Dead Until Dark By Charlaine Harris 4 out of 5 stars |
First Sentence "I'd been waiting for the vampire for years when he walked into the bar." |
Publisher's Description: Sookie Stackhouse is a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She's quiet, keeps to herself, and doesn't get out much. Not because she's not pretty. She is. It's just that, well, Sookie has this sort of "disability." She can read minds. And that doesn't make her too dateable. And then along comes Bill. He's tall, dark, handsome--and Sookie can't hear a word he's thinking. He's exactly the type of guy she's been waiting for all her life.... But Bill has a disability of his own: He's a vampire with a bad reputation. He hangs with a seriously creepy crowd, all suspected of--big surprise--murder. And when one of Sookie's coworkers is killed, she fears she's next... |
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Dear Reader,
For me the book vs the show; is an issue that has to be addressed. I was a fan of the HBO show and I am a fan of Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse book series. That being said, the HBO episodes do not invoke the same imagery or character development. I prefer the book-Sookie in the book series because the stories are told from her perspective and I usually agree with her thinking and actions. The Sookie portrayed by Anna Paquin is a irritable, fickle and not nearly as admirable. Book-Sookie never gets magical fairy-ball powers but still manages to be tough when it comes down to the battles as they arise.
Harris's writing style is easy to listen to and I love the voices that the audible-book reader is able to create. Book-Bill is quiet and hard to read in this book. Show-Bill is honorable, more stable and tough throughout the tv series. I'd also like to point out that Jessica was added to the tv series and made her a starring role while in the book Bill never makes a child. Book-Jason ends up a half were-panther and in the show-Jason stays human and remains relatively the hot-boy-comical relief. In the book his character develops in maturity after some hard life lessons. Quinn the were-tiger, who is an important lover for Sookie, is nowhere in the tv series. Having bought all 13 audio Sookie Stackhouse books and finished listening to them a few years ago, recently I decided to re-listen in order to give a fresh review for ShelfNotes. Knowing what's going to happen next is like watching a favorite tv show in my head as I listen to the characters emerge and interact with our heroine. I never was bored listening to the books because the plot has a general mystery with twists and plush details. Charlaine Harris manages to make a fantasy world seem realistic by the believability of her character development. With some reflection, I realize that over time the reader gets to learn about the perspective of the modern southern woman. As a New Englander, I would never had this. It's a genuine perspective since the author is from Louisiana. Dead Until Dark is the first in a series that is addicting.
Yours,
Marsha
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