We hit the ground running in the second Sookie Stackhouse novel, which builds well on the first one. As a reader, I am a chicken (couldn't get through the second Lee Child novel, for example) and a particularly scary scene in Living Dead in Dallas made me set the novel down for a few days & wonder if I'd ever get back to it. I did, & I'm glad I did, but I have to warn fellow chickens that there is quite a body count in this one. The love triangle between Sookie, Bill, and Eric is electric & original. I was really struck by Sookie's temerity and humor. The novel widens its cast of mythical and weird characters. Charlaine Harris's writing is beautifully crafted and she KNOWS how to manage a plot.

Charlaine Harris has become one of my favorite authors. This is a great series with a colorful cast of characters!

This is a cute second installment of the Sookie Stackhouse Mysteries. She goes with Bill to Dallas to help out Eric and the vampires since Bill has run for vampire office and is now closer to Eric than ever. Sookie still loves Bill but is attracted to Eric and has quite a variety of supernatural beings to contend with. Who knew? I thought they were all stories and fairy tales!

i read the whole series, and i couldnt stop reading ! i just had to find out what happens next ! I read all 8 books in a week...they were addictive!

Living Dead in Dallas, the second book in the Southern Vampire series, picks up shortly after the events in Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 1). Sookie, a cocktail waitress, gets pulled into a dangerous tangle after one of her coworkers turns up as a murder victim. Evidence points to a particular culprit -- but he may not be the guilty party.

Meanwhile, Bill, Sookie's undead lover, has obliged himself to a group of vampires residing in Dallas -- and they demand Sookie's services as a telepath to help track down a vampire gone missing. Sookie complies, because she's with Bill -- his accessory? property? -- and all her ornery words aside, she lets herself be treated that way because she loves Bill.

Oh yeah, and then there's that terrifying creature in the woods who has no particular objection to tearing poor Sookie to shreds...

These disparate threads are tied together rather limply, unfortunately. Sookie is thrown into perilous situations, claws her way back out of them, is alternately rescued and neglected and pleasured by Bill, and... and the results are far less entertaining than Dead Until Dark.

Living Dead in Dallas goes to a dark place, with hate crimes, racism and homophobia swirling around, much to Sookie's chagrin. Scenes of mayhem are interspersed with scenes of lust and a few angsty relationship issues. Still, by the time we reach the bloody and weirdly unsatisfying climax, there isn't much to show for all the sax and violins.

This would have been a better book if Sookie had been less of a pawn and more of an active agent in her own story. I'm hoping for something better with the next in the series, Club Dead (Southern Vampire Mysteries, Book 3).

If you read first book "Dead Until Dark", you'll be delighted to continue the story and read this book. This book is the one you absolutely have to read! I am not a reader, and I am re-reading this book second time right now. I started to watch "True Blood" on HBO, and couldn't wait for next episode for whole week, so I decided that I'll read. I was afraid that that will be difficult for me, because the English is the third language for me, but this book is written easy to read have a lot of action, mystery and love in very realistic form. After I finish reading first book, I started next until I finished all 8 books and now can't wait to the 9-th book, which will be publishing in May 2009. I hope one day that book will be translated to other languages as well.

I have recently become acquainted with Charlene Harris' works. I have enjoyed each and every one and hope she writes many more. The seller provided it as promised and well within the shipment window promised.

In her second entry in her "Southern Vampire Mysteries" series, Charlaine Harris clearly wanted to expand her intriguing vision of her parallel reality of the US after "The Great Revelation," when vampires across the world came out of the coffin and made their presence known to the living. Unfortunately she does so by having her heroine go to Dallas to see what has happened to a prominent vampire in that city whose disappearance coincides with the activity of the Fellowship of the Sun, an anti-vampire religious organization. Much of this novel takes place in Dallas rather than in Harris's fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, and these are by far the dullest parts of her narrative: probably the main charm of her series is the local color she evokes of her fictional Northern Louisiana setting, and Dallas, for all its storied glories, just can't compare. Though there's fascinating expansion of her supernatural universe by introducing a malicious maenad as a prime menace haunting the Southern forests, this novel just doesn't have the narrative cohesion of her previous entry in the series DEAD UNTIL DARK. What it does retain from that earlier book, unfortunately, are the incredibly minute descriptions of Sookie's mundane wardrobe choices, which would try the patience of anyone, human or vampire.

A great read. Charlaine Harris has done it again. I just love these southern vampire mysteries.

This series just keeps getting better. I enjoyed the first book in the series but was unsure how Ms. Harris was going to keep it going. It starts off with the murder of a secondary character that if you are watching the HBO series, Tru Blood then you will miss. However, if you are just reading the book you probably won't miss the character. Then it switches to Eric needing Sookie to do a favor/or follow an order...whichever way you look at it. He sends her to Dallas. While in Dallas, the fun begins. Yes, Bill gets to go as her bodyguard. I really enjoyed the interaction between the lead characters and even though Sookie's in Dallas most of the book, Sam and Jason are still in it. I enjoyed the character developement of Sookie, Bill and Eric. Ms. Harris is really letting the reader get attached to them. You actually feel for them when things go wrong. I don't like how short these books are though. This one is a little over 220 pages. It would be better to buy in an omnibus book that would have the first three books in it. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, fun, entertaining vampire book.

