I'm not even sure how I stumbled across this book, but the previous reviews convinced me to buy it - and now I'm totally hooked. I was actually so into it by the end that I was trying to read faster so I could turn the page and find out what happened next. I bought book 2 immediately after finishing this, and am on to #3. This is a great series to just get lost in. Buy it, you won't be sorry.

... so this is the perspective my review comes from. I'd recommend that anyone who likes True Blood to read the story. It's pretty simply written, and the story is actually somewhat sweet. If you're expecting the detail of the series, you'll be disappointed. True Blood is pretty faithful to DBD, but Alan Ball took his own creative liberties. Tara is not a character in DBD, so there's no root worker, no histrionics. Lafayette is a bit player (if that), and there's no V-dealing going on. And, Bill doesn't kill Long Shadow, so there's no trial. The book also ends before the series ended, and is taken up again in the 2nd in the series. The book is also written in 1st person, so the only perspective we have is Sookie's, which simplifies the story. We don't see Jason with the dead girls, for example, but only know of it from what Sookie hears. I think it's worthwhile to read books & see their adaptations, to make comparisons.

A number of reviews on DBD compare it to the Anita Blake series and Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. This is unfair. I've read the entire Vampire Chronicles, plus half of the Anita Blake books ... and I've read Twilight & a few other vampire sagas. The writers' voices are so different, as are their approaches. I just don't think you can compare a hard-boiled zombie-raiser in St Louis (Anita Blake) to the innocent voice of Sookie Stackhouse, a small-town Louisiana girl. (Sookie's voice is quite authentic; some readers are annoyed by the metaphors used by Harris, but they are very much in line with how Sookie would see things.) And, of course, Rice's vampires are totally in another league to be compared to anything!

I'd recommend to take a read -- while Sookie might not compare to other writers' protaganists, that's what makes reading fun. Who wants to read cookie cutter books, with just the names replaced? When I decided to read DBD, I figured if I didn't like it, I could go back to Anita Blake and all her adoring & scheming vampires, lycanthropes, zombies, voodoo queens, etc., etc.

Honestly, I am only half way through this book and already I can review it. This book is just okay for me..Snookie is very immature for being in her 20's..Bill is boring and what is up with all the Gosh, and Golly Gee's? what is this, Leave it to Beaver? I'm not trying to say that I need curse words every sentence but at the same time, She's making her sound like a 10 year old from 1950. I'm not sure if I'll keep going with this series or not. Are the other ones this immaturely written?

I guess the story of the book is entertaining enough. Im a pretty bog fan of the hbo show Tre Blood and decided to read the 1st book after wtaching a good chunk of the season. Although the show is enetertaing but definitly has its cheesy parts, the books is just as bad. I think the thing that really gets me is this author really is an extremely horrible writer.

I love the books and the HBO show. I buy two copies of every one, one for myself and one for my husband. We read them so fast we'd never be able to share. We're not vampire fans at all but I like the characters and I don't know why he reads them. He never reads usually. That goes to show that they are pretty exceptional books.

I love the southern vampire mysteries. Charlaine Harris has created a wonderful cast of characters.

I bought this book figuring I'd just give it a try since I watched the Trueblood series on HBO and liked it alot. The books are sooooooo interesting. I couldn't put it down and I immediatly ordered the rest of the series!

I have just started reading vampire books- and it is a shame that it took this long for me to get into them. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris was a great book. I could hardly put it down. My husband gets mad at me because my book light keeps him up at night so I hid under the covers just to read it! I couldnt wait until I was ready for bed. The character of Sookie Stackhouse is easily relatable, and I like that. Overall- I dont have anything bad to say about this book- and I am about to order the rest of the Southern Vampire Mysteries series!

I really enjoy the True Blood series and am enjoying it to the hilt. I found this book to be a great source and it was very enjoyable to read. In fact I read it in one day! Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress who becomes a girlfriend to a vampire. There are murders in her small town and no one knows who is doing them. Her grandmother and her cat are murdered and she may be next. Her brother is being accused of them and always has some connection to the murders. What to do? A very nice book and a very fun series. I will definitely read more of the Southern Vampire Series. I think Charlaine Harris has written a winner.

I got hooked on True Blood on HBO and decided I needed a little more background from Charlaine Harris. The book is great. Written as a young woman would speak and very imaginative and descriptive.
I enjoyed all the twists and turns and would even consider becoming a Fang Banger if given the chance!!

