Rating: 
Summary: I hate this book!
Review: Where do I even begin to rant about this novel??Harris' characters are terribly one dimensional, the plot was vey weak, and the "Southern Charm" in this novel was thick enough to choke a horse. Harris also took a few liberties with her story details that appear to me to be stolen from Laurell K. Hamilton's work. I really disliked this novel all the way around. I had trouble just finishing it. I would not recommend this novel to another reader.
Rating: 
Summary: A clever beginning
Review: A trusted recommendation put me on the path to this book, which turned out to be quite good. Harris takes the classic vampire mythos and puts a clever spin on it, "outing" the creatures of the night to the world at large. Seeing a vampire in Harris' world is like encountering a member of any other minority group -- which makes for some interesting paralells in how anti-vampiric sentiments echo racism. The trouble is, sometimes the anti-vampirism is justified -- there are good vampires, yes, but there are still just as many who see humans as cattle. Achieving the balance between the different temperaments of the undead is not easy, but Harris handles it well. Sookie Stackhouse, our improbably named heroine, is a great viewpoint character, although her "disability" seems a bit convenient. I hope that future volumes in the series delve into it a bit further, possibly putting forth an explanation of where her power comes from. Of course, the fact that I'm contemplating future volumes is the best praise I can give this book. I enjoyed it enough to keep reading. Looking forward to book 2.
Rating: 
Summary: Great read
Review: I have read all of Charlaine Harris' Lily Bard and Aurora Teagarden mysteries and was excited that she started a new series. I loved this book, couldn't put it down, and am anxious to read the rest of the series. I have only one quibble. After the first two murders, an attempt was made on Sookie (the heroine). However, she would return to her home alone every night, with no police protection. She knew the murderer was most likely coming back for another try at her, but no one really seemed to care enough to do anything about it except for her boyfriend. Can we really believe her best friend would ask her to babysit her two young children at Sookie's home late at night, knowing the murderer was out there trying to get Sookie? That is just too much of a stretch.
Rating:
Summary: Better than LK Hamilton
Review: Harris writes the story of a very believable heroine with a very annoying disability. She can read people's minds. Sookie has long dreamt of meeting a vampire but is taken by surprise when she does and ends up saving his life. This book is very enjoyable and fast paced -- A perfect summer read. It's light and entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: Vampires, Southern Style
Review: Dead Until Dark is the first of the Southern Vampire series that introduces Sookie Stackhouse, a sexy cocktail waitress from Louisiana. Sookie is rather quiet, shy, and does her best to live with her disability; being able to read people's minds; i.e. a telepath. Early on in the book, a stranger, Bill, shows up and she is intrigued that she cannot read his mind, and for a good reason; Bill is a Vampire. Vampires now have a certain status in many parts of the world and are free to live and come and go as they please. Japan has even developed a synthetic blood for them to drink and is stocked in many establishments, including the one where Sookie works. Bill and Sookie have a natural attraction to one another and a romance begins to emerge. At first glance this may sound somewhat corny but that is not the case at all. It is a highly imaginative story with a very nice blend of action, mystery, comedy, and romance. Sookie and Bill are both very likable, as are many of the other main characters in the novel. Charlaine Harris does a great job at developing their backgrounds and the result is a solid foundation on which to base future stories. This book is clever, imaginative, and by all means, fun.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable treat
Review: Sookie Stackhouse isn't a fang-banger, but when a handsome vampire walks into the bar where she works, she can't help the attraction. Especially since his is one of the few minds she can't read. Since she can't help reading minds when she touches someone, sex hasn't been easy before--but with the vampire, anything is possible. Of course, a vampire is different and Sookie isn't sure she can deal with the amoral violence that Bill the Vampire deals out. When vampire lovers start to die in Bon Temps, Louisiana, Sookie wonders whether she'll be the next victim. Her mind-reading ability doesn't point to anyone and the police have settled on her brother. Bill is certainly willing to defend her, but he's only available after dark, and he brings his own problems, including a hungry senior vampire named Eric who insists on coming into Sookie's life. Somehow, Sookie has to get to the bottom of the killings, save her brother from the police, end the increasing hatred between vampires and the human, and manage to stay alive at the same time. Author Charlaine Harris combines smooth and compelling writing with exciting world-building and a well-constructed mystery. There are plenty of red herrings, some exciting action scenes, and a thoughtful look at the way people deal with new and scary things (like vampires). DEAD UNTIL DARK is an enjoyable treat.
