by Jeannette Marxen

Created on: July 10, 2009   Last Updated: July 12, 2009

Dead Until Dark is the first book in a series written by Charlaine Harris. The series is a mixture of mystery and science fiction, with a little romance thrown in. Sookie Stackhouse is the heroine of the series and on the surface she appears to be an average girls from small town Bon Temps, Louisiana. She lives with her grandmother in an old farmhouse, has a brother who is working his way through the female population and works as a waitress at a local bar. But under the blonde hair and pretty face, Sookie is quiet different. She is a telepath and can read people's thoughts. For this reason, she has pretty much kept to herself over the years. The people of Bon Temps think she's a bit strange and most like to keep their distance.

One evening, a vampire walks into Merlotte's, the bar where Sookie works. Most people are hesitant to have a vampire around, even after they have metaphorically come out of the closet. Recently, vampires announced their existence to the world; thanks it part to the Japanese creating a synthetic blood that meets their nutritional needs. Unlike the rest of the patrons at Merlotte's, Sookie is thrilled to meet her first vampire. But the thrilled is quickly gone when she has to rescue him from some Drainers, people who drain the vampire's blood and then sell it on the Black Market. Bill Compton, the vampire in question, is thankful but cautious. A timid friendship begins between the two and soon turns into something more. While Sookie and Bill navigate the tricky path of a dead and undead relationship, murder is afoot in Bon Temps. Two waitresses are dead and though it doesn't look like a typical vampire kill, their past daliances with the undead bring suspicion onto Bill and any other local vampires. Sookie's brother, the Casanova of Bon Temps, is also caught up in the case- having bedded two of the victims.

Sookie is determined to not only prove her brother's innocence but to take suspicion off of Bill and also to find the real killer, especially when the newest victim is family. With Bill by her side, Sookie becomes entrenched in the underworld of the vampires, along with other things that go bump in the night. As she uses her telepathy to pinpoint the killer, she becomes the number one target herself.

Vampire books have had a recent swell in popularity thanks to the Twilight series and television shows like True Blood, which is based on this series. The writing in this book is certainly nothing phenomenal but then again, it's nothing to complain about either. The plots are not overly elaborate and some of the time Harris seems to forget there are unsolved murders that the reader is still wondering about. For the subject matter, Harris keeps it as realistic as possible- though in each book their always seems to be at least one "oh come on" moment. Having said that, the books are enjoyable and anyone who reads the first in the series will be heading to the store to pick up the next editions. The thing that makes the books a success is the majority of the characters are relatable, even if they are vampires and shape shifters. At the end of the day, it isn't whether the plot is extreme or imaginative, or whether the author uses big words. If the reader fails to relate and find interest in the characters, it's all over. Thankfully for Harris, she has created great characters that continue to evolve as the books

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