Charlain Harris is one of my all time favorite writers. I have read every single one of her books and have not been disappointed yet. I over looked the books for years because I couldn't get past the cover art. I know you're not supposed to judge a book by the cover, but come on these covers are ridicules for this series... I also think it has put a lot of readers off of buying the books... My husband also never wanted to read the books because of the said cover art. I finally talked him into reading the series, and he of course loved it. I have a feeling if they update the covers it would appeal to a wider group of people and her sales would sky rocket.

The Southern Vampire Mysteries is a must-read vampire story since Anne Rice. Forget "Twilight", considering the author has completely ripped off Charlaine Harris' beautiful tale of the supernatural.
You will NOT be able to put this down. I ordered every book and every short story, reading day and night.

I fell in love with Sookie. After reading this book I couldn't wait to get my hands on the second one. I read the whole series in a week. My favorite characters are Sookie and Eric. I look forward to seeing how these characters develop. If you are looking to escape reality for a little while this is a great series to get hooked on.

I have been watching the HBO TrueBlood and became interested in the written series. I loved the book even better than the TV series which I didn't think was possible. It was smart, funny, mysterious and sexy. It was also easy to read.
Luv'd it!!

Absolutely have to read!
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.

Sookie Stackhouse is one tough cookie! I read this book in under three days. Forget about cooking dinner or doing laundry while reading this. It just won't happen in any timely fashion. My son and his girl gave me the first two in this series and I didn't get to them for a while due to life's mundane issues. I highly recommend this book but warn that it can take over .

I absolutely love the fast pace of this book which only propelled me into reading all eight of the books in this series in one week. Yes, I'm totally serious. Of course, since I had them all sitting there - I would grab the next as soon as I finished the previous. Okay, I got laid off and I'm home with my little kids. Every time they were playing nicely together or sleeping I was devouring the books!!!
I love Sookie's character and how easy it seems to be to fall into her mind and follow her story. She's pretty, confident, smart and misunderstood and always polite no matter the totally bizarre situation. I just love all of the characters.
Also, you should know that I have been watching True Blood on HBO and found myself mildly addicted...when I found out that the show was based on a book, I was in a panic to read this book immediately and subsequently stayed up until 4AM to finish it once it was in my hand. (perhaps more than a mild addiction?!)
HOWEVER, some of the graphic stuff on the show is a little disturbing to my fragile little mind. At least when I'm reading, I can picture things as PG-13 as I want (everything but the romance parts!) :)
After reading the entire series of books, I far prefer them to the show...but I still watch with anticipation. I would HIGHLY recommend these books.
BEWARE!!! If you read this book you will want to read the next (and the next, and the next...) The hangers at the end of the show seem to replicate the feeling you have at the end of the books...keep 'em coming!!!

I bought this book because I really enjoy the HBO sensation, True Blood. There are spoilers in this review.
There are apparently 8 books in the series, and this is the first and left me unconvinced I should carry on. Unlike the show the book is done in first person entirely from Sookie's standpoint. This is very limiting because (in the show) there are many interesting characters with many different storylines. Not in the book though.

Other than Eric and Bill (vampires that are 'super-hot') all of the other characters are mentioned in passing. Some included in the television show are excluded (Tara) or completly watered down (Lafayatte, Jason, Amy Burley). The extra characters that Sookie isn't thinking about getting intimate with become shadows, when people die in the book (including Sookie's grandmother) it gets all of 2 sentences of attention. When Sam reveals his big secret she throws up and carries on.

Overall it's not the worst but bland and undeveloped. The show is much more enjoyable.

The first novel in the series is very promising. The protagonist is an eccentric psychic with a complicated family history (which I hope we learn more about in the later novels.) The plot is set in a small town in Louisiana with an array of interesting minor characters. The sense of place adds richness to the novel. The romance is hot. It's a cliche, but I just could not put this novel down. The author's forceful writing and plotting kept it flying. The males attracted to Sookie offer her quite a variety to choose from. The novel has quite the body count & I wouldn't read it right before bed, but other than that, I can't think of any downside. I think romance fans who wouldn't consider novels about vampires or other supernatural elements should give it a try. Very well written!

Entertaining, The books are better than the HBO series,
which is often the case.

it is different than the True Blood series but worth reading. I don't usually read vampire stories but I really do like this series.

I read this 1st book really fast and handed it down to the rest of the family who also enjoyed it very much. This was purchased before I got my Kindle but now when I finish the next in the series, I just click to purchase the next book. Love this since it is the kind of book you cannot put down easily and having the next book available immediately is a joy. Sookie is charming and I love her gift. Bubba is sooo strange a vampire and you will be amazed when you find out who he really is. Book 3 is probably the best in the series and I loved the ending. As you can see I am being very vague kuz I do not want to give anything away but this is not a stupid bloody vampire book and it really holds your interest with Sookie reading minds, werewolves, ancient gods, shapeshifters who change to dogs, bats and other things and very funny in parts.

