FAQ for
"True Blood" (2008) More at IMDbPro »

True Blood is based on Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire Series.

There are nine full-length novels published so far, and seven short stories. The Sookie Stackhouse novels are typically released May of each year.

NOVELS:

1. Dead Until Dark (2001); 2. Living Dead in Dallas (2002); 3. Club Dead (2003); 4. Dead to the World (2004); 5. Dead as a Doornail (2005); 6. Definitely Dead (2006); 7. All Together Dead (2007); 8. From Dead to Worse (2008); 9. Dead and Gone (2009)

SHORT STORIES (in Anthologies): 1. Powers of Detection ["Fairy Dust"]; Edited by Dana Stabenow; stories by Anne Perry, Michael Armstrong, Anne Bishop, Laura Anne Gilman, Simon R. Green, Jay Caselberg, John Straley, Mike Doogan, Donna Andrews, Sharon Shinn, Dana Stabenow, Charlaine Harris. (2004)

2. Bite ["One Word Answer"]; Stories by Laurell K. Hamilton, Charlaine Harris, MaryJanice Davidson, Vickie Taylor, Angela Knight. (2005)

3. My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding ["Tacky"]; Edited by P.N. Elrod, stories written by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Charlaine Harris, L. A. Banks, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Esther M. Friesner, Lori Handeland, Susan Krinard. (2006)

4. Many Bloody Returns ["Dracula Night"]; Edited by Charlaine Harris & Toni L. P. Kelner; stories written by Charlaine Harris, Christopher Golden, Bill Crider, Kelley Armstrong, Jim Butcher, P.N. Elrod, Rachel Caine, Jeanne C. Stein, Tanya Huff, Carolyn Haines, Tate Hallaway, Elaine Viets, Toni L.P. Kelner. (2007)

5. Wolfsbane and Mistletoe ["Giftwrap"]; Edited by Charlaine Harris & Toni L. P. Kelner; stories written by Donna Andrews, Keri Arthur, Patricia Briggs, Dana Cameron, Karen Chance, Alan Gordon, Simon R. Green, Charlaine Harris, Toni L. P. Kelner, J. A. Konrath, Nancy Pickard, Kat Richardson, Dana Stabenow, Rob Thurman, Carrie Vaughn. (2008)

6. Blood Lite ["An Evening with Al Gore"]; Edited by Kevin J. Anderson; stories written by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Kelley Armstrong, Janet Berliner, Don D'Ammassa, Nancy Holder, Nancy Kilpatrick, J. A. Konrath and F. Paul Wilson, Joe R. Lansdale, Will Ludwigsen, Sharyn McCrumb, Mark Onspaugh, Mike Resnick, Steven Savile, D. L. Snell, Eric James Stone, Jeff Strand, Lucien Soulban, Matt Venne, Christopher Welch. (2008)

7. Usual Suspects [""]; Edited by Dana Stabenow; (Dec 2008)

ANTHOLOGY with all Sookie Stackhouse short stories: A Touch of Dead (Oct 2009)

First, the person has to be completely drained. Then they have to ingest vampire blood. Just ingesting vampire blood alone without being drained will cause your senses to be heightened, but you will not become a vampire.

Also, Season 1 showed us that the newly turned vampire must be buried until the transformation is complete.

Critics who reviewed the pre-aired Pilot were generally negative on Brooke Kerr's performance. They didn't think that she was right for the part so it went to Rutina Wesley.

(in Swedish) Eric: "Our little zoo is starting to grow" Pam: "I know"

In Season 1, Episode 10 it is confirmed that Sam is a shapeshifter, which means that he can shapeshift into another animal form (he says shifting into other humans is too complex) as long as that other animal form is nearby to emulate, since he doesn't take over the animal's body as many think. So, Sam is sometimes a dog because there is also a real dog that hangs around the bar for reference. We know that he doesn't take over the real dog's body because in Season 2, Episode 3, we see two identical dogs running, and one jumps into the water, turning into Sam. The other remains on the dock and barks at him. If Sam took over that dog's body as some believe, then there couldn't be two dogs in that scene.

She might be Sookie's faerie-godmother "Claudine". Her scene was presumably deleted because she was not introduced in the first book. She was not seen in the first season at all.

No.The tightening chain might be explained by the initial intent to cast Sookie's faerie-godmother "Claudine" during Sookie's defense of Bill from the Rattrays. In this original shooting, visible in the pre-aired pilot, the chain's movement is interpolated with Claudine's fixation on it -- possibly a telekinetic manipulation. Claudine is edited from the aired pilot, but the movement of the chain remains.So although the chain is tightening around Macks neck she is only telepathic.

He said "Åh, du ljuva frihet!"

Means "Oh, sweet freedom!"