I thought the storyline in this book was way more interesting than the one in the first book, but then again, I read the first after watching the series, so I think it was hard to view the book alone without comparing it to the TV series (which rocks). I read this book in one night, and when I finished, I had a hard time falling asleep because I couldn't stop mulling it over- that's usually a good indicator for me that I read a good story! The one thing that continues to bug me is that the author constantly describes Sookie's clothing, which seems best described as "80's at its worst"- I hate to admit it, but when she's describing Sookie's clothing choices (e.g.- stretch jeans that lace up the side with matching midriff top and the always present bow in the hair)- it totally pulls me out of the story for a minute, because (and I hate to admit this), my thoughts are "seriously? A vampire finds this attractive? Really?" OK- enough on that. I do have to say, I was a huge "Team Bill" advocate, primarily based on the TV series, but after reading this, I've switched to Team Eric. I couldn't understand why everyone who had read the books on the fan boards for the TV series kept talking Eric up, but now, after finishing Book 2, I TOTALLY get it. I am looking forward to Book 3 more for him than Bill, sadly...

I really liked this book. It was so suspenseful that I had to read the end and then go back and read the book.

I loved the early books the best. It was more vampire and focused less on secondary characters which I found was an issue in later books. The vampire centric theme in the early books made them addicting and riveting.

Eric was sly, smug, scary sexy and funny and all at the same time. The first five books are classics and are just thrilling to keep reading over and over and over again.

Eric being invited to an orgy by Sookie, and stunned, finding out its to be a bodyguard not, for sex, and saying "let me understand this, you want me to go to a orgy where I am not welcome, and leave before I enjoy myself??" is something I chuckle about as a classic. And "Oh I have been to an orgy before, I wore animal skins."


Villian: 5
Plot: 5
Creativity: 5
Uniqueness: 5
Humor: 5
Bringing the sexy: 5
Passion: 5
Dullness setting in on Series: 0
Laughs & Amusement factor: 5
Silly Whiners getting on your nerves: 0
Lazy Author repeating too much from prior chapters: 1



The Lafayette on HBO is way to glamourous to kill off. It will be a sad day if they kill him off on the tv series.

It was really hard to get through the first book, however this book did alot better! It was more action packed than the first one. I really want to move on to book three now.

I started reading this book quickly after I finished Dead After Dark. I am a fan of the tv show and quickly discovered that the books are more engaging than the tv show and I was hooked after the first chapter. I am now waiting on the third book to reach my doorstep. I recommend this book for everyone who is a fan of twilight, but over the age of 18, the sexual content maybe a little to risky for the young of heart.

I love this series. Not as good as twilight series,
but the vampires in this are completely different.
If you love vampires you will like these.

This book is not great,but not horrible either. I had to struggle to get through it.

Some very interesting ideas - but over all a "romance novel" book for women :) A great deal of detail about what the vampire does to please Sookie - very little about Sookie doing anything for him... Not a great read as a mystery - but romance novel lovers will like it.

this was just plain awful. I picked up the book after watching a couple of episodes of True Blood. This is one of the rare cases where the show is better than the book. The book has no plot, no character development, no allure. The only thing the book has to offer was sex. In fact, I felt as if she was shoving it down our throats. If you're interested in a true vampire love story, check out the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer.

I'm giving this book the same review I gave the first book in the series... I'm going to give the books time to grow on me only because the show on HBO is great and I can't wait to see what happens. People keep telling me to stick with it because the later books are better reads , and I'm going to try my best, but good gosh the books are not that great. Conversations and actions are choppy, and the story just doesn't flow right. When I'm done reading the entire series and if I change my mind I will also change my review, but as of right now this series gets a 2 Star from me.

I read the first in this series, "Dead Until Dark" and loved it. This installment "hooked me".

Sookie finds herself seriously attacked by a "creature" and is saved from a certain death by the vampires by a quite unusual approach. Sookie and Bill find themselves with a job to do for Eric (Bill's Vampire boss). This job takes Sookie and Bill to Dallas where they try to locate a missing vampire. They end up finding quite more than they bargained for including a church against vampires.

There's also the murder of her co-worker that she needs to get to the bottom of and she finds herself in a very interesting sitution with Eric. And he's quite different than her vampire Bill boyfriend. All I can say is "wow". I definetly want to see more of Eric. (which is surprising because I Bill is a great character, and Sookie's first love.)

Another super installment of the Southern Vampire series. If you weren't hooked after the first one, this one will definetly pull you in.

If it hadn't been for the HBO series TrueBlood I probably never would have started this series. I enjoyed this book as much as I did the first one - Sookie is probably one of the most likable characters I've come across in ages. Charlaine Harris writes clever dialogue and I was hooked from page one. Looking forward to reading the next in the series...

It was interesting to read so many different takes on this book. Perhaps some of you would be willing to look at some of my realistic futuristic thriller novels such as Pluto 2550 or Adam 2552. Maybe you would love a modern political, men's adventure, romance, thriller unlike no other, which is my top selling novel, The Immortal. If you dare to see a close look at the paranormal or supernatural thrillers, you might enjoy Cast out of Paradise or Kevin and the Dead. An adventure in excitement waits for you. Incidentally, I am the author, Daniel Whittman. All of these novels and more are on amazon.com. [...]

