south, I visited there this summer, where I bought this book.
I visited small towns just like this and I can see Bill wanting to live in the "mainstream," in the house he grew up in. I ***really*** hope there are more of these books to come.
Rating:
Summary: Refreshing New Vampire Mythology
Review: Finally someone has written a vampire book that combines a decent mystery with a little bit of romance, likeable characters and a realistic vampire mythology. OK, vampires aren't "real" but I happen to dislike books in the fantasy/horror genre that don't at least provide a believable explanation for what I'm asked to accept. Ms. Harris has done that and more. I also like the fact that her vampires are not unusually glamorous or larger than life - if average people become vampires why can't they be average vampires? Anyway, I highly recommend this book and look forward to more.
Rating:
Summary: Best vampire book I've read¿and a neat little mystery, too!
Review: Thankfully it was a cold, wet afternoon when I bought read Dead Until Dark-nothing to do but settle in and enjoy this. Sookie kicks butt, Bill is surprisingly common as a vampire (and refreshingly angst-free about his bloodsucking status) and the small-town characters are winningly portrayed. Some people will compare this (negatively) to Laurell Hamilton & others. Yes, there are similarities, but thank God for the differences. Harris's writing is tight and neat, with nothing wasted. Deaths actually *matter* in this book, instead of being treated as unimportant. The conflict between Sookie and her brother is handled realistically, and the world Harris sets up is believable while also making you think "Did she just do that?" One word: Bubba. Bubba is unexpected, original, and heaps of fun. Reading this made me track down Harris's other series, and I'm enjoying them thoroughly. Can't wait for another in this series, though.
Rating: 
Summary: Diverting
Review: I enjoyed reading Dead Until Dark. I liked Harris' twist on Sookie's mind-reading abilities and all the problems they cause her. I also liked the tounge-in-cheek humor. It was quickly paced, the characters were interesting and I wouldn't be at all suprised if this develops into a series. On the otherhand, Harris is treading over ground that has already been staked out (pun intended) by other, more successful authors - Laurell K. Hamilton and Tanya Huff - both of whose urban vampire books I have enjoyed. I couldn't help but notice that Dead Until Dark shared obvious parallels with both series, and is likely to fall into the same traps. There is the whole vampire boyfriend vs. werewolf(shapeshifter since Sam can choose) boyfriend triangle. This threesome in the Anita books has painted the plot into a corner which Hamilton has not always been successful in working her way out of. At least Sam and Bill are more civilized about their interest than Richard and Jean Claude. And again you had the three-way relationship with Vicky, Henry (the vamp) and Michael, who at least was human. I think it is the human versus supernatural worlds that make it interesting, so my biggest problem is where do you go with the story? Sookie already runs the risk of becoming a vampire herself with repeated blood drainings and donations. At the end she was changing appearance and gaining in strength, though admittedly she is something more than human with her mind reading. Still, part of what is interesting about Anita is her constant struggle to remain human (or at least not one of the monsters). When Vicky becomes a vampire, the series didn't have anywhere to go and just died. If Harris can keep Sookie anchored in the human world she should be ok. I also think she has to be careful to distinguish her other southern mystery series (Shakespeare) from these because reading about working-class, anti-social, mystery-solving, bad-boyfriend choosing Sookie was also a lot like reading about Lily Bard without the supernatural elements. If she can keep the tone light and interesting and avoid duplicating other's work I predict a successful series of new books.
Rating:
Summary: Vampire Story with a Funky Southern Culture
Review: This book was most enjoyable..It wasn't of the normal vampire genre in books. It had a sense of humour and the characters were not all dark and morose.. The very idea of a vampire acclimating to normal human behaviour is pretty wild in itself.If you are looking for a different kind of book with a smooth style of writing and pretty dynamic characters, I would definitly check it out.
Rating:
Summary: Great modern vampire story
Review: It is the ulimate book for me. A southern vampire mystery. It's really great because it's in a bit of a new setting... rural south. Not New Orleans or London or some other well known place. Also the "reality" of the book is very close to Laurell K. Hamiton's books, which are also very very good. I like the fact that Sookie was like a real woman... she had her needs and faults and pluses like any other real woman. Bill was cool, in some ways he was still the typical vampire, but in others he had a twist of character. Until close to the very end I didn't know who it (the killer) was, I had my guess only when it got close. This is an awesome and refreshing book for those into vampires. I REALLY hope to see more from Charlaine. :)
Rating:
Summary: The Most Fun I've had reading in a LONG Time!
Review: I ordered "Dead Until Dark" [....] I got my books in today and because of the very well done jacket cover, found myself pulling it from the pile first. The premise sounded very interesting and atypical of vampire fiction. I was hooked from the first page and read this book in one sitting. I devoured it (tongue in cheek!) The 411: Sookie is this waitress in some small town near N'awlins. In this world, which appears to be in the present tense, or not so distant and not too futuristic time, vampires have "come out of the coffin." They're protected legally, though, still treated by many/most as monsters, predators, fiends. Some of the vampires live up to this rep. There are some characters in this book that will make your skin shiver. Others, like the vampire Bill (I'm still laughing at his name. Even Sookie comments on its incongruousness with the glamour associated with vampirism.) ..like Bill, are merely trying to "mainstream" ....live in a human world, at least, after dark. Sookie is a bit different herself. She has major telepathic abilities. She can hear what folks think. This has been a major deterrant for her meeting and maintaining relationships with guys. Till she meets Bill. For some reason, with Bill, she can't hear his thoughts. How does she meet Bill? Well, apparently, in this society, there is a black market for vampire blood. Vampires are caught and "drained." Vampire blood is reported to make folks heal miracurously, and/or increase sexual power. Sort of Viagra and the founting of Youth and an All cure rolled into one. For some, though, drinking vampire blood makes them crazy. However, this was not a focal point of this book. I thought it might be but it just served as an interesting bit of plot. That's the thing I enjoyed about this book. The author took great care in giving us reasons for everything. In a world that is hard to imagine, she made it easier by bringing its reality to terms we could understand/relate to. Anyway, Sookie meets Bill by saving his life from two "drainers." When the drainers come to retaliate and nearly kill Sookie, Bill saves her. (Bill..I love it!) Thus begins their relationship. It's rocky, and very disturbing in some points, not easy and certainly questionable. There is also this matter of these murders that keep popping up all over town. Who did it~ is the question on everyone's mind, and Sookie will help... There are SOOOOOOOOO many wonderful secondary characters. Sam, for instance, Sookie's boss. And Eric, the oldest vampire that Bill knows, who sends sookie flowers that look like vaginas. I got the feeling that there will be another book in this series, because the stories to tell here. There is humor..lots of it. I was laughing out loud. There was violence, so strong I physically cringed. The sensuality level is pretty intense too, as is the awful humanity in this book as well. We all are, in some ways, monsters. Anyway, there is so much to say here. I can't say enough great things about this book. I am not someone who reads alot of vampiric fiction, but I drank this one in with relish (and a side of toast!) It's really good stuff.
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