Rating:
Summary: It's a whole new world
Review: You will just love this series. It has everything - romance, vampires, ESP, vampires, Elv--urh--Bubba, vampires, and fun. Did I mention vampires?
Imagine that the development of synthetic blood allows the vampires that we KNOW are all around us to come out of the closet and play...
Then imagine that it could be funny.
This is a unique series and all 3 books so far are a delight. I can hardly wait to see what happens next to Sookie and friends (?).
Harris shows us the rural South into a whole new light!
Rating:
Summary: Heart pounding action
Review: The action grips you so you can't put these books down. My one concern is over the fact that I read these as recommended for ages 14 and up. I would never give these to my 14 year old and am not ready to hand them over to my 16 year old. However I highly recommend them as long as you know of their sexual content. Sookie is a wonderful main character and I will continue with this series as long as they are written. I have never read this type of book before and took opportunities to find a quiet place in which to read.
Rating:
Summary: A "Real" Down Home Heroine
Review: I've only just begun my foray into the vamp genre. My intro was via tough as nails Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter. Cool and detached, Anita knows how to keep the world at arm's length. Love her, but I just can't relate. So, here comes Sookie Stackhouse, Regular Gal. Working as a bar maid, struggling to make ends meet, feeling awkward in social situations - well, okay, she has the telepathy thing that compounds the problem. Still, she reads like someone I could know and like. Granted, I'm reading stories that have to do with VAMPIRES AND SHAPESHIFTERS, but it makes it so much more enjoyable when the character could have just stepped out of my world. She doesn't know how to use a gun, has no martial arts skills and has a tendency to fall for men that may not be the best for her. And yet she's loyal, courageous, tenacious and a good friend. These books (follow up with Dead in Dallas and Club Dead) are extremely well written (much better than the Blake series - sorry) and they're funny, too. I would definitely recommend these books to friends who had no interest in the genre and I look forward to more of Sookie's adventures in the future.
Rating:
Summary: Well....finally a book about NORTHERN Louisiana.
Review: I'M NOT FUSSING OR ANYTHING BUT YA KNOW, THERE ARE OTHER PLACES IN LOUISIANA BESIDES ANNE RICE'S BELOVED NEW ORLEANS. THERE AREN'T THAT MANY BOOKS ABOUT NORTH LA, SO MANY MAY NOT EVEN THINK THAT IT EXISTS. THAT ASIDE I DID ENJOY THIS BOOK AND ENJOYED IT EVEN MORE BECAUSE MOST OF THE TIME I KNEW EXACTLY WHERE THESE PEOPLE WERE. MS. HARRIS IS A VERY GOOD AUTHOR. HER LEAD CHARACTER SOOKIE IS FUNNY AND SWEET, SHE HAS A "DISABLITY" IN THAT SHE CAN READ MINDS. I LIKE THAT SHE WAS NEITHER THE BRAIN OR JOCK TYPE AND ACTED LIKE A REGULAR PERSON MOST OF THE TIME. BILL IS A FORMER RESIDENT OF THE AREA,(FORMER IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE) WHO MOVES BACK TO TOWN AND BECOMES INVOLVED W/SOOKIE. CATCH IS BILL IS A VAMPIRE. VAMPIRES HAVE COME OUT OF THE COFFIN AS SOOKIE PUTS IT AND THEY SURVIVE MOSTLY ON SYNTHETIC BLOOD AND VOLUNTEERS, THAT'S THE P.R. THEY PUT OUT ANYWAY. MANY OF THE OTHER VAMPIRES ARE MORE UH...VAMPIRE-LIKE. THEY ARE POWERFUL BEINGS THAT THINK HUMANS ARE MEAT FOR THEIR TABLE. I LIKE THIS BOOK AND ALL ITS WEIRD CHARACTERS HUMAN VAMPIRE AND WHATEVER ELSE. I AM BUYING THE NEXT 2 IN THE SERIES.
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