A review by marthadude
The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I was absolutely hooked on this book. I abandoned all my responsibilities and got through it in two days. The title absolutely gives away the plot, but the tension makes up for it and keeps you guessing on what's going to happen next.  I would definitely check the trigger warning because it hits a lot of them. I will also say that there are parts where the author relies a lot of stereotypes and archetypes, which isn't necessarily always handled well in my opinion. I also think that

the sexual assault and the way the vampire feeds goes too far. Instead of going for the neck, as traditional vampires do, he goes for a vein in the inner thigh. It really makes it sexual for what seems like just shock value, which is especially concerning given the fact that most of his victims are underaged. Likewise, the rape that occurs in the book, while not needlessly graphic, was wholly unnecessary in my opinion. Apparently, this is what is required to turn a person into a vampire, and, honestly it doesn't make a lot of sense. It felt like it didn't need to go in that direction. In addition, I don't understand why Patrica's son was obsessed with nazis and why it wasn't really addressed in any meaningful way. It was just an odd choice.

Overall, this book was a fun and faced paced read and I had a good time reading it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, and Violence

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Dementia

A main character is raped by a supernatural creature. While the rape itself isn't graphically discussed, the aftermath of it is. Because of this, the character is sick for a long time and eventually dies. There is also a jarring scene where the same supernatural creature (who is a grown man) feeds off of a high schooler. This scene is almost sexual in nature, as both of these characters are naked in bed. No actual sex happens but it's very suggestive as the creature feeds on the inner thigh. The creature also feeds on a 9 year old, but this scene is much less suggestive in nature.