Yes, as with most shows or series, vampires differ from the traditional ideas of a vampire. In the True Blood series, as well as the Sookie Stackhouse books, some of those differences include:

1 Vampires are public knowledge. The vampires came out when a synthetic blood was developed by the Japanese. This is called Tru Blood and comes in flavors that correspond to human blood type (O, AB, A, B -- with positive and negative variations). With the synthetic blood, vampires no longer had to feed on humans, so they decided to admit their existence. Not all are happy about this (vampire and human) and vampire rights are a big issue. The vampires claim that they just have a virus, similar to AIDS, that made them appear dead and most pretend to believe that rather than believe they are the undead. They do not have a heartbeat, no body heat, no need to breathe, have super strength, greatly enhanced senses, and super speed. When excited (sexually, by violence or feeding) their fangs come out, but otherwise, they look like pale humans.

2 Vampires can eat and drink but only get nourishment from blood (including Tru Blood). They are not deathly allergic to garlic, though most dislike the taste of it in blood. Although a vampire can live on Tru Blood, it does not have the same taste as real blood.

3 Vampires have spread disinformation about their race to protect themselves from humans. The myth about vampires not having a reflection is false because, in True Blood, they actually do.

4 Normally, vampires cannot change form or fly (in the books several can fly but so far in the HBO series, Bill has claimed it was only a legend, but near the end of Season 2 Eric flew in front of Arlene's children and Sam). Supernatural beings like were-creatures, fairies, etc... are real but most remain a secret for now. No vampire has been shown to be able to change form but in the books, a werewolf becomes a vampire and can change forms (though he is not welcome in either group).

5 Vampires do not burst into flames upon being exposed to sunlight. They begin to burn or smolder and can be consumed if they do not get to cover quickly. There is a slight difference between the TV series and the books in that the series allowed Bill to be out at daytime and burn very slowly. In the books, a vampire has difficulties waking during the day (except very old vampires like Eric).

6 Humans can benefit from vampire blood, called V in the HBO series. In the books, as well as in the series, vampire blood will give a human accelerated healing, greatly enhanced libido and attractiveness, and enhanced senses, strength and speed for a short time. In the books, using vampire blood for their special qualities is kept quiet but in the series, it is common knowledge and there are people who attempt to drain vampires to sell their blood.

7 Vampires cannot enter a humans home without an invitation. Vampires can charm or hypnotize ("glamour") a human, however, Sookie is apparently immune to this ability. Vampires can use their glamour to give false memories to a human. Before Tru Blood, a vampire would entice a victim to a secluded area, drink some of their blood, then make the victim forget all about it. The saliva from a vampire can close and heal the wound, leaving no trace. Young vampires often lose control and kill a victim, arousing suspicion, so they are monitored by an elder vampire until better trained.

8 Vampires can be killed with fire, a stake through their heart, beheading, or meeting the sun (meaning they stay outside until exposed to sunlight and burnt up). If a vampire is injured, he or she can usually recover but requires more blood while healing. In the series, Bill's healing was enhanced by being buried in the earth.

9 Vampires have a strict hierarchy and authority. In America, there are kingdoms with Kings and Queens, usually corresponding to the states. Each kingdom is then subdivided with various Sheriffs in charge of a subdivision. Eric is the Sheriff of the area in which Bon Temps is located; both the series and the books. The series has not yet delved too deeply into the hierarchy, but it is a frequent subject in the books.

Although Season 1 follows the first book fairly closely in many respects, later seasons will apparently not be following any specific book. Many characters may still appear but they may be different than in the book or they may not be different. Powers and rules may also change.

So far, Sam, Bill, Sookie, Pam, Gran, Eric, Sheriff Bud Dearborn, Terry Bellfleur and his cousin, as well as the bar and the other waitresses and various other town folk, are pretty much the same. Eric can fly in the books and has denied being able to fly in the series (but that may change). [Eric flew from Fangtasia to speak to Queen Sophie Ann in the episode "Frenzy," aired on August 30, 2009.]

Tara is not in the first book and in the book series, she is very different from the Tara character in the series. She is not black in the book. But she is merely Sookie's friend from school and owns a clothing store.

Jason is very different in the books and the series. He played a much more prominent role in the series than he does in the first book although in both he is the main murder suspect. There is no V subplot in the first book nor in other books for the most part.

Lafayette is similar in the first book and the series except that he is not a V dealer in the books and is slightly more flamboyant in the books. In the books, he meets an untimely demise fairly early though not in the first book. His character on the series appears to be sticking around longer.

Sookie's powers are almost the same in the book as in the series. In the book and series, Gran is one of the victims of the murderer. In the book, Eric kills the vampire who attacked Sookie rather than Bill and there is no trial nor does anyone force Bill to make a new vampire (Eric pays the penalty in a later book).

As per the books, Sookie has fairy blood in her; her grandmother had sex with a half-fairy. That makes Jason partially fae as well (on top of being a were-panther).

In the books, we never actually meet her. By the time she has a part in the plot, she has been turned into a vampire (by Sophie-Ann) and killed. Since both Sophie-Ann and Hadley's appearances have been bumped up into the show, she may play a more important part (as do many other minor characters).