In so many ways, this second of Charlaine Harris's Southern Vampire Mysteries is a huge step down from the first. Having established an atmospheric small town existence for protagonist Sookie Stackhouse and her vampire boyfriend, Harris promptly takes them out of that environment and sends them to Dallas for a dull, seemingly endless adventure. I can see shaking things up a bit and changing a series' venue, but not in the second installment. And the Dallas episode is bookended by a murder mystery so lackluster and pointless that I'm not sure why it's even part of the plot to begin with. First of all, Harris kills off one her more interesting characters, one with whom she could have gained a lot of future mileage if she'd just kept him alive. And by cramming two plot lines into one book, Harris end ups undermining both, to the point that we care about neither. I also wish Sookie were more of an amateur detective; she "solves" the crimes by reading people's minds, which happens to be a particular ability of hers. This feels like cheating to me; I prefer my sleuths to use their innate intellectual and intuitive skills. Imagine if Hercule Poirot had simply been able to read minds, rather than figure things out by using his "little grey cells." Harris has a terrific sense of humor, and has invented some fun characters here, but what makes a good mystery for me is the actual mystery; if the rest of the series is as dissatisfying and sloppy as "Living Dead in Dallas," I don't see any reason for sticking with it.

This is the second of the eight Sookie Stackhouse novels that have been published so far. I've made my way through the fourth and will start the fifth next week. I ordered the first four novels in the series after seeing them praised in a literary bibliography of vampire novels. The annotator liked them more than the comparable series by Anne Rice and Laurell K. Hamilton. Having read half of the novels in the series, I completely agree that this is the best vampire series of novels taking place today. There is sex in this series as in the other two, but at no point does the story get bogged down by it. (I'm not prudish about sex; I just don't think that many people can write well about it. Harris writes about it better than Rice or Hamilton, but as with the others it isn't the books' strong suit.)

In the second novel Sookie is sent to Dallas to help the vampires there by the vampire Eric. Bill goes with her and between the two of them they manage to make use of themselves. Although the book changes locations it feels pretty much the same as the first, with nice variations. New supernatural entities are encountered, the ways that vampire and shape shifter societies differ are noted, and Sookie meets another telepath. That constitutes the A plot. The B plot concerns the death of the Merlottes' short order cook, who is discovered to have been a participant in Bon Temps underground group sex community. The two stories are meshed together better than one might anticipate.

I discovered these books independently of discovering the new Alan Ball series TRUE BLOOD, based on the Sookie Stackhouse books. (I had already ordered the first four novels when I learned that the books were the source material for the show.) I am thoroughly enjoying both the books and have been wondering to what degree they will overlap. TV series are usually better when they break away to some degree from the source material and find their own voices. So far TRUE BLOOD has been a pretty straightforward take on the first Sookie Stackhouse book. But one thing occurred in the most recent episode that pretty much guarantees that Season Two will not be a take off on this novel. The main bad guy of LIVING DEAD IN DALLAS and his wife die in a mysterious car wreck. The novels do not contain a political debate over the Vampire Rights Act, but this particular novel does contain a rabid anti-vampire group. The head of the Dallas chapter is the person who dies in the car wreck in this episode. So, clearly, the show is beginning to break a bit with later novels. That is a good thing.

All in all, if you loved the first book you'll love this one. If you like the TV series you'll love the book. While I like the TV show, my favorite thing in either is Sookie's narrative voice.

I love this entire series! If you like mystery with a little comedy and romance you'll love it! They are a quick read and they are great to read over and over, you can just fall in love with the characters!

the night is dark and eerie when a cook is murdered and Sookie is determined to find the truth. Soon after she's on her way to Dallas to locate a lost member of the Vamps. But is finding Farrell going to be what Eric has out-lined? Or will some horrible secrets be revealed in the hunt? Well, this is a Charlaine Harris novel so I guess the answer is obvious....of course there will be trouble - and what trouble it is. We're given murders, kidnappings, deceit, dismay, threats, and shape shifting during Sookie's adventure to find the answer she seeks. Like some of the other reviewers, I, too, feel this is not quite on par with the first book in the series, but it's still worth reading.

Editor of the highly recommended novel: Fates by Georgiou Tino: Best of 2008

It's been a few years since I read Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire Mysteries, No. 1), the entertaining first book in Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse series, but Living Dead in Dallas works quite well as a standalone novel, with Harris weaving the key points of her background story seamlessly into the fabric of this fast-paced sequel that's more violent than I remember the first one being. Equal parts romance and thriller, with a liberal dash of horror, Harris makes it work on the strength of Sookie's appealing character, a blue collar, no-nonsense Southern gal who defies most stereotypes while knowingly indulging in others when it suits her purposes...and who also happens to be a telepath in a world where vampires live openly among the living, and werewolves and other supernatural creatures exist in the shadows. There's actually two unconnected stories here, but together they nicely flesh out Sookie's world and set the stage for what should be a long-running series, not just novels, but the upcoming HBO show, too.

How many supernatural creatures does it take to screw in a light bulb?

Seriously though, how much plot fodder can you stuff into this book? I enjoyed the first book about half/half, with hopes that the second would be more connecting. It's not. It's the complete opposite. I struggled so bad to finish it.
For a small time waitress to be waiting to meet a vampire, she sure is flippant when it comes to love. I was so confused when it seems like the love of her life and the one she gave up her precious virginity too, Bill, took a somewhat sort of back seat and her boss stepped on up in the first couple of pages and laid the love down on her. It's pathetic. She even goes on to say "Gosh, its a terrible thing to date your boss!"
Instead of something like "Don't touch me again" or "Not interested?"
Then we realize that there's some sort of mythical creature (I don't care to remember the name, that's how important it was) another telepath, more shape shifters, and werewolves.
Oh, and lets not forget the murder that happened, and right after she skips town with a vampire. Wouldn't that look suspicious to anyone? Anyone? Guess not.
In conclusion, don't waste your time on this.

