Media Mania: Book Tie-ins to High-Interest Movies, TV Shows, and More

Vampire Views

Joy Fleishhacker -- School Library Journal, 10/15/2008

Blood is boiling in anticipation of the November 21st premier of Twilight, the feature film adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling YA novel (Little, Brown, 2005) about a teenage girl who falls in love with a vampire. In the meantime, why not tempt your more mature teens with media tie-in tidbits that also have a bit of a bite?

True Blood

Created by Alan Ball (Six Feet Under), this series recently debuted on HBO and has already been renewed for a second season. The invention of synthetic blood has allowed vampires to “come out of the coffin” and integrate into society, making many humans uneasy. However, Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), a waitress with the ability to listen to people’s thoughts, remains tolerant, especially after meeting Bill Compton (Stephen Moyer), the tall, dark, and handsome 173-year-old vampire who recently relocated to her small Louisiana town. More appropriate for older teens, the show combines supernatural elements with mystery, romance, and a colorful cast of misfit characters. Young adults can sink their teeth into the details at the official Web site.

True Blood is based on Charlaine Harris’s popular “Sookie Stackhouse” (aka “Southern Vampire”) mysteries (Ace). First published as mass market originals, titles in this fan-favorite series have blossomed into best-selling hardcover editions. Tune television fans into Dead until Dark (2001), the sequence’s first installment and winner of a 2002 Anthony Award, now available with a scintillating TV tie-in cover. Told in Sookie’s entertaining first-person narrative, Dead until Dark sets the stage, introducing a likable protagonist whose telepathic ability makes her an outsider, the mysterious vampire to whom she’s attracted, and a world where the uncanny blends with the everyday. Older teens will eat up this frothy concoction of romance, horror, and comedy.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Remember this cult classic? Created by writer-director Joss Whedon, the series aired on the WB network and then UPN from 1997 to 2003. Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) is heir to a line of young women chosen as Slayer and destined to battle vampires, demons, and more. Endowed with special abilities, she is aided by a Watcher (Anthony Stewart Head) and a cadre of loyal friends. Now available on DVD, the show has had a palpable pop-culture influence, spawning a “Buffyverse” of related spin-offs as well as fan-created fiction, Web sites, and online discussion forums.

Buffy buffs can relive past exploits and experience new adventures through graphic novel tie-ins published by Dark Horse Books in library-friendly format. Issues of the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics series, which began in 1998 and lasted throughout the show’s tenure, have been collected in easy-to-browse 6” x 9” paperback omnibuses. Test the waters with the first offering, which includes a snappy and sharply illustrated adaptation of Whedon’s original screenplay. If your library has a hard-core Buffy following, consider acquiring more of the volumes, which run roughly along the show’s timeline and compile multiple specials and guest miniseries.

Dark Horse has launched another comics series that picks up where the television show left off. Scripted by Whedon, The Long Way Home gathers issues 1-5 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight in a 7” x 10” bound paperback, while No Future for You collects issues 6-10. Occasionally containing graphic images and language, these campy horror tales continue the Buffy epic with searing storytelling, crisp artwork, and power-packed action. Go to the Dark Horse Web site’s Buffy Zone for more information.

Blood Ties

Set in Toronto, this Canadian crime drama premiered in the U.S. on Lifetime Television in 2007. Vicki Nelson (Christina Cox) is a former cop who turns P.I. due to her failing eyesight. As her caseload shifts from traditional crimes to those with a supernatural slant, she meets Henry Fitzroy (Kyle Schmid), a 480-year-old vampire and the illegitimate son of Henry VIII. Their mutual attraction is complicated by Vicki’s relationship with Mike Celluci (Dylan Neal), her former police partner and lover. Teens can get a taste of the action at the official “Blood Ties” Web site. The first season is available on DVD and episodes can be viewed for free on Lifetime’s Web site.

Blood Ties was inspired by Canadian author Tanya Huff’s “Blood Books” (DAW). Told with humor and suspense, these sophisticated, fast-reading novels feature strong characterizations, romantic tension, and plenty of eerie occurrences. All five novels were reissued in 2007 with slick-looking TV tie-in covers. Similarly adorned with an enticing TV series photo, Blood Bank collects Huff’s short stories about the characters and includes the shooting script for an episode she penned and her reflections about writing for television.

Pub Info

“The Sookie Stackhouse” Series

HARRIS, Charlaine. Dead until Dark: TV Tie-in Edition. Ace. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01699-0.

_____. Dead until Dark. 2001. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-00853-7; Tr $23.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01597-9 (2008 reissue).

_____. Living Dead in Dallas. 2002. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-00923-7.

_____. Club Dead. 2003. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01051-6.

_____. Dead to the World. 2004. Tr $19.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01167-4; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01218-3.

_____. Dead as a Doornail. 2005. Tr $22.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01279-4; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01333-3.

_____. Definitely Dead. 2006. $23.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01400-2; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01491-0.

_____. All Together Dead. 2007. Tr $24.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01494-1; pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-441-01581-8.

_____. From Dead to Worse. 2008. Tr $24.95. ISBN 978-0-441-01589-4.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Comics

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Omnibus. Volume 1. 2007. Dark Horse. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-784-6.

_____. Volume 2. 2007. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-826-3.

_____. Volume 3. 2008. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-885-0.

_____. Volume 4. 2008. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-968-0.

_____. Volume 5. 2008. pap. $24.95. ISBN 978-1-59582-225-3.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight: The Long Way Home. 2007. pap. $15.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-822-5.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight: No Future for You. 2008. DAW. pap. $15.95. ISBN 978-1-59307-963-5.

“Blood Books” Series.

Huff, Tanya. Blood Price. 2007. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7564-0501-4.

_____. Blood Trail. 2007. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7564-0502-1.

_____. Blood Lines. 2007. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7564-0503-8.

_____. Blood Pact. 2007. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7564-0504-5.

_____. Blood Debt. 2007. pap. $6.99. ISBN 978-0-7564-0505-2.