I absolutely loved this book -- the first of Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire/Sookie Stackhouse series! It's also fun to see how much HBO followed Charlaine's story line on their "True Blood" series. It's an easy read, and Charlaine's writing transports you into the word of mainstream and back alley vampire "living." I couldn't put it down and was kind of disappointed when I was done...good thing there are several more books in the series! Don't stop writing about Sookie and Vampire Bill, Charlaine!

I read a lot of books, but I also have a hard time finding books I really can't put down. This is absolutely one of these books. Well-written and it grabs you!

I read "Dead Until Dark" because Alan Ball loved it and I thought to myself, any guy who wrote Six Feet Under has to have pretty good literary tastes. Wrong. No. I honestly don't understand the positive reviews this book is getting because I thought it read like a cheesy romance novel. The first couple chapters were okay, but as Sookie became more and more reliant on her vampire lover, any shred of independence and quick thinking present in her character were demolished.

If you're into romance novels, read this. If, like me, you'd rather read about star-crossed lovers that don't make you want to barf, pick up pride and prejudice.

...than read this crap again.

How can people...like this drivel? I'm serious. How?

I read this book in anticipation of HBO's 'True Blood' series. The viral marketing for True Blood at Comic-Con was creative and exciting, and I wanted to see what the fuss was about. I finished the book in an hour, and swiftly lost interest.

Buy this book if you want cardboard cutout characters with zero development and completely inscrutable motivation (e.g. vampires randomly professing love for the heroine, whom they have known only a short time), little to no description of the actual action (half the time I was left wondering whether a character's comment was sarcastic or not; there's no context), and an utterly DUMB mystery (the killer is abruptly revealed at the end, just like...that).

The author makes no notable contribution to the vampire genre, either - no fun new take on the causes of vampirism, no deep exploration of the politics of 'outed' vampires. Nothing. I mean, give us SOMETHING, here. Oh, she gave us the glow, though. Since when are vampires freaking incandescent? I am going to write a romance series about the GE Light Man from the old commercials, I swear to God.

Look elsewhere.

This first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series is a real winner. I enjoyed it so much i bought the rest of the series immediately!

Frankly, I bought the book because I was hooked on the TV series "True Blood" and wanted to see how the book compared to the TV version. This is sufficient reason for fans of the TV show to read the book since the differences are significant and tell their own story of how Alan Ball decided to tell the same basic story in video rather than paper. Tara isn't in the book, to pose one example that isn't too spoilery.

Charlaine Harris has also contributed her own variation on the vampire theme and while it may not be as literary as Anne Rice's works, this is a very good read and its unique view of the vampire myth can easily suck you in. In addition to the usual literary construct of the vampire story - great strength, neat powers and immortality in turn for exile to the night and having to feed on the living - she's added the dilemma of some vampires who decide to live openly and seek social acceptance. Neat idea and she develops the theme well. I liked Dead Until Dark more than enough to move on to the second book, "Living Dead in Dallas."

Caution - and you already know this if you've seen "True Blood" - explicit sexual content.

I decided to read this series after falling in love with the television show True Blood on HBO. If you like the show, you will like the book. They are VERY similar. In the beginning, I thought the screenplay was taken directly from the book. Towards the end there are some subtle differences. We'll have to wait for the season to end in two weeks to see how different the two really are. Some differences that ruin anything for anyone are: Layfayette is just the cook in a couple scenes, "V" isn't in the book, and Tara is not a character.

This book was a great short story.. I had seen the HBO show first and then decided to pick this up when I saw it in a bookstore. However, i have to say, its not a spectacular read. In a nutshell its a well-written, simple romance novel with no depth. I never really cared that much about the characters.
I'm sad to say, I think the HBO show goes into greater depth with each of its characters.

I really did enjoy this book and I have recommended it to several people. I'm also a fan of the HBO series True Blood and they are not exactly alike, which is really nice.

Quirky, small-town characters collide with the world of the vampire. Sookie is a charming, fallible, and extraordinary likable heroine. Bill, Eric, and Pam radiate all that we've ever found sexy about the "pulseless." Add a cast of rich minor characters and you've got a winner of a series. I'm hooked!

Charlaine Harris does an awesome job of bringing her mythical world to you in a realistic presentation. I had read the Twilight series first (including the last bomb in the series) and was really impressed by how uch superior this book was to any of the Twilight saga books.

Charlaine Harris does an awesome job of bringing her mythical world to you in a realistic presentation. I had read the Twilight series first (including the last bomb in the series) and was really impressed by how uch superior this book was to any of the Twilight saga books.