How much more danger and adventure can Sookie Stackhouse get into?? Apparently quite a bit! I'm not sure I enjoyed this book quite as much as the first one, Dead Until Dark, but it still was entertaining. The whole issue with the fanatical fellowship was really interesting, and was left a little open for further mention in other books. I did feel that the murder that occured in Bon Temps was wraped up too quickly and not really given much development. I also didn't think the introduction of the maenad was very developed as well, but hopefully that will be brought up in future books. Despite these flaws, I'm just loving Sookie and Bill and all the other characters and am looking foward to reading the rest of the series.

Better than the first, but still nothing exceptional. At best, Harris seems to be a developing author in this book. At worst, she's just bad

Okay, not as good as the first book in the series, I admit. Still, a pretty good story. Plenty of action, and the romance was toned down a bit, so it didn't so much distract from the main storyline. I know, I know, plenty of people like those bits, but I like my supernatural stories to be just that, I suppose. Some tension, maybe (I do like the interaction between Sookie and Sam!) but not the nitty-gritty details in all their glory. There are other genres of books for that!

My main problem with this book is that there seemed to be far too much going on for so short a story. There were two main storylines, and the Bon Temps murder took a back-seat to the Dallas Fellowship storyline, plus there was the whole Maenad bit tossed in, as well. This would have been fine if the book was long enough to fully develop all of them, but while the Fellowship story arc was given enough time to properly develop and 'mature', as it were, I though the Bon Temps murder was rushed and hurried, and wrapped up far too quickly, and the Maenad bit seemed, in the end, to be just a convenient plot device. The classic two-minute sitcom ending where everything just comes together. In reality, there was enough material to fill two books of this size. Okay, at least one and a half, depending on how many twists and turns you wanted to put into the murder.

Still, the characters (especially the development of Eric as a character) and the dialogue nudge the rating up to four, since I'd give them a five but the storyline a three. It's enough to keep me eagerly reading the series, so that's about the best an author can hope for! I'd recommend this series to any vampire aficionado, as long as they can tolerate the rather liberal application of romance.

After hearing much praise being heaped on the author and this series, and being a fan of the earlier Anita Blake novels, I decided to give this book a try. Bad mistake on my part.

I'm not sure what other reviewers have seen in this book, but I found it poorly written, utterly unimpressive and Charlaine's prose a little ... odd. (Perhaps a too-charitable word for dialogue like ... "I don't have enough experience with the different characteristics of the many strains of Asians to tell you where he came from originally." Like, wow. Strains of viruses, sure. But Asians?)

(4.5 stars) A girlfriend turned me onto these books and I absolutely loved the first! The idea of vampires going "mainstream" and seeking a publicly acknowledged place in the world seemed so unique, and it's all told through the eyes of a sassy little Louisiana waitress named Sookie, who happens to have the gift of reading other people's minds. It's a wonderfully fun concept and Charlaine Harris does a great job of storytelling.

I had a little trouble getting into "Living Dead in Dallas" because one of my favorite supporting characters was found murdered in the first few pages. But once I decided to take the ride, I buckled up with Sookie and went on the hunt for the murderer.

The story veers mightily from that first mystery since Sookie gets swept up in vampire politics, not to mention having her life threatened by a mystical creature in the woods. Once she hits Dallas, though, the story zooms! I was so caught up in the suspense that I expected the book to end mid-way through, but then I remembered that she had to go back to Bon Temps, Louisiana to solve the first mystery that had started the whole thing! Once back home, Sookie asks the head vampire Eric to help her do some under-cover work to find her coworker's murderer. Well, let me tell you, read carefully through here because I almost missed who did it! But boy, what a BIG FINISH! A bit gory and shellshocky, but it is a novel of both "horror and humor" after all. Can't wait to read the next one!

I read the first book of this popular series several years ago, but was underwhelmed. But so many people who usually share my reading tastes love this series, that I thought I'd give the series a second chance.

Sookie Stackhouse is a telepathic cocktail waitress. There's a lot going on in this book. Her friend and coworker is murdered; she's sent to Dallas to help solve the disappearance of a vampire (by telepathically reading the human witnesses); she's attacked by a maenad with a message for the local vampire boss; she's imprisoned by a group of anti-vampire fanatics; befriends some shapeshifters; and attends a kinky sex party.

The politics of the various preternatural communities was interesting, and I enjoyed the intrigue and solving the mysteries, but there was just too much unrelated stuff going on. I'd have liked it better if the various threads connected more, or if a couple of them were saved for the next book.

More than that, though, is that I wasn't really involved in the story--it was interesting, from a distance. That's it: I was as interested in the book itself as I would have been if someone had simply related the plot to me. In other words, I didn't connect with the characters.

Some of that is because of the character of Sookie herself. I don't like her. She seems kind of dumb, and proud of being dumb, and in addition to that, she's self-pitying. On top of that, she's opinionated and bossy.

But at least I gave the series another shot. I won't be looking for the next book--I've got too much in the TBR pile and on the must-buy list as it is.

Sookie, telepathic Louisiana barmaid dating Vampire Bill and first seen in Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse), has a really bad day at work when she discovers a murdered coworker in Merlotte's parking lot. Then, an angry maenad turns her into a human messageboard for Eric, ancient Viking vampire, almost killing her in the process. Sookie and Bill are then assigned to work with the Dallas vampires. A member of their nest has gone missing, and there are strong suspicions that kidnapping and treason are at play.

