Barbara’s Pick
March 2022
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires
Grady Hendrix
Quirk Books Publishing; Released April 7, 2020
A few months ago, I was in search of a new book. Since most of my books are electronic, I thought I might check out the librarian-recommended titles on our Libby app. On the first or second page, I found “The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires.” I cannot stress enough that I am not a horror fan—but I freely admit I’m a book club person, so I thought I’d give it a chance.
Although it is a novel, it’s set in the real suburb of Charleston called Mt. Pleasant, so there’s the southern part. The first pages are all about the Mt. Pleasant Literary Guild book club and the fateful meeting that the main character, Patricia Campbell, did not finish “Cry, the Beloved Country”—and she was supposed to lead the discussion. After being humiliated by the hostess, Patricia and a few others founded their own true crime book club as they left the meeting. Then a stranger moves into town, and weirdness ensues. (That’s the vampire part.)
Author Grady Hendrix cleverly sets the novel in the 1990s, so there’s no Googling for info on the subplots. He does a masterful job weaving the characters together as well as sprinkling vampire lore throughout.
Dare I say, I loved this book! I might even read another in this genre.