Dead until dark is a wonderful read..love scenes could be a little hotter, but a great book as is. I had to buy all the books because I have been bitten. Oh and Bill Compton is too cute.

This series of books has been really great fun to read they are also very funny Ms. Harris has done a knockout job with this series of books!! I highly recommend these books to anyone who wants a page turning can't put down the book type of series..

I read this after being hooked on True Blood on HBO. I really like these books. I am starting the next one tonight. I have read a lot of different vampire books and I enjoyed this because it is funny and scary. I really liked almost all of the characters. I definitely like Sookie better in the book.

I just finished all 8 books in the series, this first one is my favorite, may read it again. Fun!

Possibly one of the greatest pleasures of Charmaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series is that not all of her vampires are Byronic sorts standing apart from the rest of society who was to pose and sulk. There are no silly harpischords or lace cuffed shirts in her vision of the vampire world: most of her vampires want nothing more than to "mainstream" (as they call it) into contemporary society, and thanks to the invention of a cheap Japanese blood substitute, they have been able to do so. Part of what distinguishes her excellent Southern Vampire mystery series--and what made it such a natural to be translated into HBO's recent series TRUE BLOOD--is how thoroughly Harris has thought out her brave new world: though this book, the first in the series, keeps almost entirely to a small corner of Northern Louisiana (the fictional town of Bon Temps), she seems to have thought out her alternate universe before it started as thoroughly as JK Rowling thought out hers. But Harris's world is decidedly one for adults: her vampires and humans and shapeshifters decidedly have sex with one another, and there's an agreeable amount of genuine horror mixed in with the humor and the local color.

Harris can also keep a lot going, and one of the things Alan Ball wisely has carried over into his HBO series is her fondness for jolting cliffhanger scenes; it is genuinely hard to put this book down. Her main vampire, Bill Compton (how refreshing, as her narrator Sookie Stackhouse points out, not to have a vampire named something silly like Antoine!), is seen pretty much in the round as a courtly veteran of the Civil War who behaves chivalrously to those he likes even if he's apt to kill those who cross him (or threaten his beloved, the telepathic Sookie, of whom he is animally possessive). The twentysomething Sookie, unfortunately, is not quite as delightful as you'd like her to be (or as Harris seemingly intends), and since she's our narrator we have to hear a bit more about what she wears to every event she attends than you could possibly want. (Although this might be very typical of a young and pretty Louisiana woman living in a small town, a little of her endless descriptions of her outfit goes a very long way.) But the story is still agreeably paced, the mystery at its core is both suspenseful and intriguing, and the descriptions of local color are quite fine. As pure pleasure reading, this is quite good stuff.

I really enjoyed this book. I have been reading it along with watching the series that is currently airing on HBO. I love this aspect of vampires and humans falling in love and the challenge of the unattainable. This book reminds me of Twilight kind of you have to read it to see, but this book comes to a close second after the twilight series. I will be working on reading the rest of the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Definately GOOD!!!

This is a good start to a series. Charlaine Harris does an excellent job of setting up her world and giving you the backgrounds of all the characters. She gives you enough to get you totally interested and wanting to learn more. There's pretty good interplay and interaction between the main characters to get you to care. I enjoyed how Ms. Harris introduced politics and how society views vampires into her story. I bet it plays a bigger part later in the series. I enjoyed how the twists and turns of the story made sense and furthered the progress of the storyline. Too many first books in the series use twists to shock the reader but don't make sense for the future books. I haven't seen the series on HBO, Tru Blood but have heard that it closely follows the books. So far I recommend this book to anyone looking for a paranormal book with a slightly different outlook.

I was initally excited about reading this book as I am a fan of vampire novels and mystery/adventure, but I was sorely disapointed by the fact that this book had very little mystery or adventure in it and was based mostly around the sexual relationship of the main character with a vampire. There was some very unique and original images throughout, but all in all it fell kind of flat to me, in the sense that the plot was a little predictable. This being said I can see why someone else would like to read this book (or series)it just did not appeal to me.

I was turned on to this book/series by the new HBO series True Blood. I was very surprised to find the series is following the book fairly closely. This book is about Sookie Stackhouse telling you her story. She's a mind reader and falls in love with a vampire since their coming out 4 years earlier. Besides being a mind reader she's a waitress in a bar. Her mind reading ability (or disability as she sees it) has made her social life next to impossible. Her attraction to Bill the vampire starts out due to the fact that he's a vampire and she can't hear his thoughts.