Sookie, a lifelong telepath, is gradually coming to grips with acknowledging her "disability" and uses it to a greater effect in this book. Harris's descriptions of Sookie's abilities are fascinating. Unfortunately, Sookie's hot romance with the undead Bill goes from sizzle to fizzle for a large part of the book. Sookie's faithfulness to Bill is tested as she is approached by her shapeshifting boss Sam, the gorgeous vampire elder Eric, and a Bill who seems to have left her for Portia Bellefleur.

The second book in the Southern Vampires series, this one seemed more disjointed and held less erotic thrills than the first. There are at least two major stories happening, but one is largely ignored until the last chapter or two, and it felt out of place, as though it should have been developed into a separate book. There are also several improbable shootouts and run-ins with crazy cults (one plot point in particular mirrored vampire detective show Blood Ties episode Heart of Fire almost point-by-point). Also, Sookie frequently states that she is "uneducated," but at times her character comes off sounding like a university professor, implausible given her background.

It was still an enjoyable read, but lacked some of the magic of Dead Until Dark, where Harris explored in greater detail her brand of vampire lore, shapeshifters, and vampire culture. Living Dead In Dallas seemed designed to shock rather than titillate; there were numerous graphic sex scenes, near-rape, and several violent scenes. I didn't enjoy it as much as Dead Until Dark, but at least it was entertaining in parts (and set in my state of Texas!).

This book was so much better than the first one. I began to really care about the characters in this installment and Sookie didn't seem as detached (emotionally) when upsetting events happened. Her mind reading skills have been sharpened. The mystery was also more exciting in this book than the last one and I loved the introduction of the Fellowship. The story lay out did seem a little strange however-in the beginning we are introduced to one mystery - the resolution of which is thrown in at the end of the book - and the middle of the book consists of a completely different story line. But all in all it was very entertaining and I am looking forward to reading the next book.

Bloodless boyfriend intrigue.


The limitations of a small town (how many people can you kill and have one left?) means some city adventuring is in store here, due to the undead connections of her shag, and her own unique abilities.

Somewhat risky when they are superstrong and can rip you to pieces, too.

Basically the same quality as the first though, with the same sort of bad cover.

As always, reading about Sookie's adventures is a delight. She's a down to earth, southern girl with an unusual ability that makes her desirable to all supernatural creatures. Her relationship with Bill is still sweet to this point, with them having a minor obstacle and jealousy running supreme. My hormones speed up again with Eric's scenes, as his humorous flirting and determined seduction is my favorite area of the books. There's a vampire I wouldn't turn away!

Nothing much left to say except that if you're not reading this series, you're missing out on a wonderful world of supernatural creatures determined to worm their way into your head.

There will be some spoilers in this review.

I really enjohyed the first Sookie Stackhouse book, but have to admit that the second was a bit of a let down.

First, the plot was disjointed. There are two seperate mysteries in two separate locales, and they have very little to do with each other. Furthermore, Sookie is not really essential to unraveling either mystery. In Dallas, she does save a missing vampire's "life", but if she had not been there, the cult would have still exposed themselves the following morning, generating lots of good PR for the vampires, and all the people who were killed in the Vampire den would still be alive, so on balance, Sookie's presence in Dallas was a minus for the Vampires who hired her. In Bon Temps, we seem to be getting a "Cabot Cove" effect where one small community has an extrodinary amount of crime, for no better reason than that the protagonist lives there. In this case, we're supposed to believe that a) there is a local orgy fellowship b) they are willing to casually kill people & c) that they are dumb enough to dump their victim in the back of a police car! Once again, Sookie's presence is almost without consequence. Yes she solves the mystery, but apparently all those people were about to be killed anyway, an event which probably would have happened even without her showing up.

Second, the author through Sookie starts showing a degree of judgementalism which rubs me the wrong way. Perhaps this the difference between "Supernatural Romance" & "Urban Fantasy". I had put the first Sookie book in the UF camp, but this one seems more like SR. My problem is the way the whole 'orgy' issue is handled. The author seems to have decided that, as in a horror movie, anyone who has sex has to die, at least as it applies to the orgy party. Apparently as far as Sookie is concerned anyone going to an orgy is degraded and disgusting. The author stacks the deck by making several of the particpants murderers, but nobody is innocent. The funeral home director is singled out because apparently no one with such a job should be allowed to have fun, ever, and indeed, nobody seems to be there just to have fun. Logically given the circumstances of Bon Temps there should be a "spring break" crowd who can't actually go to college given their circumstances, but the author sets things up so that everybody deserves to die,and Sookie basically approves. I find this very problematical because, Sookie liked Lafyette. It was OK for him to be gay and go to orgies and have fun, but somehow everyone he actually went with him deserved to die. Also, Sookie feels so superior because she is true to her boyfriend? Hello! She is dating outside of her _species_, and sex with her boyfriend involves his sucking her blood! She doesn't have room to decide that everyone at the party was a bunch of perverts. Her outrage is rather selective and convienient. Shall we mention that she was OK with giving a bunch of vamps (both sexes) carte blanche to suck her blood? That she feels lust for both Eric and Sam? Anyway, it was a holier-than-though side of Sookie that I felt was very unappealing.

I still plan to read the next book, but I hope that it a) has a more cohesive plot, b) hews more towards UF than SR and c) gets Sookie off her high horse.

There will be some spoilers in this review.

