Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse, #1)

by Charlaine Harris

[Whitney @ First Impressions Reviews]

Sookie Stackhouse is just a small-time cocktail waitress in small-town Bon Temps, Louisiana; where the living mingle with the undead and synthetic blood is a staple at the local bar. Until the vampire of her dreams walks into her life-and one of her coworkers checks out....Maybe having a vampire for a boyfriend isn't such a bright idea

Realizing that the Twilight series came out after Sookie Stackhouse I still couldn't help but notice the similarities between the two. In Dead Until Dark, Sookie has a "disability" she can read peoples minds making her somewhat of an oddity, but this gift excludes the "undead" better off known as vampires which also happens to included her boyfriend Bill. In Twilight, the roles are reversed, the vampire Edward can hear others thoughts and like Sookie the only one mind he cannot enter is that of his girlfriend Bella. The second glaring coincidence is that both girl's best friend is a shape-shifter. Jake who transforms into a werewolf and Sam who can change into any animal on the full moon, but prefers a collie as it is little easier to shift to; also I sense a paranormal love triangle in the making.

Despite these mere comparisons I thoroughly enjoyed this introduction to the Southern Vampire Series. It is a fast paced amusing mystery read, with cute barmaid Sookie, using her wits and special talent to help apprehend the person who is murdering girls in her hometown who have had relationships with local vampires, and works to prove both her boyfriend Bill and brother Jason's innocence in the crime.

All the characters where so fun, and look forward to seeing them grow, especially those of Bill and Sam with their relationships to Sookie; and look forward to reading the rest of the series.