Living Dead in Dallas

In Living Dead in Dallas, the second novel in the Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire Mysteries series by Charlaine Harris, the heroine (as in female hero, not the drug--that's heroin) Sookie Stackhouse is still struggling to be normal and not get super-involved in vampire affairs, but her "disability" (she's telepathic) makes her desireable to powerful vampires and she has promised to help the leader of her region, Eric Northman, as long as the humans involved are sent to the police instead of killed. Eric has "loaned" Sookie to a leader in Dallas, Texas, where a vampire has gone missing and an anti-vampire group that operates under the guise of a religious organization, Fellowship of the Sun, is suspected of the kidnapping. Sookie, along with her vampire boyfriend Bill Compton, go to Dallas to uncover the mystery. Was it the Fellowship of the Sun, another vampire looking for some kind of revenge, Drainers, or some other group or person? You have to read to find out.
This book is like the book version of comfort food. Sookie can be a bit naive and sometimes takes the "I am an independent woman" thing too far, but it's a fun, light read full of action, romance, and a bit of humor. Definitely a good book

Dead Until Dark

Dead Until Dark, the first book Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse series, is a vampire romance book; however do not go into this book thinking it will be like Twilight. There are similarities, but not many. A vampire and a human fall in love, there's some mind-reading (but from the human, not the vampire) and she can't hear her lover's thoughts (she can't hear ANY vampires' thoughts). That's as far as the similarities go, though; not everyone in Twilight's audience should read these books. There is no abstinence message to speak of and there's language some readers might find offensive. Sookie can be a little annoying at times because she is 50% bratty teenager and 50% old-fashioned grandma, so her views of things can seem a tad bizarre.
Here's a little bit of what Dead Until Dark is about: Sookie Stackhouse is a barmaid at Merlotte's in Bon Temps, LA. She's single because of a problematic "disability" she's had since she was young: she can read minds. Ever since they "came out of the coffin", she has wanted to meet a vampire. Enter Bill Compton, vampire. She knows there's something different about Bill from the moment he walks in; for one thing, she can't read his mind. They fall in love after she saves him from nearly being killed permanently. But then a co-worker is killed and several other women after that; could it be Bill? You'll have to read to find out.
These books are more realistic than Twilight in my opinion, but I wouldn't call them better. They're just different--okay, maybe they're a little better. If you don't mind tastefully-written sex (it's not very descriptive of the act itself, mostly how she feels during it) and a little foul language and you like vampire books, you should read these.