I really enjohyed the first Sookie Stackhouse book, but have to admit that the second was a bit of a let down.

First, the plot was disjointed. There are two seperate mysteries in two separate locales, and they have very little to do with each other. Furthermore, Sookie is not really essential to unraveling either mystery. In Dallas, she does save a missing vampire's "life", but if she had not been there, the cult would have still exposed themselves the following morning, generating lots of good PR for the vampires, and all the people who were killed in the Vampire den would still be alive, so on balance, Sookie's presence in Dallas was a minus for the Vampires who hired her. In Bon Temps, we seem to be getting a "Cabot Cove" effect where one small community has an extrodinary amount of crime, for no better reason than that the protagonist lives there. In this case, we're supposed to believe that a) there is a local orgy fellowship b) they are willing to casually kill people & c) that they are dumb enough to dump their victim in the back of a police car! Once again, Sookie's presence is almost without consequence. Yes she solves the mystery, but apparently all those people were about to be killed anyway, an event which probably would have happened even without her showing up.

Second, the author through Sookie starts showing a degree of judgementalism which rubs me the wrong way. Perhaps this the difference between "Supernatural Romance" & "Urban Fantasy". I had put the first Sookie book in the UF camp, but this one seems more like SR. My problem is the way the whole 'orgy' issue is handled. The author seems to have decided that, as in a horror movie, anyone who has sex has to die, at least as it applies to the orgy party. Apparently as far as Sookie is concerned anyone going to an orgy is degraded and disgusting. The author stacks the deck by making several of the particpants murderers, but nobody is innocent. The funeral home director is singled out because apparently no one with such a job should be allowed to have fun, ever, and indeed, nobody seems to be there just to have fun. Logically given the circumstances of Bon Temps there should be a "spring break" crowd who can't actually go to college given their circumstances, but the author sets things up so that everybody deserves to die,and Sookie basically approves. I find this very problematical because, Sookie liked Lafyette. It was OK for him to be gay and go to orgies and have fun, but somehow everyone he actually went with him deserved to die. Also, Sookie feels so superior because she is true to her boyfriend? Hello! She is dating outside of her _species_, and sex with her boyfriend involves his sucking her blood! She doesn't have room to decide that everyone at the party was a bunch of perverts. Her outrage is rather selective and convienient. Shall we mention that she was OK with giving a bunch of vamps (both sexes) carte blanche to suck her blood? That she feels lust for both Eric and Sam? Anyway, it was a holier-than-though side of Sookie that I felt was very unappealing.

I still plan to read the next book, but I hope that it a) has a more cohesive plot, b) hews more towards UF than SR and c) gets Sookie off her high horse.

There will be some spoilers in this review.

I really enjohyed the first Sookie Stackhouse book, but have to admit that the second was a bit of a let down.

First, the plot was disjointed. There are two seperate mysteries in two separate locales, and they have very little to do with each other. Furthermore, Sookie is not really essential to unraveling either mystery. In Dallas, she does save a missing vampire's "life", but if she had not been there, the cult would have still exposed themselves the following morning, generating lots of good PR for the vampires, and all the people who were killed in the Vampire den would still be alive, so on balance, Sookie's presence in Dallas was a minus for the Vampires who hired her. In Bon Temps, we seem to be getting a "Cabot Cove" effect where one small community has an extrodinary amount of crime, for no better reason than that the protagonist lives there. In this case, we're supposed to believe that a) there is a local orgy fellowship b) they are willing to casually kill people & c) that they are dumb enough to dump their victim in the back of a police car! Once again, Sookie's presence is almost without consequence. Yes she solves the mystery, but apparently all those people were about to be killed anyway, an event which probably would have happened even without her showing up.

Second, the author through Sookie starts showing a degree of judgementalism which rubs me the wrong way. Perhaps this the difference between "Supernatural Romance" & "Urban Fantasy". I had put the first Sookie book in the UF camp, but this one seems more like SR. My problem is the way the whole 'orgy' issue is handled. The author seems to have decided that, as in a horror movie, anyone who has sex has to die, at least as it applies to the orgy party. Apparently as far as Sookie is concerned anyone going to an orgy is degraded and disgusting. The author stacks the deck by making several of the particpants murderers, but nobody is innocent. The funeral home director is singled out because apparently no one with such a job should be allowed to have fun, ever, and indeed, nobody seems to be there just to have fun. Logically given the circumstances of Bon Temps there should be a "spring break" crowd who can't actually go to college given their circumstances, but the author sets things up so that everybody deserves to die,and Sookie basically approves. I find this very problematical because, Sookie liked Lafyette. It was OK for him to be gay and go to orgies and have fun, but somehow everyone he actually went with him deserved to die. Also, Sookie feels so superior because she is true to her boyfriend? Hello! She is dating outside of her _species_, and sex with her boyfriend involves his sucking her blood! She doesn't have room to decide that everyone at the party was a bunch of perverts. Her outrage is rather selective and convienient. Shall we mention that she was OK with giving a bunch of vamps (both sexes) carte blanche to suck her blood? That she feels lust for both Eric and Sam? Anyway, it was a holier-than-though side of Sookie that I felt was very unappealing.

I still plan to read the next book, but I hope that it a) has a more cohesive plot, b) hews more towards UF than SR and c) gets Sookie off her high horse.

