Title: The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires
Series: -
Author: Grady Hendrix
Description: Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life,
but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and
become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her
kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really
done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of
Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful
fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent
siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood.
But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the
book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is
initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts
to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming
that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more
terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing
between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting
community.
But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the
book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is
initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts
to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming
that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more
terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing
between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting
community.
Review: Patricia doesn’t have a very eventful life. She had big plans after
graduating as a nurse, but when she marries Carter, she quits her job to become
a full-time stay-at-home mom. The only exciting thing in her life is her book
club, where they meet with a number of housewives and discuss true-crime
novels. When a new neighbor, James Harris, moves into the neighborhood, strange
and gruesome things start to happen.
First of all, this is a horror book. If you can’t handle gory and
explicit scenes, this is not a book for you.
The story is entirely told from Patricia’s point of view, so you get to
know her very well. Her position as a housewife comes up several times and is
thoroughly explored, make it one of the main themes. Because yes, this book is
not just about vampires. The social differences between white and black people
in the late 80s and early 90s is also a theme, as is the housewives positions
in relation to men. Those themes along with the supernatural make the book
original and innovative.
Overall, the book isn’t filled with likeable characters. Especially the
men are unlikeable, because they have a certain “traditional” way of life and
believe the women are only there to be homemakers and mothers, nothing more or
less. There are some women that feel the same and are perfectly fine with that
vision, but mainly because they are used to this. I’m glad Patricia is a
character that wants to step away from this stereotype and tries to find her place
in the world. Because it’s so easy to relate to Patricia, it’s also very difficult
to read when there is a moment where she tells everyone about their new
neighbor James Harris, and no one believes her and even think she is crazy.
The book has a slow start, but it’s never boring. Once it comes to the
halfway point, there is non-stop action and you just can’t stop reading. There
were some really gruesome and creepy scenes in the book, that really creeped me
out.
Grady Hendrix has such a fun writing style, I really like his horror
books, so very different from the standard. I love that.
Rating: 4/ 5
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