Sookie Stackhouse

Recently I tore through the bulk of the Sookie Stackhouse series. These books by Charlaine Harris are the basis for the HBO series True Blood, as well as favorites among many of my friends. I resisted these books, but for I believed good reasons. I watched half a season of the HBO series and couldn't get invested. I'd heard that the books were overly sexual, and I prefer my sex a little less explicit. I'm very hit or miss on vampire fiction as a genre, and I'd heard reviews that led me to believe I wouldn't fall easily into the world Harris created.

And while I'm not in love with this series like so many I know, the thing I enjoy the most is the world that Harris created. In the first book I was intrigued not by our main characters (in fact I wanted to punch Vampire Bill in the face), but the idea that vampire's were out, and what that meant to their society. A friend lent me the first 10 books, and to my surprise, the world got more detailed, the sex became less frequent, and Vampire Bill faded into the world of background characters.

I love authors who create a new world for the reader to fall into. This is why I fell so deeply into the Harry Potter series. I also love that Harris does not shy away from killing characters off. There are a handful I don't believe that she'd kill, but I'm glad that the ones who do go are usually those we've met in previous books.

I can see why so many people love this series. It truly does blend a variety of genres together, and works in appealing to fans of all types. Different readers can find different aspects of the series to love. I personally appreciate the mythology of the series, and the darkness of an adult vampire tale. I do however wish there was more complexity in character relationships, particularly those of the non romantic nature. Sookie and her brother Jason interest me far more than Sookie and her middle of the series boyfriend.

These books will never make my top ten lists. I do appreciate them more than the Anita Blake novels, which burned me on adult supernatural fiction for many years. But the Sookie Stackhouse novels do provide a fun, quick read, and open up an entire world of possibilities.