Sometimes, after the first book in a series, any series, the quality seems to drop. In a vampire series the standards are very HARD to keep up. In most vampire series the second is always kind of weak when compared to the first or even the third.
Not here. Living Dead In Dallas by Charlaine Harris is great. Why? Not only does she draw in new material, new characters, new settings and a couple of plots but she also is daring enough to make her characters feel real, with flaws, merits and desires.
Sookie Stackhouse is a real person with real needs and real fears. You can understand what she wants, what she is feeling and what she wants. You can't help but cheer her on and get upset when bad things happen to her.
I WILL be buying the next book.

"Cocktail waitress Sookie Stackehouse is on a streak of bad luck. First, her coworker is murdered and no one to care. Than she's face-to-face with a beastly creatures that gives her a painful and poisonous lashing. Enter the vampires, who graciously suck the poison from her veins (like they didn't enjoy it).

Point is, they saved her life. So when one of the blood-suckers asks for a favor, she complies. And soon, Sookie's in Dallas using her telepathic skills to search for a missing vampire. She's suppose to interview certain humans involved. There's just one condition. The vampires must promise to behave and let the humans go unharmed. Easier said than done. All it takes is one delicious blond and one small mistake for things to turn deadly... "

"Dead in Dallas" is book two in Charline Harris's Southern vampire novels.
Just as the first book (Dead Until Dark) , this was an absolute treat....
Lafayette, Sookie's coworker, has been murdered and left in a truck to be found. Sookie is of course highly upset and wants to find the killer. But doesn't really get the chance to begin her investigation, as she is being sent to Dallas with Bill to find a missing vampire... She is going to find Lafayette's killer when (if) they get back from Dallas.

The book is amazingly entertaining. You will of course meet almost all of the characters from the first book and be introduced to new ones. But even if you haven't read the first book (which I would VERY much recommend),you will very easily and smoothly be led into the story and will be introduced to all the characters gradually... Sookie's trip to Dallas is very exciting, disturbing and of course life-threatening. Not only she is trying to do her job and stay alive at the same time, she is also struggling with her relationship with Bill. And Eric ..... yeah, well , Eric .... You just have to read and find out for yourself how the story evolves, how these amazing characters learn to live with each other, light and darkness, trying their hardest to make it work.
I am reading This series for the second time now, and surprise , surprise .... it just doesn't get boring at any point. I absolutely love these books and highly recommend them. Paranormal romance/mystery lovers, get this book. You are going to fall in love ^_^

The second book in the Southern Vampire series written by Charlaine Harris, Living Dead in Dallas, opens with yet another murder of an employee of Merlotte's Bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana. Sookie Stackhouse, barmaid and telepath, discovers the body of cook Lafayette, but she scarcely has time to look for clues to his murder because she once again finds herself at the employ of the vampire community to which her boyfriend, Bill, belongs. So what's a vampire-lover to do? If it's Sookie, she's going to get herself involved in a strange Fellowship, a nest of vampires with its own sense of justice, and have a fight with her boyfriend before returning to the original issue of poor Lafayette.

Living Dead in Dallas is an interesting sequel; while Sookie and Bill are still hot and heavy, you do get the sense from time to time that things are not always peachy in paradise. In addition, Harris throws in a couple more supernatural beings (maenads and werewolves) to keep things intriguing. Sookie is brave and sometimes foolhardy as usual, and Bill often is there to pull her out of danger. The secondary characters, including brother Jason, Sam the bar owner, and Eric the vampire, all return, and their portrayals receive more development throughout the book. Still, the story is chaotic and rambling at times; it veers off into almost a totally different book before returning to the central plot. There are plenty of loose threads that will lead into the next book and one can only hope that poor Sookie doesn't find herself so physically abused in the third endeavor. Overall this is a good read that will leave you ready for the next one. Recommended for the relationships, the mystery, and, of course, the vampires.

The second book in the Southern Vampire series written by Charlaine Harris, Living Dead in Dallas, opens with yet another murder of an employee of Merlotte's Bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana. Sookie Stackhouse, barmaid and telepath, discovers the body of cook Lafayette, but she scarcely has time to look for clues to his murder because she once again finds herself at the employ of the vampire community to which her boyfriend, Bill, belongs. So what's a vampire-lover to do? If it's Sookie, she's going to get herself involved in a strange Fellowship, a nest of vampires with its own sense of justice, and have a fight with her boyfriend before returning to the original issue of poor Lafayette.

Living Dead in Dallas is an interesting sequel; while Sookie and Bill are still hot and heavy, you do get the sense from time to time that things are not always peachy in paradise. In addition, Harris throws in a couple more supernatural beings (maenads and werewolves) to keep things intriguing. Sookie is brave and sometimes foolhardy as usual, and Bill often is there to pull her out of danger. The secondary characters, including brother Jason, Sam the bar owner, and Eric the vampire, all return, and their portrayals receive more development throughout the book. Still, the story is chaotic and rambling at times; it veers off into almost a totally different book before returning to the central plot. There are plenty of loose threads that will lead into the next book and one can only hope that poor Sookie doesn't find herself so physically abused in the third endeavor. Overall this is a good read that will leave you ready for the next one. Recommended for the relationships, the mystery, and, of course, the vampires.

