Bathtub Worthy

Dead Until Dark
Charlaine Harris
Ace

So, uh, I might as well admit it. I'm a bit of a loser. When I get the chance, I like nothing better than to grab a glass of white (pinot grigio if you must know,) light some vanilla candles and soak in the tub with a not-so-good book. I had the opportunity to indulge last night and it was very relaxing.

Dead Until Dark is the story of Sookie Stackhouse -- a beautiful, down to earth twenty-something who works as a barmaid in rural Louisiana. Her life gets complicated when she realizes that someone is murdering women in her very small town. The suspects include her good ol' boy brother Jason, her recently acquired vampire boyfriend Bill, and some of Bill's blood sucking acquaintances from the next town over. Oh yeah, did I mention that Sookie is a telepath and that her boss at the bar is shapeshifter? Right. You get the idea ...

A bit of a genre blender, Dead Until Dark has something for everyone except a strong plot and good characterization. It shouldn't be a surprise if I tell you that the book would make the perfect source material for a B movie script. (Hey ... maybe we could get Bruce Campbell to play Bill-- wouldn't that be fun!) As for a rating, DUD gets one fang out of five. Sorry ... couldn't resist.