During Sookie's life with Bill there is also a murder in town, killing women who are involved with vampires. This is the clincher for me in this book. It gives you not hint at all as to who the murderer is. I won't say, but it will be shocking. Jason, Sookie's brother, is suspected in the murders as he has involvement with each victim and a fascination for video.

Sookie will meet other vampires in her adventures with Bill, Eric being the next most interesting vamp. It seems as though Sookie and Eric has a budding relationship or possibly could have one. Perhaps the 2nd in the series will open this up. Bill is a bit of a love hate relationship. He's very protective of Sookie and at times very frustrating.

Sam, Sookie's boss, is a whole different thing. I've been wondering if he's entirely human or something like Bill since the start of the show. The mystery of Sam is in itself a page turner. If you find Sam a bit annoying on the series, you'll love him here.

If you are looking for a exact replica of the HBO series you won't find it. This is written in the first person, narrated by Sookie herself. There is no Tara in this book and Jason isn't quite the goomba he is on screen. However, it is an excellent read with the mystery making it a page turner. Can't wait to read the next book and see what's next for Sookie and Bill

This story is great. I had been looking for a series to read and boy did I find it. She is a great author. I have read all of the vampire series now and have started on her grave series, Teagarden series and Shakespeare series. These book are very easy to get involved with. They are a fast and addictive read.

I love Bill and I hope that her last book is a Sookie and Bill love story once again. It was sweet and hot all wrapped together.

I started reading the series because I enjoy the HBO show based on the books, "True Blood". Then I read through the 1 star reviews. I don't know what those people are talking about. The books are NOT horrible.

To me the simplicity of the book is a breath of fresh air. I usually start to read a book and lose interest because so many authors have to overly describe things. It seems like the entire book is full of description... and blah, blah,blah. I like to be able to imagine things a little on my own. This book kept me interested the entire time! I enjoyed the second and third one even more and plan on reading the others in the future.

The comments the characters say add to their southern character, and I believe the descriptions Harris gives help show the personality of the small town main character Sookie Stackhouse.

Great book, just the start of great series of escapades of Sookie. On HBO this season although tv show not as great as the books.

I discovered these books when HBO's Trublood was about to air on TV for the first time. As a fan of Alan Ball's Six Feet Under I decided to give the show a try and I also figured I'd try the source material out as well.

This first book was ok. It's actually very close to the TV show (or I guess I should say the show's close to the book considering it's based on the books) so I knew some of what was happening as I read it.

Truth be told, i haven't been overly impressed with the series. It's solid, not great, not horrible. I found the book to be the same way.

Everyone knows the premise of the story I'm sure. Telepathic girl meets vampire, girl falls in love with vampire, girl and vampire are at odds with their odd relationship. You'll have that when one of you is alive and the other isn't.

It's hard not to make the comparison to the Twilight books. Humans loving vampires, and some other things (which I will not spoil) that the two have in common. This book differs in a couple of areas. First off it takes place in the southern USA and secondly, Vampires have made themselves known as real creatures to the populace of the world.

The 'comming out of the coffin' of the majority of vampires is actually a very cool twist on the vampire mythos. That makes the book interesting. The characters, however, aren't all that interesting. They just don't seem to come alive, for lack of a better word.

Sookie goes back and forth from accepting and desiring vampires (Bill in particular) to loathing their nature, as if a leopard can change its spots. I know that character conflict is the cornerstone of any drama, but the constant mindset shift that happens on just about every other page gets old. Almost as if to say 'vampires are ok by me..as long as they totally go against their nature and act human..when they're anything but human'. To me that sums up Sookie's character.

The supporting cast ranges from ok to really forgettable for the most part.

As I said, it's hard not to draw comparisons between this book at the Twilight series of books, but I really have to considering the similarities between the two (not all of which I've touched on) and for me, Twilight wins hands down. Not to say the core of these stories isn't interesting, but Twilight just reads more addictively and is overall more fun to read.

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.

This books sets up the others nicely. I found they got better and better.

Initially Bill was the heartthrob and I was Team Bill.


Villian: 4
Plot: 4.5
Creativity: 5
Uniqueness: 4
Humor: 4
Bringing the sexy: 4
Passion: 4.5
Dullness setting in on Series: 0
Laughs & Amusement factor: 4
Silly Whiners getting on your nerves: 0
Lazy Author repeating too much from prior chapters: 0

Wow....what a surprise. I was bored to start this book, I didn't know what to expect. Boy, was I surprised! I couldn't put the darn thing down! I have to say, though, I was a little shy at the sex scenes.....but that's just cause I'm weird about that...they weren't tacky or anything. What a great book! I just bought the boxed set, since when I ran out to Barnes & Nobel to get the rest in the series, they didn't carry ANY of them! Boooo!