Review: Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

Last word first: Footloose and fun, or darkly delicious? I can't tell, but I like it either way. (4/5)

Description: Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress at a popular bar in a small... ok, tiny, town. A psychic waitress. Yes, she can read minds. But, nothing exciting ever happens. That is, until the day that the mysterious and handsome vampire, Bill appears. When Bill is attacked and Sookie saves his life, they embark on a strange friendship that just might evolve into something more. That is, if they can find out who in town is killing single women and blaming vampires before Sookie becomes the next target.

My thoughts: Bill? What self-respecting vampire goes by the name Bill? I guess the kind of vampire who dates a woman named Sookie. Suffice it to say I will not be naming The Alien after any of the characters in this book.

I have been hearing A LOT about this series lately. And, as always when the masses order me around, I resisted reading it. But the masses have been proven right once again. Oh, masses, can you ever forgive me for not trusting you? I really enjoyed this story. Sookie, Bill, and the other characters who populate this novel were all just perfect. Sookie is charmingly naive, Bill is just plain charming, and the townfolk are suitably crazy (because we all know that in fiction-land, living in a small town makes you weird).

Juxtaposed against all this charming provinciality is a story that would seem to belong in some dark, gothic undercity. I kept having moments of confusion, akin to what you would feel if someone mixed a cozy mystery and a JD Robb novel. Cute and charming switches to graphic and dark with the flip of a page. Once I got past the disorientation, though, I found I liked the mix. The dark spots seem darker against the bright, but the story stays light enough to be fun.

I loved the world building in this novel. The invention of synthetic blood has recently made it possible for vampires to join mainstream society, so there's an entire subculture built around the formerly mythological creatures. I wish our world had a situation where the term "fang-banger" would be acceptable terminology. You never know what might pop up next in this story, which was a delightful feeling.

There are a few content warnings that need to be mentioned. This is not your little sister's vampire novel. Explicit violence and sexual encounters mean I, at least, will only be recommending this for adults. I'll definitely be looking up the rest of the series. But don't tell my mother, ok? This definitely falls into the "guilty pleasure" category.

About Charlaine Harris: Charlaine Harris has been a published novelist for over twenty-five years. A native of the Mississippi Delta, she grew up in the middle of a cotton field. Now she lives in southern Arkansas with her husband, her three children, three dogs, and a duck. The duck stays outside. - from the bio at her website