Let's face it, when trying out anything remotely 'Vamp', it's always going to look cool, whether its having a new Blood Red lipstick or releasing your inner dark side. So when it comes to making Literature look insanely good again, Stephenie Meyer and Charlaine Harris have proven themselves as undeniable forces to be reckoned with. Over the past year, Twilight and True Blood have been an inspiration to many fields in more ways than one. Repeatedly at the top of the best selling lists and having international and world acclaim, it seems that both Harris and Meyer can do no wrong, as the world waits with baited breath for their next book releases.
Having read The Twilight Saga and endured being depressed at having finished all 4 books so quickly, I am now reading 'Dead Until Dark' by Charlaine Harris, the first in the Sookie Stackhouse series, her latest being a collection of short stories involving the feisty protagonist, meant for readers who 'want to have every last sip of Sookie' entitled 'A Touch Of Dead.'
Although I haven't finished the book yet, True Blood is no picnic and is a world away from the slight fantasy element that The Twilight Saga manages to retain. With Harris, you really do get the impression that Vampires do [and very well could] live in Southern America, or any part of the world. Whereas Meyer, who was brought up a Mormon, whose protagonists Edward and Bella do not sleep together until the fourth and last book, Breaking Dawn, Harris does not hold back when it comes to describing physical relationships. In the series, Bill Compton, vampiric lover of small time 'disabled' waitress Sookie Stackhouse, tells Sookie on a regular basis just how much he lusts, as well as loves her, and Harris takes a delightful thrill in throwing in the 'fuck' word, just to make things that bit more twisted, and slightly darker.
Both of the Series are must reads, and for anyone who hasn't caught on to this growing phenomonon should probably do some serious catching up. Although Harris' series is longer by several books, they should be well worth reading. Both of the narrative voices provide a pull which draws the reader in and takes hold quickly, so that once you start reading, it becomes quite difficult to stop.
For all of their similarities, the worlds of Twilight and True Blood are innately different, and can be seen very obviously when reading the books. The subsequent films and TV series surrounding them have done a great job in keeping to the stories themselves, and have chosen to compromise on almost little to nothing, which shows just how strong the books are in providing excellent blueprints.
For any of you who were wondering just how different the two vampire franchises really are, True Blood actor Stephen Moyer recently described character Edward Cullen, and not Robert Pattinson, fellow english actor, as the following: "[He's a] Pussy. He's the Slim-Fast, Diet Coke of Vampires."
Whatever you think, make sure you read the books [FIRST!] and then, if you like what you've read, take a look at the TV shows. Even if you hate the books, the films and TV shows are still thoroughly recommended purely because of the predominantly hot eye candy. Seriously. Freaking. Hot. Stuff.
The Sookie Stackhouse Series [Gollancz/Orion Books - £6.99] is as follows:
1. Dead Until Dark
2. Living Dead In Dallas
3. Club Dead
4. Dead To The World
5. Definitely Dead
6. Dead As A Doornail
7. From Dead To Worse
8. All Together Dead
9. Dead and Gone
10. A Touch Of Dead [Short Stories, HB, £11.99]
And, for the four people across the globe who missed this, in case you were wondering, The Twilight Saga [Atom Books - £6.99] is as follows:
1. Twilight
2. New Moon
3. Eclipse
4. Breaking Dawn - [HB, £11.99]
Here's the Trailers/clips from the upcoming The Twilight Saga: New Moon/ True Blood Series 2
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