Dead Until Dark

I really enjoyed Charlaine Harris's novel Dead Until Dark - the first book of the Southern Vampire Series. HBO's show, True Blood, is based on the wildly popular series. I had seen the first few episodes of the show (before Comcast took away my free trial of HBO, ugh), so much of what happened in the beginning of the book, I had already seen.

Sookie Stackhouse is a telepathic waitress at a bar in Louisiana in a time when vampires have officially entered society due to a development of synthetic blood. Most people consider Sookie to be a freak due to her ability to read minds. One day, Sookie meets the handsome vampire Bill Compton, who became a vampire around the Civil War time. She is unable to read his mind, which is works out great for her.

Someone in town has started to murder young women who have associated with vampires, and Sookie ends up finding out exactly who the killer is. This novel is packed with action and romance.

As a fan of the Twilight Saga, I was hesitant to read this novel because I didn't want to betray my love of Twilight. I'm glad I decided to though. Harris's novel is more scandalous than Stephanie Meyer's novels, but I have noticed many parallels. For example, Sookie's ability to read minds and Bella's unique mind that could not be read by Edward and her shield power in Breaking Dawn. Bill and Edward Cullen are also very similar because they do not want to be evil, and they are both romantic and chivalrous.

There are eight more novels in this series. Next up is Living Dead in Dallas.