The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires
By Grady Hendrix
- Release Date: 2020-04-07
- Genre: Horror
Description
“This funny and fresh take on a classic tale manages to comment on gender roles, racial disparities, and white privilege all while creeping me all the way out. So good.”—Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl
Steel Magnolias meets Dracula in this New York Times best-selling horror novel about a women's book club that must do battle with a mysterious newcomer to their small Southern town.
Bonus features:
• Reading group guide for book clubs
• Hand-drawn map of Mt. Pleasant
• Annotated true-crime reading list by Grady Hendrix
• And more!
Patricia Campbell’s life has never felt smaller. Her husband is a workaholic, her teenage kids have their own lives, her senile mother-in-law needs constant care, and she’s always a step behind on her endless to-do list. The only thing keeping her sane is her book club, a close-knit group of Charleston women united by their love of true crime. At these meetings they’re as likely to talk about the Manson family as they are about their own families.
One evening after book club, Patricia is viciously attacked by an elderly neighbor, bringing the neighbor's handsome nephew, James Harris, into her life. James is well traveled and well read, and he makes Patricia feel things she hasn’t felt in years. But when children on the other side of town go missing, their deaths written off by local police, Patricia has reason to believe James Harris is more of a Bundy than a Brad Pitt. The real problem? James is a monster of a different kind—and Patricia has already invited him in.
Little by little, James will insinuate himself into Patricia’s life and try to take everything she took for granted—including the book club—but she won’t surrender without a fight in this blood-soaked tale of neighborly kindness gone wrong.
Reviews
Involves sexual assault
1By CatR410Involves sexual assault and graphic sexual scenes with minors. Was not funny. Was actively and gratuitously gross multiple times. Possibly my least favorite book I’ve ever read.loved the book.
4By sleepyblackboythis book was a major page turner, and as someone who has experienced being gas lit or underestimated, i found myself so frustrated for Patricia. The book was very well written, and each character had their own personality. I’d read it again or recommend it to someone else.A Blazing Fast Read!
5By SeaPaulThe Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires is absolutely indulgent. It captures the final bastion of the American Housewife and catapults her into a horrifyingly heroic new age for women. I read it in just over 24 hours! Make sure you have the weekend free to read this, because once you start it, you won’t want to put it down. Hendrix spins such an enjoyable horror, the reader must be careful, as this tale goes from hilarious to horrific in a heartbeat.Ho-ly Cow
5By 4Adventur3This is so good. I have been buying copies as gifts for people to get this book into more hands. It’s so clever and cute and rotted and terrifying all at the same time. Love this.Like a Really Bad Horror Movie
2By BE2forever#Almost DNF’d a quarter of way through, but gave it another chance. Made it only halfway through - the characters were just too infuriatingly naive. Quickly skimmed the second half to see when the characters actually get a clue, and how they kill the vampire.Soooooo good!!!
5By FlappyturkeyThis book hooked me. I know you can’t judge a book by its cover, but that’s exactly what made me pick it up! Beautiful cover and a fascinating story! It’s so deeply rooted inside a woman’s mind and soul, it’s astonishing that it was written by a man! I’d recommend this to anyone who loves drama, spooky stories, or all things Southern! Fantastic!!!!!Fun read
4By Santa RicEnjoyable storytelling with good characters.Sucked me in!
5By MelD239I’ll start by saying I truly enjoyed this book. Quick read - I got sucked in immediately. My no spoilers synopsis - the way the women in this book are treated and their acceptance of it gave me real stress. In general the men in this book sucked. They all seemed like the “monster” to me. Creative story and plot line.Slow start, but quick read
5By Lolly AnnThe start was slow for me, but once I got to the “meat”, I couldn’t put it down. I really loved Patricia, Mrs. Green, and the other ladies. A true depiction of how Southern hospitality can bite you in the butt.I didn’t want the story to end.
4By browneyesblueI’m familar with author Grady Hendrix because I read his novels The Final Girl’s Support Group and How to Sell A Haunted House. I truly enjoy reading his novels. The Southern Book Club’s Guide To Slaying Vampire is not the story that I expected it to be. It is a more complicated story than I imagine. It starts as the story of a housewife named Patricia Campbell who is annoyed that her husband Carter volunteered one summer to take care of his ailing elderly mom. He knew good and well that he was not going to do it. She would. One evening while taking out the trash she’s bitten and attacked by a neighbor. Through that experience she meets a man named James Harris who claims that he is the neighbor’s nephew. Patricia has a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach that he is not who he seems to be. I’ve read quite a few tales about vampires. I think this one is unique. Initially, I assumed that this story would be similar to a Buffy the vampire scenario with Patricia joining her fellow book club members. They would take on vampires and such. Well, that situation happens but the circumstances are much different than I imagined and more sinister. I give this book four stars out of five . The writing was familar to me because I’m a fan of the author. The pacing was medium. There are a few unsettling scenes of gore , drug references and sexual assault. I was satisfied with the ending and didn’t want to say good bye to Patricia or the rest of the main characters. Even the antagonist was interesting.Very entertaining
5By CaddomikeI couldn’t put it down!Extremely disappointed
2By Sosa 35674689This book had a great premise, great story, great plot UP UNTIL AFTER THE CLIMAX. After the climax, this book read like the author’s thinly veiled fetish. Sick, twisted, and disgusting. There really isn’t anything to say good about the end. Pretty sure the main villian is a self insert. My god, very disgusting.Slow start but MAN what an ending!!!
4By Emm.boydI had a hard time getting into this book at first… but once I was in the meat of it.. captivating. Could not put it down!! You’ll hang on every word. Not for the faint of heart. Definitely descriptive and grotesque, but you feel as if you’re in it with the characters!I wish I could unread this
1By Anonymous205I get that this book is horror, and I’ve read Stephen King and Dean Koontz. But this. This set off every single trigger I have. I wanted was a hilarious romp where Towanda finds and kills vampires, like if Buffy went to the country club. What I got was a lot of weak women who acted far too late, in my opinion. TW: kidnapping, assault, rape, murder, gaslighting.Pure Enjoyment
5By AtomicCougLOVED this book. Purely enjoyed every single minute spent with it.A spooky southern delight
5By peylolI loved the humor, the accuracy of 90s housewife life, and the shocking horror that came out of nowhere. Also, if you like true crime- the cases interwoven with the plot will make you love it even more!Quick thriller!
5By Alden0700Silly & fun horror novel! Read it at the beach and it was a perfect read!Loved it
5By bobbjean52464I loved this book! Couldn’t put it down!Interesting Read
4By SRVLVRI read this around Halloween. I found it a unique take on the vampire genre. I found myself frustrated with the main character and how she related to her husband and children at times (but I don’t want to give too much away). Overall I liked it.
