When I looked in my book journal, I discovered that I’ve been reading Charlaine Harris’s books since 1990 – that’s a long time, but Charlaine has been writing even longer – 25 years! That’s staying power. I’m betting that a key reason her writing stays so fresh is that each of her three mystery series is quite different from the others. Her “southern vampire” series featuring Sookie Stackhouse may be coming to HBO. (The first in that series, Dead until Dark, earned an Agatha Award nomination for Best Novel and an Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original.) Details about the HBO deal may be found in the “news” section on Charlaine’s website. Charlaine also has a very active blog – featuring reviews of books by other authors – and a place for readers to post questions. Just visit  http://www.charlaineharris.com/.  

 

• (2007) An Ice Cold Grave See Review
• (2007) Grave Sight
  
• (2006) Grave Surprise

 

Charlaine Harris, who has been writing mysteries for over twenty years, is a native of Mississippi. Born and raised in the Delta, she began training for her career as soon as she could hold a pencil. Though her early works consisted largely of poems about ghosts and (later) teenage angst, she began writing plays when she attended Rhodes College in Memphis, and graduated to books a few years later.

After publishing two stand-alone mysteries, Harris decided to establish a series. She began the lighthearted Aurora Teagarden books with REAL MURDERS, which garnered an Agatha nomination. (Seventh in the series, LAST SCENE ALIVE, will appear in 2002.) Harris's protagonist, a diminutive Georgia librarian whose life never turns out quite the way she planned, kept Harris busy for several books, but finally Harris (and Aurora) grew restless.

 

The result of this restlessness was the much edgier Shakespeare series -- set not in England, but in rural Arkansas. The heroine of the Shakespeare books is Lily Bard, a tough and taciturn woman whose life has been permanently reshaped by a terrible crime and its consequences. InSHAKESPEARE'S LANDLORD, the first in the series, Lily is caught at a moment when the shell she's built around herself is just beginning to crack, and the books capture Lily's emotional re-entry into the world, while also being sound mysteries. The fifth Shakespeare book,SHAKESPEARE'S COUNSELOR, will be printed in Fall 2001.

 

Harris's latest venture is a series about a telepathic barmaid in southern Louisiana. The first book in the series, DEAD UNTIL DARK, won the Anthony for best paperback mystery of 2001. Each book about Sookie Stackhouse (and her dealings with vampires and werewolves and other creatures of the night) has gathered more readers to enjoy the books' unique blend of mystery, humor, romance, and the supernatural. The Sookie books are also being read in Japan, Spain,Greece, and Great Britain.

 

In addition to her work as a writer, Harris is married and the mother of three teenagers. A former weight lifter and karate student, she is an avid reader and cinemaphile. She is a member of the vestry of St. James Episcopal Church.

 

Harris is a member of the Mystery Writers of America and the American Crime Writers League. She is a member of the board of Sisters in Crime, and alternates with Joan Hess as president of the Arkansas Mystery Writers Alliance.

 

Photo and profile from author’s website. Used with permission.

 

Author’s website: http://www.charlaineharris.com/