Our favorite little mindreader is back...with a bang. But this little tale begins with the death of Merlotte's cook and Sookie's friend...the flamboyantly gay Lafayette Reynolds, who is found very dead in the back of Andy Bellefleure's car in the parking lot of Merlotte's. Worse yet, Eric, the gorgeous boss of her boyfriend, vampire Bill, has requested her paranormal assistance to his vampire brethren in Shreveport. There is a vampire missing there, and all of the undead want know what has happened to him. Sookie agrees to help, as long as no humans are harmed by any information that she uncovers; and uncover she does. It doesn't take Sookie long to find out what has befallen the missing vamp...and her murdered friend.
With its fair share of mystery, fun and a healthy dose of lust, the Sookie Stackhouse series is not to be missed. It's not often that a literary heroine comes along with the spunk and smarts of our Miss Sookie.


DYB

Ms. Sookie, a dead body, a crazy maenad, religious fanatics not to mention that kinky sex party...Girl Watch Out!
The second installment to the Southern Vampire Mystery Series...it's enough to make me blush and keep reading of course.

Living Dead in Dallas (2002) is the second Rural Fantasy in the Southern Vampire series, following Dead Until Dark. In the previous volume, Jason Stackhouse was released on bail and then was ashamed to face his sister Sookie. Later, Sookie was cornered by the murderer, but proved to be stronger than he thought. This thoroughly irritated him and he wrestled her to the ground. While he reached for his strangle cords, Sookie slipped his knife out of the belt sheath and gouged his wrist.

Jason visited her in the hospital and he seemed more angry with himself than ashamed of his sex life. His sister shouldn't have to do the fighting for him; he should have been there to fight for himself. Brothers!

In this novel, Andy Bellefleur is three sheets to the wind at Merlotte's Bar and Grill. Since he doesn't often get drunk, Sookie listens to his thoughts and regrets it. Andy had to arrest a man for assaulting a ten year old neighbor; now the girl is in the hospital, the man in jail, and Andy is drowning his memories. Sookie gives him a free drink and calls his sister Portia.

Andy leaves his car in the parking lot and the next morning Sookie discovers a body in it when she comes to work. Lafayette Reynold, the bar's late shift cook, is sprawled dead in the back seat. Since the seat is not soaked in blood, the county police assume that he had been killed elsewhere and then placed in the car.

That night, Bill Compton informs Sookie that they have been summoned to the Fangtasia bar for an assignment. Sookie has agreed to work for the Vampire Area 5 Sheriff, Eric Northman, and he has temporarily traded their services to the Area 6 Sheriff. Sookie and Bill are to fly to Dallas so that she can read the minds of some humans; Bill is going along as her manager and bodyguard.

Sookie takes her first airplane ride on a commercial jet to Dallas and Bill is shipped in his coffin on Anubis Air. While Bill's coffin is being unloaded, a priest comes up to Sookie and talks to her. She responds politely, but something makes her suspicious. Then he grabs her and tries to drag her through a door, but Bill rescues her.

After Sookie and Bill reach their hotel, Sookie notices that the bellboy is telepathic, at about the same level of development that she had reached as a teenager. She doesn't mention her discovery to Bill, for Barry is obviously uncomfortable around vampires. Sookie wonders why he is working in a vampire hotel.

Later, Sookie meets the Area 6 Sheriff, a nerdy-looking vampire with very cold eyes. She investigates the disappearance of a nestmate and learns that an unknown vampire had been involved in the incident. Bill uses a spare computer to access his database and finds the identity of the strange vampire.

In this story, Sookie encounters a group of anti-vampire fanatics -- the Fellowship of the Sun -- and is imprisoned on their property. She escapes with the assistance of a shapeshifter, is provided with medical care, and then is transported back to the hotel. Meanwhile, the vampires are raiding the Fellowship building looking for her.

Sookie also encounters Callisto, a maenad, in the woods near Bon Temps and is used to send a message in blood to Eric. The vampires provide a healer to treat her wounds, but her back will retain the scars for the rest of her life. Callisto wants tribute from the vampires, for her powers are overwhelming, particularly to overly proud individuals such as the typical vampire.

This story is full of sex, violence and sheer excitement. Sookie has several moments when she questions her involvement with vampires, shapeshifters, maenads and other such supernaturals. She wonders whether she should be loving Bill, especially when he starts hanging out with Portia Bellefleur, but he always convinces her to resume their relationship.

Highly recommended for Harris fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of preternatural creatures, anti-vampire fanatics and a gutsy waitress.

-Arthur W. Jordin

This is the second book in the Southern Vampire/Sookie Stackhouse series.

Right from Chapter one this book will keep you enthralled. Sookie Stackhouse, the telepath waitress and her vampire boyfriend, Bill, have a lot going on in this story. Sookie first discovers a dead body, she is attacked, saved, and then she travels to Dallas where she finds more danger. The book summary pretty much tells you all you need to know any more and you'd have zero surprises. After coming home from Dallas there are some surprisingly real and heartfelt emotions and issues between Sookie and Bill. Ms. Harris does such an excellent job of writing what Sookie is feeling, that you feel it, too. While there is a lot going on in this story, it is woven together, seamlessly, and flows beautifully.

Eric the vampire makes another appearance and all I can say is... yum! He is an excellent character and adds a lot of chemistry and humor to this story. There is also an introduction of another Vampire leader, while his character was important to this story I didn't get the feeling he'd be a major player in future stories. Sookie meets another Shape shifter in Dallas and I have the feeling I will be reading more about her in coming books, I am looking forward to that.

Living Dead in Dallas is an outstanding follow-up to the first book, Dead Until Dark. The story moves fast and has a little bit of everything in it; love, sex, action, sadness, life, death, laughs and drama. I loved it and would highly recommend it, but if you haven't read the first book, I suggest you start there and read this series in order.