Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
Spoiler Warning: This post may contain spoilers for Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire Series (a.k.a. The Sookie Stackhouse Series), and by extension, the HBO show True Blood. Charlaine Harris’s Southern Vampire Mysteries brought a fresh take to paranormal. It offered a look at the normalization of vampires in the open world. The books were urban fantasy in a rural setting. Sookie and her companions... 
A couple weeks ago I joked on Twitter that I was in need of a book boyfriend Advent calendar. There was quite a bit of “yes, please!” from others, but no one could find a good one. Clearly, this was up to me. So, to make the chaotic holiday season a little more fun and a lot more sexy, we’re going to feature a book boyfriend every day for the next 25 days. That’s right. Welcome to VBC’s 25 Days of Book... 
Earlier this week Book Riot ran a post featuring the 20 most-loved literary characters. It was a fun post and I certainly saw a few of my favorites there, but as I went to go and share the link via VBC’s Facebook page I stopped myself. As lovely as the list was, it wasn’t too heavy on the fantasy end of things. Sure, Gandalf and the Harry Potter gang were there, but it leaned much more toward the... ![Round 6: Eric Northman vs. Qhuinn [Alpha Showdown 2013]](http://vampirebookclub.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/VBC-HomeofAlphaShowdown-67822_200x200.jpg)
It’s officially time for Alpha Showdown 2013! You made your nominations and we have 16 of the most badass, alpha characters from urban fantasy and paranormal romance novels locked into the bracket. Only one will be named champion and today’s first bout is sure to end in a knockout. Round six puts vampire against vampire. The Viking vampire from Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse series is known to be... 
Dead Ever After (Sookie Stackhouse #13) Charlaine Harris Published: May 7, 2013 (Ace) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Reviewed by: Chelsea Rating (out of 5): 2.5 stars If I could use only one word to describe this final volume in the Sookie Stackhouse series, it would be meh. After the ruckus online about the ending of Charlaine Harris’ popular series, I was sure I’d finish this book either... 
I’ve had a higher-than-usual number of book recommendation requests on the VBC Facebook page and via Twitter of late. While I can, of course, just point you to the recommendations section, I decided to take a look at the most popular reviews here at VBC. Consider this post your quick access to the books reviews VBC readers found helpful. TOP 10 MOST POPULAR VBC REVIEWS Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris... 
If you’re a regular reader here, you know I value strong world building in novels. I’m more likely to give a book a rare 5-star rating if the mythology for the world feels real. This is especially true when the world is so vivid that the most fantastical elements becomes downright plausible. I need everything to make sense. I appreciate the logic authors put into the rules within their books. Even if they... 
Both Eric Northman and Kate Daniels were able to take out foes with formidable fandoms in their first matches, but how will they fare against each other in the Alpha Showdown Round 12? Viking vampire Eric Northman was able to slay a member of the Black Dagger Brotherhood (Tohrment). Kate Daniels took out ultimate enforcer Terrible. Fangs or blade will take one of these two onward in the Showdown. You get...
My gut says Round 7 of the Alpha Showdown 2012 is going to be another close call. Two vampires — always favorites here at VBC — and they both have huge followings. Things will get bloody. I’m okay with that. Today we see Eric Northman, the Viking vampire from Charlaine Harris’ ultra popular Sookie Stackhouse books, take on Tohrment, one of the beloved members of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood. Will... 
Deadlocked (Sookie Stackhouse #12) Charlaine Harris Published: May 1, 2012 (Ace) Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon Rating (out of 5): 3.5 stars Note: While this review has no spoilers for Deadlocked, it does reference events from Dead Reckoning. Vampire trouble. Werewolf problems. Fairy plotting. Relationship woes. A murder. It must be May, because we only get that mix when it’s time for a new Sookie... 
