I decided a few weeks ago to read the first two Sookie Stackhouse novels, Dead Until Dark and Living Dead In Dallas, by Charlaine Harris. It seemed like a good idea at the time - I love the HBO series True Blood that’s based on the books and the show’s second season hadn’t aired yet. But much like wearing tights as pants (something that seems smart when you slip them on, but not so after deep contemplation), I found that this was a terrible mistake.

Harris’s writing style is weak, the characters are two-dimensional caricatures of real people, and the plots are shallow. For some godforsaken reason, this book series is hugely popular in the horror genre. I guess I should be grateful that the vampires here are at least real vamps - they actually kill people, unlike the lamepires in the Twilight series that don’t feed on humans and sparkle in the sun.

My advice to other True Blood fans? Skip the books because the show is a thousand times better.

Literature