The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires

“This funny and fresh take on a classic tale manages to comment on gender roles, racial disparities, and white privilege all while creeping me all the way out. So good.”—Zakiya Dalila Harris, author of The Other Black Girl

Steel Magnolias meets Dracula in this New York Times best-selling horror novel about a women's book club that must do battle with a mysterious newcomer to their small Southern town.

Patricia Campbell’s life has never felt smaller. Her husband is a workaholic, her teenage kids have their own lives, her senile mother-in-law needs constant care, and she’s always a step behind on her endless to-do list. The only thing keeping her sane is her book club, a close-knit group of Charleston women united by their love of true crime. At these meetings they’re as likely to talk about the Manson family as they are about their own families.

One evening after book club, Patricia is viciously attacked by an elderly neighbor, bringing the neighbor's handsome nephew, James Harris, into her life. James is well traveled and well read, and he makes Patricia feel things she hasn’t felt in years. But when children on the other side of town go missing, their deaths written off by local police, Patricia has reason to believe James Harris is more of a Bundy than a Brad Pitt. The real problem? James is a monster of a different kind—and Patricia has already invited him in. 
 
Little by little, James will insinuate himself into Patricia’s life and try to take everything she took for granted—including the book club—but she won’t surrender without a fight in this blood-soaked tale of neighborly kindness gone wrong.

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Published Apr 7, 2020

Average rating: 6.78

2,026 RATINGS

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Horror Explorers

Horror fiction enthusiasts in the Twin Cities, Minnesota, USA. In-person meetings of 21+ adults discuss frightening/unsettling books!

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A monthly book club that meets at the little cake company in Winston-Salem NC! ✨

Community Reviews

What Bookclubbers are saying about this book

✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires* is a gripping, darkly humorous horror blending Southern Gothic with sharp social crit...

kylie_fitz
May 26, 2025
2/10 stars
When I initially saw this book I was super pumped to read it. I was thinking Desperate Housewives meets True Blood - sounds amazing.

I felt it had potential at the beginning but I kept waiting for it to get “good”, this never happen for me. I was bored and annoyed majority of this long...long book
Denise Lauron
May 19, 2024
8/10 stars
I picked this up as a read for horror book club. Horror isn't really my genre, but I do try it once in a while.

I enjoyed this book, but there were a few minor things that bugged me, and it is possible that I missed the explanation or it is possible that the author and editor missed explaining it. I can't mention it without spoilers, but they dropped my review from 5 stars to 4 stars.

I would recommend this book if someone was into horror. There are a few gross things in it, but it just made me happier that I was reading it instead of watching it. It's worth reading.
Kchill715
Jan 05, 2023
7/10 stars
This book was a super fun read with amazing but gruesome descriptions. Really loved reading from the perspective of these characters.
Katelin
Mar 17, 2026
8/10 stars
It was a pretty good read! I’ve always loved stories where vampires were actually scary, you know? No Twilight type of vampires but actual terrifying creatures of the night. This novel definitely had the scare factor with it’s creepy crawlies. I would say there should be a little bit of a trigger warning with this one, as I wouldn’t recommend this book to just anyone.

Love Grady Hendrix’s writing, his stories and etc. This one was great. but I wouldn’t read this again. Just too freaky! Lmao
April Hannum
Mar 16, 2026
8/10 stars
Grady Hendrix does an excellent job of taking a story that has been told over and over throughout the years and putting his own spin on it. As I read the story, I found myself being reminded of a writing style reminiscent of Stephen King but even then I can’t give all the credit to Mr King as the author takes one element and turns it completely upside down. It was funny, suspenseful, grotesque, enraging, scary, and delightful all at the same time. I spent the last 250 pages speed reading because I was completely hooked and had to finish the story. It’s certainly an interesting take on a classic vampire story with lots of 90s nostalgia dispersed throughout that took me back into my own memories of that time frame. It was a great read and I look forward to reading other books that Mr Hendrix has written!

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