This Month’s Book Sucked (Blood)
Posted by: Neil Hollands
At the library, my co-workers and I just have to laugh when we see yet another vampire book hit the shelves. They really are everywhere anymore. If there were as many vampires in the world as there are vampire books, the rest of us would be in big trouble!
But there really is something for almost every reader in the vampire canon, and despite being plot driven, vampire books are easy to discuss and can make for a delightful theme. It will work best if you have each group member select their own favorite and compare instead of all reading the same book.
More literary readers might try Bram Stoker’s original Dracula, Elizabeth Kostova’s The Historian, or Octavia Butler’s last book Fledgling. For mystery readers, consider Charlie Huston’s Joe Pitt series, starting with Already Dead (hardboiled), Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire series, starting with Dead Until Dark (romantic, humorous), or Dean James’s Simon Kirby-Jones mysteries (British cozy), which start with Posted to Death. Romance fans could try books by J. R. Ward, Christine Feehan, or Lynsay Sands. For a 
take that blends fantasy, action, and chick lit, try books by Kim Harrison, MaryJanice Davidson, or Laurell K. Hamilton. Historical fiction fans might like Chelsea Quinn Yarbro’s many books about the Count Saint-Germain, each of which takes place in a different historical era. For humor, try Christopher Moore’s You Suck or Andrew Fox’s series that begins with Fat White Vampire Blues. The young adult shelves also hold several interesting choices: Try Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series, M. T. Anderson’s Thirsty, Melissa de la Cruz’s Blue Bloods, or Brian Meehl’s Suck It Up for starters.
Here are five questions to get conversation rolling at your vampire meeting:
- Were the vampires in the book you read villains or sympathetic characters? Which approach do you prefer?
- How did the author combine the traditions of vampire literature with the traditions of the genre in which the book was written?
- Why are vampires so connected with sexuality? Did that hold true in the book you read?
- To which parts of the vampire legend did your book adhere? Which parts did it let go or change?
- Would the book you read make a good film? What’s your favorite vampire film?
March 26th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
You probably mean M.T. Anderson’s Thirsty, which is about a vampire. His book Feed is a futuristic novel where everyone has a “feed port” in their brain to use the internet and text each other hands free.
April 3rd, 2009 at 4:39 am
Thanks for the correction Katie, my brain skipped! I did indeed transpose the two Anderson titles.